Simon Barrett (born 1978) is an American actor, producer, and screenwriter known for his collaborations with
Adam Wingard, including ''
A Horrible Way to Die'', ''
V/H/S'', ''
V/H/S/2
''V/H/S/2'' (originally titled ''S-VHS'') is a 2013 found footage horror anthology film produced by Bloody Disgusting and Roxanne BenjaminThe second installment in the ''V/H/S'' franchise, it comprises four found footage segments linked toge ...
'', ''
You're Next'', and ''
The Guest''. He is associated with the
mumblecore
Mumblecore is a subgenre of independent filmHoberman, J. (August 14, 2007).It's Mumblecore!. ''The Village Voice''. Retrieved on July 27, 2008.Lim, Dennis (August 19, 2007)Mumblecore – The New Talkies: Generation DIY ''The New York Times''. Retr ...
movement and has worked with director
Joe Swanberg
Joseph Swanberg (born August 31, 1981) is an American independent film director, producer, writer, and actor. Known for micro-budget films which make extensive use of improvisation, Swanberg is considered a major figure in the mumblecore film mo ...
several times.
Personal life
Barrett was born in
Columbia, Missouri,
in 1978.
Career
Barrett has performed a number of roles in his films. He attributes this to the low budgets of his early films, in which he and frequent collaborator
Adam Wingard were forced to act, as they could not afford to hire anyone else.
Barrett credits his acting with informing his screenwriting. Although he said in October 2014 that he is too busy writing to direct, Barrett does not discount directing more projects in the future.
Among his early work was writing the 2004 TV film ''
Frankenfish'', and collaborating with director
Alex Turner as writer on ''
Dead Birds'' (2004) and ''
Red Sands'' (2009), period horror films. He first collaborated with Wingard on ''
A Horrible Way to Die'' (2010) and continued with ''
You're Next'', in which he wrote, produced, and acted.
He co-wrote ''
Autoerotic'' (2011) with co-directors Wingard and
Joe Swanberg
Joseph Swanberg (born August 31, 1981) is an American independent film director, producer, writer, and actor. Known for micro-budget films which make extensive use of improvisation, Swanberg is considered a major figure in the mumblecore film mo ...
.
[ The three collaborated again the same year on '' What Fun We Were Having''.
In 2012, he wrote a segment in '' The ABCs of Death'' for Wingard][ and joined '' V/H/S'' as a writer, producer, and actor; he returned to the 2013 sequel to write and direct a segment. Eric England cast Barrett in '' Contracted'' (2013) after meeting him and being impressed with his ability to blend into crowds despite his charisma. Swanberg cast Barrett and Wingard in '' 24 Exposures'' (2013) after being inspired by their working relationship and differing personalities. Also in 2013, Barrett wrote and directed a radio play for ]Larry Fessenden
Laurence T. Fessenden (born March 23, 1963) is an American actor, producer, writer, director, film editor, and cinematographer. He is the founder of the New York based independent production outfit Glass Eye Pix. His writer/director credits inclu ...
's '' Tales from Beyond the Pale''. '' The Guest'' (2014) was another collaboration between Wingard and Barrett. They said the thriller opened up additional doors to them, as they had previously been stereotyped as horror filmmakers.[
He wrote the 2016 Wingard-directed horror sequel '' Blair Witch'' (formerly ''The Woods'').
In 2014, he was attached to a remake of the Korean thriller '']I Saw The Devil
''I Saw the Devil'' () is a 2010 South Korean action thriller film directed by Kim Jee-woon and written by Park Hoon-jung. Starring Lee Byung-hun and Choi Min-sik, the film follows NIS agent Kim Soo-hyun (Lee), who embarks on a quest of revenge w ...
''.
Filmography
Acting roles
Short films
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Barrett, Simon
1978 births
Living people
21st-century American male actors
21st-century American screenwriters
Screenwriters from Missouri
Writers from Columbia, Missouri
Film directors from Missouri
Film producers from Missouri
Hickman High School alumni