Philippa Jane Boyens MNZM (born 1963) is a New Zealand screenwriter who co-wrote the screenplay for The Lord of the Rings series, King Kong, The Lovely Bones, and the three-part film series The Hobbit.

[1] She was educated at Massey High School, and was later a part-time student at the University of Auckland, graduating with a BA in English and history in 1994.

[2] After that Boyens joined a theatre company and her wages were paid by the government in a PEP scheme.

Prior to screen-writing, Boyens worked in theatre as a playwright, teacher, producer, and editor.

[citation needed] In the 2004 Queen's Birthday Honours, Boyens was appointed a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to film.