Steven S. DeKnight (born October 28, 1965) is an American filmmaker. He is best known for being the creator, head writer, and executive producer of the

Starz Starz (stylized as STARZ since 2016; pronounced "stars") is an American premium cable and satellite television network owned by Lions Gate Entertainment, and is the flagship property of parent subsidiary Starz Inc. Programming on Starz consist ...

series ''

Spartacus Spartacus ( el, Σπάρτακος '; la, Spartacus; c. 103–71 BC) was a Thracian gladiator who, along with Crixus, Gannicus, Castus, and Oenomaus, was one of the escaped slave leaders in the Third Servile War, a major slave uprising ...

'', including '' Spartacus: Blood and Sand'', '' Spartacus: Gods of the Arena'', '' Spartacus: Vengeance'', and '' Spartacus: War of the Damned'', as well as developing '' Jupiter's Legacy'' for

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...

Career

DeKnight previously worked on ''

Smallville ''Smallville'' is an American superhero television series developed by writer-producers Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, based on the DC Comics character Superman created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. The series was produced by Millar Gough ...

'', ''

Buffy the Vampire Slayer ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' is an American supernatural fiction, supernatural drama television series created by writer and director Joss Whedon. It is based on the Buffy the Vampire Slayer (film), 1992 film of the same name, also written by W ...

'', and ''

Angel In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God. Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles include ...

''. He also wrote " Swell", a story in the ''

Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Eight ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Eight'' is a comic book series published by Dark Horse Comics from 2007 to 2011. The series serves as a canonical continuation of the television series ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'', and follows the events of that ...

'' comic series, and served as a consulting producer on

Joss Whedon Joseph Hill Whedon (; born June 23, 1964) is an American filmmaker, composer, and comic book writer. He is the founder of Mutant Enemy Productions, co-founder of Bellwether Pictures, and is best known as the creator of several television series: ...

's television series ''

Dollhouse A dollhouse or doll's house is a toy home made in miniature. Since the early 20th century dollhouses have primarily been the domain of children, but their collection and crafting is also a hobby for many adults. English-speakers in North America ...

''. In May 2014, DeKnight was reported to be taking over showrunning duties for the first season on the

exclusive television series '' Daredevil'' from

Drew Goddard Andrew Brion Hogan Goddard (born February 26, 1975) is an American filmmaker. He began his career writing episodes for the television shows ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'', ''Angel'', ''Alias'', and ''Lost''. After moving into screenwriting in fi ...

, after Goddard's departure due to scheduling conflicts with directing ''Sinister Six''. He was later replaced by

Doug Petrie Douglas Petrie is an American screenwriter, director, and producer. Best known as a writer, director, and co-executive producer on ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer''. He co-wrote the screenplays for the ''Fantastic Four'' film and ''Harriet the Spy'' ...

and Marco Ramirez to serve as co-showrunners for the second season of the series. In 2015, DeKnight joined the Transformers Cinematic Universe franchise's writers room, where

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...

hired multiple noted screenwriters to flesh out the future of the film series. He directed the science fiction sequel '' Pacific Rim: Uprising''. The original film's director,

Guillermo del Toro Guillermo del Toro Gómez (; born October 9, 1964) is a Mexican filmmaker, author, and actor. He directed the Academy Award–winning fantasy films ''Pan's Labyrinth'' (2006) and ''The Shape of Water'' (2017), winning the Academy Awards for Be ...

, remained on the film in the role of producer. On July 17, 2018, it was announced that DeKnight would be credited as a show-runner and executive producer alongside

Lorenzo di Bonaventura Lorenzo di Bonaventura (; born January 13, 1957) is an American film producer and founder and owner of Di Bonaventura Pictures. He is best known for producing the G.I. Joe and ''Transformers'' film series. The films he produced have earned over ...

and Dan McDermott in the

superhero series, '' Jupiter's Legacy''. On September 16, 2019, it was confirmed that DeKnight departed the series as a showrunner over creative differences in the midst of the production for the first season. On April 15, 2019, DeKnight joined a host of other writers in firing their agents as part of the WGA's stand against the ATA and the practice of

packaging Packaging is the science, art and technology of enclosing or protecting products for distribution, storage, sale, and use. Packaging also refers to the process of designing, evaluating, and producing packages. Packaging can be described as a co ...

Filmography

Films

Television

References

External links

* American television directors American male television writers Film directors from New Jersey Living people People from Millville, New Jersey 1965 births Screenwriters from New Jersey Television producers from New Jersey {{US-tv-writer-stub