James V. Hart (born 1950) is an American screenwriter and author. He is known for his literary adaptations, such as ''Dracula'', ''Frankenstein'' and ''Hook''.

Career

Writing

Hart wrote the screenplay to the

Steven Spielberg Steven Allan Spielberg (; born December 18, 1946) is an American director, writer, and producer. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, he is the most commercially successful director of all time. Spie ...

feature film ''

Hook A hook is a tool consisting of a length of material, typically metal, that contains a portion that is curved or indented, such that it can be used to grab onto, connect, or otherwise attach itself onto another object. In a number of uses, one e ...

'' which functioned as a sequel to

J. M. Barrie Sir James Matthew Barrie, 1st Baronet, (; 9 May 1860 19 June 1937) was a Scottish novelist and playwright, best remembered as the creator of Peter Pan. He was born and educated in Scotland and then moved to London, where he wrote several succe ...

's original story, with Peter as an adult in present times. Later, he wrote the 2005 children's novel ''Capt. Hook: The Adventures of a Notorious Youth'', a prequel depicting Barrie's villain

Captain Hook Captain James Hook is a fictional character and the main antagonist of J. M. Barrie's 1904 play ''Peter Pan; or, the Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up'' and its various adaptations, in which he is Peter Pan's archenemy. The character is a pirate captain ...

, the nemesis of

Peter Pan Peter Pan is a fictional character created by List of Scottish novelists, Scottish novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie. A free-spirited and mischievous young boy who can fly and Puer aeternus, never grows up, Peter Pan spends his never-ending ...

, when Hook was a youngster. He would then write the Francis Ford Coppola-produced horror films '' Bram Stoker's Dracula'' (1992) and '' Mary Shelley's Frankenstein'' (1994). Hart would primarily focus on adventure and fantasy fare, such as ''

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'' (1996), '' Lara Croft: Tomb Raider – The Cradle of Life'' and ''

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'' (2013). He would also co-create the pirate television drama '' Crossbones'', with ''

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'' writer

Neil Cross Neil Cross ( Neil Claude Gadd; born 9 February 1969) is a British novelist and scriptwriter, best known as the creator of the drama series ''Luther'' and ''Hard Sun''. He is also the showrunner for the TV adaptation of '' The Mosquito Coast'', ...

. It was based on

Colin Woodard Colin Woodard (born December 3, 1968''Woodard, Colin 1968–'' In: ''Contemporary Authors'', Gale, 2008) is an American journalist and writer, known for his books '' American Nations: A History of the Eleven Rival Regional Cultures of North America ...

's book ''The Republic of Pirates''. On July 24, 2014, NBC announced that ''Crossbones'' had been canceled after one season.

Unmade screenplays

Hart did the first draft screenplay of ''

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'', which was to be fully developed by director

Randall Wallace Randall Wallace (born July 28, 1949) is an American screenwriter, film director, producer, and songwriter who came to prominence by writing the screenplay for the historical drama film ''Braveheart'' (1995). His work on the film earned him a nom ...

. Hart didn't write any further drafts and Wallace didn't end up directing. Recently, it has been announced that Hart wrote an adaptation of ''

The Sirens of Titan ''The Sirens of Titan'' is a comic science fiction novel by Kurt Vonnegut Jr., first published in 1959. His second novel, it involves issues of free will, omniscience, and the overall purpose of human history. Much of the story revolves around a ...

'', which

Kurt Vonnegut Kurt Vonnegut Jr. (November 11, 1922 – April 11, 2007) was an American writer known for his satirical and darkly humorous novels. In a career spanning over 50 years, he published fourteen novels, three short-story collections, five plays, and ...

approved of before he died. Hart also wrote a screenplay adaptation for ''

Crisis in the Hot Zone A crisis ( : crises; : critical) is either any event or period that will (or might) lead to an unstable and dangerous situation affecting an individual, group, or all of society. Crises are negative changes in the human or environmental affair ...

'', but the movie never materialized (instead, Hart would adapt the book into a television series in 2019). Neither did a DreamWorks adaptation of ''

Anubis Anubis (; grc, Ἄνουβις), also known as Inpu, Inpw, Jnpw, or Anpu in Ancient Egyptian () is the god of death, mummification, embalming, the afterlife, cemeteries, tombs, and the Underworld, in ancient Egyptian religion, usually depict ...

''. In 2012, it was announced that

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would create a

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite television, satellite, or cable television, cable, excluding breaking news, television adverti ...

based on the ''

Dean Koontz's Frankenstein ''Dean Koontz's Frankenstein'' is the collective title of five novels co-written by Dean Koontz. Though technically of the mystery or thriller genres, the novels also feature the trappings of horror, fantasy, and science fiction. The first thr ...

'' novels. Hart was to write the project with his son Jake Hart.

Teaching

Hart was part of the Columbia University Graduate Film program faculty. He has also mentored on Sundance Film Labs, the Austin Writer’s Ranch and the Equinoxe-Europe Writing Workshops.

Personal life

Hart is the son of Albert Hart and Alice Hart. He has one brother, David (deceased). He studied film and graduated from Southern Methodist University in 1969. He lives in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

with his wife Judith. Their two children, Jake and

Julia Julia is usually a feminine given name. It is a Latinate feminine form of the name Julio and Julius. (For further details on etymology, see the Wiktionary entry "Julius".) The given name ''Julia'' had been in use throughout Late Antiquity (e.g. ...

, are also screenwriters.Bio blurb on dust jacket of ''Capt. Hook'', published 2005.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

*
Interview about Hook
o
www.hook-movie.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hart, James V. 1950 births Living people 20th-century male writers 21st-century American male writers 21st-century American novelists Hugo Award-winning writers People from Fort Worth, Texas American male screenwriters Screenwriters from Texas American male novelists 21st-century American screenwriters