Charley Kiriakos Parlapanides and Vlas Parlapanides are American screenwriters, producers, and directors. They are best known for creating the Netflix animated series Blood of Zeus, which achieved significant success and earned them a Writers Guild of America Award. The duo also co-wrote the films Immortals (2011) and Death Note (2017).
Charley and Vlas Parlapanides were born and raised in Seaside Park, New Jersey, to Vlas Sr. and Angeliki Parlapanides, who are of Greek descent.
Vlas Parlapanides attended Villanova University, where he earned his undergraduate degree.
Charley Parlapanides attended Central Regional High School before earning a degree in economics from Swarthmore College. While at Swarthmore, he played four seasons as a defensive lineman on the collegeâÂÂs football team. He later received a law degree from Loyola Law School.
Charley and Vlas Parlapanides began their professional careers as screenwriters before transitioning into producing and directing. In 2000 they developed their first independent feature film, Everything for a Reason, which premiered at the AFI International Film Festival. Vlas Parlapanides served as writer and director, while Charley Parlapanides produced the project. The brothers also appeared in minor acting roles.
Their Greek background has influenced a number of their creative works, particularly those centered on mythology. In 2008 they were announced as the screenwriters for the film War of Gods to be directed by Tarsem Singh. Early reports indicated that the visual style of the film would resemble that of 300. The brothers gained recognition with the 2011 action-fantasy film Immortals, which was directed by Tarsem Singh and starred Henry Cavill, Mickey Rourke, and Freida Pinto. The screenplay was produced by Relativity Media and drew inspiration from Greek mythology, particularly the story of Theseus. It was a commercial success, grossing approximately $226.9 million worldwide.
In 2008, Charley and Vlas Parlapanides were hired by Vertigo Entertainment to write the first draft of an American adaptation of Death Note, a Japanese manga series written by Tsugumi Ohba and illustrated by Takeshi Obata that has sold over 30 million copies worldwide. The screenplay was later revised by Jeremy Slater, who ultimately received co-writing credit in the final film. The completed film was released by Netflix in 2017 and starred Nat Wolff, Margaret Qualley, Lakeith Stanfield, and Willem Dafoe.
In 2010, their spec script Hell to Pay was included on the Hit List, an annual survey of the most buzzworthy spec screenplays. The list highlights original scripts that have gained significant attention within the film industry and is compiled from votes by development executives, producers, agents, managers, and assistants.
Beyond these works, the Parlapanides brothers have written screenplays for major studios such as Warner Bros., Universal Pictures., and Columbia Pictures.
In 2014, A&E announced development of The 36, a supernatural drama centered on a modern conflict involving biblical fallen angels, with the Parlapanides brothers attached as writers (and executive producers) alongside producer Michael London. The Parlapanides brothers had previously developed several other television projects, including The Centurion, a drama project set up at CBS.
The brothers co-created the animated series Blood of Zeus for Netflix In 2020, developed by Powerhouse Animation Studios. The series centers on Heron, a demigod and son of Zeus, and incorporates elements of Greek mythology. It was praised for its narrative, animation style, mythological themes, and its layered and well-developed characters.
In 2025, Charley and Vlas Parlapanides received a Writers Guild of America Award nomination for Outstanding Writing in an Animated Program for the "Winter Is Born" episode of Blood of Zeus.
Charles and Vlas Parlapanides wrote the comic series INK for Heavy Metal Magazine, contributing to the publicationâÂÂs tradition of genre-driven science fiction and fantasy storytelling. The story INK expanded their work beyond film and television into graphic storytelling.
Charley and Vlas Parlapanides are members of the Writers Guild of America (WGA). Charley is also a member of the Producers Guild of America (PGA). and the Association Internationale du Film d'Animation (ASIFA) ASIFA.