Akiva Goldsman

In 2002, Goldsman received the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay and the Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay for the 2001 film A Beautiful Mind, which also won the Academy Award for Best Picture. In 2006, Goldsman re-teamed with A Beautiful Mind director Ron Howard to adapt Dan Brown's novel The Da Vinci Code for Howard's film. He also wrote the screenplay for its 2009 sequel Angels & Demons. Goldsman is also known for co-developing the DC Comics TV series Titans and the Paramount+ series Star Trek: Picard, a sequel to Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Nemesis. He is also the co-creator of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, a prequel to Star Trek: The Original Series.

Akiva Goldsman studied at Wesleyan University, New York University and Saint Ann's School. The recorded working language is English. Places of work recorded in the authority are United States. Distinctions recorded are Writers Guild of America Award and Academy Award for Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay.

Goldsman was born in New York City to Jewish parents and raised in Brooklyn Heights. His parents, Tev Goldsman and Mira Rothenberg, were both clinical child psychologists who ran a group home for emotionally disturbed children. He graduated from Saint Ann's School, also in Brooklyn Heights, where he says he made many friends with whom he later worked in the entertainment industry. He received his bachelor's degree from Wesleyan University and attended the graduate fiction-writing program at New York University.

Goldsman’s first major breakthrough in feature film screenwriting came in 1994 with The Client, a legal thriller directed by Joel Schumacher. The film, based on John Grisham's 1993 novel of the same name, starred Susan Sarandon and Tommy Lee Jones. The Client was a box-office success and received positive reviews from critics. In 1995, Goldsman wrote the screenplay for Batman Forever, marking his second collaboration with Schumacher. The film was produced by Tim Burton and starred Val Kilmer, Tommy Lee Jones, Jim Carrey, Nicole Kidman, and Chris O'Donnell. Batman Forever was a commercial success, grossing over $330 million worldwide and becoming the sixth-highest-grossing film of 1995. The film received mixed reviews from critics, though its critical reception did not impact its strong box office performance and audience scores. In 1996, Goldsman collaborated for a third time with director Schumacher on A Time to Kill, a legal drama based on John Grisham's 1989 novel of the same name. The film featured a cast that included Sandra Bullock, Samuel L. Jackson, Matthew McConaughey, and Kevin Spacey, with Donald and Kiefer Sutherland in supporting roles and Octavia Spencer making her film debut. A Time to Kill was a commercial success and received generally mixed to positive reviews from critics. In 1997, Goldsman collaborated with Schumacher for a fourth time on the superhero film Batman & Robin. The film starred George Clooney, Chris O'Donnell, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Uma Thurman, and Alicia Silverstone. Unlike their previous collaborations, the film underperformed relative to expectations at the box office. While it roughly broke even, the film received overwhelmingly negative reviews from both critics and audiences and is widely regarded as one of the worst films ever made. Despite the film’s poor reception, Warner Bros. initially planned a sequel and offered Goldsman the opportunity to write it with Schumacher set to direct. However, Goldsman declined, and after failed attempts to develop the sequel with another writer, Warner Bros. ultimately canceled the project. In 1998, Goldsman wrote the screenplay for the sci-fi action-adventure film Lost in Space, directed by Stephen Hopkins. Based on the Irwin Allen television series of the same name, the film starred William Hurt, Matt LeBlanc, Gary Oldman, and Heather Graham. While Lost in Space received mostly negative reviews from critics, it performed moderately well at the box office. It debuted at number one, ending the 15-week streak of James Cameron's Titanic at the top of the box office. That same year, Goldsman co-wrote the screenplay for the fantasy drama Practical Magic alongside Robin Swicord and Adam Brooks. Directed by Griffin Dunne, the film starred Sandra Bullock, Nicole Kidman, and Aidan Quinn and was based on Alice Hoffman's novel of the same name. The film received mostly negative reviews from critics and had an underwhelming box office performance. However, it has since developed a cult following.

In 2001, Goldsman wrote the screenplay for A Beautiful Mind, a biographical drama based on the life of mathematician John Nash, a Nobel Laureate in Economics known for his contributions to game theory. Directed by Ron Howard and starring Russell Crowe as Nash, the film depicts Nash’s time as a Princeton student and his struggles with schizophrenia. The film received eight nominations and won four, including Best Picture at the 74th Academy Awards. Goldsman received the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay, marking his first Oscar nomination and win. In 2008, Goldsman joined the first season crew of the Fox horror/mystery series Fringe as writer, director, and consulting producer. The first episode Goldsman directed and wrote was "Bad Dreams". In its fifth season, Goldsman remained a consulting producer.

In February 2025, it was announced that Goldsman was developing a new television universe at Legendary Television, featuring three reimagined sci-fi series originally created by Irwin Allen. The project is expected to include updated versions of Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, Land of the Giants, and The Time Tunnel, drawing inspiration from Allen’s original works.

Goldsman's first wife, film producer Rebecca Spikings-Goldsman, died of a heart attack on July 6, 2010, at the age of 42. Rebecca was the daughter of producer Barry Spikings. In 2012, Akiva met his second wife, Joann Richter. Married in 2014, they have two daughters. The family divides their time between Los Angeles and New York.