Dean Devlin

Dean Devlin (born August 27, 1962) is an American screenwriter, producer, director, and actor of film and television. He is best known for his collaborations with director Roland Emmerich, and for his work on the ''Librarian'' and ''Leverage'' television franchises. He is a co-founder of the production companies Centropolis Entertainment and Electric Entertainment. He was a series regular of the short lived TV series ''Hard Copy''.

Early life

Devlin was born in New York City, the son of actress Pilar Seurat and Don Devlin, a writer, actor, and producer. His father was Jewish and his mother was Filipino. He attended the University of Southern California.

Career

Film

Devlin appeared as an actor on numerous television shows throughout the 1980s. He also appeared in films including '' My Bodyguard'', '' The Wild Life'', ''Real Genius'' and '' Martians Go Home''. Due to his youthful appearance, Devlin often played teenage characters despite being in his 20s.

Devlin gradually began writing scripts. His first produced screenplay was for '' Universal Soldier''. He reached prominence as a writer/producer working alongside director Roland Emmerich, with whom he teamed after appearing in Emmerich's film '' Moon 44''. Together they cowrote and produced ''Stargate,'' the first movie to have a web site. The team then produced ''Independence Day'' and ''Godzilla''. They split following the 2000 Mel Gibson film '' The Patriot'', but re-teamed to film '' Independence Day: Resurgence'' in 2016. Devlin has also produced '' Cellular'', ''Who Killed the Electric Car?'', and '' Flyboys''.

Devlin's directorial debut was the action sci-fi film '' Geostorm'' for Warner Bros. The film was set for a March 2016 release, later rescheduled for October 2017. It starred Gerard Butler as the lead with Jim Sturgess, Abbie Cornish, Ed Harris and Andy García. The film made $221 million on a $120 million budget. In March 2018, ''Deadline Hollywood'' calculated the film lost Warner Bros. $71.6 million when factoring in all other expenses and revenues.

Devlin's second film as director was the 2018 thriller '' Bad Samaritan'', starring Robert Sheehan and David Tennant.

Television

Devlin produced '' The Triangle'' miniseries, '' Leverage'' (of which he has directed twelve episodes), ''The Librarian'' franchise, and '' The Outpost''. He also co-created '' The Visitor'' series.

In 2019 Devlin began working with the Philippine media conglomerate ABS-CBN to produce a new series called ''Almost Paradise'' (originally titled ''Off Tropic.'') The series premiered in the United States on May 30, 2020, on WGN America, and premiered on Kapamilya Channel in 2021. It was filmed entirely in the Philippines and the majority of the cast members are Filipino, aside from the lead—played by Christian Kane, whom Devlin also worked with on the television shows ''Leverage'' and ''The Librarians''.

Delvin produced '' The Ark'' TV series for Syfy, which aired starting in February 2023.

Video games

Devlin was an advisor to the video game company ZeniMax Media from 1999 to 2004. Additionally Devlin was involved in video game projects The 10th Planet and Godzilla Online.

Personal life

Devlin is married to actress Lisa Brenner.

Filmography

Television

The numbers in directing and writing credits refer to the number of episodes.

Acting roles

Awards and nominations

References

External links

*
*Snider, John C. (December 2, 2008)
"Podcast #20 – Dean Devlin"
SciFiDimensions.

{{DEFAULTSORT:Devlin, Dean
1962 births
20th-century American screenwriters
21st-century American screenwriters
Film producers from New York (state)
American male actors of Filipino descent
American male film actors
American male screenwriters
American people of Jewish descent
Living people
Male actors from New York City
University of Southern California alumni
Screenwriters from New York (state)
American film directors of Filipino descent
American television directors
American film production company founders
American television producers
American television writers
Skydance Media people