Outstanding Left-Handed Screenwriters
Scripts, Smudges, and the Lefties Who Left Their Marks
When we talk about left-handed celebrities, the conversation usually starts and ends with actors. Maybe a musician or two if you're feeling generous. But if you’ve ever laughed, cried, or clutched your seat during a movie, chances are you’ve felt the work of famous left-handed people who never stepped in front of the camera—left-handed writers quietly shaping stories behind the scenes.
And yes, the stereotype exists: are left-handed people more creative? Are most artists left handed? Is your friend who draws cool stuff in their notebook statistically more likely to bump you with their elbow at dinner? As annoying as the myths can be, there’s actual science suggesting that left-handed artists tend to excel in divergent thinking. That’s the kind of thinking it takes to build complex plots, twisty dialogue, and characters we love even when they’re monsters.
The truth? The film industry has always relied on left-handed creatives to challenge the usual formulas. And while not all writers are left-handed (sorry, Shakespeare), there are plenty of famous people who are left handed absolutely dominating the screenwriting world.
So, grab a cup of coffee in your favorite left-handed mug, settle in, and meet the famous left handed artists who’ve been scripting Hollywood’s best lines, left hand first.
Spike Lee
Let’s start strong. Spike Lee is one of the most left-handed famous people working today, and not just because he holds his pen differently. This is the man behind Do the Right Thing, Malcolm X, and BlacKkKlansman (which finally earned him his long-overdue Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay in 2019). Lee’s work is sharp, political, deeply personal, and always just a little unpredictable. He doesn’t just write stories, he starts conversations.
Emma Thompson
Not just an award-winning actress, Emma Thompson is also a rare force in screenwriting. She won an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay with Sense and Sensibility, making her the only person to win Academy Awards for both acting and writing. She’s thoughtful, funny, literary, and, yes, left-handed. No big deal. Just rewriting Jane Austen and winning gold for it.
Christopher Nolan
Three Oscar nominations for screenwriting. Multiple mind-bending plots. Dialogues that practically require a second watch. Christopher Nolan is the brains behind Inception, Memento, and Oppenheimer. His writing is complex, layered, and often incredibly nerdy in the best way possible. Of course he’s left handed. Who else could turn a story about dreams within dreams into a cultural phenomenon?
James Cameron
Nobody writes quite like James Cameron. He writes like a guy who once told a studio executive, “I’m the king of the world,” and then proved it. As a left-handed artist, Cameron’s scripts are big, bold, and packed with just enough emotion to make you cry about a sinking boat. Or blue aliens. He wrote The Terminator, Aliens, Titanic, Avatar. The man has a type. And that type is massive hits.
David Ayer
Gritty, raw, and often heartbreakingly real, David Ayer’s scripts explore violence, loyalty, and the broken systems that shape both. With Training Day, Fury, and End of Watch, his writing is grounded in harsh truths and emotional intensity. As a left-handed writer, his off-kilter perspective fits the tone of his stories perfectly.
James Wan
Before he built an empire of haunted dolls and cursed basements, Wan co-wrote Saw, the film that turned low-budget horror into high-impact storytelling. He’s continued to co-write within The Conjuring universe and beyond. Left-handed and unafraid of the dark, Wan’s approach is part instinct, part chaos, all suspense.
Seth Rogen
It’s not just the laugh. It’s the way his scripts manage to be dumb and smart at the same time. With Evan Goldberg, Seth Rogen has co-written comedies like Superbad, Pineapple Express, and This Is the End—films that feel like late-night conversations turned into screenplays. As a famous-left handed artist, Rogen proves that chaos and creativity are often best friends.
Dan Aykroyd
Behind the sunglasses and proton packs, Dan Aykroyd was co-writing cult classics like Ghostbusters and The Blues Brothers. His screenwriting is surreal, unpredictable, and fully committed to the bit. That kind of offbeat genius makes perfect sense coming from a left-handed creative mind.
Shawn Wayans
As part of the Wayans family comedy empire, Shawn Wayans co-wrote Scary Movie, White Chicks, and Don't Be a Menace. His scripts are fearless and often totally unhinged, which makes perfect sense for someone with a left-handed artist brain tuned to parody and exaggeration.
Sacha Baron Cohen
If left-handed people tend to see the world differently, Sacha Baron Cohen might be Exhibit A. As the writer behind Borat, Brüno, and The Dictator, he’s made a career out of satire, discomfort, and outrageous characters. His work pushes boundaries on purpose, and he does it all with a pen in his left hand.
When the Credits Rolled, the Left Hand Was Holding the Pen
Just look at the scripts. These famous left-handed people aren’t exceptions: they’re part of a pattern. They don’t all write the same way, or even in the same genre, but they share a willingness to question norms and push ideas that feel too risky for anyone else. It’s not about being better. It’s about being different. And that difference shows up in every scene they write.
Want to meet more lefties changing Hollywood? Check out our articles about left-handed Oscar winners, legendary left-handed film directors, and Hollywood’s most famous actors.
And if you’re inspired to start writing your own weird, wonderful scripts, don’t forget to do it with the right mug (which is to say… the left one.)
