Who Are the Best Screenwriters of All Time?

In order to make a movie or TV show, you first need an idea, and those ideas come from screenwriters. The greatest screenwriters in history are the ones who can capture an audience's hearts and imaginations.

They take us to special places and introduce us to characters who feel like our best friends. They are the film writers and TV writers who keep Hollywood running.

But who are they? What are their names? And what are the projects they gave us?

Today, we're going to talk about some of the greatest writers in history. We'll focus on film writers and TV writers who are the top screenwriters around.

Their work will help inspire and educate you. Studying their scripts will make you better at your craft. And knowing their names is honoring them for the contributions they've made to Hollywood history. You can develop your voice that way.

So let's figure out who the best screenplay writers are and see what we can glean from making this list.

Who Are the Best Screenwriters of All Time?

This is one of the hardest prompts we've tried to answer because in the last 100+ years of filmmaking and television, there are so many great writers.

It feels like a true burden to pick the best scriptwriters out there, but it's a task I know we can finish. In order to do this, we broke them down into specific categories.

Apologies for the names I leave off. We'll try to keep this constantly updated with famous movie screenwriters.

Top Screenwriters in Movies

When it comes to the best screenwriters in movies, the list is long, but I think we should start with William Goldman. Goldman is the man behind screenplays such as Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, The Princess Bride, and All the President's Men. His book, Adventures in the Screen Trade, is a must-read for aspiring screenwriters everywhere. He's got to be the most famous screenwriter among screenwriters.

So who are the other best movie writers of all time?

We would be remiss if we didn't include Billy Wilder, Paddy Chayefsky, Charlie Kaufman, Robert Towne, Francis Ford Coppola, Nora Ephron, Quentin Tarantino, Aaron Sorkin, Steve Zaillian, Scott Frank, Eric Roth, Dalton Trumbo, The Coen Brothers, James Cameron, Spike Lee, Paul Schrader, John Logan, Nancy Meyers, Herman J. Mankiewicz, Melissa Mathison, Frank Darabont, Mel Brooks, George Lucas, John Patrick Shanley, and Cameron Crowe.

That's a long list, but it feels like a short list compared to all the monumental people who have come to help craft some of our favorite screenplays and movies.

TrumboCredit: Fox

Best Movie Scripts and Famous Screenplays

A few years ago, the WGA ranked what they think are the 101 greatest screenplays of all time. Many of the movie writers I talked about earlier are on this list, as are many other amazing writers. Check it out below.

1. CASABLANCA
Screenplay by Julius J. & Philip G. Epstein and Howard Koch. Based on the play "Everybody Comes to Rick's" by Murray Burnett and Joan Alison

2. THE GODFATHER
Screenplay by Mario Puzo and Francis Ford Coppola. Based on the novel by Mario Puzo

3. CHINATOWN
Written by Robert Towne

4. CITIZEN KANE
Written by Herman Mankiewicz and Orson Welles

5. ALL ABOUT EVE
Screenplay by Joseph L. Mankiewicz. Based on "The Wisdom of Eve," a short story and radio play by Mary Orr

6. ANNIE HALL
Written by Woody Allen and Marshall Brickman

7. SUNSET BLVD.
Written by Charles Brackett & Billy Wilder and D.M. Marshman, Jr.

8. NETWORK
Written by Paddy Chayefsky

9. SOME LIKE IT HOT
Screenplay by Billy Wilder & I.A.L. Diamond. Based on "Fanfare of Love," a German film written by Robert Thoeren and M. Logan

10. THE GODFATHER II
Screenplay by Francis Ford Coppola and Mario Puzo. Based on Mario Puzo's novel "The Godfather"

11. BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCE KID
Written by William Goldman

12. DR. STRANGELOVE
Screenplay by Stanley Kubrick and Peter George and Terry Southern. Based on novel "Red Alert" by Peter George

13. THE GRADUATE
Screenplay by Calder Willingham and Buck Henry. Based on the novel by Charles Webb

14. LAWRENCE OF ARABIA
Screenplay by Robert Bolt and Michael Wilson. Based on the life and writings of Col. T.E. Lawrence

15. THE APARTMENT
Written by Billy Wilder & I.A.L. Diamond

16. PULP FICTION
Written by Quentin Tarantino. Stories by Quentin Tarantino & Roger Avary

17. TOOTSIE
Screenplay by Larry Gelbart and Murray Schisgal. Story by Don McGuire and Larry Gelbart

18. ON THE WATERFRONT
Screen Story and Screenplay by Budd Schulberg. Based on "Crime on the Waterfront" articles by Malcolm Johnson

19. TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD
Screenplay by Horton Foote. Based on the novel by Harper Lee

20. IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE
Screenplay by Frances Goodrich & Albert Hackett & Frank Capra. Based on short story "The Greatest Gift" by Philip Van Doren Stern. Contributions to screenplay Michael Wilson and Jo Swerling

21. NORTH BY NORTHWEST
Written by Ernest Lehman

22. THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION
Screenplay by Frank Darabont. Based on the short story "Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption" by Stephen King

23. GONE WITH THE WIND
Screenplay by Sidney Howard. Based on the novel by Margaret Mitchell

24. ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND
Screenplay by Charlie Kaufman. Story by Charlie Kaufman & Michel Gondry & Pierre Bismuth

25. THE WIZARD OF OZ
Screenplay by Noel Langley and Florence Ryerson and Edgar Allan Woolf Adaptation by Noel Langley. Based on the novel by L. Frank Baum

26. DOUBLE INDEMNITY
Screenplay by Billy Wilder and Raymond Chandler. Based on the novel by James M. Cain

27. GROUNDHOG DAY
Screenplay by Danny Rubin and Harold Ramis. Story by Danny Rubin

28. SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE
Written by Marc Norman and Tom Stoppard

29. SULLIVAN'S TRAVELS
Written by Preston Sturges

30. UNFORGIVEN
Written by David Webb Peoples

31. HIS GIRL FRIDAY
Screenplay by Charles Lederer. Based on the play "The Front Page" by Ben Hecht & Charles MacArthur

32. FARGO
Written by Joel Coen & Ethan Coen

33. THE THIRD MAN
Screenplay by Graham Greene. Story by Graham Greene. Based on the short story by Graham Greene

34. THE SWEET SMELL OF SUCCESS
Screenplay by Clifford Odets and Ernest Lehman. From a novelette by Ernest Lehman

35. THE USUAL SUSPECTS
Written by Christopher McQuarrie

36. MIDNIGHT COWBOY
Screenplay by Waldo Salt. Based on the novel by James Leo Herlihy

37. THE PHILADELPHIA STORY
Screenplay by Donald Ogden Stewart. Based on the play by Philip Barry

38. AMERICAN BEAUTY
Written by Alan Ball

39. THE STING
Written by David S. Ward

40. WHEN HARRY MET SALLY
Written by Nora Ephron

41. GOODFELLAS
Screenplay by Nicholas Pileggi & Martin Scorsese. Based on book "Wise Guy" by Nicholas Pileggi

42. RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK
Screenplay by Lawrence Kasdan. Story by George Lucas and Philip Kaufman

43. TAXI DRIVER
Written by Paul Schrader

44. THE BEST YEARS OF OUR LIVES
Screenplay by Robert E. Sherwood. Based on novel "Glory For Me" by MacKinley Kantor

45. ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST
Screenplay by Lawrence Hauben and Bo Goldman. Based on the novel by Ken Kesey

46. THE TREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE
Screenplay by John Huston. Based on the novel by B. Traven

47. THE MALTESE FALCON
Screenplay by John Huston. Based on the novel by Dashiell Hammett

48. THE BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI
Screenplay by Carl Foreman and Michael Wilson. Based on the novel by Pierre Boulle

49. SCHINDLER'S LIST
Screenplay by Steven Zaillian. Based on the novel by Thomas Keneally

50. THE SIXTH SENSE
Written by M. Night Shyamalan

51. BROADCAST NEWS
Written by James L. Brooks

52. THE LADY EVE
Screenplay by Preston Sturges. Story by Monckton Hoffe

53. ALL THE PRESIDENT'S MEN
Screenplay by William Goldman. Based on the book by Carl Bernstein & Bob Woodward

54. MANHATTAN
Written by Woody Allen & Marshall Brickman

55. APOCALYPSE NOW
Written by John Milius and Francis Coppola. Narration by Michael Herr

56. BACK TO THE FUTURE
Written by Robert Zemeckis & Bob Gale

57. CRIMES AND MISDEMEANORS
Written by Woody Allen

58. ORDINARY PEOPLE
Screenplay by Alvin Sargent. Based on the novel by Judith Guest

59. IT HAPPENED ONE NIGHT
Screenplay by Robert Riskin. Based on the story "Night Bus" by Samuel Hopkins Adams

60. L.A. CONFIDENTIAL
Screenplay by Brian Helgeland & Curtis Hanson. Based on the novel by James Ellroy

61. THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS
Screenplay by Ted Tally. Based on the novel by Thomas Harris

62. MOONSTRUCK
Written by John Patrick Shanley

63. JAWS
Screenplay by Peter Benchley and Carl Gottlieb. Based on the novel by Peter Benchley

64. TERMS OF ENDEARMENT
Screenplay by James L. Brooks. Based on the novel by Larry McMurtry

65. SINGIN' IN THE RAIN
Screen Story and Screenplay by Betty Comden & Adolph Green. Based on the song by Arthur Freed and Nacio Herb Brown

66. JERRY MAGUIRE
Written by Cameron Crowe

67. E.T. THE EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL
Written by Melissa Mathison

68. STAR WARS
Written by George Lucas

69. DOG DAY AFTERNOON
Screenplay by Frank Pierson. Based on a magazine article by P.F. Kluge and Thomas Moore

70. THE AFRICAN QUEEN
Screenplay by James Agee and John Huston. Based on the novel by C.S. Forester

71. THE LION IN WINTER
Screenplay by James Goldman. Based on the play by James Goldman

72. THELMA & LOUISE
Written by Callie Khouri

73. AMADEUS
Screenplay by Peter Shaffer. Based on his play

74. BEING JOHN MALKOVICH
Written by Charlie Kaufman

75. HIGH NOON
Screenplay by Carl Foreman. Based on short story "The Tin Star" by John W. Cunningham

76. RAGING BULL
Screenplay by Paul Schrader and Mardik Martin. Based on the book by Jake La Motta with Joseph Carter and Peter Savage

77. ADAPTATION
Screenplay by Charlie Kaufman and Donald Kaufman. Based on the book "The Orchid Thief" by Susan Orlean

78. ROCKY
Written by Sylvester Stallone

79. THE PRODUCERS
Written by Mel Brooks

80. WITNESS
Screenplay by Earl W. Wallace & William Kelley. Story by William Kelley and Pamela Wallace & Earl W. Wallace

81. BEING THERE
Screenplay by Jerzy Kosinski. Inspired by the novel by Jerzy Kosinski

82. COOL HAND LUKE
Screenplay by Donn Pearce and Frank Pierson. Based on the novel by Donn Pearce

83. REAR WINDOW
Screenplay by John Michael Hayes. Based on the short story by Cornell Woolrich

84. THE PRINCESS BRIDE
Screenplay by William Goldman. Based on his novel

85. LA GRANDE ILLUSION
Written by Jean Renoir and Charles Spaak

86. HAROLD & MAUDE
Written by Colin Higgins

87. 8 1/2
Screenplay by Federico Fellini, Tullio Pinelli, Ennio Flaiano, Brunello Rond. Story by Fellini, Flaiano

88. FIELD OF DREAMS
Screenplay by Phil Alden Robinson. Based on the book by W.P. Kinsella

89. FORREST GUMP
Screenplay by Eric Roth. Based on the novel by Winston Groom

90. SIDEWAYS
Screenplay by Alexander Payne & Jim Taylor. Based on the novel by Rex Pickett

91. THE VERDICT
Screenplay by David Mamet. Based on the novel by Barry Reed

92. PSYCHO
Screenplay by Joseph Stefano. Based on the novel by Robert Bloch

93. DO THE RIGHT THING
Written by Spike Lee

94. PATTON
Screen Story and Screenplay by Francis Ford Coppola and Edmund H. North. Based on "A Soldier's Story" by Omar H. Bradley and "Patton: Ordeal and Triumph" by Ladislas Farago

95. HANNAH AND HER SISTERS
Written by Woody Allen

96. THE HUSTLER
Screenplay by Sidney Carroll & Robert Rossen. Based on the novel by Walter Tevis

97. THE SEARCHERS
Screenplay by Frank S. Nugent. Based on the novel by Alan Le May

98. THE GRAPES OF WRATH
Screenplay by Nunnally Johnson. Based on the novel by John Steinbeck

99. THE WILD BUNCH
Screenplay by Walon Green and Sam Peckinpah. Story by Walon Green and Roy Sickner

100. MEMENTO
Screenplay by Christopher Nolan. Based on the short story "Memento Mori" by Jonathan Nolan

101. NOTORIOUS
Written by Ben Hecht

Top Screenwriters in TV

Much like figuring out the top movie writers, deciding who the best TV writers of all time are is hard. Thousands of people work in television. And there are hundreds of writers who work on many seasons of a show that contribute to each episode. So how do you decide who the top TV writers are? You could look at overall deals, like Shonda Rhimes, Benioff and Weiss, and Ryan Murphy have deals worth hundreds of millions of dollars to develop ideas. Or maybe you should choose individual shows.

David Chase wrote and created The Sopranos, and Matthew Weiner wrote and created Mad Men. Vince Gilligan wrote and created Better Call Saul and Breaking Bad. But what about Damon Lindelof's work on LOST or Chris Carter's work with The X-Files? How about Phoebe Waller-Bridge's work on Fleabag? Or Michaela Coel, Mindy Kaling, and Liz Merriweather?

You can see that women screenwriters have had more equality in TV onver time, but a lot of work has to be done there still. More on that later.

Let's look at other top shows and see some names

Empire writer's roomCredit: Fox

What Are the Best Written TV Shows of All Time?

A few years ago, the WGA spent time ranking what they found to be the top 100 best-written TV shoes of all time. Those shows were created by some of the top screenwriters in TV. Check out that list below.

Featuring Women Screenwriters

We think it is absolutely detrimental to separate men and women when it comes to writing. The best writing and the best writers are that good not because of gender but because of talent. And we think in moving toward equality and equity, we shouldn't be categorizing these people like this is a sport or with some sort of vague allusion that there is a genetic prowess.

That being said, these women are criminally overlooked in many lists, so it is worth learning their names as long as you are here to learn about the greatest screenwriters of all time.

Names like Fran Walsh, Dee Rees, Diablo Cody, Lucinda Coxon, Gillian Flynn, Jane Goldman, Kelly Marcel, Melissa Rosenberg, Amanda Silver, Karen McCullah, Kirsten Smith, Vanessa Taylor, Emma Thompson, Juliette Towhidi, Linda Woolverton, Philippa Boyens, Fran Walsh, and many many more working in episodic television.

To name a few more, Krista Vernoff, Rachel Bloom, Lena Waithe, Abbi Jacobson, Marti Noxon, Amy Sherman Palladino, Jill Soloway, and then all the names listed under the top TV shows above. There are so many excellent women writers working, and their names should be as bold and as loud as the men's in your memory.

30 Rock - written by Tina FeyCredit: NBC

The Highest-Paid Screenwriters

Some of the best screenwriters today are also the highest paid. You can look at the highest paid in a few different ways. There are the crazy spec sales, which are when studios buy one script for a lot of money.

People like Joe Eszterhas and Shane Black have sold screenplays for millions of dollars. Basic Instinct sold for $3 million. The Long Kiss Goodnight says it sold for $4 million. Netflix has been known to acquire movies and pay a premium for them. They paid $3 million to the writer of Bright.

Then there are people on hghely rich overall deals. That's money paid to writers to come up with ideas for studios and TV networks. Shonda Rhimes signed a new industry-shaking deal with Netflix estimated to be $300-400 million. Ryan Murphy is on a similar deal at Netflix. Bill Lawrence has a huge overall deal at WB TV said to be worth in the nine-figure range.

There are also professional writers who do script doctor work or weekly assignments and charge a lot. Tony Gilroy and Craig Mazin are among those names.

But any aspiring writer should be away that these people are the 1% of the 1%—many do not get there. But if you can get steady screenwriting work, then you can make good money to tell stories. What could be better?

Credit: Final Draft

Summing Up the Greatest Screenwriters of All Time

There's so much to learn from the greatest screenwriters of all time, that it is kind of hard to type out a closer.

The art and craft of screenwriting is an evolving process that takes thousands of people to do every year in order to keep billions of people entertained. It's a tough business to break into, but the best of the best leave an indelible mark on humanity that surely will last as long as we have visual entertainment.

Their words and ideas will live forever. And it will be interesting to see which names are added to this list over the next few generations.

We look forward to seeing your work celebrated here.

Let us know ifwe missed any names in the comments.