20 actors who also have notable careers as screenwriters

We’ll start with one half of a notable duo. After all, he is a movie star with an Oscar for screenwriting. He starred in, and won an Oscar for co-writing, “Good Will Hunting.” That’s not the only film he has a writing credit on, though. He also co-wrote “Promised Land” and “Gerry.” It may not be a coincidence that all three of those movies were directed by Gus Van Sant.

Affleck is, of course, the other half of the “Good Will Hunting” Oscar win. From that moment on, it was all but fated that Affleck and Damon would be intertwined. Affleck, though, also became a successful director, helming Best Picture winner “Argo.” Affleck has written a couple of his own movies, but interestingly, he and Damon also have writing credits on Ridley Scott’s “The Last Duel” alongside Nicole Holofcener. Those are four names that are wild to see together on that project.

Gerwig is better known for directing, but she’s been acting since she was a “mumblecore” staple in the 2000s. Gerwig and her now-husband, Noah Baumbach, have worked together since before her directing career took off. She starred in and co-wrote Baumbach’s movies “Frances Ha” and “Mistress America.”

In terms of her acting work, Jones is best known for her TV work. The popularity of “The Office” and “Park and Recreation” has seen to that. She has been in some films, though, including “Celeste and Jesse Forever,” which she co-write with Will McCormack. Notably, Jones and McCormack have written scripts for films that were not for Jones. They ended up with story credit on “Toy Story 4,” and their most-recent film is “The Invite” starring Seth Rogen and Olivia Wilde.

Thornton is one of those actors who did, indeed, write something for himself. With his acting career hit-or-miss, he wrote a short film to star in, then fleshed it out into “Sling Blade.” He won the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay, and it was a real turning point in his career. Thornton got more and better acting roles, but he also kept writing. He wrote, among others, “A Family Thing” and “The Gift,” which we note because he didn’t act in either of them.

Well, it’s hard to talk about actors who are also screenwriters without mentioning Allen. Back in the day, he would occasionally act or write, but mostly he wrote and directed his own starring vehicles. They were also incredibly successful, so you can’t quibble with that. Eventually, he started acting in his own movies less, but he kept writing and directing.

Though Beatty started his career as a matinee idol, he cared about the craft of filmmaking and had a vision for what he wanted his movies to be. On that front, even when he wasn’t directing, he had a reputation for being heavily involved in a film’s production, whether the director wanted it or not. Beatty’s first film as a credited screenwriter was “Shampoo,” and after that he was credited on five more screenplays. The only one other than “Shampoo” he wrote but didn’t direct, though, was 1994’s “Love Affair.”

Ever heard of him? Starting with his wunderkind turn in “Citizen Kane,” Welles went on to write and direct films such as “The Magnificent Ambersons” and “Touch of Evil.” He was an innovative filmmaker, but he was also a talented actor, and not just in his own projects. Perhaps his best-known acting role outside his movies is “The Third Man.”

Brooks got his start writing sketch comedy for television, and then he became one of the foremost writers and directors of silly comedy films. Often Brooks would appear in his movies, but in some, like “Young Frankenstein,” he stayed out of them. On occasion, he also acted in something he did not write or direct, such as “To Be or Not to Be.” Let’s not forget his acting work in “Mad About You” either, of course.

Wilson and Wes Anderson met, and for a while they had a strong creative partnership. That was not just in terms of Wilson acting in Anderson’s films. They actually co-wrote Anderson’s first three films, “Bottle Rocket,” “Rushmore,” and “The Royal Tenenbaums.” Wilson didn’t even appear in “Rushmore”; he just co-wrote it.

Wiig has done plenty of comedy acting, be it in becoming an “SNL legend” or in her movie career. She has also co-written two films with Annie Mumolo. One was a huge success, and the other was actually better and will hopefully become a cult classic. “Bridesmaids” needs no introduction, but if you haven’t seen “Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar,” check it out.

While a well-respected actor, Eisenberg is clearly a fan of writing. He’s written short stories, “New Yorker” pieces, and plays. The man is a straight-up playwright! Perhaps unsurprisingly, he’s also taken to writing screenplays. Eisenberg now has three films as a writer and director under his belt, including “A Real Pain.”

Henry had a fascinating career, starting in sketch comedy as a performer and writer, hosting “Saturday Night Live” 10 times, and receiving writing nominations for Oscars and Emmys. He actually crossed paths with some other folks on this list. Henry and Mel Brook co-created the TV show “Get Smart,” and he co-directed “Heaven Can Wait” with Warren Beatty. Henry also continued to act, including a couple appearances as Liz Lemon’s dad on “30 Rock.”

We could, at this point, mention Thompson’s ex-husband Kenneth Branagh, who never met a Shakespeare play he couldn’t adapt for himself to star in. Thompson is no slouch as a writer or an actor. In 1992, she won an Oscar for acting in “Howard’s End.” In 1995, she won for adapting “Sense and Sensibility.” To date, Thompson is the only person to win an Oscar for acting and for a screenplay.

Though Rash and Faxon act separately, and though they have now written separately as well, they aren’t exactly Matt Damon and Ben Affleck, so we’re combining them. Acting-wise, you likely know them from sitcoms. Writing-wise, they co-wrote “The Descendants,” “The Way Way Back,” and “Downhill.” Rash has now written and directed the HBO film “Miss You, Love You,” which Faxon did produce, at least.

Polley’s days of Canadian television are well behind her. She’s now the kind of person who can play herself in “The Studio.” Once in films like “Go,” Polley has seemingly retired from acting, but she has become a venerated writer and director. She, in fact, won the Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar for “Women Talking.”

Speaking of “The Studio.” Rogen is a very successful actor, and not just in comedy anymore. He and his creative partner Evan Goldberg have also done plenty of writing, though. While Rogen tends to pop up in what they write, it isn’t always a vehicle for him. “Superbad,” for example, or “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem.”

It is well known that, at this point, Fisher was a frequent “script doctor” in Hollywood. She was also Princess Leia, if you didn’t know. “Postcards from the Edge,” based on one of her memoirs, is her only screenplay credit, but it isn’t hard to find stories of scripts that Fisher worked on, even if, WGA-wise, she didn’t get credit.

McBride recently wrote a grift-y book, but he’s also written plenty of films. He first made a splash with the film “The Foot Fist Way,” a small comedy he co-wrote that garnered a cult following. McBride became a comedy…if not a star, then somebody adjacent to stardom. In recent years, and unexpectedly, McBride wrote on his collaborator David Gordon Green’s “Halloween” trilogy.

We end with an actor/screenwriter so notable he’s getting a biopic about that very fact. Stallone’s acting career was flagging, and then he wrote the screenplay for “Rocky” and held out to be able to star in it. “Rocky” won Best Picture in 1976, and Stallone’s movie stardom was born. This was far from the last film he wrote, though. For better or worse, Stallone’s filmography is dotted with movies he wrote, and sometimes he even wrote (and sometimes directed) without playing a significant role.