David Benioff facts for kids

Quick facts for kids David Benioff
Benioff in 2016
Born	David Friedman (1970-09-25) September 25, 1970 (age 54) New York City, U.S.
Education	Dartmouth College (BA) Trinity College, Dublin (MA) University of California, Irvine (MFA)
Occupation	Screenwriter television producer novelist
Years active	2001–present
Spouse(s)	Amanda Peet ​ (m. 2006)​
Children	3
Parent(s)	Stephen Friedman (father)

David Friedman, known professionally as David Benioff, was born on September 25, 1970. He is an American novelist, screenwriter, and producer. He is most famous for co-creating Game of Thrones (2011–2019) with his friend and partner D. B. Weiss. This popular HBO show was based on the book series A Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin. Benioff also wrote screenplays for movies like 25th Hour (2002), Troy (2004), and The Kite Runner (2007). He also wrote the novel City of Thieves (2008).

Early Life and Education

David Benioff was born David Friedman in New York City. He was the youngest of three children in his family. He grew up in Manhattan, New York. His father, Stephen Friedman, was a well-known businessman.

Benioff went to Collegiate School and then to Dartmouth College. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature in 1992. After college, he worked different jobs. He was a club bouncer in San Francisco for a while. He also taught English at a high school in Brooklyn for two years. During that time, he was also the school's wrestling coach.

In 1995, Benioff went to Trinity College, Dublin in Ireland. He studied Irish literature there for a year. It was in Dublin that he met D. B. Weiss, who would later become his writing partner. Benioff then decided to study creative writing. He earned a Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of California, Irvine in 1999.

When his first novel was published in 2001, he started using the name David Benioff. Benioff is his mother's maiden name. He chose this name to avoid confusion with other writers named David Friedman.

Creative Career

Benioff spent two years writing his first novel, The 25th Hour. This book was part of his master's degree work. The actor Tobey Maguire read the book and wanted to make it into a movie. Benioff then wrote the screenplay for the film adaptation, 25th Hour, which came out in 2002. It starred Edward Norton and was directed by Spike Lee.

In 2004, Benioff wrote the screenplay for the big historical movie Troy. This film was about the ancient Greek story of the Trojan War. He also wrote the script for the movie Stay (2005). His screenplay for The Kite Runner (2007) was based on a popular novel.

Benioff also worked on the superhero movie X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009). He based his script on different comic book stories about the character Wolverine. He wanted the story to be darker, but the final movie's tone was decided by the producers and director.

Game of Thrones and Other TV Projects

In 2006, David Benioff became very interested in George R. R. Martin's book series A Song of Ice and Fire. He teamed up with D.B. Weiss to create a TV series based on the books. This led to the hugely successful show Game of Thrones. HBO picked up the show in 2007, and it started airing in 2011. Benioff and Weiss were the main producers and writers for the show. They also directed a few episodes together.

Game of Thrones became one of the most popular TV shows in the world. It ran for eight seasons, ending in 2019. Towards the end of the show, some fans were unhappy with the final season. A petition was started online asking for the season to be remade. Even with this, the show won many awards.

In 2008, Benioff's second novel, City of Thieves, was published.

After Game of Thrones finished, Benioff and Weiss signed a big deal with Netflix in 2019 to create new films and TV shows. Because of this, they decided not to work on new Star Wars films for Disney and Lucasfilm.

Their first project for Netflix was directing a stand-up comedy special called Leslie Jones: Time Machine. More recently, Benioff, Weiss, and Alexander Woo wrote and produced the Netflix series 3 Body Problem, which premiered in 2024.

Personal Life

On September 30, 2006, David Benioff married actress Amanda Peet in New York City. They have three children together. The family lives in both Manhattan and Beverly Hills. David Benioff is also a second cousin to Marc Benioff, who is a well-known software entrepreneur.

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards and Recognitions

David Benioff has received many awards and nominations for his work, especially for Game of Thrones.

Primetime Emmy Awards

Other Major Awards

See also

In Spanish: David Benioff para niños

• List of awards and nominations received by Game of Thrones