One of the most underrated and unsung, and yet most important, aspects of a movie is the script. The birthplace of an idea. The foundation of any great masterpiece. It usually begins with text upon a blank page, a lot of rewrites, and the passing of the baton to the director, which most of the time is someone completely different from the writer. During awards seasons, the buzz is always about what the next Best Picture Oscar-winner will be, according to different groups of film industry professionals. Or who will win Best Director, the brave one who spearheaded the project, wrangled the cattle, and steered the boat.

To a lesser extent, the buzz does reach the screenwriters, who definitely deserve an equal share in the credit of the Best Picture film. Now it is true that sometimes, a film uses the original script as a jumping off point, changing it drastically with improvisations or sometimes entirely different themes. But the film had to start somewhere. And that is with the screenplay.

As equally unsung as the script are women screenwriters. The world of film was a man’s world for far too long, and we are finally seeing women filmmakers shine and flourish in the world of cinema. Here is a list of nine award-winning women screenwriters whose careers and works you should be familiar with.

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1 Fran Walsh

     New Line Cinema

Dame Fran Walsh is both a screenwriter and producer. A New Zealand Native married to filmmaker Peter Jackson, Walsh has worked on 15 projects in her screenwriting career. Notably, she has worked on all the feature film installments in the Middle-earth-based films, both The Lord of the Rings trilogy, and The Hobbit trilogy. Furthermore, Walsh has worked on three other book to film adaptations and worked alongside both her husband and screenwriter Phillipa Boyens on almost every one of her projects. Nominated for seven Academy Awards, she took home three Oscars: Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Picture, and Best Original Song.

MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY

MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY

MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY

2 Frances Marion

     MGM

Frances Marion is often referred to the most renowned woman screenwriter of all time. She paved the way for women filmmakers in the Golden Age of Hollywood. During her active career, she wrote a record-breaking 325 individual scripts, and was the first person to win two Academy Awards for screenwriting. She also worked alongside women icons of that time, getting her start working with director Lois Weber. Her notable films include The Big House, The Champ, The Prizefighter and the Lady, and Poor Little Rich Girl,

3 Lina Wertmüller

     Medusa Film

An influential screenwriter and director, Lina Wertmüller was the first woman director to be nominated for Best Director and Best Screenplay Oscars for her 1977 World War II film Seven Beauties. With 37 writing credits, and 33 directing credits, she paved the way for women to come, influencing the industry with her work. Wertmüller’s best films include The Seduction of Mimi, Love and Anarchy, and Swept Away.

4 Diablo Cody

     Mandate Pictures

Going by the pen name of Diablo Cody, she has been praised countless times for her unique dialogue, compelling stories, and lovable misfit characters. With her first ever feature script Juno winning her the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay, Cody was skyrocketed into popularity. That said, she stuck to her roots, staying in the indie film scene. She wrote and produced the horror film Jennifer’s Body, starring Megan Fox and Amanda Seyfried. At the time of its release, it was considered a flop. Now, it has gained a cult following and is a Halloweentime classic. Cody’s most recent film was Tully, and, next, she has two films coming out: Lisa Frankenstein and the untitled Madonna biopic (via EW).

5 Greta Gerwig

     A24

A jack of many trades in the film industry, Greta Gerwig has acted in, produced, directed, and written many films during her time in Hollywood (which only seems to be just beginning). With both of her solo debut directorial and screenwriting pieces, Lady Bird and Little Women, being nominated for Best Picture at the Oscar, she was big on the directorial side. Both films also gained her nominations for Best Adapted Screenplay (Little Women) and Best Original Screenplay (Lady Bird). Her upcoming Barbie movie is one of the most highly anticipated films of the summer of 2023, starring Ryan Gosling and Margot Robbie.

6 Quinta Brunson

     ABC

Since beginning at the internet sensation of BuzzFeed Studios, Quinta Brunson has taken her comedic brilliance above and beyond. Writing the hit ABC comedy series Abbot Elementary, she not only stars in the show, but has created something that has fans begging for more. For this show, she became the first Black woman to be nominated three times in the comedy category at the Primetime Emmy Awards, and, this year, won the Emmy for Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series.

7 Nia Vardalos

     Alliance Cinema

Nia Vardalos is an award-winning actress, director, producer, and screenwriter, who got her start in comedy. After starring in a few smaller-scale shows, her career took off with her first feature film. Writing and starring in the hit classic, My Big Fat Greek Wedding, Vardalos was turning every head. The sweet comedy of a young woman finding herself and finding love won her The American Screenwriters Association Award and an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay. Turning to more acting roles, Vardalos is still praised for her first feature.

8 Sofia Coppola

     Focus Features

Being the daughter of critically acclaimed filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola may have gotten her into doors, but Sofia Coppola’s writing kept them open. Her film, Lost in Translation, starring Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson, earned three Academy Award nominations, and one win, for Best Original Screenplay. She also won the Best Screenplay Golden Globe for the same project. Since then, Coppola has turned her pen (and lens) towards human-driven stories of varying genres and narratives, from Marie Antoinette to The Bling Ring.

9 Joan Harrison

     Selznick International Pictures

Joan Harrison was the first woman screenwriter to be nominated for the Best Original Screenplay category at the Academy Awards when the category was first created in 1940. She was nominated for Foreign Correspondent, and later nominated for her adaptation of Rebecca, for Best Adapted Screenplay. Other notable works of hers include Suspicion, Saboteur, and Dark Waters.