Terry Rossio | |
|---|---|
_(cropped).png) Rossio in 2009 | |
| Born | Terry P. Rossio (1960-07-02)July 2, 1960 (age 65) |
| Occupations | Screenwriter,Film Producer |
| Years active | 1989–present |
Terry P. Rossio[1] (born July 2, 1960) is an Americanscreenwriter andfilm producer. He co-wrote the filmsAladdin,The Mask of Zorro,Shrek, and all five of thePirates of the Caribbean series. ForShrek, he was nominated for theAcademy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay, and won theAnnie Award for Writing in a Feature Production andBAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. He often collaborates with fellow screenwriterTed Elliott.
Rossio was born inKalamazoo, Michigan.[citation needed] After graduating fromSaddleback High School inSanta Ana, California, he went on to study atCalifornia State University, Fullerton where he received hisBachelor of Arts in Communications, with an emphasis in radio, television and film. He is the founder ofWordplay, also known asWordplayer.com, one of the premier screenwriting sites on the Internet.
Along with his writing partnerTed Elliott, Rossio has written some of the most successful American films of the past 30 years, includingAladdin,Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl andShrek.[2] He is the eleventh-most successful screenwriter of all time in terms of domestic box office receipts with totals at around $5.5 billion.[3] In May 1993, Rossio and Elliott were hired byTriStar Pictures to write a screenplay forGodzilla, which featured Godzilla battling a shape-shifting alien in New York. Their script was dropped byRoland Emmerich in favor of a new script of his own co–written withDean Devlin. However, Rossio and Elliott retained a "Story By" credit.[4]
In 2011, Terry Rossio was working on a script for a fifthPirates of the Caribbean film without his partner Ted Elliott.[5] Rossio's script was discarded in 2012, and the writer stated on his website Wordplay that a major reason was its use of a female villain, which made actorJohnny Depp "worried that it would be redundant toDark Shadows, which also featured a female villain."[6] By January 2013, Disney hiredJeff Nathanson,[7] with whom Rossio shared co-story credit with. Following the theatrical release ofPirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales in 2017, Rossio released his unproduced screenplay, and made it available on Wordplay.[8]
In 2015, Dodie Gold Management filed a Commissions Non-Payment Lawsuit against Rossio and sought a jury trial for "damages of more than $25,000 plus a court declaration that they are entitled to the 10% commissions and a full look at the records and accounting of Rossio and his Chamaeleon Productions."[9] In March 2017,Legendary Entertainment announced that Rossio would lead their writers room to help develop the story forGodzilla vs. Kong.[10] He received "story by" credit on the film.[11] In June 2019, Rossio was announced as the screenwriter forThe Amazing Maurice.[12]
In 2021, Rossio andBill Marsilii sold their spec scriptTime Zone toAmazon Studios. The film will be a joint venture between Amazon Studios andDavis Entertainment.[13]
In February 2023Ashly Bell and Dr.Bernice A King (daughter ofMartin Luther King) announced their intent to executive produceCash Money, written by Terry Rossio andKevin Arbouet, concurrent with the launch of ReadLife Entertainment, which plans to create television and film projects centered around strong social messaging. Arbouet is going to direct Cash Money.[14]
On November 23, 2018, Rossio expressed his condolences to parents of "vaccine damaged children", however, he likened the term "anti-vax" to a slur equivalent to "nigger." Following immediate outcry, he apologized the day after for using the slur and for proclaiming that both epithets were analogous.[15]
| Year | Film | Credit | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | Little Monsters | Written by | Co-wrote withTed Elliott | |
| 1992 | Aladdin | Screenplay by | Co-wrote screenplay with Ted Elliott &Ron Clements andJohn Musker | |
| 1994 | The Puppet Masters | Screenplay by | Co-wrote screenplay with Ted Elliott andDavid S. Goyer | |
| 1998 | The Mask of Zorro | Screenplay by Story by | Co-wrote screenplay withJohn Eskow and Ted Elliott Co-wrote story with Ted Elliott andRandall Jahnson | |
| Godzilla | Story by | Early unproduced screenplay; Co-wrote with Ted Elliott | [4] | |
| Small Soldiers | Written by | Co-wrote with Ted Elliott &Gavin Scott andAdam Rifkin | ||
| 1999 | Men in Black | Screenplay by | Co-worked with Ted Elliott; uncredited | [16] |
| 2000 | The Road to El Dorado | Written by | Co-wrote with Ted Elliott | |
| 2001 | Shrek | Written by Co-producer | Co-wrote with Ted Elliott &Joe Stillman andRoger S. H. Schulman | |
| 2002 | Treasure Planet | Story by | Co-wrote story with Ted Elliott & Ron Clements and John Musker | |
| 2003 | Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl | Screenplay by Story by | Co-wrote screenplay with Ted Elliott Co-wrote story with Ted Elliott &Stuart Beattie andJay Wolpert | |
| 2005 | The Legend of Zorro | Story by | Co-wrote story with Ted Elliott &Roberto Orci andAlex Kurtzman | |
| 2006 | Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest | Written by | Co-wrote with Ted Elliott | |
| Déjà Vu | Written by Executive producer | Co-wrote withBill Marsilii | ||
| 2007 | Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End | Written by | Co-wrote with Ted Elliott | |
| National Treasure: Book of Secrets | Story by | Co-wrote story with Ted Elliott & Gregory Poirier &Cormac Wibberley and Marianne Wibberley | ||
| 2009 | G-Force | Associate producer | Uncredited rewrite | |
| 2011 | Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides | Screenplay by Executive producer | Co-wrote screenplay with Ted Elliott | |
| Pirates of the Caribbean: Tales of the Code – Wedlocked | Written by | Short film; Co-wrote with Ted Elliott | ||
| 2013 | Lovestruck: The Musical | Written by Executive producer | TV film; Co-wrote with Jaylynn Bailey | |
| The Lone Ranger | Screenplay by Executive producer | Co-wrote screenplay with Ted Elliott andJustin Haythe | ||
| 2017 | Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales | Story by Executive producer | Early unproduced screenplay;[8] co-story credit withJeff Nathanson | |
| 2019 | Aladdin | Based on | Credited with Ron Clements & John Musker and Ted Elliott | |
| 2021 | Godzilla vs. Kong | Story by | Head of writers room; co-wrote story withMichael Dougherty and Zach Shields | [17][10] |
| 2022 | The Amazing Maurice | Screenplay by | [12] | |
| 2024 | Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire | Screenplay by Story by | Co-wrote script withJeremy Slater andSimon Barrett Co-wrote story with Barrett andAdam Wingard | [18] |
| Year | Film | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Men in Black | Additional literary material (uncredited) |
| 1998 | Antz | Consultant/advisor |
| 2003 | Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas | |
| 2004 | Shrek 2 | Creative consultant |
| King Arthur | Additional literary material (uncredited) | |
| National Treasure | Additional literary material (uncredited) | |
| 2008 | The Spiderwick Chronicles | Additional literary material (uncredited) |
| 2015 | Jake and the Never Land Pirates | Episode #89 –Captain Frost Co-wrote storyboards with Ted Elliott[citation needed] |
| 2016 | Star Trek Beyond | Additional literary material (uncredited) |
| 2021 | Arcane: League of Legends | Writing consultant |
