Hollywood has a lot of go-to screenwriters when it comes to its biggest blockbusters. Some writers, it seems, just have a knack for conceiving of the exact kind of rousing, crowd-pleasing entertainment that mass audiences love (and that studios love to invest in). Most major blockbusters tend to hire teams of screenwriters, even though only a few are credited. And while most of the biggest blockbuster writers share their work with many others, they always seem to be present when money is being made.
Attentive filmgoers might immediately recognize names like Ehren Kruger, the screenwriter behind super-hits like “The Ring,” three “Transformers” sequels, “Top Gun: Maverick,” and “F1.” Per The Numbers, his films have, collectively, earned over $6.2 billion at the global box office.
Meanwhile, animation fans might mention Andrew Stanton, who’s written multiple Pixar movies, including the “Toy Story” films. His movies have grossed almost $5.66 billion theatrically. Or perhaps they would point to the screenwriting team of Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger, who’ve penned the “Kung Fu Panda” films, the “SpongeBob SquarePants” movies, and the “Trolls” movies. Their movies have earned nearly $4.25 billion.
Of the blockbuster writers, though, none may be more famous than David Koepp, the writer of “Death Becomes Her,” “Jurassic Park,” “Mission: Impossible,” “Spider-Man,” and piles of others. His films have netted $7.51 billion.
Just nosing out Koepp in terms of their grosses, however, is the duo of Christopher Marcus and Stephen McFeely. The pair have had a hand in penning seven of the highest-grossing films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. They also scripted the three extant “Chronicles of Narnia” movies released from 2005 to 2010, all of which were successful. Collectively, their films have earned almost $9.29 billion, making them the highest-grossing screenwriters in history … at least at the domestic box office.