Screenwriters from California

American writer (1902–1968)

Thomas Jeffrey Hanks is an American actor and filmmaker. Known for both his comedic and dramatic roles, he is one of the most popular and recognizable film stars worldwide, and is regarded as an American cultural icon. In 2020, Hanks was ranked as the fourth-highest-grossing American film actor of all time. His numerous awards include two Academy Awards, seven Emmy Awards, and four Golden Globe Awards; he has also been nominated for five BAFTA Awards and a Tony Award. He received the AFI Life Achievement Award in 2002, the Kennedy Center Honor in 2014, the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2016, and the Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award in 2020.

Quentin Jerome Tarantino is an American filmmaker, actor, and author. His films are characterized by graphic violence, extended dialogue often featuring much profanity, and references to popular culture. His work has earned a cult following alongside critical and commercial success; he has been named by some as the most influential director of his generation and has received numerous awards and nominations, including two Academy Awards, two BAFTA Awards, and four Golden Globe Awards. His films have grossed more than $1.9 billion worldwide.

American author and screenwriter (1920–2012)

James Francis Cameron is a Canadian filmmaker and deep-sea explorer. His films combine cutting-edge film technology with classical filmmaking techniques and have grossed over $10 billion worldwide, making him the second-highest-grossing film director of all time. A major figure in the post-New Hollywood era, Cameron has received numerous accolades, including three Academy Awards, two Primetime Emmy Awards, and four Golden Globe Awards, as well as nominations for six British Academy Film Awards.

American actor and filmmaker (1915–1985)

Benjamin Géza Affleck is an American actor and filmmaker. His accolades include two Academy Awards, two BAFTA Awards, and three Golden Globes. Affleck began his career as a child when he starred in the PBS educational series The Voyage of the Mimi (1984–1988). He later appeared in the independent comedy Dazed and Confused (1993) and several Kevin Smith comedies, including Chasing Amy (1997).

American actress, writer and screenwriter (1956–2016)

Carlos Ray "Chuck" Norris was an American martial artist, actor, screenwriter, and author. He held black belts in karate, taekwondo, Tang Soo Do, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and judo. After serving in the United States Air Force, he won numerous martial arts championships and later founded his own discipline, Chun Kuk Do. Norris began working in the American film industry as a martial arts instructor for celebrities before making his screen debut with a minor role in The Wrecking Crew (1968). Friend and fellow martial artist Bruce Lee invited him to play one of the main villains in The Way of the Dragon (1972). While Norris continued acting, friend and student Steve McQueen suggested he take it seriously. Norris took the starring role in the action film Breaker! Breaker! (1977), which turned a profit. His second lead, Good Guys Wear Black (1978), became a hit, and he soon became a popular action film star.

David Keith Lynch was an American filmmaker, producer, actor, painter, and musician. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential filmmakers in the history of cinema, with his films often characterized by a distinctive surrealist sensibility that gave rise to the adjective "Lynchian". In a career spanning more than five decades, he received numerous accolades, including an Academy Honorary Award, the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement at the Venice Film Festival, a Palme d'Or and Best Director Award at the Cannes Film Festival, two César Awards, and a (posthumous) Laurel Award for Screenwriting Achievement, in addition to nominations for four Academy Awards, two British Academy Film Awards, four Golden Globe Awards, and nine Primetime Emmy Awards.

American author (1924-1984)

American filmmaker (born 1939)

Robert Selden Duvall was an American actor, filmmaker, and producer, best known for his roles in films of the later 20th century. Duvall began acting professionally on stage in 1952, performing in summer plays at the Gateway Playhouse in Bellport on Long Island until 1959, with a one-year break while serving in the U.S. Army. In his early theater career, he made contacts that then led to a career on television in the 1960s on shows such as The Defenders, Playhouse 90, and Armstrong Circle Theatre. He made his Broadway debut in the play Wait Until Dark in 1966, and, in 1977, he returned from screen acting to the stage in David Mamet's play American Buffalo, earning a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Play nomination.

American comedy musician and actor (born 1959)

Italian-born American film director (1897–1991)

American rapper and actor

American screenwriter, film producer and director (born 1952)

American actor and film director (1936–2010)

American writer (1925–2012)

Emilio Estevez is an American actor and filmmaker. The son of actor Martin Sheen and the older brother of Charlie Sheen, he made his film debut with an uncredited role in Badlands (1973). He later received his first credited appearance with a supporting role in the coming-of-age film Tex (1982).

American actor and comedian (1893–1971)

Armenian-American novelist, playwright, and short story writer (1908-1981)

Kathryn Ann Bigelow is an American filmmaker. Her accolades include two Academy Awards, two BAFTA Awards, and a Primetime Emmy Award.

American film director, producer, and actor

American actor

American film director, screenwriter, and actor (1906–1987)

American actor and filmmaker (born 1981)

American filmmaker (born 1971)

American film director and writer (1941–2012)

American actress and filmmaker (born 1983)

American writer (1917–2007)

American writer and novelist

American filmmaker (born 1958)

American actor, comedian, and screenwriter

German-American actor and film director (1892–1947)

American actor

Stephen Kevin Bannon is an American media executive, political strategist, pundit and former investment banker. He served as the White House's chief strategist for the first seven months of President Donald Trump's first administration before Trump fired him. He is a former executive chairman of Breitbart News. Since 2019, Bannon has hosted the War Room podcast.

Paul Thomas Anderson, also known by his initials PTA, is an American filmmaker. Often described as one of the preeminent filmmakers of his generation, he is the recipient of three Academy Awards, three Golden Globe Awards, four BAFTAs, three Critics Choice Awards, and nominations for a Grammy. He is the only person to have won the Academy Award for Best Director and directorial prizes at Europe's three major film festivals: Cannes Film Festival, Venice Film Festival, and the Berlin International Film Festival. In addition to those accolades, he won the Golden Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival.

American film director, producer and screenwriter (1896–1977)

American film director (1925–1984)

Jennifer Jason Leigh is an American actress. She began her career on television during the 1970s before making her film breakthrough in the teen film Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982). She received critical praise for her performances in Last Exit to Brooklyn (1989), Miami Blues (1990), Backdraft (1991), Single White Female (1992), and The Hudsucker Proxy (1994), and was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for her portrayal of Dorothy Parker in Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle (1994). For her role as fugitive Daisy Domergue in The Hateful Eight (2015), she was nominated for the Golden Globe and Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.

Jason Jordan Segel is an American actor, comedian, screenwriter, and producer. He is best known for his role as Marshall Eriksen in the CBS sitcom How I Met Your Mother from 2005 to 2014. He began his career with director and producer Judd Apatow on the television series Freaks and Geeks (1999–2000) and Undeclared (2001–2002) before gaining prominence for his leading roles in various successful comedy films in which he has starred, written, and produced.

American journalist, author, film director and screenwriter (1888-1973)

American actress

American actor

Jennette McCurdy is an American writer and former actress. Her breakthrough role as Sam Puckett in the Nickelodeon sitcom iCarly (2007–2012) won her four Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards. She reprised the character in the iCarly spin-off series Sam & Cat (2013–2014) before leaving Nickelodeon. She also appeared in the television series Malcolm in the Middle (2003–2005), Zoey 101 (2005), Lincoln Heights (2007), True Jackson, VP (2009–2010), and Victorious (2012). She produced, wrote, and starred in her own webseries, What's Next for Sarah? (2014), and led the science-fiction series Between (2015–2016).

American actor, director and professional wrestler

American film producer (1902–1965)

actor, singer, book author

American actor (1905–1994)

American cartoonist (1901-2000)

American film director, producer, screenwriter and cinematographer (1904–1975)

American film director (1939–2016)

American film producer (1899-1936)

American actor

Adam Jared Brody is an American actor. His breakout role was as Seth Cohen on the Fox television series The O.C. (2003–2007). For his performance as Noah Roklov in the Netflix romantic comedy series Nobody Wants This (2024–present), he earned nominations for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Television Series (Musical/Comedy) and the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series; he won the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Actor in a Comedy Series.

Chinese-American actress and director

American animator, film director, screenwriter, producer (born 1957)

American actor and musician

American film director (1899–1981)