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We all know that Hollywood envies others’ success. So if Michael Bay can have a Hate Club, maybe Alex Kurtzman and Bob Orci should, too. That’s because, whenever I mention their names to bigtime screenwriters and producers who can’t get anything going now, a lot of teeth-gnashing and profanity-spewing ensues. Here’s why: Not only did the duo write and produce Star Trek, which has so far grossed over $350M worldwide (and they’ve signed on to write the sequel). Not only are they the scripters of both Transformers and the upcoming Transformers 2: Revenge Of The Fallen. But they also received executive producer credits for The Proposal which comes out this weekend. So that’s three movies this summer alone, along with the TV series Fringe on Fox. Did I mention their publicist calls them 2009′s “Boys of Summer”?
I Feel Your Pain Over Kurtzman And Orci
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There is, of course, the matter that their writing sucks big rubber monkey dicks.
So, in other words, because these guys worked hard for a lot of years to get to the phenomenal success they’re currently having, they’re now deserving of everyone’s derision and hatred.
I can’t stand Michael Bay (hate his movies, and everything I’ve seen about him firsthand and heard through the grapevine screams “asshole”)…BUT I don’t at all begrudge him his success. Like him or not (and I don’t), he’s earned it. HOWEVER, have I missed something? Are Kurtzman and Orci the screenwriting equivalent of Bay (little artistic talent, park-in-handicap-spaces-entitlement-type personalities) that warrants them being compared to him?
Oh, and considering what Kurtzman and Orci have achieved this year, they ARE Hollywood’s Boys of Summer. Just like James Cameron was and will soon again be King of the World. Just because people don’t like it doesn’t mean it’s not true.
Most of their work is complete crap, but the first half of Star Trek represents a huge step forward for the pair. I hope they keep going along this path and not the generic stuff of Eagle Eye and TF.
The comment above me is correct – this just sounds like a bit of jealousy from the old guard in town who are now out of work. Plus I don’t get the point of this article? Are you saying they don’t deserve this success? Or that they’re not that great at writing?
As the comment above me says, they didn’t get there by writing terrible scripts. Not everyone may like their work, but they did at least put a lot of hard work in it to get there. And most people loved Star Trek. That wasn’t ALL the work of Abrams and his actors. Kurtzman and Orci at least had to write the great script for Abrams to direct around.
These guys definitely earned some respect with Star Trek. But come on, Transformers was probably the worst script ever put to screen.
Fringe kinda sucks. But it’s hard to know if they’re to blame since the leads in that show are so terrifyingly boring.
Kurtzman and Orci are easy to work with, they’re highly professional and know exactly what their business partners want. I don’t get why anybody would be jealous instead of applauding their success – they’ve earned every cent they’re making right now.
I just love the tale they wove of being billeted in a hotel for four months after the strike. Supposedly it was comped by Bay while they hammered out “Star Trek”, Transformers 2″, and other works all at the same time, just churning out product. Especially “Transformers”, which began production with only an outline. They could be “going green” by using only ten pages for a script: Insert reaction shots from Shia between the CGI sequences. Still, I applaud the guys – they are attached to the hits.
Let the haters hate. Good for them for becoming successful.
@ MartinShock:
Orci and Kurtzman were on set of “Star Trek” during the WGA strike (they exec produced it, but couldn’t render writing services). By the time the strike ended, “Star Trek” was nearly finished shooting.
At that time, Bay holed Orci, Kurtzman and Ehren Kruger up to co-write “Transformers 2″ — ST was in post-production by that point. I’m not a fan of Orci or Kurtzman, but they didn’t do a bad job on “Star Trek”. But as for the two “Transformers” movies, that’s a completely different story (not to mention John Rogers of “Catwoman” infamy wrote a draft for the first film too).
Have you ever met these guys? I met Bob Orci a couple of times and he’s one of the nicest people I’ve met out here. During the strike I walked the line with him for about an hour and had a great conversation. I finally say, “Hey you ever written anything I might know?” “Uh, Transformers?” It’s hard to hate a guy like that. I wish them every success… okay, they have had ever success, but they can have more.
Nikki PLEASE name for me even ONE movie they’ve written that didn’t absolutely SUCK!
I noticed your list excluded The Island. They wrote that one too, don’t you remember?
THAT’S the reason why these two royal hacks are so roundly hated. It has nothing to do with the amount of crappy movies they’ve been responsible for. Can anybody REALLY be proud of having Optimus Prime saying “My bad?”
Would YOU brag about that? They write like a couple of first timers. CGI is the ONLY thing that has kept their movies from going straight to the Bargain Bin at Wal-Mart.
And “the Boys of Summer?” Not even!
And Wannabe. I cannot believe you actually compared the Hacking Cough Duo to James Cameron.
One of the greatest writer=directors of all time compared to the two WORST screenwriters ever?
You just deep-sixed your entire defense of those two with that one.
They’re not Leigh Brackett or Robert Towne by any stretch, but @ least they’re trying to polish the high concept turd. They’re also very lucky to have JJ Abrams in their corner.
Rock on, Guys!
Try to make conditions better for the rest of us!
Regardless of their films, it’s about time some WRITERS were given due credit for successful films. It all begins with the script…
If Kurtzman and Orci have as little talent as you real artists, then I hope that with every script I write my skill with words diminishes little by little. Wow, look at that sentence. It’s already started! Malibu here I come!
It’s not like these dudes didn’t pay their dues…they started out on “Xena” for crying out loud!
It may infuriate people that they’re having all this success, but it is deserved. They write genuinely commercial films and TV shows.
As someone who has had recent success and now finds himself being attacked by jealous bloggers, GOOD FOR THEM! I hope they have FIVE movies out next summer. This is tough business filled with jealous, jealous people. They are good writers who have to ultimately please directors and studios. Everyone of the haters would trade places with them in a second.
Its not as if these guys have just appeared on the scene, I remember noticing their names pop up in the credits for Alias years back. True, they’re lucky to have JJ Abrams in their corner. Fringe has been one of the few hits of the TV season and Star Trek has had the best word of mouth from people I’ve seen in a long time (and the most enjoyable ‘blockbuster’ so far this year). They’re obviously doing something right regardless of what others may think of their work.
Nikki, why don’t you NAME those “big-time” producers and/or writers who spew profanity through their gnashing teeth! C’mon, we all know this business- great scripts don’t always make a ton of money, but you will have trouble finding one producer who would rather have a great script that made nothing over a crappy script that turned into a friggin blockbuster. These guys write scripts/shows that make money- period. Their target market is teenage/YA boys/men- so what if Transformers was stupid- that’s not why boys go to see these kinds of films. And say what you will about their films, their show Fringe is excellent- the mad scientist on the show is one of the funniest, most unique characters to come along in ages and he should get an emmy nomination. If they called my agent and said they wanted to talk to me about joining that show I would in a second. As for those un-named producers/writers- stop living on your reputations and get back to work on something original-
I would gladly take any and all the internet derision in the world in exchange for half the money they must make.
(Half the money one of them makes, in fact – so technically a quarter of the money they must make.)
No hate here. Pure jealousy.
Now if only writers who were any good could be successful. Wouldn’t that be novel.
Both Kurtzman and Orci are nice guys and deserve the success they have gotten whether they are the hacks or simply writers who know how to play to an audience…. and studio for that matter.
But in saying that their Star Trek script represented a bigger villain to the crew of the Enterprise than Eric Bana ever could.
Though I do enjoy FRINGE and I hear their script for the 28th Amendment is pretty good.
Say what you will, but Kurtzman & Orci take their audiences for a ride and people keep coming back for more. Don’t like their movies or TV shows? Then don’t watch them. As dysfunctional and anti-competitive as Hollywood seems at times, they have achieved success through the free market (i.e., their audiences). It probably kills naysayers that they’re also genuinely nice guys who’ve broken their asses to get to where they are. Instead of wasting time bashing them, refocus your energies on your art and maybe you’ll enjoy some of the same level of success that they do.
They haven’t broken their asses to get where they are. They have been given one job after another, and often by naming who one of them is connected to. Especially in the early days, it was people calling people saying, ‘you should consider them because you know he’s connected to…’
I think ST is just another shallow popcorn movie that doesn’t have any of the depth or meaning that Star Trek was always about and that it won’t be thought of even ten years from now, let alone 40. But unfortunately that is what many of the big special effects movies are about these days — nothing. Just wow at special effects. And people spend their money on them without caring. That’s why Avatar is getting all the accolades and box office — it actually is about something, a lot of somethings, and weighty. For these days, that’s rare and totally refreshing.
WOW the jealous losers on this site is amazing. You are so unhappy that the public likes their movies and ignores your crap that all you can do is criticize their writing. Well at least they didn’t win an Oscar for 87 plus derivation of the “F” word like Afleck and Damon did. How about critiquing the worthless scripts from movies that have bombed like all the anti American war films over the last five years.
Say what you will about the quality of their work, but remember it’s show business, not English literature these guys are selling.
Sean