Chris Morgan (filmmaker)

Chris Morgan is an American screenwriter and producer. He is best known for helping write most installments of the Fast & Furious film series, beginning with The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift (2006). His other screenwriting credits include Cellular (2004), Wanted (2008), 47 Ronin (2013), Shazam! Fury of the Gods (2023) and Red One (2024).

Morgan founded Chris Morgan Productions, which entered a first-look production agreement with Universal Pictures in 2011. He expanded the company's television operations through a deal with 20th Century Fox Television in 2013. His television work includes co-creating The Troop, creating Gang Related, and executive producing Fast & Furious Spy Racers. His producing credits include The Mummy, Bird Box and Bird Box Barcelona.

Chris Morgan
Alma materUniversity of California, Riverside
OccupationsScreenwriter, producer
Known forFast & Furious film series

Early life and education

Morgan attended the University of California, Riverside, where he initially studied English before changing his major to political science. He graduated with a bachelor's degree in 1995. During his teens and twenties, he worked in a video store, where he began writing his first screenplay between assisting customers.

Career

Early screenwriting work

Morgan's entry into professional screenwriting followed work as a production assistant. Fellow assistant Wayne Billheimer read his screenplay and subsequently helped it reach DreamWorks story editor Andrea McCall. Although the screenplay did not sell, McCall referred Morgan to an agent and a lawyer.

Morgan wrote the screenplay for Cellular (2004), directed by David R. Ellis, and later co-wrote Wanted (2008), directed by Timur Bekmambetov. He also co-wrote the screenplay for 47 Ronin (2013) with Hossein Amini, sharing screen-story credit with Walter Hamada. The fantasy action film starred Keanu Reeves and was directed by Carl Rinsch.

Fast & Furious

Morgan joined the Fast & Furious franchise as the screenwriter of The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift (2006), directed by Justin Lin. He subsequently wrote Fast & Furious (2009), Fast Five (2011), Fast & Furious 6 (2013), Furious 7 (2015) and The Fate of the Furious (2017). His involvement also expanded into producing, including executive-producer credits on Fast & Furious 6 and Furious 7, and a producer credit on The Fate of the Furious.

Morgan co-wrote, with Drew Pearce, and produced the franchise spin-off Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw (2019). Directed by David Leitch, the film starred Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham as Luke Hobbs and Deckard Shaw. He also served as an executive producer of Fast X (2023).

In June 2023, Universal was reported to be developing another film centered on Johnson's Hobbs character, with Morgan attached as screenwriter and producer.

Chris Morgan Productions and producing

In April 2011, Morgan signed a two-year first-look production deal with Universal Pictures. The agreement established his production operation on the Universal lot and accompanied his continuing work on the Fast & Furious series. Projects reported in development at the time included The Eye of the World, The Vatican Tapes and Heatseekers.

Morgan received story and producer credits on The Vatican Tapes (2015), directed by Mark Neveldine. He also produced The Mummy (2017), directed by Alex Kurtzman. With Kurtzman, he helped develop Universal's planned Dark Universe, an interconnected series based on the studio's classic monster characters. In November 2017, it was reported that both filmmakers had departed the enterprise.

Morgan's producing work also included Bird Box (2018), directed by Susanne Bier and starring Sandra Bullock, and its Spanish-language expansion, Bird Box Barcelona (2023), written and directed by Álex and David Pastor. He was an executive producer of Witches in the Woods (2019), directed by Jordan Barker.

Other feature work and development

In 2008, Morgan was hired to write a new version of the screenplay for a proposed Gears of War adaptation at New Line Cinema, with Len Wiseman attached to direct. The project had previously been scripted by Stuart Beattie.

In October 2011, Universal acquired Crime of the Century, a science-fiction heist pitch written by Daniel Kunka, with Dan Trachtenberg attached to direct and Morgan attached to produce through Chris Morgan Productions. In January 2012, Universal acquired an alien-invasion pitch by F. Scott Frazier, which Morgan's company was to produce with Strike Entertainment.

In 2012, Morgan and Fredrik Malmberg were announced as producers of The Legend of Conan, a proposed continuation of Conan the Barbarian with Arnold Schwarzenegger returning to the title role. In 2017, Morgan said Universal had decided not to proceed with the proposed film, citing its budget and questions about its commercial prospects.

Morgan co-wrote Shazam! Fury of the Gods (2023) with Henry Gayden. The film was directed by David F. Sandberg and continued the story of Billy Batson and his foster siblings. He wrote and produced Red One (2024), directed by Jake Kasdan, from a story by Hiram Garcia. The Christmas action comedy starred Johnson and Chris Evans.

In 2026, Morgan was reported to be writing and producing an untitled Netflix heist thriller set in the world of MotoGP, with Alan Ritchson attached to star and produce.

Television

Morgan co-created The Troop with Greg Coolidge and Max Burnett. The series follows teenagers who belong to a secret organization that protects the world from monsters. It was commissioned by Nickelodeon in 2009, and Morgan also served as an executive producer.

In 2012, Morgan was attached to produce The Centurion, a drama developed for CBS by Charley and Vlas Parlapanides, with Bob Sertner also producing. The project concerned a Force Recon Marine who returns to police work after making a promise to God.

In April 2013, Morgan established a television production operation under a two-year deal with 20th Century Fox Television. The agreement covered writing and producing new series, supervising other writers and developing projects for multiple networks. He also executive produced the ABC pilot Big Thunder, based on Disney's Big Thunder Mountain Railroad attraction.

Morgan created Gang Related, which aired on Fox in 2014, and served as a writer and executive producer. The crime drama follows a Los Angeles police officer whose ties to a criminal organization conflict with his duties on a gang task force. Its other executive producers included Brian Grazer, Francie Calfo, Scott Rosenbaum and Allen Hughes.

Morgan later served as an executive producer of the DreamWorks Animation series Fast & Furious Spy Racers, alongside Vin Diesel, Neal H. Moritz, Tim Hedrick and Bret Haaland. The Netflix series follows Tony Toretto, a teenage cousin of Dominic Toretto who is recruited by a government agency.

Comics

Morgan co-wrote Salem: Queen of Thorns with Kevin Walsh for BOOM! Studios. The colonial-era action-horror comic centers on Elias Hooke, a warrior-priest who pursues a demon. In an interview released by the publisher, Morgan described comics as an opportunity to explore characters and stories beyond the constraints of his film work.

Morgan was parodied in a The Onion video in which the screenwriter of Fast Five was portrayed by a five-year-old child.

Filmography

Film

Writing and producing credits are listed below.

YearTitleWriterProducerDirector(s)References
2004CellularYesNoDavid R. Ellis
2006The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo DriftYesNoJustin Lin
2008WantedYesNoTimur Bekmambetov
2009Fast & FuriousYesNoJustin Lin
2011Fast FiveYesNoJustin Lin
2013Fast & Furious 6YesExecutiveJustin Lin
201347 RoninYesNoCarl Rinsch
2015Furious 7YesExecutiveJames Wan
2015The Vatican TapesStoryYesMark Neveldine
2017The Fate of the FuriousYesYesF. Gary Gray
2017The MummyNoYesAlex Kurtzman
2018Bird BoxNoYesSusanne Bier
2019Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & ShawYesYesDavid Leitch
2019Witches in the WoodsNoExecutiveJordan Barker
2022A ciegasNoYesDavid Pastor and Álex Pastor[citation needed]
2023Shazam! Fury of the GodsYesNoDavid F. Sandberg
2023Fast XNoExecutiveLouis Leterrier
2023Bird Box BarcelonaNoYesDavid Pastor and Álex Pastor
2024Red OneYesYesJake Kasdan

Other credits

YearTitleRole
2001LloydElectric swingman
2003S.W.A.T.Script revisions[citation needed]

Television

Year(s)TitleCreatorExecutive producerWriterNotes
2009–2013The TroopYesYesNoCo-created with Greg Coolidge and Max Burnett
2013Big ThunderNoYesNoTelevision pilot
2014Gang RelatedYesYesYesWrote two episodes[citation needed]
2019–2021Fast & Furious Spy RacersNoYesNo

Comics

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "Chris Morgan: Credits". TV Guide. Retrieved October 5, 2026.
  2. 1 2 "'Fast Five' Screenwriter Signs Production Deal With Universal". TheWrap. Retrieved October 5, 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "'Fast & Furious' Writer Chris Morgan Lands TV Deal at 20th Century Fox TV". TheWrap. Retrieved October 5, 2026.
  4. 1 2 3 "The Troop: Cast & Crew". Metacritic. Retrieved October 5, 2026.
  5. 1 2 3 "Gang Related". Imagine Entertainment. Retrieved October 5, 2026.
  6. 1 2 3 "Universal and DreamWorks Animation Recruit Cast for Netflix Original Series Fast & Furious: Spy Racers". Netflix. Retrieved October 5, 2026.
  7. 1 2 "Get to Know: Chris Morgan". UCR Magazine. Retrieved October 5, 2026.
  8. 1 2 "47 RONIN Production Notes". SciFi Japan. Retrieved October 5, 2026.
  9. 1 2 3 4 "Dwayne Johnson to Star in New Fast & Furious Movie (Exclusive)". TheWrap. Retrieved October 5, 2026.
  10. ↑ "'Fast & Furious' Spinoff 'Hobbs & Shaw' Tracking for $65 Million Box Office Opening". TheWrap. Retrieved October 5, 2026.
  11. 1 2 "The Vatican Tapes: Cast & Crew". Moviefone. Retrieved October 5, 2026.
  12. 1 2 "Universal Sets a 'Dark Universe' for its Iconic Monsters to Dwell". Comcast. Retrieved October 5, 2026.
  13. ↑ "Universal Puts a Stake in the Monsterverse". Vanity Fair. Retrieved October 5, 2026.
  14. 1 2 "Are you Ready to See? Bird Box Barcelona releases on 14 July". Netflix. Retrieved October 5, 2026.
  15. 1 2 "Witches in the Woods: Full Cast & Crew". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved October 5, 2026.
  16. ↑ "Wiseman To Put Gears Of War Into Action". Animation World Network. Retrieved October 5, 2026.
  17. ↑ "Universal Nabs 'Crime of the Century;' Chris Morgan to Produce". TheWrap. Retrieved October 5, 2026.
  18. ↑ "Universal Buys Alien Invasion Pitch From F. Scott Frazier (Exclusive)". TheWrap. Retrieved October 5, 2026.
  19. ↑ "Arnold Schwarzenegger Will Be King Again In The Legend Of Conan". /Film. Retrieved October 5, 2026.
  20. ↑ "Unproduced Legend Of Conan Movie Was Inspired By Unforgiven". ComicBook.com. Retrieved October 5, 2026.
  21. 1 2 ""Time To Grow Up" Henry Gayden & Chris Morgan Talk 'Shazam! Fury Of The Gods'". Creative Screenwriting. Retrieved October 5, 2026.
  22. 1 2 "How to stream 'Red One,' starring Dwayne Johnson and Chris Evans". About Amazon. Retrieved October 5, 2026.
  23. ↑ "Alan Ritchson Cast in Netflix Heist Movie After War Machine Win, First Details Revealed". ComingSoon.net. Retrieved October 5, 2026.
  24. ↑ "Wednesday, May 13th, 2009". Cynopsis. Retrieved October 5, 2026.
  25. ↑ "CBS Tries Faith Based Television with The Centurion". Path MEGAzine. Retrieved October 5, 2026.
  26. 1 2 "Wanted and Fast & Furious screenwriter drifts into Boom!". Comic Box. Retrieved October 5, 2026.
  27. ↑ "Today Now! Interviews The 5-Year-Old Screenwriter Of Fast Five". The Onion. Retrieved October 5, 2026.