Creative Musings

Happy 29th Anniversary to the screenwriting website Wordplayer.com! 

In 1995, Wordplay originally began as a weekly column in the old Follywood section of America Online (aka AOL), an offshoot of the popular and successful MOTLEY FOOL investment forum. And the Wordplay website was later founded on May 31st, 1997 by screenwriters Terry Rossio and Ted Elliott, along with Wordplay webmaster and administrator Ann Garretson.

Wordplay features screenwriting columns by Terry Rossio (and occasionally Ted Elliott) on the business and craft of screenwriting. Guest columns and articles by industry professionals include Frank Darabont, Walter Parkes, Fred Dekker, Bill Marsilli, Charles Edward Pogue, Dan Petrie Jr, Max Adams, William Martell, Richard Jefferies, Nina Jacobson, Keith Calder, Terry Black, the late David Steven Cohen, Stephen King, etc.

A portion of Terry Rossio and Ted Elliott's screenwriting credits include: LITTLE MONSTERS (1987), Disney's ALADDIN (1992), MEN IN BLACK (1997, additional literary material, uncredited), GODZILLA (1998, shared story), SMALL SOLDIERS (1998), THE MASK OF ZORRO (1998), ANTZ (1998, creative consultants), SHREK (2001), Disney's TREASURE PLANET (2002, shared story), Disney's PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN film series (2003-2011), Disney's NATIONAL TREASURE (2004, additional literary material, uncredited), Disney's NATIONAL TREASURE: BOOK OF SECRETS (2007, shared story), and so much more!

For Terry Rossio, recent screenwriting credits include: LABORATORY CONDITIONS (2019, short film directed by Jocelyn Stamat), GODZILLA VS KONG (2021, co-story), ARCANE: LEAGUE OF LEGENDS (Netflix TV series, writing consultant with Jocelyn Stamat), THE AMAZING MAURICE (2023), GODZILLA X KONG: THE NEW EMPIRE (2024), SUPER MARIO GALAXY MOVIE (2026, creative consultant), MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE (2026, additional literary material).

On Wordplay, there are also screenplays (online & downloadable) available from films such as LITTLE MONSTERS, THE MASK OF ZORRO, DEJA VU (written by Bill Marsilli & Terry Rossio), Disney's PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN, and unproduced film projects like GODZILLA (1994 screenplay), THE SANDMAN (1996), and PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN 5: DEAD MEN TELL NO TALES (2012).

"If anything, Wordplay is about discovery -- that search to find one or two tools or techniques that are in fact helpful in the terrible, terrific effort it takes to complete a script." ~ Terry Rossio, "Intro & Disclaimer" from the Wordplay website.

A heartfelt thank you and Happy 29th Anniversary to Wordplayer.com! 💛