Exclusive Interview with Screenwriters Ashley Miller and Zack Stentz; How They Got Started, FRINGE, TERMINATOR: THE SARAH CONNOR CHRONICLES, and Arguing STAR TREK Over Usenet

At this year’s Comic-Con, I landed an exclusive interview with screenwriters Ashley Miller and Zack Stentz. While you might not recognize their names, they wrote Marvel’s Thor movie, contributed to Matthew Vaughn’s X-Men: First Class, and they have a few secret projects in development.  They obviously qualify as up-and-coming screenwriters and after talking with them for almost an hour, they definitely know their stuff.

Anyway, the other day I posted everything they said about Thor, and tonight I’ve got another part of the interview that covers how they met (which involves debating Star Trek over usenet) and got into screenwriting, how did they make the transition from writing TV shows like Andromeda and Twilight Zone to writing movies, and I asked them what might have happened on season three of Terminator: The Sarah Conner Chronicles if the show hadn’t been cancelled.  Hit the jump to check out what they had to say:

Editor’s note: WGA credits for Thor are not final since other screenwriters contributed to the film. Check back here for updates as credits are finalized.

Ashley Miller and Zack Stentz

• What was the first thing they noticed during preview night
• 1:05 – we talk about the Marvel set up on the floor. Odin’s chair…they mention some of the other cool stuff that we will see in the Thor movie that was done by Bo Welch. How it’s practical sets and not green screen
• 2:50 – How did they first become writing partners.  They met arguing about Star Trek on usenet
• 4:15 – What side did they argue on the DS9 and Babylon 5 argument
• 5:15 – How did the transition happen from friends to screenwriters. They also talk about their early work
• 7:40 – How do they write together?  Does one person do more dialogue?
• 9:10 – Where did they go from Andromeda? They talk about Twilight Zone
• 10:40 – Where did they go from Twilight Zone? They talk about Agent Cody Banks and selling a spec to Disney
• 12:00 – Terminator: The Sarah Conner Chronicles talk as they worked on both seasons. I ask if they had an idea about where the show was going to go in season 3?
• 15:30 – Where do they go after Sarah Conner. They talk about how they landed on Fringe during the 2nd season
• 17:10 – What did they take away from Fringe

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