Terry Rossio (born July 2, 1960) is an American
screenwriter
A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based.
...
. He co-wrote the films ''
Aladdin
Aladdin ( ; ar, علاء الدين, ', , ATU 561, ‘Aladdin') is a Middle-Eastern folk tale. It is one of the best-known tales associated with ''The Book of One Thousand and One Nights'' (''The Arabian Nights''), despite not being part of ...
'', ''
Shrek
''Shrek'' is a 2001 American computer-animated comedy film loosely based on the 1990 book of the same name by William Steig. It is the first installment in the ''Shrek'' franchise. The film was directed by Andrew Adamson and Vicky Jenso ...
'', and all five of the
''Pirates of the Caribbean'' series. He was nominated for the
Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay
The Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay is the Academy Award for the best screenplay adapted from previously established material. The most frequently adapted media are novels, but other adapted narrative formats include stage plays, musica ...
for ''Shrek'', and won the
Annie Award for Writing in a Feature Production
The Annie Award for Outstanding Achievement for Writing in a Feature Production (or Annie Award for Outstanding Achievement for Writing in an Animated Feature Production) is an Annie Award awarded annually, except in 1997, to the best animated fe ...
, as well as the
BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) Award for Best Adapted Screenplay has been presented to its winners since 1968, when the original category (BAFTA Award for Best Screenplay) was split into two awards, the other being the BAF ...
for ''Shrek''. He often collaborates with fellow screenwriter
Ted Elliott.
Life and career
Rossio was born in
Kalamazoo, Michigan
Kalamazoo ( ) is a city in the southwest region of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is the county seat of Kalamazoo County. At the 2010 census, Kalamazoo had a population of 74,262. Kalamazoo is the major city of the Kalamazoo-Portage Metropolit ...
. After graduating from
Saddleback High School
Saddleback High School is a six-year IB secondary school located in Santa Ana, California, United States, and is part of the Santa Ana Unified School District. The school was established in 1967. Its mascot is the roadrunner, and its colors are g ...
in
Santa Ana, California
Santa Ana () is the second most populous city and the county seat of Orange County, California. Located in the Greater Los Angeles region of Southern California, the city's population was 310,227 at the 2020 census, making Santa Ana the List of ...
, he went on to study at
California State University, Fullerton
California State University, Fullerton (CSUF or Cal State Fullerton) is a public university in Fullerton, California. With a total enrollment of more than 41,000, it has the largest student body of the 23-campus California State University (CSU) ...
where he received his
Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...
in Communications, with an emphasis in radio, television and film. He is the founder of
Wordplay
Word play or wordplay (also: play-on-words) is a literary technique and a form of wit in which words used become the main subject of the work, primarily for the purpose of intended effect or amusement. Examples of word play include puns, phone ...
, also known a
Wordplayer.com one of the premier screenwriting sites on the Internet.
Along with his writing partner
Ted Elliott, Rossio has written some of the most successful American films of the past 30 years, including ''
Aladdin
Aladdin ( ; ar, علاء الدين, ', , ATU 561, ‘Aladdin') is a Middle-Eastern folk tale. It is one of the best-known tales associated with ''The Book of One Thousand and One Nights'' (''The Arabian Nights''), despite not being part of ...
'', ''
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl'' and ''
Shrek
''Shrek'' is a 2001 American computer-animated comedy film loosely based on the 1990 book of the same name by William Steig. It is the first installment in the ''Shrek'' franchise. The film was directed by Andrew Adamson and Vicky Jenso ...
''. He is the eleventh-most successful screenwriter of all time in terms of domestic box office receipts with totals at around $5.5 billion. In May 1993, Rossio and Elliott were hired by
TriStar Pictures
TriStar Pictures, Inc. (spelled as Tri-Star until 1991) is an American film studio and production company that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, part of the multinational conglomerate Sony. It is a corporate sibling of Sony ...
to write a screenplay for ''
Godzilla
is a fictional monster, or '' kaiju'', originating from a series of Japanese films. The character first appeared in the 1954 film ''Godzilla'' and became a worldwide pop culture icon, appearing in various media, including 32 films produc ...
'', which featured Godzilla battling a shape-shifting alien in New York. Their script was dropped by
Roland Emmerich
Roland Emmerich (; born 10 November 1955) is a German film director, screenwriter, and producer. He is widely known for his science fiction and disaster films and has been called a "master of disaster" within the industry. His films, most of wh ...
in favor of a new script of his own co–written with
Dean Devlin
Dean Devlin (born August 27, 1962) is an American screenwriter, producer, director, and actor of film and television. He is best known for his collaborations with director Roland Emmerich, and for his work on the The Librarian (franchise), ''Li ...
. However, Rossio and Elliott retained a "Story By" credit.
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." In March 2017,
Legendary Entertainment
Legendary Pictures Productions, LLC (doing business as Legendary Entertainment or simply Legendary) is an American film production and mass media company based in Burbank, California, founded by Thomas Tull in 2000. The company has collaborated ...
announced that Rossio would lead their writers room to help develop the story for ''
Godzilla vs. Kong''.
He received "story by" credit on the film. In June 2019, Rossio was announced as the screenwriter for ''
The Amazing Maurice
''The Amazing Maurice'' is a 2022 computer-animated fantasy comedy film directed by Toby Genkel and co-directed by Florian Westermann, from a screenplay by Terry Rossio, based on the 2001 novel '' The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents'' b ...
''.
In 2021, Rossio and
Bill Marsilii sold their spec script ''Time Zone'' to
Amazon Studios
Amazon Studios is an American television and film producer and distributor that is a subsidiary of Amazon. It specializes in developing television series and distributing and producing films. It was started in late 2010. Content is distributed th ...
. The film will be a joint venture between Amazon Studios and
Davis Entertainment
Davis Entertainment (also known as Davis Entertainment Company) is an American film and television production company, founded by John Davis in 1984.
Davis's three divisions–feature film, independent film, and television–develop and produc ...
.
Personal life
Controversy
Rossio created controversy when he argued in support of parents of vaccine-injured children by citing the
N-word
In the English language, the word ''nigger'' is an ethnic slur used against black people, especially African Americans. Starting in the late 1990s, references to ''nigger'' have been progressively replaced by the euphemism , notably in cases ...
as a slur not to be emulated with the phrase Anti-Vax. In November 2018, Rossio tweeted: "My heart goes out to all the parents of vaccine damaged children, who have to not only endure the sadness of their loss, but also the vitriol of ill-informed and insensitive people (such as those here). Anti-Vax is equivalent to calling someone a nigger and makes as little sense". Rossio received backlash for using the slur, and for comparing anti-vaccination defenders with victims of racism. Two days later, Rossio apologized for using the slur, stating, "that was a mistake. I am sorry. I now understand that the word has no place in any conversation, ever."
Filmography (partial)
Other credits
References
External links
Wordplayer.com*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rossio, Terry
1960 births
American male screenwriters
Animation screenwriters
Best Adapted Screenplay BAFTA Award winners
California State University, Fullerton alumni
DreamWorks Animation people
Living people
Writers from Kalamazoo, Michigan
Walt Disney Animation Studios people
People from Santa Ana, California
Screenwriters from California
Screenwriters from Michigan