Jamie Linden (born September 3, 1980) is an American

screenwriter A screenwriter (also called scriptwriter, scribe, or scenarist) is a person who practices the craft of writing for visual mass media, known as screenwriting. These can include short films, feature-length films, television programs, television ...

best known for ''

We Are Marshall ''We Are Marshall'' is a 2006 American biographical sports drama film directed by McG. It depicts the aftermath of the 1970 plane crash that killed 75 people: 37 players of the Marshall University Thundering Herd football team, five coaches, ...

'' (2006) and '' Dear John'' (2010). He also wrote and directed '' 10 Years''.

Early life

Linden grew up in

Winter Park, Florida Winter Park is a city in Orange County, Florida, United States. The population was 29,795 according to the 2020 census. It is part of the Greater Orlando, Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. Winter Park was foun ...

near

Orlando Orlando commonly refers to: * Orlando, Florida, a city in the United States Orlando may also refer to: People * Orlando (given name), a masculine name, includes a list of people with the name * Orlando (surname), includes a list of people wit ...

, where he attended Lake Howell High School. He attended

Florida State University Florida State University (FSU or Florida State) is a Public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preeminent university in the s ...

's College of Communication, majoring in marketing and media production. After graduating from college in 2001, he and three friends traveled to

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

, California with tickets for game show ''

The Price Is Right ''The Price Is Right'' is an American television game show where contestants compete by guessing the prices of merchandise to win cash and prizes. A 1972 revival by Mark Goodson and Bill Todman of their The Price Is Right (1956 American game ...

''. Upon arriving, he was individually called up to compete and won US$5,000 and a Tuscan wine server cart, which he saw as a sign to stay in Hollywood: "I thought, well that's a sign, 'I should stay.' What you want to do, finds you."

Career

Before Linden became a screenwriter, he worked at Mirage Enterprises as an assistant to directors

Sydney Pollack Sydney Irwin Pollack (July 1, 1934 – May 26, 2008) was an American film director, producer, and actor. Pollack is known for directing commercially and critically acclaimed studio films. Over his forty year career he received numerous accolades ...

and

Anthony Minghella Anthony Minghella (6 January 195418 March 2008) was a British film director, playwright, and screenwriter. He was chairman of the board of Governors at the British Film Institute between 2003 and 2007. He directed ''Truly, Madly, Deeply (film), ...

. After reading in a 30th anniversary article in '' FSView & Florida Flambeau'', Florida State's student newspaper, about the 1970

Southern Airways Flight 932 Southern Airways Flight 932 was a chartered Southern Airways Douglas DC-9 domestic United States commercial jet flight from Stallings Field (ISO) in Kinston, North Carolina, to Huntington Tri-State Airport/Milton J. Ferguson Field (HTS) near ...

plane crash that killed most of the Marshall University Thundering Herd football team, Linden says he became "obsessed" with the story. After moving to Hollywood, his first job involved reading

feature film A feature film or feature-length film (often abbreviated to feature), also called a theatrical film, is a film (Film, motion picture, "movie" or simply “picture”) with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole present ...

screenplay A screenplay, or script, is a written work produced for a film, television show (also known as a '' teleplay''), or video game by screenwriters (cf. ''stage play''). Screenplays can be original works or adaptations from existing pieces of w ...

s. After being fired from several assistant positions, he decided to write his own screenplay. His first script was titled ''Things to Do Before I Die'', co-written with University of Florida alumnus Cory Helms, and

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI), commonly known as Warner Bros. (WB), is an American filmed entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California and the main namesake subsidiary of Warner Bro ...

gave the pair a blind deal to write another script. Linden says the aftermath of the Marshall University tragedy was the very first story he ever thought of. In 2004, he pitched the story to Warner Bros. with film producers Basil Iwanyk and Mary Viola. When Warner Bros. bought the script, Linden and other film crew met with many family members of the plane crash victims including Keith Morehouse, whose father was killed in the crash, to collaborate on the honesty of the script and the dignity of the victims. The film became ''

'', released in 2006 and directed by McG (Joseph McGinty Nichol), founder of

Wonderland Sound and Vision Wonderland Sound and Vision, Inc., or simply known as Wonderland, Inc., is an American production company founded by director and producer Joseph McGinty Nichol in 2001. It independently develops, produces and finances its own slate of feature ...

. In 2006, it was reported that Linden was writing a

biographical film A biographical film or biopic () is a film that dramatizes the life of an actual person or group of people. Such films show the life of a historical person and the central character's real name is used. They differ from Docudrama, docudrama films ...

about Olympic gold medalist downhill skier Bill Johnson to be produced by Basil Iwanyk, as well as an adaptation of '' The Dogs of Babel'' to be produced by David Heyman and a

television pilot A television pilot (also known as a pilot or a pilot episode and sometimes marketed as a tele-movie) in United Kingdom and United States television, is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell a show to a television netwo ...

titled ''Flash Back'' to be directed by McG.

Personal life

In 2016, Linden started dating Canadian actress

Rachel McAdams Rachel Anne McAdams (born November 17, 1978) is a Canadian actress. After graduating from York University in 2001 with a BFA in theatre, she worked in Canadian television and film productions, such as the drama film '' Perfect Pie'' (2002), ...

. Their first child, a son, was born in April 2018. In August 2020, it was reported that they were expecting their second child. During an interview in May 2022, McAdams confirmed she had given birth to a daughter.

Filmography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Linden, Jamie 1980 births American male screenwriters Living people Florida State University alumni Place of birth missing (living people) Writers from Orlando, Florida People from Winter Park, Florida Film directors from Florida American expatriate writers in Canada Screenwriters from Florida Film producers from Florida 21st-century American screenwriters 21st-century American male writers Lake Howell High School alumni