# Jamie Linden (writer)
**Jamie Linden** (born 1980 in Florida) is an American screenwriter, producer, and director whose credits include *We Are Marshall* (2006), *Dear John* (2010), *10 Years* (2011), and *Money Monster* (2016)[1](https://elcinema.com/en/person/2005800/). He broke into Hollywood with the screenplay for *We Are Marshall*, the true story of the 1970 plane crash that killed most of the [Marshall University](https://www.edgepedia.org/marshall-university) football team, and later made his feature directorial debut with the ensemble reunion film *10 Years*[2](https://legacy.aintitcool.com/node/58706).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1980, Florida[1](https://elcinema.com/en/person/2005800/) |
| Education | Lake Howell High School; Florida State University, B.S. 2001, Digital Media Production and Marketing[3](https://mynews13.com/fl/orlando/news/2012/9/24/_10_years_director_s) • [4](https://news.cci.fsu.edu/cci-news/cci-alumni-news/alumnus-jamie-linden-on-life-luck-and-persistence/) |
| Breakthrough | *We Are Marshall* (2006), his second screenplay, written as a 26-year-old first-time screenwriter[5](https://www.gamesradar.com/buzz-uncut-we-are-marshall/) |
| Directing debut | *10 Years* (2011), which he also wrote[2](https://legacy.aintitcool.com/node/58706) |
| Other major credits | *Dear John* (2010, from the Nicholas Sparks novel); *Money Monster* (2016, with Alan DiFiore and Jim Kouf)[6](https://openrepository.aut.ac.nz/server/api/core/bitstreams/78644bfb-df01-479f-ab7e-dc54fda6b6cd/content) • [7](https://www.thewrap.com/money-monster-review/) |
| Producing | Co-producer on *We Are Marshall* and *Dear John*[8](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1956691) |
| Partner | In a relationship with actor Rachel McAdams since April 2016; they have a son born 2018[8](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1956691) |
## Background and education
Linden grew up in [Winter Park, Florida](https://www.edgepedia.org/winter-park-florida), and graduated from Lake Howell High School, where he counted the actor [Scott Porter](https://www.edgepedia.org/scott-porter), later of *Friday Night Lights*, among his schoolmates[3](https://mynews13.com/fl/orlando/news/2012/9/24/_10_years_director_s). He attended [Florida State University](https://www.edgepedia.org/florida-state-university), graduating in 2001 with a B.S. after studying Digital Media Production and Marketing in the College of Communication[4](https://news.cci.fsu.edu/cci-news/cci-alumni-news/alumnus-jamie-linden-on-life-luck-and-persistence/) • [1](https://elcinema.com/en/person/2005800/).
In a 2016 interview with his alma mater, Linden said he left FSU unsure of what to do with his skills. A group of friends with tickets to a taping of *The Price is Right* led him to the West Coast, and those tickets, he told the university, played a part in his career breakthrough[4](https://news.cci.fsu.edu/cci-news/cci-alumni-news/alumnus-jamie-linden-on-life-luck-and-persistence/). He began his industry career as an assistant to directors including [Sydney Pollack](https://www.edgepedia.org/sydney-pollack) and [Anthony Minghella](https://www.edgepedia.org/anthony-minghella)[1](https://elcinema.com/en/person/2005800/).
## We Are Marshall
Linden's second screenplay became *We Are Marshall* (2006), directed by McG and starring [Matthew McConaughey](https://www.edgepedia.org/matthew-mcconaughey) as [Jack Lengyel](https://www.edgepedia.org/jack-lengyel), the coach brought in to rebuild the Marshall University football team after the 1970 plane crash[5](https://www.gamesradar.com/buzz-uncut-we-are-marshall/). McConaughey said the script, by the then 26-year-old first-time screenwriter, was the first he had read since *Dazed and Confused* that he immediately wanted in on[5](https://www.gamesradar.com/buzz-uncut-we-are-marshall/).
Linden made numerous trips to [Huntington, West Virginia](https://www.edgepedia.org/huntington-west-virginia), while researching the script, and on each visit the locals warmed a little more to the idea of their story being told[5](https://www.gamesradar.com/buzz-uncut-we-are-marshall/). He also shared a co-producer credit on the film[8](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1956691).
## Dear John and 10 Years
His next produced screenplay was *Dear John* (2010), an adaptation of the [Nicholas Sparks](https://www.edgepedia.org/nicholas-sparks) novel, directed by [Lasse Hallström](https://www.edgepedia.org/lasse-hallstrom) and starring [Amanda Seyfried](https://www.edgepedia.org/amanda-seyfried) and Channing Tatum; the final shooting script is dated April 5, 2007[6](https://openrepository.aut.ac.nz/server/api/core/bitstreams/78644bfb-df01-479f-ab7e-dc54fda6b6cd/content) • [8](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1956691). Linden again served as co-producer[8](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1956691).
*10 Years* (2011) marked his feature directorial debut, which he described as a bit of an experiment in filmmaking[2](https://legacy.aintitcool.com/node/58706). The film follows a high school reunion and features an ensemble cast including [Channing Tatum](https://www.edgepedia.org/channing-tatum), Rosario Dawson, Jenna Dewan-Tatum, Justin Long, Max Minghella, Kate Mara, Oscar Isaac, Chris Pratt, Anthony Mackie, and [Aubrey Plaza](https://www.edgepedia.org/aubrey-plaza)[2](https://legacy.aintitcool.com/node/58706).
The premise came from Linden's own experience: he attended his 10-year Lake Howell reunion, while Tatum, who grew up in Tampa and stars in and produced the film, skipped his and asked Linden what he had missed[3](https://mynews13.com/fl/orlando/news/2012/9/24/_10_years_director_s). The pair wanted something low key that could be shot chronologically, which big films rarely allow[3](https://mynews13.com/fl/orlando/news/2012/9/24/_10_years_director_s). Directing the ensemble, Linden said, was difficult because "there were 15 of them and only one of me"; he told the actors to trust their instincts and treated the process as collaboration rather than conventional direction[3](https://mynews13.com/fl/orlando/news/2012/9/24/_10_years_director_s). He said he did not much enjoy directing, finding production "a necessary evil" and preferring writing and post-production, though he intended to direct again[3](https://mynews13.com/fl/orlando/news/2012/9/24/_10_years_director_s). [TV Guide](https://www.edgepedia.org/tv-guide) and TV Insider also credit him as director and writer of the 2011 documentary short *9/11: Heroes of the 88th Floor*[9](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/jamie-linden/).
## Money Monster
*Money Monster* (2016), directed by Jodie Foster and starring George Clooney, Julia Roberts, and Jack O'Connell, carries a screenplay credited to Linden, Alan DiFiore, and Jim Kouf, from a story by DiFiore and Kouf[7](https://www.thewrap.com/money-monster-review/) • [10](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/money-monster-2016). The real-time hostage drama, in which a ruined viewer takes a smug financial-TV host hostage on the air, screened Out of Competition at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival and runs 98 minutes[11](https://www.festival-cannes.com/en/p/jamie-linden/) • [10](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/money-monster-2016).
## Later work
TV Insider identifies Linden as a writer of *Chaos Walking* (he received a script-revision credit, and trade reports in 2014 had attached him as screenwriter before Lionsgate listed him as "Former" in 2017)[9](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/jamie-linden/) • [12](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/jamie-linden/credits/3000623028/) • [13](https://www.movieinsider.com/p12870/jamie-linden). Industry tracking lists him as screenwriter on projects in development including *Dogs of Babel*, *Soundtrack of Silence*, *Nevada Smith*, and as director and screenwriter of *The Flight Before Christmas*[13](https://www.movieinsider.com/p12870/jamie-linden).
## References
1. [Jamie Linden biography, elCinema](https://elcinema.com/en/person/2005800/)
2. [Interview with Jamie Linden on 10 Years, Aint It Cool News (2012)](https://legacy.aintitcool.com/node/58706)
3. ['10 Years' director interview, Spectrum News 13 Orlando (2012)](https://mynews13.com/fl/orlando/news/2012/9/24/_10_years_director_s)
4. [Alumnus Jamie Linden on Life, Luck, and Persistence, FSU College of Communication & Information (2016)](https://news.cci.fsu.edu/cci-news/cci-alumni-news/alumnus-jamie-linden-on-life-luck-and-persistence/)
5. [Buzz Uncut: We Are Marshall, GamesRadar+](https://www.gamesradar.com/buzz-uncut-we-are-marshall/)
6. [Dear John screenplay attribution, Sujay Barooah thesis, AUT repository](https://openrepository.aut.ac.nz/server/api/core/bitstreams/78644bfb-df01-479f-ab7e-dc54fda6b6cd/content)
7. ['Money Monster' Cannes Review, TheWrap (2016)](https://www.thewrap.com/money-monster-review/)
8. [Jamie Linden, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1956691)
9. [Jamie Linden, TV Insider](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/jamie-linden/)
10. [Money Monster review, RogerEbert.com (2016)](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/money-monster-2016)
11. [Jamie Linden, Festival de Cannes](https://www.festival-cannes.com/en/p/jamie-linden/)
12. [Jamie Linden List of Movies and TV Shows - TV Guide](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/jamie-linden/credits/3000623028/)
13. [Jamie Linden film credits, Movie Insider](https://www.movieinsider.com/p12870/jamie-linden)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Film people and crafts › Directors, producers, and screenwriters › Screenwriters*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license