Randall Wallace

Randall Wallace (born July 28, 1949) is an American screenwriter, film director, producer, and songwriter who came to prominence by writing the screenplay for the historical drama film Braveheart (1995). His work on the film earned him a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay and a Writers Guild of America Award in the same category. He has since directed films such as The Man in the Iron Mask (1998), We Were Soldiers (2002), Secretariat (2010) and Heaven Is for Real (2014). Early life and education Born in Jackson, Tennessee, he lived in Memphis and Henderson County, Tennessee before moving to Virginia. Wallace began writing stories at the age of seven. He graduated from E.C. Glass High School in Lynchburg, Virginia and attended Duke University, where he studied Russian, religion, and literature and was a member of Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity. He put himself through a graduate year of seminary by teaching martial arts. Wallace holds a black belt in karate. Career After managing an animal show at Nashville's Opryland, Wallace moved to Hollywood to pursue a career in singing and songwriting. He began writing short stories, novels and scripts for movies. Wallace was taken under the wing of leading television producer Stephen J. Cannell and spent several years writing for television in the late 1980s and early 1990s. He gained recognition and commercial success by penning the screenplay for Braveheart (1995), which was inspired by a trip to Scotland to learn more about his Scottish roots. While there, he discovered the legend of the medieval Scottish patriot William Wallace; he is not, however, related to William Wallace in any way. Braveheart became Wallace's first screenplay to be produced, after drawing the interest of Mel Gibson, who went on to produce, direct and star in the film. It ended up as one of the most successful films of 1995, earning over $200 million. It was nominated for ten Academy Awards, including a Best Original Screenplay nomination for Wallace, and won five, including the Academy Awards for Best Picture and Best Director. Braveheart also won one Golden Globe Award and four BAFTA Awards.