Christopher Markus

Commencement Speaker

Christopher Markus arrived at Rutgers in the late ’80s with vague aspirations of becoming a writer. Today he is the second-highest grossing screenwriter of all time and one of the most sought-after writers in Hollywood. Markus is best known for his work on six Marvel films, including the box office blockbusters Avengers: Infinity War (2018) and Avengers: Endgame (2019), which he co-wrote with screenwriting partner Stephen McFeely. 

Born and raised in Buffalo, N.Y., he is the son of a mother who worked as a registered nurse and a father who emigrated from Hungary after surviving Nazi persecution, later dedicating 35 years to a career in cancer research.

While studying at Rutgers College, Markus told Rutgers Magazine in 2016 he “took every creative writing course that Rutgers had” and recalls “a lot of encouraging people [at Rutgers] who did not tell me to stop.” He graduated in 1991 with a bachelor’s degree in English before heading to the University of California at Davis where he met McFeely and earned a master’s degree in creative writing in 1996.

Eight years after moving to Los Angeles, the duo gained wide praise for their screenplay for The Life and Death of Peter Sellers (2004), a made-for-TV movie for which they received a Primetime Emmy Award in 2005. They went on to attract the attention of producers with the dark comedy You Kill Me (2007). 

During the pair’s three-decade collaboration, they have co-written 14 produced films. In addition to their success with MCU films and The Chronicles of Narnia series, they also wrote screenplays for The Electric State (2025), and the true crime Pain & Gain (2013). 

Markus lives in Los Angeles with his wife, Claire Saunders Markus, a writer and casting director, and their daughter.