J. D. Payne and Patrick McKay explained

J. D. Payne and Patrick McKay
Birth Place:McLean, Virginia
Years Active:1997 - present
Known For:
Spouse:Payne: Rachel Payne

John D. Payne and Patrick McKay are an American screenwriting duo. They are best known for developing the Amazon Prime Video fantasy drama series , based on the history of Middle-earth by English author J. R. R. Tolkien.

Early life

Payne and McKay are originally from McLean, Virginia. The two met in 1997 on their high school debate team, and directed a short play that Payne wrote for their school's festival. Payne attended Yale University and studied English Literature, graduating with honors. McKay attended Stonehill College and studied Theater Arts, and American University, where he received an MFA in Creative Writing.

Career

Their script Midas helped them get agency representation and management. In August 2010, they sold their first ever script Goliath to Relativity Media. Scott Derrickson was set to direct the project for Relativity.[1] In 2011, they were hired to write Deadliest Warrior for Paramount based on the Deadliest Warrior Spike television series.[2]

After writing Deadliest Warrior, Payne and McKay went to work for Bad Robot. There, they wrote Boilerplate, which is based on the novel of the same name, and Micronauts.[3] After, the duo wrote Law Zero for Warner Bros.

In December 2013, they were hired to write Star Trek Beyond with Roberto Orci.[4] Their script was later rewritten by Simon Pegg and Doug Jung.[5]

In April 2014, the two were hired to write a new reboot of Flash Gordon (in development) for 20th Century Fox.

In July 2016, the duo were hired to write the fourth Star Trek film after working on Beyond. They later revealed that the plot was inspired by 2001: A Space Odyssey, and involved character James Kirk meeting his father George Kirk, but they were the same age because of a "cosmic quirk" in the Star Trek universe. When the project fell apart after two and a half years, it pushed Payne and McKay to "start taking TV seriously. That led us to Rings of Power."[6]

Payne and McKay joined the Godzilla vs. Kong writers' room in March 2017.[7] Four months later, they were announced to have written the most recent draft of Disney's Jungle Cruise.[8] In August, they were set to write A People's History Of The Vampire Uprising for Fox and 21 Laps.[9]

The two were hired to write Amazon's Lord of the Rings series in July 2018.[10] They were confirmed as showrunners in July 2019.[11] To develop the series, Payne and McKay believed J. R. R. Tolkien's lesser-known Second Age was the key. They worked together to map out five seasons of television that told the first five minutes of the prologue in . After their first pitch to Amazon, they got a call to return, but they had to pitch all five seasons of the series. The two mapped out the series at Payne's assistant's apartment, and successfully pitched the show. Afterwards, they were called back for seven more pitches. In initial meetings with the Tolkien Estate, Payne quoted Tolkien and greeted Simon Tolkien in Elvish. Their idea for the series lined up with Simon Tolkien's vision, and their former boss J. J. Abrams recommended them to Amazon.[12]

In February 2022, they set up their 2017 Black List script Escape with The Hideaway Entertainment, with James Watkins to direct the film. In February 2024, they signed a three-year exclusive overall deal with Amazon MGM Studios with their production company 10:40 PM Productions.[13]

Personal life

McKay is married with two children. Payne is married to actress and opera singer Rachel Payne, and has two children, Adam and Ethan. Payne is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Filmography

YearTitleNotes
2016Star Trek BeyondUncredited
2021Godzilla vs. KongUncredited
2021Jungle CruiseUncredited[14]
2022–presentDevelopers, wrote 6 episodes[15]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Kit . Borys . August 31, 2011 . Taylor Lautner, Dwayne Johnson Offered Roles as David and Goliath (Abandoned Project, it is not known if it is in production or not, there is no information from Relavity Media). live . https://web.archive.org/web/20221102233923/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/taylor-lautner-dwayne-johnson-offered-229923/ . November 2, 2022 . November 2, 2022 . The Hollywood Reporter.
  2. Web site: Fleming . Mike Jr. . January 20, 2011 . Paramount Finds Its 'Deadliest Warrior' Scribes . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20220207174653/https://deadline.com/2011/01/paramount-finds-its-deadliest-warrior-scribes-98420/ . February 7, 2022 . November 2, 2022 . Deadline Hollywood.
  3. Web site: Fleming . Mike Jr. . November 3, 2011 . Paramount, Bad Robot Set Scribes For 'Boilerplate' . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20221023075958/https://deadline.com/2011/11/paramount-bad-robot-set-scribes-for-boilerplate-190423/ . October 23, 2022 . November 2, 2022 . Deadline Hollywood.
  4. Web site: Shaw . Lucas . December 6, 2013 . 'Star Trek 3' Beams Up 'Boilerplate' Writers J.D. Payne, Patrick McKay . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20200808033056/https://www.thewrap.com/star-trek-movie-jd-payne-patrick-mckay-talks-write-exclusive/ . August 8, 2020 . November 2, 2022 . TheWrap.
  5. Web site: Kit . Borys . January 21, 2015 . Simon Pegg and 'Dark Blue' Co-Creator Doug Jung to Write 'Star Trek 3' . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20220815143025/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/simon-pegg-dark-blue-creator-765870/ . August 15, 2022 . November 2, 2022 . The Hollywood Reporter.
  6. Web site: Westenfeld . Adrienne . October 14, 2022 . For the Rings of Power Showrunners, the Road Goes Ever On . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20221102135526/https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/tv/a41610893/rings-of-power-showrunners-finale-interview/ . November 2, 2022 . November 3, 2022 . Esquire.
  7. Web site: Kit . Borys . March 10, 2017 . 'Godzilla vs. Kong' Film Sets Writers Room (Exclusive) . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20220708172848/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/kong-skull-island-sequel-plans-godzilla-kong-sets-writers-room-984992/ . July 8, 2022 . November 3, 2022 . The Hollywood Reporter.
  8. Web site: Kroll . Justin . July 31, 2017 . Jaume Collet-Serra to Direct Dwayne Johnson in Disney's 'Jungle Cruise' . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20211129092723/https://variety.com/2017/film/news/jaume-collet-serra-dwayne-johnson-in-disneys-jungle-cruise-1202510935/ . November 29, 2021 . November 3, 2022 . Variety.
  9. Web site: Fleming . Mike Jr. . August 22, 2017 . JD Payne & Patrick McKay Bite Into Fox & 21 Laps' 'A People's History Of The Vampire Uprising' . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20220731200124/https://deadline.com/2017/08/a-peoples-history-of-the-vampire-uprising-jd-payne-patrick-mckay-writing-fox-21-laps-shawn-levy-1202152886/ . July 31, 2022 . November 3, 2022 . Deadline Hollywood.
  10. Web site: Andreeva . Nellie . July 28, 2018 . 'The Lord Of the Rings' Hires Writers JD Payne & Patrick McKay As Amazon Series Moves To Next Development Phase – TCA . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20221013083740/https://deadline.com/2018/07/the-lord-of-the-rings-jd-payne-patrick-mckay-develop-amazon-series-1202435720/ . October 13, 2022 . November 3, 2022 . Deadline Hollywood.
  11. Web site: Flook . Ray . July 27, 2019 . "Lord of the Rings": Orlando Bloom Has Some Bad News for Legolas Fans About That Amazon Prime Series . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20220127123137/https://bleedingcool.com/tv/lord-of-the-rings-orlando-bloom-has-some-bad-news-for-legolas-fans-about-that-amazon-prime-series/ . January 27, 2022 . November 3, 2022 . Bleeding Cool.
  12. Web site: Cohen . Ben . September 8, 2022 . Amazon Wanted a Lord of the Rings Show. It Turned to Frodo and Sam. . https://web.archive.org/web/20221012121824/https://www.wsj.com/articles/rings-of-power-lotr-amazon-jd-payne-patrick-mckay-11662605833 . October 12, 2022 . November 3, 2022 . The Wall Street Journal.
  13. Web site: Petski . Denise . February 28, 2024 . 'The Rings Of Power' Showrunners Extend Overall Deal With Amazon MGM Studios; Prepping Season 3 . February 29, 2024 . Deadline . en-US.
  14. Web site: Orange . B. Alan . September 15, 2018 . The Rock Wraps Disney's Jungle Cruise with a Final Set Video . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20220123050334/https://movieweb.com/jungle-cruise-movie-wraps-production-dwayne-johnson-video/ . January 23, 2022 . November 2, 2022 . MovieWeb.
  15. Web site: The Lord Of The Rings: The Rings Of Power . August 16, 2024 . Writers Guild of America West.

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