Natural Born Killers: The Screenplay

Written by Quentin Tarantino

March 12, 1991 | Draft 3 [Rev.]

Screenplay / Script Details:

• Writer: Quentin Tarantino
• Draft: 3 [Rev]
• Size: 8.5 x 11 x 0.865-Inches
• Binding: Comb-Bound
• Comb Size: ≈9/16"
• Front Cover: Clear
• Back Cover: Burgundy
• Format: MS Typescript
• Pages: 127
• Condition:
  • All pages intact.
  • Possible coffee stain on title page, bleeds thru first few pages (same location).
  • No torn pages.
  • No Missing Pages.
  • Some Foxing / Tanning
  • Some slightly folded, creased or bent corners <10% of Screenplay Manuscript.
  • Significant or noteworthy flaws visible in photos and video included.
• Additional Detail and Specific Information: Furnished Upon Legitimate Request
• Storage: Screenplay Manuscript stored in a safe, protected, temperature controlled environment housing.
• Music Credit: Song clip played during video display of script is the song "Last Man Standing" by Bust-Down Global is an Original Bust-Down Songwriting Services Track Available on the @BustDownGlobal YouTube Page
  • Track Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wcO5HJYgWE0
• Additional Details:
  • Ships from Poland, EU.
  • Can be hand delivered in US or other location if outlined in final negotiation.

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🎬 Natural Born Killers: The True NBK Script

From the Master's Mind to Printed Page. Contact Support@BustDownBooks for questions. Additional photos not guaranteed to protect the privacy of manuscript and original author.

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🎬 Natural Born Killers: Revision History Summary

The journey from the original pitch to the final shooting script involved three main writers beyond the originator: director Oliver Stone.

The film script for Natural Born Killers (1994) is famously defined by its turbulent revision history, which resulted in two vastly different visions—that of the original screenwriter, Quentin Tarantino and that of the final director and co-writer, Oliver Stone.

The core of the revision process is a complete change in thematic focus and structure, leading Tarantino to ultimately disown the film and receive only a "Story By" credit, rather than a full screenwriting credit.

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🎬 Natural Born Killers: Revision History & Controversy

Final script revisions positioned for shooting involved three main writers beyond the originator: director Oliver Stone, screenwriter David Veloz, and associate producer Richard Rutowski.

1. Quentin Tarantino's Original Script (Early 1990s)

Tarantino wrote the script as a more straightforward, low-budget, darkly comedic crime/exploitation film in the style of a modern Bonnie and Clyde.

• Protagonist/Focus: The central, anchor character was arguably the sensationalist TV journalist, Wayne Gale, who wants to interview the killers. The script was structured primarily around the media's reaction to Mickey and Mallory.
• Mickey & Mallory: They were seen more as boogeymen or mythic psychos. Their actions were extremely violent, but the script did not heavily explore their personal motivations or childhood trauma (specifically, Mallory's father was simply against their marriage, not an abusive rapist).
• Structure: The narrative was more linear and heavily anchored by Wayne Gale's tabloid show, American Maniacs, which took up much of the first half, chronicling their rampage through reenactments and commentary. It was not a chaotic, multi-format assault.
• Pacing/Tone: More focused, funnier, and ultimately on a smaller scale, written with a lower budget in mind.

2. Oliver Stone, David Veloz, and Richard Rutowski's Revisions (1993 Shooting Draft)

Oliver Stone took the project and, in response to real-world events like the O.J. Simpson case and the Waco siege, heavily rewrote the script to transform it into a sprawling, hyper-violent, and surreal satire on media sensationalism and America's obsession with violence.

• Protagonist/Focus: The focus shifted dramatically to Mickey and Mallory as the central, albeit exaggerated, figures. Stone sought to make the film a "vicious, coldhearted farce" on the media.
• Thematic Change: The biggest change was the elevation of the media critique. The film became a critique of how American media deifies murderers for ratings, turning the killers into celebrities.
• Added/Changed Content:
  • Mallory's Backstory: Stone added the infamous, black-and-white, multi-camera sitcom sequence ("I Love Mallory") detailing her horrific sexual and physical abuse by her father, which Tarantino despised. This provided a psychological motivation for Mallory's violence.
  • Visual Style: The chaotic, rapid-fire, multi-format filmmaking (switching between 35mm, 16mm, black-and-white, color, video, animation, and constant stylistic changes) was Stone's addition, which turned the story into a psychedelic visual essay.
  • Expanded Narrative: The script was broadened to include scenes like the Native American vision quest/peyote scene and the massive, over-the-top prison riot during the final interview (which was a smaller escape in Tarantino's version).
• The Result: The resulting film kept much of Tarantino's dialogue but fundamentally altered the story's structure, pacing, and core message. Tarantino removed his screenwriting credit, keeping only "Story By."

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📝 Key Takeaway of the Revision Process

The revision of Natural Born Killers is a classic case study of the screenwriter's vision being dramatically overwritten by the director's. Tarantino's script was an exploitative crime caper and Stone's final film was a hallucinatory, socio-political media critique that used the crime caper as its framework.

The available shooting draft (Draft Five, May 11, 1993) is the one revised by Stone and his collaborators, demonstrating the significant changes that led to the final controversial film.

The screenplay for Natural Born Killers (1994) is a notable case study in dramatic narrative revision, where the final cinematic product diverges fundamentally from the original author's intent. The history of the script's composition and subsequent revision directly contributed to a dispute over screenwriting credit between the original writer, Quentin Tarantino, and the film's director and co-writer, Oliver Stone.

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📜 Script Composition and Revision History

1. The Original Manuscript by Quentin Tarantino

Tarantino penned the script in the early 1990s, intending it to be a contained, character-driven, and darkly comedic B-movie in the tradition of crime exploitation films. The original manuscript featured:

• Narrative Focus: The script centered heavily on the dynamic of the killers, Mickey and Mallory Knox, and their pursuit by Detective Scagnetti. Crucially, the initial structure anchored the narrative around the sensationalist media figure, Wayne Gale, showcasing how Gale used reenactments and commentary on his tabloid show, American Maniacs, to chronicle their rampage.
• Thematic Intent: Tarantino's script was primarily a crime story, with the media satire acting as a secondary framing device. The violence was extensive but presented in a more conventional, albeit stylized, manner.
• Mallory's Backstory: The original script lacked the detailed, prolonged depiction of incestuous abuse in Mallory's past. The conflict with her father was present, but less graphic and less central to her psychological motivation for murder.

2. Oliver Stone's Acquisition and Restructuring

After acquiring the script, director Oliver Stone, who was deeply preoccupied with the growing role of mass media in American violence and celebrity, initiated a radical rewrite with the assistance of screenwriters David Veloz and Richard Rutowski.

Key Revisions and Noteworthy Details:

• Shift in Thematic Thesis: Stone transformed the script's focus from a crime story with media commentary into an aggressive, hallucinatory satire on media sensationalism itself. The violence was intensified and aestheticized to critique its glorification. Stone intended the film to be a "vicious, coldhearted farce" on American culture.
• Mallory's Trauma Addition: The most significant and contentious revision was the expansion of Mallory's childhood. Stone incorporated the detailed, stylized sitcom parody sequences (rendered in black and white with a laugh track) to depict her father's sexual and physical abuse. This revision altered Mallory from a purely nihilistic killer into a figure whose violence is explicitly rooted in deep-seated, systemic trauma.
• Visual and Structural Changes: Stone and his collaborators injected the element of extreme, constant stylistic shifting. The script was revised to mandate the use of diverse film stocks, color palettes, lenses, and formats (including 35mm, 16mm, Hi8 video, and animation) to create a visual overload that reflected the media chaos and the fractured mental states of the protagonists.
• Expansion of the Climax: The prison sequence was dramatically expanded. In Stone's final shooting draft, Wayne Gale’s interview culminates in a massive, uncontrolled prison riot and a chaotic mass escape, amplifying the scale and political commentary significantly beyond the scope of Tarantino's more modest escape plan.

3. Credit Dispute and Final Result

Due to the divergent nature of Stone's revisions—which included significant dialogue changes, major structural alterations and the introduction of central thematic elements—the final result was the film being released with a non-writing credit to legendary director Quentin Tarantino.

Tarantino ultimately petitioned to have his name removed from the screenwriting credit. An understandable decision for any writer whose work is aberrantly revised and manipulated from the original vision.

Per Writers Guild of America (WGA) rules, writers whose material contributes less than 50% to the final screenplay are often demoted in credit. Tarantino received the final, non-screenplay credit of "Story By", while Stone, Veloz, and Rutowski shared the screenwriting credit.

Tarantino has since published his original, unrevised screenplay, highlighting the distinction between his work and the final, controversial film.

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Quentin Tarantino is not credited as the sole screenwriter for Natural Born Killers because director Oliver Stone and other writers heavily revised his original script. The changes were so substantial that Tarantino disowned the film and requested or accepted instead for a "story by" credit, only.

The Story Behind the Credit

Tarantino's Original Script: Tarantino wrote the screenplay, initially titled Mickey and Mallory, before he became a famous director. It was part of a much larger script that also contained the story for True Romance. He intended to direct it himself for a low budget but couldn't secure the funding, so he sold the rights for $10,000.

The original script focused on the couple's intense, almost sacred love for each other, with their killing spree as an expression of that love.

Oliver Stone's Revisions: When Oliver Stone took over the project as director, he significantly rewrote the script with writers David Veloz and Richard Rutowski. Stone shifted the film's focus to be a broader, "vicious, coldhearted farce" and social satire on the media's obsession with violence and celebrity culture, influenced by real-world events like the O.J. Simpson case.

Tarantino's Disapproval and Credit Change: Tarantino was extremely unhappy with the final result, feeling Stone had fundamentally misunderstood his characters and bastardized his original vision.

He reportedly called the film "that f**king movie" and has claimed he has never watched it from beginning to end.

The Outcome: Due to the drastic changes, Tarantino requested his name be removed from the screenplay credits and was ultimately given a "story by" credit instead. This decision meant he gave up a substantial amount of money he would have earned from a full writing credit.

Tarantino was eventually able to publish his original screenplay as a paperback book, allowing fans to compare his initial vision with the finished film.

Quentin Tarantino's original screenplay for Natural Born Killers has been published as a book. It offers the opportunity for fans to compare his initial vision with the heavily altered film version directed by Oliver Stone.

You can find the original NBK script in the following formats:

Paperback Book: The script was published as a paperback book titled Natural Born Killers: The Original Screenplay by Grove Press in 1995 (and later editions). You can purchase physical copies from online retailers like Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or used book sites.

Online Scripts: Digital versions of the original script are also available on various script-hosting websites.

The published screenplay allows readers to see the story as Tarantino intended it and focuses more on the intense, almost sacred love between Mickey and Mallory, rather than the broad media satire that Oliver Stone emphasized in the final film.

Quentin Tarantino wrote several revisions of the script, with sources indicating at least a "revised third draft" was completed and circulated before it was sold to be directed by Oliver Stone.

The script originated from a massive, 500-page screenplay, co-written with Roger Avary, called The Open Road, which eventually was split into the two separate scripts for True Romance and Natural Born Killers.

The exact final number of drafts before the sale isn't widely published reported. However, what is generally understood is that Tarantino's final version was a complete, finished screenplay.

This is the version that was eventually published as a book, allowing a direct comparison to the heavily altered film script later written by Oliver Stone, David Veloz, and Richard Rutowski.

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⚠️🚨 Important Notes & Disclaimers

1. Information provided in this description has largely been pulled from various sources on the internet. Bust-Down Books, LTD. does NOT claim authenticity of background history and details surrounding this screenplay to be fact rather than popular assertion.
2. The current MS Screenplay for Natural Born Killers, Draft 3 [Rev.], From March 12, 1991 has NOT been certified for authenticity by an official governing body, writer, future authors and editors or ANYONE involved in the production of this film or any other related projects.

This copy of the NBK Third Draft [Rev.] was acquired by Bust-Down Books, LTD. For additional information; please refer to First Sale Doctrine outlined below:

First Sale Doctrine allows a person who lawfully owns a copy of a copyrighted work to sell, lend, or otherwise dispose of that particular copy without the copyright owner's permission. It is codified at 17 U.S.C. § 109(a) and means that once a copy is sold, the copyright holder's exclusive right to control the distribution of that specific copy ends.