[2] He wrote and directed the films 42, a biopic of Jackie Robinson; and Legend, about the rise and fall of the infamous London gangsters, the Kray twins.

He applied for the film school at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, the only one to agree to accept him in mid-semester.

[3][4][5][6] Helgeland's agent arranged a meeting fo him with Rhet Topham, who had an idea for a horror comedy film but was having difficulty writing it.

[6] 976-EVIL marked the directorial debut of actor Robert Englund, who had portrayed Freddy Krueger in films of that franchise (A Nightmare on Main Street).

That year Helgeland also won a Razzie for The Postman, being one of only three people to have previously achieved this dubious feat (preceded by Alan Menken in 1993 and followed by Sandra Bullock in 2010).

[citation needed] In early 2008, he was attached to shape the script of the thriller Green Zone[10] after screenwriter Tom Stoppard had to drop out.

[11] He collaborated with director Paul Greengrass, whom he worked with on The Bourne Supremacy, as well as reuniting with actor Matt Damon, who played Jason Bourne/David Webb.

[14] Former Game of Thrones showrunners D. B. Weiss and David Benioff were said to be executive producers for whichever project is picked up by HBO.