After James Cameron Claimed He Wrote Point Break, The Film’s Screenwriter Responded

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James Cameron is a famous filmmaker known for directing some of history’s most acclaimed movies. While he’s already created a long list of successful films, he recently stated that he also wrote the popular surfer crime movie, Point Break.

Cameron recently stated he feels he didn’t receive proper credit for the film, claiming the Writers’ Guild overlooked his contributions. While the official writing credit went to W. Peter Iliff, Iliff himself confirmed Cameron did work on the movie and expressed his respect for the director of Avatar. Iliff went on to say…

Jim Cameron is a personal hero of mine, and I’m a huge fan of his. I especially appreciate his amazing work on the movie Point Break.

W. Peter Iliff wrote the screenplay for Point Break, which began as an idea from Rick King. Ridley Scott was initially set to direct, but the project moved to different studios and he ultimately committed to Black Rain. Eventually, Point Break landed at 20th Century Fox, where Kathryn Bigelow took on the directing role.

When the movie was being made, Kathryn Bigelow was married to James Cameron, who was filming The Abyss on the same studio lot. Screenwriter W. Peter Iliff admits that Cameron and Bigelow heavily revised his initial script, creating what’s known as the “production draft.” Iliff specifically recalls Cameron adding the iconic scene where Keanu Reeves’ character, Johnny Utah, jumps from a plane after Patrick Swayze’s Brodie, without a parachute.

The Writers Guild of America decides who gets credit for a screenplay by having a panel of writers examine different versions of the script to determine each author’s contributions. For this film, W. Peter Illiff was credited with writing the screenplay, while both Illiff and Stephen King received credit for the story.

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It’s understandable why Illiff might be upset with Cameron claiming credit for writing the film, but surprisingly, he doesn’t seem to be. Illiff, who hasn’t seen Cameron in years, doesn’t appear concerned about the situation. He went on to say…

I feel only thankful towards Jim. I focus on what I can control and don’t let things outside of that bother me. Whenever I talk about the movie publicly, I always make a point of acknowledging his contributions.

Illiff later wrote the screenplays for Patriot Games, starring Harrison Ford, and Varsity Blues, including the subsequent TV series. James Cameron directed three of the five highest-grossing films of all time. Ultimately, things worked out well for everyone involved.

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2025-12-19 21:09