Jim and John Thomas

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Jim and John Thomas are an American screenwriting duo, best known for Predator (1987) and Predator 2 (1990), Executive Decision (1996), Wild Wild West (1999), Behind Enemy Lines (2001) and the TV series Hard Time on Planet Earth .

Contents

Career

In 1983, Jim had the idea that would become Predator and asked his brother for help in developing a script, [1] [2] [3] "adding some welcome and effective bits of comedy to their thrill-packed storyline". [4] The brothers took inspiration from a joke circulating Hollywood concerning the Rocky franchise and its lead character, and wrote a screenplay based on it. [5] It was originally titled Hunter. [6] The script was picked up by 20th Century Fox in 1985, and turned over to producer Joel Silver who, based on his experience with Commando , decided to turn the science fiction pulp storyline into a big-budget film. [7] [8]

The duo worked on a number of Hollywood productions through the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s, such as The Rescue (1988), [9] Two-Fisted Tales (1992). The brothers co-wrote Mission to Mars (2000): [10] [11] "Screenwriters Graham Yost and Jim and John Thomas have substituted unconvincing slickness and popcorn drama for intellectual depth and character-driven suspense in Mars. Then to make matters worse, they deliver their tired package to audiences through stilted dialogue that has the actors trying to be profound when in reality they're being laughable", commented Christine Thomassini. [12] They also wrote the screenplay of Predator 2, [13] [14] Wild Wild West, [15] and Behind Enemy Lines. [16]

The brothers created the short-lived TV series Hard Time on Planet Earth . [17] Scheduled opposite NBC's Unsolved Mysteries and ABC's Growing Pains on Wednesdays, Hard Time on Planet Earth ranked 65th out of 81 programs upon its premiere. [18] The series, which the duo had conceived in response to CBS's request to the brothers for a show "similar to the Incredible Hulk", [19] was canceled by CBS in July 1989. [19]

A student-written Daily Eastern News review of Mission to Mars assessed their contribution to the film industry negatively: 'I have come to the conclusion that Jim and John Thomas should never be allowed to write a screenplay ever again." [20]

Filmography as screenwriters

YearTitleDirectorNotes
1987 Predator Joel Silver Also creators of the characters
1988 The Rescue Ferdinand Fairfax
1989 Hard Time on Planet Earth TV series; also creators
1990 Predator 2 Stephen Hopkins
1991 Two-Fisted Tales Robert Zemeckis "Yellow" [21]
1996 Executive Decision Stuard Baird [22]
1999 Wild Wild West Barry Sonnenfeld
2000 Mission to Mars Brian de Palma
2001 Behind Enemy Lines John Moore

References

  1. ↑ Shapiro, Marc (December 1990). "Predator Season". Starlog (161).
  2. ↑ Taylor, Larry (2018-07-03). John McTiernan: The Rise and Fall of an Action Movie Icon. McFarland. ISBN   978-1-4766-7316-5.
  3. ↑ "Assorted movie and TV magazine & newspaper clippings : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive".
  4. ↑ Martin, Mick; Porter, Marsha; Remitz, Ed (1987). Video movie guide, 1988. Internet Archive. New York : Ballantine Books. ISBN   978-0-345-34925-5.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: publisher location (link)
  5. ↑ "SciFiNow.The.50.Greatest.Sci fi.Icons.Second.Edition.2015" – via Internet Archive.
  6. ↑ Haufrect, Ian T. (2001). If It Bleeds, We Can Kill It. Predator DVD: 20th Century Fox.
  7. ↑ Gardner, Eriq (2021-04-15). "'Predator' Screenwriters Suing Disney to Recapture Rights". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2025-10-18.
  8. ↑ AlloCine (2024-05-09). ""Schwarzenegger joue le même personnage, même si son nom change" : Predator est en réalité la suite cachée d'un autre film !". AlloCiné (in French). Retrieved 2025-10-18.
  9. ↑ Edwards, Paul M. (1997-03-30). A Guide to Films on the Korean War. Bloomsbury Publishing USA. ISBN   978-0-313-38772-2.
  10. ↑ Meehan, Paul (2022-05-24). Space Exploration on Film. McFarland. ISBN   978-1-4766-8133-7.
  11. ↑ Reviews, New York Times Theater (2001). The New York Times Film Reviews 1999-2000. Taylor & Francis. ISBN   978-0-415-93696-5.
  12. ↑ Christine Tomassini (2001-07-06). Magill's Cinema Annual - 2001 (Magill's Cinema Annual). Internet Archive. St. James Press. ISBN   978-1-55862-457-3.
  13. ↑ "Cinefantastique Magazine vol 21 Issues 1 2 3 : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive".
  14. ↑ Decker, Mark T. (2016-03-01). Industrial Society and the Science Fiction Blockbuster: Social Critique in Films of Lucas, Scott and Cameron. McFarland. ISBN   978-1-4766-2387-0.
  15. ↑ McCarthy, Todd (1999-06-30). "Wild Wild West". Variety. Retrieved 2025-10-18.
  16. ↑ "BBC - Films - review - Behind Enemy Lines". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 2025-10-18.
  17. ↑ Phillips, Mark; Garcia, Frank (2014-05-12). Science Fiction Television Series: Episode Guides, Histories, and Casts and Credits for 62 Prime-Time Shows, 1959 through 1989. McFarland. ISBN   978-1-4766-1030-6.
  18. ↑ Margulies, Lee (1989-03-08). "Viewers Go for Laughs". The Los Angeles Times . Retrieved 2012-02-18.
  19. 1 2 Phillips, Mark; Garcia, Frank (2014-05-12). Science Fiction Television Series: Episode Guides, Histories, and Casts and Credits for 62 Prime-Time Shows, 1959 through 1989. McFarland. ISBN   978-1-4766-1030-6.
  20. ↑ Stagland, Sean (2000-03-31). "De Palma's latest marred by film references". On the Verge of the Weekend. The Daily Eastern News. p. 4b.
  21. ↑ bandsaboutmovies (2024-06-21). "Tales from the Crypt S3 E14: Yellow (1991)". B&S About Movies. Retrieved 2025-10-23.
  22. ↑ https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1561&context=crows_nest

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