David Gordon Green is an American filmmaker. He directed the dramas '' George Washington'' (2000), '' All the Real Girls'' (2003), and '' Snow Angels'' (2007), as well as the

thriller Thriller may refer to: * Thriller (genre), a broad genre of literature, film and television ** Thriller film, a film genre under the general thriller genre Comics * ''Thriller'' (DC Comics), a comic book series published 1983–84 by DC Comics i ...

'' Undertow'' (2004), all of which he wrote or co-wrote. In 2008, Green transitioned into

comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term ori ...

, directing the films '' Pineapple Express'' (2008), '' Your Highness'' and ''

The Sitter ''The Sitter'' is a 2011 American dark comedy film directed by David Gordon Green and written by Brian Gatewood and Alessandro Tanaka. The film follows a slacker college student who, after being suspended, is forced by his mother to fill in fo ...

'' (both 2011). He returned to his dramatic roots with the independent films '' Prince Avalanche'' and '' Joe'' (both 2013), followed by the films '' Manglehorn'' (2014), '' Our Brand Is Crisis'' (2015), and '' Stronger'' (2017). Green also directed a trilogy of

slasher film A slasher film is a genre of horror films involving a killer stalking and murdering a group of people, usually by use of bladed or sharp tools like knife, chainsaw, scalpel, etc. Although the term "slasher" may occasionally be used informally as a ...

s in the ''Halloween'' franchise: ''

Halloween Halloween or Hallowe'en (less commonly known as Allhalloween, All Hallows' Eve, or All Saints' Eve) is a celebration geography of Halloween, observed in many countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christian feast of All Saints' Day. ...

'' (2018), ''

Halloween Kills ''Halloween Kills'' is a 2021 American slasher film directed by David Gordon Green and co-written by Green, Danny McBride and Scott Teems. It is the sequel to 2018's ''Halloween'' and the twelfth installment in the'' Halloween'' franchise. The f ...

'' (2021) and '' Halloween Ends'' (2022), which he co-wrote with frequent collaborator Danny McBride. Green also directed episodes of the acclaimed comedy series ''

Eastbound & Down ''Eastbound & Down'' is an American sports comedy television series that was broadcast on HBO, and created by Ben Best, Jody Hill, and Danny McBride. It stars McBride as Kenny Powers, a former professional baseball pitcher who, after a career d ...

'' (2009–2013), ''

Red Oaks The genus ''Quercus'' contains about 500 species, some of which are listed here. The genus, as is the case with many large genera, is divided into subgenera and sections. Traditionally, the genus ''Quercus'' was divided into the two subgenera '' ...

'' (2014–17), '' Vice Principals'' (2016–17), and '' The Righteous Gemstones'' (2019–present), on all of which he additionally served as executive producer.

Early life

Green, one of four children, was born in

Little Rock ( The "Little Rock") , government_type = Council-manager , leader_title = Mayor , leader_name = Frank Scott Jr. , leader_party = D , leader_title2 = Council , leader_name2 ...

, Arkansas, and grew up in

Richardson Richardson may refer to: People * Richardson (surname), an English and Scottish surname * Richardson Gang, a London crime gang in the 1960s * Richardson Dilworth, Mayor of Philadelphia (1956-1962) Places Australia *Richardson, Australian Capi ...

, Texas. His mother, Jean Ann (née Hunter), was a Lamaze instructor, and his father, Hubert Gordon Green, Jr., was a medical school dean. Green attended Richardson High School, the

University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

, and the

University of North Carolina School of the Arts The University of North Carolina School of the Arts (UNCSA) is an arts school in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. It grants high school, undergraduate, and graduate degrees. Founded in 1963 as the North Carolina School of the Arts by then-Governo ...

, where he studied film directing. He currently lives in Charleston, South Carolina.

Career

As a college student, Green made the two short films, ''Pleasant Grove'' and ''Physical Pinball'', at the North Carolina School of the Arts prior to his feature film debut in 2000, the critically acclaimed '' George Washington'', which he both wrote and directed. He followed that with '' All the Real Girls'' in 2003 and '' Undertow'' in 2004. In 2007, he directed '' Snow Angels'', his first film of another author's screenplay, adapted from the

Stewart O'Nan Stewart O'Nan (born February 4, 1961) is an American novelist. Life and work Background Born on February 4, 1961, to John Lee O'Nan II and Mary Ann O'Nan (''née'' Smith), he and his brother John were raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where t ...

novel. The film debuted at

Sundance A Sun Dance is a Native American ceremony. Sun dance or Sundance may also refer to: Places ;Canada *Sundance, Calgary, Alberta, a neighbourhood *Sundance, Manitoba, a ghost town ;United States * Sundance, New Mexico, a census-designated place ...

in January and stars

Sam Rockwell Sam Rockwell (born November 5, 1968) is an American actor. He is known for appearing in independent films and also as a character actor portraying a wide variety of roles both comedic and dramatic in films such as ''Lawn Dogs'' (19 ...

and

Kate Beckinsale Kathrin Romany Beckinsale (born 26 July 1973) is an English actress and model. After some minor television roles, her film debut was ''Much Ado About Nothing'' (1993) while a student at the University of Oxford. She appeared in British costum ...

. It was released by Warner Independent Pictures. Green directed the

Seth Rogen Seth Aaron Rogen (; born April 15, 1982) is a Canadian-American actor, comedian and filmmaker. Originally a stand-up comedian in Vancouver, he moved to Los Angeles for a part in Judd Apatow's series '' Freaks and Geeks'', and then got a part ...

buddy comedy '' Pineapple Express'' in 2008, and the HBO series ''

'', for which he directed twelve episodes and served as a consulting producer. He is the creator of the animated series '' Good Vibes''. He directed the comedy ''

'', released in December 2011. Green also directed and co-wrote '' Prince Avalanche'' in 2013. Green directed the horror sequel ''

'' (2018), produced by

Jason Blum Jason Ferus Blum "Jason Ferus Blum was born in LA in 1969 to Shirley Neilsen, an art professor, and Irving Blum, an art dealer" (; born 1969) is an American film and television producer. He is the founder and CEO of Blumhouse Productions, whi ...

, executive produced by

John Carpenter John Howard Carpenter (born January 16, 1948) is an American filmmaker, actor, and composer. Although he worked in various film genres, he is most commonly associated with horror, action, and science fiction films of the 1970s and 1980s. He ...

, and co-written by Green and Danny McBride. He also directed its sequels ''

'', released in October 2021, and '' Halloween Ends'', released in October 2022. In April 2020, HBO was announced to be developing a ''

Hellraiser ''Hellraiser'' is a 1987 British supernatural horror film written and directed by Clive Barker, and produced by Christopher Figg, based on Barker's 1986 novella ''The Hellbound Heart''. The film marked Barker's directorial debut. Its plot invol ...

'' television series that would serve as "an elevated continuation and expansion" of its mythology with

Mark Verheiden Mark Verheiden (born March 26, 1956) is an American television, movie, and comic-book writer. He was a co-executive producer for the television series '' Falling Skies'' for DreamWorks Television and the TNT network. Career Comics and comic-r ...

and Michael Dougherty writing the series and Green directing several episodes; the three will also be executive producing the series with Danny McBride, Jody Hill, Brandon James and

Roy Lee Roy Lee (born March 23, 1969) is an American film producer. Lee's production company, Vertigo Entertainment, has a first-look deal with Warner Bros. Early life Lee was born in 1969 at Wyckoff Heights Hospital, in Brooklyn, New York, to Korean p ...

Vertigo Entertainment Vertigo Entertainment is an American film and television production company based in Los Angeles, founded in 2001 by Roy Lee and Doug Davison. History In 2001, after leaving BenderSpink, Roy Lee started Vertigo Entertainment with partner Do ...

. In December 2020, it was announced Green will direct a new installment of ''

The Exorcist ''The Exorcist'' is a 1973 American supernatural horror film directed by William Friedkin and written for the screen by William Peter Blatty, based on his 1971 novel of the same name. It stars Ellen Burstyn, Max von Sydow, Lee J. Cobb, Kitt ...

franchise'' which will be a direct sequel to

William Friedkin William "Billy" Friedkin (born August 29, 1935)Biskind, p. 200. is an American film and television director, producer and screenwriter closely identified with the " New Hollywood" movement of the 1970s. Beginning his career in documentaries in ...

's 1973 film adaptation of the 1971 novel.

Influences

Green's favorite films are, in order, '' Thunderbolt and Lightfoot'', '' 2001: A Space Odyssey'', '' The Gravy Train'', '' The Bad News Bears'', ''

Deliverance ''Deliverance'' is a 1972 American survival thriller film produced and directed by John Boorman, and starring Jon Voight, Burt Reynolds, Ned Beatty, and Ronny Cox, with the latter two making their feature film debuts. The screenplay was ada ...

'', ''

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and t ...

'' and ''

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest may refer to: * ''One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest'' (novel), a 1962 novel by Ken Kesey * ''One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest'' (play), a 1963 stage adaptation of the novel starring Kirk Douglas * ''One Flew Over the ...

''. It has been suggested, even by the director himself, that Green's films take a lot of influence from the works of fellow Texan

Terrence Malick Terrence Frederick Malick (born November 30, 1943) is an American filmmaker. His films include '' Days of Heaven'' (1978), '' The Thin Red Line'' (1998), for which he received Academy Award nominations for Best Director and Best Adapted Screenpl ...

.''The Charlie Rose Show'', PBS, episode aired 2000. Available on ''George Washington'' DVD. New York: The Criterion Collection, 2001. Malick himself served as an executive producer of Green's 2004 film '' Undertow''.

Filmography

Feature films

Actor

Television

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Green, David Gordon 1975 births American people of English descent Film directors from Arkansas Living people University of North Carolina School of the Arts alumni Artists from Little Rock, Arkansas American male screenwriters American film producers American television producers American television directors Fantasy film directors Horror film directors Silver Bear for Best Director recipients Screenwriters from Arkansas