Zak Penn

Zak Penn (born March 23, 1968) is an American screenwriter. Penn wrote and directed Incident at Loch Ness and The Grand, wrote the script for The Incredible Hulk, co-wrote the scripts for X2 and X-Men: The Last Stand, and the story for The Avengers. With Michael Karnow, Penn is the co-creator of the TV series Alphas on the Syfy network. Penn was born in New York. He is the son of New York businessman and lawyer Arthur Penn, who led the acquisition of the Capital Markets Assurance Corporation from Citicorp. Zak Penn graduated from Wesleyan University in 1990. His screenplay for PCU was based on his experiences at the Eclectic Society house. Films that Penn has been involved in writing include Last Action Hero, X2, X-Men: The Last Stand, and Elektra. Penn wrote early drafts of Hulk, The Incredible Hulk, The Avengers, and Free Guy. Penn is also a jury member for the digital studio Filmaka, a platform for undiscovered filmmakers to show their work to industry professionals. In July 2012, Avatar Press released the first issue of Penn's first comic book, Hero Worship. The six-issue series is co-written with Star Wars: The Clone Wars screenwriter Scott Murphy and drawn by Michael DiPascale. It centres on Zenith, an indestructible hero who has fans following every disaster, trying to catch a glimpse of the ultimate celebrity and risking their own lives in the process. One fan becomes so obsessed that it leads to the development of his own powers. He directed the documentary film Atari: Game Over. Description above from the Wikipedia article Zak Penn, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Works

Beacon 23

Aster Calyx and Halan Kai Nielsen are inextricably drawn to Beacon 23. Navigating one threat after another, they unravel the beacon’s mysteries, just in time to face their most powerful enemy.

Release Date:2023-11-12

Department:Writing

Job:Writer

Episode Count:4

Vote Count:74

Free Guy

A bank teller discovers he is actually a background player in an open-world video game, and decides to become the hero of his own story. Now, in a world where there are no limits, he is determined to be the guy who saves his world his way before it's too late.

Release Date:2021-08-11

Department:Writing

Job:Screenplay

Vote Count:8948

In Search of the Last Action Heroes

The most comprehensive retrospective of the '80s action film genre ever made.

Release Date:2019-09-01

Character:Himself

Vote Count:36

Ready Player One

When the creator of a popular video game system dies, a virtual contest is created to compete for his fortune.

Release Date:2018-03-28

Department:Writing

Job:Screenplay

Vote Count:15817

Grimsby

Wrongfully accused and on the run, a top MI6 assassin joins forces with his long-lost, football hooligan brother to save the world from a sinister plot.

Release Date:2016-02-24

Department:Crew

Job:Thanks

Vote Count:2310

Atari: Game Over

The Xbox Originals documentary that chronicles the fall of the Atari Corporation through the lens of one of the biggest mysteries of all time, dubbed “The Great Video Game Burial of 1983.” Rumor claims that millions of returned and unsold E.T. cartridges were buried in the desert, but what really happened there?

Release Date:2014-11-19

Department:Directing

Job:Director

Vote Count:222

The Avengers

When an unexpected enemy emerges and threatens global safety and security, Nick Fury, director of the international peacekeeping agency known as S.H.I.E.L.D., finds himself in need of a team to pull the world back from the brink of disaster. Spanning the globe, a daring recruitment effort begins!

Release Date:2012-04-25

Department:Writing

Job:Story

Vote Count:31245

Alphas

Five ordinary people with superhuman physical and mental abilities are brought together to form one extraordinary team of Alphas. Operating within the U.S. Department of Defense, the team investigates cases that point to others with Alpha abilities.

Release Date:2011-07-11

Department:Production

Job:Producer

Episode Count:24

Vote Count:309

Tales from the Script

Shane Black ("Lethal Weapon"), John Carpenter ("Halloween"), Frank Darabont ("The Shawshank Redemption"), William Goldman ("The Princess Bride"), Paul Schrader ("Taxi Driver"), and dozens of other Hollywood screenwriters share hilarious anecdotes and penetrating insights in "Tales from the Script," the most comprehensive documentary ever made about screenwriting. By analyzing their triumphs and recalling their failures, the participants explain how successful writers develop the skills necessary for toughing out careers in one of the world's most competitive industries. They also reveal the untold stories behind some of the greatest screenplays ever written, describing their adventures with luminaries including Harrison Ford, Stanley Kubrick, Joel Silver, Martin Scorsese, and Steven Spielberg. The film was produced in tandem with the upcoming HarperCollins book of the same name.

Release Date:2009-01-10

Character:Self

Vote Count:38

The Incredible Hulk

Scientist Bruce Banner scours the planet for an antidote to the unbridled force of rage within him: the Hulk. But when the military masterminds who dream of exploiting his powers force him back to civilization, he finds himself coming face to face with a new, deadly foe.

Release Date:2008-06-12

Department:Writing

Job:Screenplay

Vote Count:11912

Starz Inside: Comic Books Unbound

From superheroes to superstars, Hollywood has always turned to comic books for imagination and inspiration. In this Starz Inside documentary, discover the history of comics from page to screen through the evolution and revolutions that have changed entertainment forever. It's a hero's journey of hits, misses and unstoppable powers, featuring the Spider-Man, X-Men, and Batman films (including The Dark Knight), Iron Man, Superman Returns, Hellboy II, Sin City, Incredible Hulk, American Splendor, Wanted, and beyond, plus revealing interviews with Guillermo del Toro, Stan Lee, Zak Penn, Ron Perlman, Selma Blair, Neal Adams, Roger Corman, Avi Arad, Mike Mignola, Paul Pope, Richard Donner, Jim Steranko, and many more.

Release Date:2008-06-10

Character:Self - Screenwriter, X2 & X-Men: The Last Stand

Vote Count:4

The Grand

The Grand is in the tradition of improvisational comedies like Best In Show and This Is Spinal Tap. The story is set in the world of professional poker and follows six players who reach the final table of the world’s second most famous high stakes tournament, the Grand Championship of Poker.

Release Date:2007-06-07

Department:Directing

Job:Director

Vote Count:88

X-Men: The Last Stand

When a cure is found to treat mutations, lines are drawn amongst the X-Men—led by Professor Charles Xavier—and the Brotherhood, a band of powerful mutants organised under Xavier's former ally, Magneto.

Release Date:2006-05-24

Department:Writing

Job:Writer

Vote Count:9761

Elektra

Elektra the warrior survives a near-death experience, becomes an assassin-for-hire, and tries to protect her two latest targets, a single father and his young daughter, from a group of supernatural assassins.

Release Date:2005-01-13

Department:Writing

Job:Writer

Vote Count:2463

Incident at Loch Ness

When renowned director Werner Herzog and fellow filmmaker Zak Penn set off to explore the legend of Scotland's Loch Ness monster, they uncover much more than they bargained for. Unexplained sightings of the creature and chaos among the crew create an uneasy feeling that things aren't what they seem.

Release Date:2004-12-17

Department:Directing

Job:Director

Character:Self

Vote Count:87

Suspect Zero

A killer is on the loose, and an FBI agent sifts through clues and learns that the bloodthirsty felon's victims of choice are other serial killers.

Release Date:2004-08-27

Department:Writing

Job:Screenplay

Vote Count:317

X2

Professor Charles Xavier and his team of genetically gifted superheroes face a rising tide of anti-mutant sentiment led by Col. William Stryker. Storm, Wolverine and Jean Grey must join their usual nemeses—Magneto and Mystique—to unhinge Stryker's scheme to exterminate all mutants.

Release Date:2003-04-27

Department:Writing

Job:Story

Vote Count:10225

Ozzy & Drix

Ozzy & Drix, also known as The Fantastic Voyage Adventures of Osmosis Jones & Drixenol and Osmosis Jones: The Animated Series, is an American animated television series based on the Warner Bros. film Osmosis Jones and it was produced by Warner Bros. Animation. It takes place inside the body of teenager Hector Cruz. The series premiered on September 14, 2002 on the Kids' WB; the final episode aired July 5, 2004. Unlike the original movie it spun off from, Ozzy & Drix was entirely animated and contained no live action. It stars Phil LaMarr as the replacement for Chris Rock as Osmosis Jones, and Jeff Bennett as the replacement for David Hyde Pierce as Drix. As of July 2011, episodes of the series are still available via the Kids WB website. The show also aired on Teletoon in Canada. The show is also slightly less violent than the movie, having the characters treated like people rather than simply cells, and having none of them killed off, unlike the movie where Thrax managed to kill off several cells. There are also new characters that replace the ones from the original movie such as Maria Amino replacing Leah Estrogen, Mayor Spryman replacing Mayor Phlegmming, Sylvian Fischer replacing Tom Colonic, Chief Gluteus replacing The Chief of Police, The Mole replacing Chill the Flu Shot and Scarlet Fever replacing Thrax.

Release Date:2002-09-14

Department:Production

Job:Executive Producer

Episode Count:13

Vote Count:52

Behind Enemy Lines

While flying a routine reconnaissance mission over Bosnia, fighter pilot Lt. Chris Burnett photographs something he wasn't supposed to see and gets shot down behind enemy lines, where he must outrun an army led by a ruthless Serbian general. With time running out and a deadly tracker on his trail, Burnett's commanding officer, Admiral Reigart, decides to risk his career and launch a renegade rescue mission to save his life.

Release Date:2001-11-30

Department:Writing

Job:Screenplay

Vote Count:1511

Osmosis Jones

A white blood cell policeman, with the help of a cold pill, must stop a deadly virus from destroying the human they live in, Frank.

Release Date:2001-08-10

Department:Production

Job:Producer

Vote Count:1026

Nutty Professor II: The Klumps

The hilarity begins when professor Sherman Klump finds romance with fellow DNA specialist, Denise Gaines, and discovers a brilliant formula that reverses aging. But Sherman's thin and obnoxious alter ego, Buddy Love, wants out...and a big piece of the action. And when Buddy gets loose, things get seriously nutty.

Release Date:2000-07-27

Department:Writing

Job:Writer

Vote Count:1319

Chuck & Buck

Chuck and Buck are childhood best friends whose lives have taken very different paths. While Chuck moved away and now has a real life, Buck stayed behind and developed a dangerous fixation—on Chuck's life.

Release Date:2000-07-14

Character:Josh Weintraub

Vote Count:63

Inspector Gadget

John Brown is a bumbling but well-intentioned security guard who is badly injured in an explosion planned by an evil mastermind. He is taken to a laboratory, where Brenda, a leading robotics surgeon, replaces his damaged limbs with state-of-the-art gadgets and tools. Named "Inspector Gadget" by the press, John -- along with his niece, Penny, and her trusty dog, Brain -- uses his new powers to discover who was behind the explosion.

Release Date:1999-07-23

Department:Writing

Job:Screenplay

Vote Count:1224

Antz

A neurotic worker ant in love with a rebellious princess rises to unlikely stardom when he switches places with a soldier. Signing up to march in a parade, he ends up under the command of a bloodthirsty general. But he's actually been enlisted to fight against a termite army.

Release Date:1998-10-02

Department:Writing

Job:Story Consultant

Vote Count:4496

Star Maps

Carlos wants to be an actor. But his father, Pepe, wants him to work in the family business, that is, male prostitution. Carlos decides that he will be one of his father's boys until he can get his foot in the door in Hollywood.

Release Date:1997-07-23

Character:Carmel County Writer

Vote Count:17

PCU

Nervous high school senior Tom Lawrence visits Port Chester University, where he gets a taste of politically correct college life when he's guided by fraternity wild man Droz and his housemates at The Pit. But Droz and his pals have rivals in nasty preppy Rand McPherson and the school's steely president. With their house threatened with expulsion, Droz and company decide to throw a raging party where the various factions will collide.

Release Date:1994-04-29

Department:Writing

Job:Writer

Character:Bathroom Patron

Vote Count:122

Last Action Hero

After his father's death, a young boy finds solace in action movies featuring an indestructible cop. Given a magic ticket by a theater manager, he is transported into the film and teams up with the cop to stop a villain who escapes into the real world.

Release Date:1993-06-18

Department:Writing

Job:Story

Vote Count:2747