Max Borenstein
American screenwriter
Max Borenstein (born June 20, 1981) is an American screenwriter. He is best known as the creator of the MonsterVerse film series featuring classic Kaiju of Toho's Godzilla mythos, including writing Godzilla, Godzilla: Awakening (both 2014) and Kong: Skull Island (2017), and contributing to the story of Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019) and Godzilla vs. Kong (2021). In 2022, he co-created the sports drama series Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty on HBO.
01Life and career
Borenstein wrote, edited, and directed the 2003 film Swordswallowers and Thin Men while a senior at Yale University. Starring Peter Cellini, Zoe Kazan, Fran Kranz and Graham Norris, and featuring Army Wives star Sally Pressman and Midnight's Children lead Satya Bhabha, the film won Best Feature and Best Screenplay at the New York Independent Film Festival and was named Best First Feature 2003 by Los Angeles Times critic Kevin Thomas.
Borenstein's 2008 screenplay What Is Life Worth?, based on Kenneth Feinberg's memoir of the same name, was included on The Black List, an annual list compiled by Hollywood executives of their favorite unproduced screenplays. On February 14, 2018, it was reported that he would produce his screenplay into film alongside Michael Sugar, Marc Butan, Sean Sorensen, and Bard Dorros, with director David Frankel helming the project. It was ultimately directed by Sara Colangelo under the title Worth. His 2009 screenplay Jimi, commissioned by Legendary Pictures and based on the life of guitarist Jimi Hendrix, was also included on The Black List.
Borenstein is the credited creator of Legendary's MonsterVerse, having written and/or co-written the films Godzilla, Kong: Skull Island, and Godzilla: King of the Monsters, as well as the prequel graphic novel Godzilla: Awakening, co-written with his brother Greg, and executive producing the Apple TV+ television series Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, which adapts the character of Lee Shaw from Awakening to live-action.
On January 30, 2013, Borenstein was hired to write Paladin for Walt Disney Pictures, and Mona for New Regency. On May 4, 2017, HBO announced that Borenstein is one of four writers working on a potential pilot for a Game of Thrones spin-off. In addition to Borenstein, Carly Wray, Jane Goldman, and Brian Helgeland are also working on potential pilots. Borenstein has been working and communicating with George R. R. Martin, the author of A Song of Ice and Fire, the series of novels upon which the original series is based. Current Game of Thrones showrunners D. B. Weiss and David Benioff would also be executive producers for whichever project is picked up by HBO.
On January 12, 2025, KTLA reported that Max had lost his home during the 2025 California wildfires.
02Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Director | Writer | Producer | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Swordswallowers and Thin Men | Yes | Yes | No | Also cinematographer, editor and actor |
| 2014 | Godzilla | No | Yes | No | |
| 2017 | Kong: Skull Island | No | Yes | No | |
| 2019 | Godzilla: King of the Monsters | No | Story | No | |
| 2020 | Worth | No | Yes | Yes | |
| 2021 | Godzilla vs. Kong | No | Yes | No | |
| 2023 | Hypnotic | No | Yes | No |
Executive producer
- Ascension (2008)
Television
| Year | Title | Writer | Executive Producer |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Minority Report | Yes | Yes | Also developer |
| 2019 | The Terror: Infamy | Yes | Yes | Also creator |
| 2022-2023 | Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty | Yes | Yes | |
| 2023 | Monarch: Legacy of Monsters | No | Yes | Co-created Lee Shaw (portrayed by Kurt Russell and Wyatt Russell) with Greg Borenstein for the 2014 graphic novel Godzilla: Awakening. |
Short film
| Year | Title | Director | Writer | Producer |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Law and Order: Christmas Special | Yes | No | No |
| 2008 | A Room of One's Clone | Yes | No | No |
| 2015 | In Her Place | No | Yes | Yes |
Sources and credits
This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Max Borenstein”, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.
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