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Excerpts from the latest issue of Creative Screenwriting!

 
Return to Battle

BY DANNY MUNSO

In 2001, Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg executive-produced the acclaimed miniseries Band of Brothers for HBO, an epic tale about a company of American soldiers who fought in the European theater
during World War II. As that project concluded, Hanks and Spielberg were already talking about showing the other side of America's participation in the war via the battles in the Pacific against the Japanese. In addition to the letters the power duo received after Band premiered from Pacific veterans asking them to bring their story to life, Spielberg's interest in the venture was personal because both his father and uncle fought in the Pacific. One of the writers of Band, Bruce C. McKenna, was also already thinking along similar lines.

He approached Spielberg after the 2002 Emmy Awards and asked if he was thinking about tackling the Pacific war next. "I said, 'Please, if you ever do, I'd love to write you a couple of episodes,'" McKenna remembers. "Eighteen months later, I got a phone call from Tom Hanks who wanted to know if I was interested in working on The Pacific. I tried not to seem too eager." McKenna sat down with Spielberg, Hanks and Hanks' producing partner at Playtone, Gary Goetzman, to discuss the project in March 2003.

Like what you just read? Read Danny Munso's entire on The Pacific in the latest issue of Creative Screenwriting!

Iron Man 2

BY PETER CLINES
Justin Theroux (Tropic Thunder) isn't sure how he went from virtual obscurity to writer of two back-to-back tentpole films. "Your guess is as good as mine," he laughs. "I've been in Hollywood for about 20 years now. Everyone has a weird road in this town and mine's no different, I guess."

While working on Tropic Thunder, he met Robert Downey Jr. hot off the first Iron Man film, who suggested Theroux might be a good fit with Marvel Studios. A fan of "Iron Man" comics as a kid, Theroux was excited for the meeting. "I went when they were gearing up for the very first initial push into development for Iron Man 2," the screenwriter recalls. "I sat with them for a long time and had long discussions about the character and world. Shortly thereafter, they said they'd love to have me and I was completely flattered and floored, and we started developing the script right away." With director Jon Favreau working on Couples Retreat for portions of the time, they would meet as often as possible for long sessions with Downey, Marvel executive Kevin Feige and producer Jeremy Latcham. "Those guys had the benefits of doing [the first Iron Man] and were well versed in the pitfalls and problems of where certain ideas could take you. They were great at helping me eliminate certain things that I otherwise might waste time spinning my wheels in."

Like what you just read? Read Peter Clines' entire interview with Justin Theroux in the latest issue of Creative Screenwriting!

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