Zach Dean is an American screenwriter and film producer, best known for writing the films '' Deadfall'', ''

The Tomorrow War ''The Tomorrow War'' is a 2021 American military science fiction action film directed by Chris McKay, written by Zach Dean, and starring Chris Pratt. It was produced by David Ellison, Dana Goldberg, Don Granger, David S. Goyer, Jules Daly, and ...

'' and ''

Fast X ''Fast X'' (also known as ''Fast & Furious 10'') is an upcoming American action film directed by Louis Leterrier and written by Justin Lin, Zach Dean, and Dan Mazeau. It is the sequel to '' F9'' (2021), serving as the tenth main installment ...

''.

Career

Dean's first produced screenplay was for the 2012 heist film '' Deadfall'', directed by Stefan Ruzowitzky, and starring

Eric Bana Eric Banadinović, (born 9 August 1968), known professionally as Eric Bana (), is an Australian actor and comedian. He began his career in the sketch comedy series '' Full Frontal'' before gaining notice in the comedy drama '' The Castle'' (19 ...

Olivia Wilde Olivia Jane Cockburn ( ; born March 10, 1984), known professionally as Olivia Wilde, is an American actress and filmmaker. She played Remy "Thirteen" Hadley on the medical-drama television series ''House'' (2007–2012), and has appeared in the ...

, and Charlie Hunnam. In 2005, Dean was on

JetBlue Flight 292 JetBlue Flight 292 was a scheduled flight from Bob Hope Airport in Burbank, California, to John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City. On September 21, 2005, Captain Scott Burke executed an emergency landing in the Airbus A320-200 a ...

from Burbank to New York when the passengers were informed that the plane's landing gear had malfunctioned. As the plane circled around for hours, Dean contemplated his mortality and vowed to write a screenplay about family, which would become the script for ''Kin'' (later renamed ''Deadfall''). Dean wrote the 2017 sci-fi action thriller ''

24 Hours to Live ''24 Hours to Live'' is a 2017 science fiction action thriller film directed by Brian Smrz and starring Ethan Hawke, Xu Qing, Paul Anderson, Liam Cunningham, and Rutger Hauer. It follows a career assassin who goes on a rampage to exact revenge ...

'', directed by Brian Smrz and starring

Ethan Hawke Ethan Green Hawke (born November 6, 1970) is an American actor and film director. He has been nominated for four Academy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards and a Tony Award. Hawke has directed three feature films, three off-Broadway plays, and a doc ...

. He wrote the sci-fi action time travel thriller ''

'' (originally titled ''Ghost Draft''), which is directed by

Chris McKay Christopher McKay, also known as Chris Taylor (born November 11, 1973), is an American filmmaker. He is best known for directing and editing three seasons of '' Robot Chicken'' and two seasons of '' Moral Orel''. He made his feature directoria ...

and stars Chris Pratt,

Yvonne Strahovski Yvonne Jaqueline Strzechowski (born 30 July 1982), known professionally as Yvonne Strahovski (), is an Australian actress. Primarily noted for her roles in dramatic television, she has received numerous awards and nominations, including two Pri ...

J. K. Simmons Jonathan Kimble Simmons (born January 9, 1955) is an American actor, considered one of the most prolific and well-established character actors of his generation. He has appeared in over 200 films and television roles since his debut in 1986. He i ...

, and

Betty Gilpin Elizabeth Folan Gilpin (born July 21, 1986) is an American actress. She is best known for portraying Debbie "Liberty Belle" Eagan in the Netflix comedy series '' GLOW'' (2017–2019), for which she was nominated for three Primetime Emmy Awards ...

. Originally scheduled to be released by Paramount Pictures,

Amazon Studios Amazon Studios is an American television and film producer and distributor that is a subsidiary of Amazon. It specializes in developing television series and distributing and producing films. It was started in late 2010. Content is distributed th ...

acquired the rights to the film in a deal worth approximately $200 million, and release it on

Prime Video Amazon Prime Video, also known simply as Prime Video, is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming and rental service of Amazon offered as a standalone service or as part of Amazon's Prime subscription. The service pr ...

on July 2, 2021. Several of his screenplays have made The Black List survey of Hollywood's best unproduced scripts. ''Beast'', about a reformed criminal with a violent past, made the list in 2013. The

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

film ''Atlantic Wall'', with

Bradley Cooper Bradley Charles Cooper (born January 5, 1975) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is the recipient of various accolades, including a British Academy Film Award and two Grammy Awards, in addition to nominations for nine Academy Awards, si ...

attached to star and Gavin O'Connor to direct, made the list in 2015. ''Voyagers'', a biopic for

Warner Brothers Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...

which tells the love story of Carl Sagan and

Ann Druyan Ann Druyan ( ; born June 13, 1949) is an Emmy and Peabody Award-winning American documentary producer and director specializing in the communication of science. She co-wrote the 1980 PBS documentary series ''Cosmos'', hosted by Carl Sagan, ...

, was on the 2016 Black List. ''The Gorge'' was on the 2020 Black List, and was purchased in 2020 by

Skydance Skydance Media, LLC (formerly known as Skydance Productions) is an American production company based in Santa Monica, California. Founded by David Ellison in 2006, the company entered a five-year partnership to co-produce and co-finance films with ...

. Other yet-to-be-produced screenplays include the sci-fi film ''Canary'', which was purchased in 2018 by

Imagine Entertainment Imagine Entertainment (formerly Imagine Films Entertainment), also known simply as Imagine, is an American film and television production company founded in November 1985 by producer Brian Grazer and director Ron Howard. Background Brian Graz ...

to be directed by

Ron Howard Ronald William Howard (born March 1, 1954) is an American director, producer, screenwriter, and actor. He first came to prominence as a child actor, guest-starring in several television series, including an episode of ''The Twilight Zone''. He ...

; ''Methuselah'', at Warner Brothers, based on the character from the Old Testament; and the action-thriller ''Layover''.

Personal life

Dean is a Michigan native. He earned a master's in writing from

New York University Tisch School of the Arts The New York University Tisch School of the Arts (commonly referred to as Tisch) is the performing, cinematic and media arts school of New York University. Founded on August 17, 1965, Tisch is a training ground for artists, scholars of the ar ...

in 2005. Before selling his first script, he taught digital film production and screenwriting at

Riverdale Country School Riverdale Country School is a co-educational, independent, college-preparatory day school in New York City serving pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade. It is located on two campuses covering more than in the Riverdale section of the Bronx, Ne ...

The Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

. He has also worked as a bartender, carpenter, and casino dealer.

Filmography

* '' Deadfall'' (2012) * ''

'' (2017) * ''

'' (2021) * ''

'' (2023) * ''The Gorge'' (TBA)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dean, Zach Living people 21st-century American male writers 21st-century American screenwriters American male screenwriters Screenwriters from Michigan Tisch School of the Arts alumni Year of birth missing (living people) Survivors of aviation accidents or incidents