Sort by Popularity - Most Popular Movies and TV Shows tagged with keyword "writer-as-protagonist"

1. American Fiction (2023)

R | 117 min | Comedy, Drama

A novelist who's fed up with the establishment profiting from Black entertainment uses a pen name to write a book that propels him into the heart of the hypocrisy and madness he claims to disdain.

Director: Cord Jefferson | Stars: Jeffrey Wright, Tracee Ellis Ross, John Ortiz, Erika Alexander

Votes: 78,763

2. The Shining (1980)

R | 146 min | Drama, Horror

A family heads to an isolated hotel for the winter where a sinister presence influences the father into violence, while his psychic son sees horrific forebodings from both past and future.

Director: Stanley Kubrick | Stars: Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall, Danny Lloyd, Scatman Crothers

Votes: 1,108,610 | Gross: $44.02M

3. Infinity Pool (2023)

R | 117 min | Crime, Horror, Mystery

James and Em Foster are enjoying an all-inclusive beach vacation in the fictional island of La Tolqa, when a fatal accident exposes the resort's perverse subculture of hedonistic tourism, reckless violence and surreal horrors.

Director: Brandon Cronenberg | Stars: Alexander Skarsgård, Mia Goth, Cleopatra Coleman, Dunja Sepcic

Votes: 56,982

4. Misery (1990)

R | 107 min | Drama, Thriller

After a famous author is rescued from a car crash by a fan of his novels, he comes to realize that the care he is receiving is only the beginning of a nightmare of captivity and abuse.

Director: Rob Reiner | Stars: James Caan, Kathy Bates, Richard Farnsworth, Frances Sternhagen

Votes: 236,066 | Gross: $61.28M

5. 1408 (2007)

PG-13 | 104 min | Fantasy, Horror, Mystery

A man who specialises in debunking paranormal occurrences checks into the fabled room 1408 in the Dolphin Hotel. Soon after settling in, he confronts genuine terror.

Director: Mikael Håfström | Stars: John Cusack, Samuel L. Jackson, Mary McCormack, Tony Shalhoub

Votes: 294,572 | Gross: $71.99M

6. Sunset Boulevard (1950)

Passed | 110 min | Drama, Film-Noir

A screenwriter develops a dangerous relationship with a faded film star determined to make a triumphant return.

Director: Billy Wilder | Stars: William Holden, Gloria Swanson, Erich von Stroheim, Nancy Olson

Votes: 236,759

7. I Spit on Your Grave (1978)

R | 101 min | Horror, Thriller

An aspiring writer is repeatedly assaulted, humiliated, and left for dead by four men she systematically hunts down to seek revenge.

Director: Meir Zarchi | Stars: Camille Keaton, Eron Tabor, Richard Pace, Anthony Nichols

Votes: 31,250

8. Hush (I) (2016)

R | 82 min | Horror, Thriller

A deaf and mute writer who retreated into the woods to live a solitary life must fight for her life in silence when a masked killer appears at her window.

Director: Mike Flanagan | Stars: John Gallagher Jr., Kate Siegel, Michael Trucco, Samantha Sloyan

Votes: 154,070

9. The Lady in the Van (2015)

PG-13 | 104 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama

A man forms an unexpected bond with a transient woman living in her van that's parked in his driveway.

Director: Nicholas Hytner | Stars: Maggie Smith, Alex Jennings, Jim Broadbent, Clare Hammond

Votes: 32,030 | Gross: $10.02M

10. Cooties (2014)

R | 88 min | Action, Comedy, Horror

A mysterious virus hits an isolated elementary school, transforming the kids into a feral swarm of mass savages. An unlikely hero must lead a motley band of teachers in the fight of their lives.

Directors: Jonathan Milott, Cary Murnion | Stars: Elijah Wood, Rainn Wilson, Alison Pill, Jack McBrayer

Votes: 28,623 | Gross: $0.06M

11. Barton Fink (1991)

R | 116 min | Comedy, Drama, Thriller

A renowned New York playwright is enticed to California to write for the movies and discovers the hellish truth of Hollywood.

Directors: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen | Stars: John Turturro, John Goodman, Judy Davis, Michael Lerner

Votes: 129,068 | Gross: $6.15M

12. House (1985)

R | 93 min | Comedy, Fantasy, Horror

A troubled writer moves into a haunted house after inheriting it from his aunt.

Director: Steve Miner | Stars: William Katt, Kay Lenz, George Wendt, Richard Moll

Votes: 30,029 | Gross: $19.44M

13. Wilde (1997)

R | 118 min | Biography, Drama, Romance

The turmoil in poet/playwright Oscar Wilde's life after he discovers his homosexuality.

Director: Brian Gilbert | Stars: Stephen Fry, Jude Law, Vanessa Redgrave, Jennifer Ehle

Votes: 18,142 | Gross: $2.16M

14. Lust for a Vampire (1971)

R | 91 min | Horror

In 1830, forty years to the day since the last manifestation of their dreaded vampirism, the Karnstein heirs use the blood of an innocent to bring forth the evil that is the beautiful Mircalla - or as she was in 1710, Carmilla.

Director: Jimmy Sangster | Stars: Barbara Jefford, Ralph Bates, Suzanna Leigh, Yutte Stensgaard

Votes: 3,571

15. Playing It Cool (2014)

R | 94 min | Comedy, Romance

Unrequited love motivates a guy to write about his experiences.

Director: Justin Reardon | Stars: Chris Evans, Michelle Monaghan, Topher Grace, Aubrey Plaza

Votes: 30,153

16. Deathtrap (1982)

PG | 116 min | Comedy, Crime, Mystery

A Broadway playwright puts murder in his plan to take credit for a student's play.

Director: Sidney Lumet | Stars: Michael Caine, Christopher Reeve, Dyan Cannon, Irene Worth

Votes: 15,479 | Gross: $19.28M

17. Rebel in the Rye (2017)

PG-13 | 106 min | Biography, Drama, Romance

The life of celebrated but reclusive author, J.D. Salinger, who gained worldwide fame with the publication of his novel, "The Catcher in the Rye".

Director: Danny Strong | Stars: Nicholas Hoult, Kevin Spacey, Victor Garber, Hope Davis

Votes: 10,811 | Gross: $0.38M

18. Little Women (1949)

Approved | 122 min | Drama, Family, Romance

The four daughters of a New England family fight for happiness during and after the Civil War.

Director: Mervyn LeRoy | Stars: June Allyson, Peter Lawford, Margaret O'Brien, Elizabeth Taylor

Votes: 8,247 | Gross: $7.47M

19. The Adderall Diaries (2015)

R | 87 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery

Elliot, a troubled former successful writer decides to write about a missing wife and the following murder trial of her husband.

Director: Pamela Romanowsky | Stars: James Franco, Ed Harris, Amber Heard, Jim Parrack

Votes: 6,184 | Gross: $0.01M

20. The Happy Prince (2018)

R | 105 min | Biography, Drama

The untold story of the last days in the tragic times of Oscar Wilde, a person who observes his own failure with ironic distance and regards the difficulties that beset his life with detachment and humor.

Director: Rupert Everett | Stars: Rupert Everett, Colin Firth, Emily Watson, Colin Morgan

Votes: 5,884 | Gross: $0.47M

21. Delirious (1991)

PG | 96 min | Comedy, Fantasy

A soap opera writer gets hit on the head and wakes up as a character in his own show.

Director: Tom Mankiewicz | Stars: John Candy, Mariel Hemingway, Emma Samms, Raymond Burr

Votes: 9,549 | Gross: $5.55M

22. Bad Ronald (1974 TV Movie)

Unrated | 74 min | Drama, Horror, Thriller

A perverted teenage boy who lives in the walls of a house finds the house sold to a family after his mother dies, then he falls for one of the new residents.

Director: Buzz Kulik | Stars: Scott Jacoby, Pippa Scott, John Larch, Dabney Coleman

Votes: 2,419

23. Howling IV: The Original Nightmare (1988 Video)

R | 94 min | Horror

A successful author moves to a small town after suffering a mental breakdown and is tormented by demons and werewolves.

Directors: John Hough, Clive Turner | Stars: Romy Walthall, Michael T. Weiss, Antony Hamilton, Susanne Severeid

Votes: 3,184

24. The Child in Time (2017 TV Movie)

Not Rated | 82 min | Drama

The life of a children's book author is turned upside down when his daughter goes missing.

Director: Julian Farino | Stars: Benedict Cumberbatch, Kelly Macdonald, Stephen Campbell Moore, Saskia Reeves

Votes: 5,206

25. Kafka (1991)

PG-13 | 98 min | Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi

Kafka works during the day at an insurance company, where events lead him to discover a mysterious underground society with strange suppressive goals.

Director: Steven Soderbergh | Stars: Jeremy Irons, Theresa Russell, Joel Grey, Ian Holm

Votes: 10,578 | Gross: $1.06M

26. The Breastford Wives (2007 Video)

79 min | Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi

Rob and Laura move to the peaceful town of Breastford and soon find the women are insatiably sex-crazed.

Director: Jim Wynorski | Stars: Glori-Anne Gilbert, Frankie Cullen, Taylor Wayne, Frank Harper

Votes: 520

27. Le Magnifique (1973)

95 min | Action, Comedy, Fantasy

Writing his 43rd spy novel, François includes people from his life. He's the competent, sophisticated secret agent Bob in stark contrast to François. His cute neighbor is Tatiana who helps Bob in Acapulco.

Director: Philippe de Broca | Stars: Jean-Paul Belmondo, Jacqueline Bisset, Vittorio Caprioli, Hans Meyer

Votes: 6,304

28. Twisted Obsession (1989)

R | 103 min | Drama, Mystery, Romance

American writer in Paris is hired to do a script for an edgy young director he can't stand. When he falls in love with the director's cold and manipulative pretty sister, his life starts to unravel and he realizes that he's been used.

Director: Fernando Trueba | Stars: Jeff Goldblum, Miranda Richardson, Anémone, Daniel Ceccaldi

Votes: 1,422

29. Alex & Emma (2003)

PG-13 | 96 min | Comedy, Romance

A writer must turn out a novel in thirty days or face the wrath of loan sharks.

Director: Rob Reiner | Stars: Luke Wilson, Kate Hudson, David Paymer, Sophie Marceau

Votes: 13,910 | Gross: $14.21M

30. The Libertine (2000)

Not Rated | 100 min | Comedy, History

The 'philosopher' (modernist intellectual of the French 18th-century Enlightenment) Denis Diderot is part of an aristocratic circle which practices the libertarian principles on the rural ... See full summary »

Director: Gabriel Aghion | Stars: Vincent Perez, Fanny Ardant, Josiane Balasko, Michel Serrault

Votes: 1,822

31. The Motive (2017)

TV-MA | 112 min | Comedy, Crime, Drama

A man obsessed with the idea of writing "high literature" starts to cause conflicts around him to write about it.

Director: Manuel Martín Cuenca | Stars: Javier Gutiérrez, María León, Adelfa Calvo, Adriana Paz

Votes: 6,740

32. The Skin of Others (2018)

113 min | Drama, Thriller

Marc Deville is a successful writer of erotic literature and he is a porn addict. He functions very well in his daily business but as soon as it comes to close encounters with the other sex... See full summary »

Director: Thomas Stiller | Stars: Oliver Mommsen, Isabel Thierauch, Torsten Michaelis, Judith Hoersch

Votes: 179

33. Straight on Till Morning (1972)

R | 96 min | Thriller

A timid, withdrawn woman meets a man she believes is finally the love of her life, unaware that he is a vicious serial killer.

Director: Peter Collinson | Stars: Rita Tushingham, Shane Briant, James Bolam, Katya Wyeth

Votes: 1,427

34. Jo (1971)

85 min | Comedy, Crime, Thriller

A writer of detective stories desperately trying to hide a corpse in his house - and at the same time to know exactly who he killed accidentally.

Director: Jean Girault | Stars: Louis de Funès, Claude Gensac, Michel Galabru, Bernard Blier

Votes: 3,674

35. Made in U.S.A (1966)

Not Rated | 90 min | Comedy, Crime, Mystery

In the near future, leftist writer Paula goes from Paris to the French town of Atlantic-Cité when she learns of the death of a former colleague and lover, Richard P. Is she there to ... See full summary »

Director: Jean-Luc Godard | Stars: Anna Karina, László Szabó, Jean-Pierre Léaud, Marianne Faithfull

Votes: 4,643 | Gross: $0.08M

36. Young Seducers 2 (1972)

R | 74 min | Comedy

Pretty young girls get involved in humorous sexual situations.

Director: Erwin C. Dietrich | Stars: Evelyne Traeger, Christa Free, Rena Bergen, Margrit Siegel

Votes: 265

37. Cinq et la peau (1982)

95 min | Drama

Ivan is a writer who can not tear himself away from the city of Manila. He likes to hang out melancholy and flirt with pretty women. One day, he meets Mari.

Director: Pierre Rissient | Stars: Féodor Atkine, Eiko Matsuda, Gloria Diaz, Bembol Roco

Votes: 89

38. After Fall, Winter (2011)

Not Rated | 132 min | Drama, Romance

Suicidal writer Michael leaves New York for Paris. He meets nurse Sophie who has a secret dominatrix job. Sophie cares for dying Anais. Michael and Sophie develop a combative yet passionate relationship amid existential crises.

Director: Eric Schaeffer | Stars: Eric Schaeffer, Lizzie Brocheré, Marie Luneau, Christian Mulot

Votes: 965

39. Lonely Wives (1972)

R | 79 min | Comedy

A reporter begins research on a story involving married European women and their secret fantasies and desires.

Director: Hubert Frank | Stars: Barbara Nielsen, Ingeborg Steinbach, Ewa Strömberg, Ingrid Steeger

Votes: 198

40. The Impossible Years (1968)

G | 92 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

The eldest daughter of a Professor of Psychology at a large conservative university causes havoc, and great embarrassment, for her father with her free-willed and uninhibited lifestyle.

Director: Michael Gordon | Stars: David Niven, Lola Albright, Chad Everett, Ozzie Nelson

Votes: 800

41. Memoir of War (2017)

127 min | Biography, Drama, War

Marguerite must navigate through the hardships of the Liberation after losing her husband and starting a relationship with the enemy during the War.

Director: Emmanuel Finkiel | Stars: Mélanie Thierry, Benoît Magimel, Benjamin Biolay, Grégoire Leprince-Ringuet

Votes: 1,385 | Gross: $0.10M

42. Murder 101 (1991 TV Movie)

PG-13 | 100 min | Mystery, Thriller

After writing/publishing a book about a real murder trial, Charles returns to his college to teach creative writing - art of the thriller. 1st essay assigned: plan a perfect murder. Later someone uses it for murder.

Director: Bill Condon | Stars: Pierce Brosnan, Dey Young, Antoni Corone, Raphael Sbarge

Votes: 1,309

43. Bozena (2021– )

TV-PG | Biography, Drama, History

Biopic of Bozena Nemcová, a famous Czech 19th century writer and feminist, focused on her complicated on-off relationship with her husband Josef Nemec.

Stars: Anna Geislerová, Jan Hájek, Anna Kameníková, Martin Mysicka

Votes: 103

44. Wood House

45 min | Short, Crime, Drama | Post-production

An ex convict who has given up his dreams and a successful author who has fallen into debt and procrastination decide to overcome their past traumas to write a new book that can set their life back on track.

Director: Rizwan Rahman | Stars: Zeed, Neha Wailihang Rai, Kunal Narwani, Ahad Ahmed

45. Malina (1991)

125 min | Drama, Fantasy, Mystery

A female writer and her relationships with two different men, one joyous and one introverted.

Director: Werner Schroeter | Stars: Isabelle Huppert, Lisa Kreuzer, Mathieu Carrière, Can Togay

Votes: 1,215

46. Visitors from the Arkana Galaxy (1981)

82 min | Comedy, Horror, Sci-Fi

A science fiction writer is gifted with the ability to materialize his thoughts and inadvertently brings a group of aliens to Earth.

Director: Dusan Vukotic | Stars: Ljubisa Samardzic, Zarko Potocnjak, Lucie Zulová, Jasminka Alic

Votes: 534

47. Chronically Metropolitan (2016)

Not Rated | 90 min | Comedy, Drama

A cynical and clever coming-of-age film about first-time novelist Fenton Dillane, who returns to New York City unannounced to confront his family, his ex-girlfriend, and a few lingering childhood fears.

Director: Xavier Manrique | Stars: Shiloh Fernandez, Chris Noth, Victor Cruz, Mary-Louise Parker

Votes: 1,596

48. The Fearing Mind (2000–2001)

Adventure, Fantasy, Horror

Bill Fearing, a famous writer of suspense thrillers, gets his ideas from things that happen in his family. When he gets an idea, the viewers enter his mind and see the gruesome events unfold.

Stars: Harry Van Gorkum, Susan Gibney, Katee Sackhoff, Rae Allen

Votes: 52

49. Heat of Desire (1981)

R | 86 min | Drama, Romance

In France in the near future, revolt and chaos erupt. A right-wing politician, Philippe Muphand, is set to take control when his lady friend Caroline walks out, announcing she will take up ... See full summary »

Director: Luc Béraud | Stars: Patrick Dewaere, Clio Goldsmith, Jeanne Moreau, Guy Marchand

Votes: 238

50. What's a Nice Girl Like You Doing in a Place Like This? (1963)

Not Rated | 10 min | Short, Comedy, Drama

A writer named Algernon (but called Harry by his friends) buys a picture of a boat on a lake, and his obsession with it renders normal life impossible. He attempts to function again by ... See full summary »

Director: Martin Scorsese | Stars: Zeph Michaelis, Mimi Stark, Sarah Braveman, Fred Sica

Votes: 2,657