Writers that overshadow their directors?

Right Turn Clyde

In this month's Sight & Sound Charlie Kauffman is described as a writer that overshadowed the various directors that he worked with.

Can you name any more?

Bonus points for writers that have made the transition to directing, as Kauffman has.

sky88

Aaron Sorkin is the only one i can think of. Danny Boyles name was barley mentioned in anything ive heard of jobs.

Skerries

what about writers that have been turned into numerous films like Michael Crichton, Stephen King and Phillip K Dick?

karaokeman

I think Lawrence Kasdan is better regarded in the Star Wars community than Irvin Kershner and Richard Marquand. The Force Awakens is a different story because J.J. Abrams was already well known and respected, but I don't hear anyone talk about who directed Empire or Return of the Jedi. He transitioned to directing too.

Theboinkmaster

karaokeman wrote: »

I think Lawrence Kasdan is better regarded in the Star Wars community than Irvin Kershner and Richard Marquand. The Force Awakens is a different story because J.J. Abrams was already well known and respected, but I don't hear anyone talk about who directed Empire or Return of the Jedi. He transitioned to directing too.

Not sure he should get much credit on TFA since it's just a re-hash of ANH.

Right Turn Clyde

Skerries wrote: »

what about writers that have been turned into numerous films like Michael Crichton, Stephen King and Phillip K Dick?

That's an interesting angle on it, but those authors are established names already. The interesting thing about people like Kauffman and Sorkin is that they've become big names in an industry that traditionally keeps writers in the background.

Arghus

Paddy Chayefsky.

One could make that argument that David Mamet is more of a draw that many of the directors who have adapted his work.

Glengarry Glen Ross, for example, is usually seen primarily as a David Mamet film, despite it being directed by James Foley.

Similarly, the first words to appear in the trailer for the film Edmond are “from writer David Mamet”, although the film itself was directed by Stuart Gordon.

Chain Smoker

Diablo Cody seemed to get a lot more attention than Reitman when both Juno and Young Adult came out.

William Goldman possibly? He's someone who gets a lot of credit when his name shows up in the credits at all.

Was gonna say David Mamet, but doesn't he direct most his stuff? In most cases I think if you've got the rep as a writer, you use it to become director and avoid the creative conflicts of working with a director. Woody Allen worked his way into directing as fast as he could, Billy Wilder done the same, Nora Ephron... most cases seem to be like that.
Paddy Chayefsky tore apart most the films he wrote on account of directorial choices, didn't he?

bnt

Nora Ephron was another - you can tell by the way the films she directed were as much "her" as those she just wrote.

JP Liz V1

Chain Smoker wrote: »

Diablo Cody seemed to get a lot more attention than Reitman when both Juno and Young Adult came out.

Diablo Cody was one that I was thinking too, all talk about her and not much about Jason Reitman for Juno especially, she won a Oscar too I believe for that script

xper

Richard Curtis would have been a clear case a few years ago, I think, but more lately he has been director too or worked with well known directors.