John Ridley facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
John Ridley
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Ridley in 2013.
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| Born |
John Ridley IV
October 1, 1964 |
| Alma mater | New York University |
| Occupation | Screenwriter Novelist Television writer Television director |
| Years active | 1988–present |
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Notable work
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12 Years a Slave American Crime |
| Spouse(s) | Gayle Ridley |
| Children | 2 |
John Ridley IV (born October 1, 1964) is an American screenwriter, television director, novelist, and showrunner, known for 12 Years a Slave, for which he won an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. He is also the creator and showrunner of the anthology series American Crime. In 2017 he directed the documentary film Let It Fall: Los Angeles 1982–1992.
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Early life
Ridley was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and was raised from the age of seven in Mequon, Wisconsin, with an ophthalmologist father, John Ridley, III, and a mother, Terry Ridley, who was a special education teacher for Milwaukee Public Schools. He has two sisters and is the middle sibling.
Ridley graduated from Homestead High School in Mequon, Wisconsin in 1982. He enrolled in Indiana University but transferred to New York University. There, he graduated with a bachelor's degree in East Asian languages. The subject wasn't applicable to his career, but it sparked his intellectual interests. Ridley is Christian.
Career
Following college, Ridley spent a year living and traveling in Japan. Then, he returned to New York and began performing standup comedy in New York City, and he made appearances on Late Night with David Letterman and The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. Moving to Los Angeles in 1990, he began writing for such television sitcoms as Martin, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, and The John Larroquette Show. After both writing and directing his film debut, the 1997 crime thriller Cold Around the Heart, he and Oliver Stone co-adapted Ridley's first novel, Stray Dogs (still unpublished when Stone bought the rights) into the 1997 Stone-directed film U Turn, which was released slightly earlier than Cold Around the Heart. Ridley went on to write the novels Love Is a Racket and Everybody Smokes in Hell. His novel Spoils of War was adapted into the 1999 David O. Russell-directed Three Kings. Ridley's original script was rewritten by Russell and Ridley, with Ridley receiving a "story by" credit negotiated among himself, Russell, and the releasing studio, Warner Bros. Ridley then became a writer and a supervising producer on the NBC crime drama Third Watch. His other novels are The Drift, Those Who Walk in Darkness, and A Conversation with the Mann. He also wrote the graphic novel The American Way.
From 2000 to 2010, he was a commentator and blogger for NPR. His blog was Visible Man, a play on Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man. In 2003, Ridley inked a one-year overall deal with Universal Network Television.
His work as screenwriter also includes 12 Years a Slave, Red Tails, and Undercover Brother. His script for 12 Years a Slave won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay, making Ridley the second African American to win the award, after Geoffrey S. Fletcher (for Precious, based on the novel Push by Sapphire).
In April 2015, Ridley was developing an ABC television series involving an existing Marvel Comics character. However, by December 2019, the project was cancelled due to Marvel Television folding into Marvel Studios.
On April 16, 2018, it was announced that Ridley would direct and write an adaptation of his graphic novel The American Way produced by Blumhouse Productions.
On June 4, 2018, it was announced that Ridley would direct a feature film adaptation of the Robert Silverberg short story, Needle in a Timestack produced by Bron Studios. The film featured performances from Leslie Odom Jr., Freida Pinto, Cynthia Erivo, and Orlando Bloom.
In 2021, Ridley began writing a number of series for DC Comics. The series include a new Batman series 'The Next Batman' as part of the company's line-wide event 'Future State', and a 5-issue series 'The Other History of the DC Universe' a text-based story about the history of the non-white, non-American DC heroes such as Black Lightning and Katana.
In May 2021, Marvel Comics announced that Ridley will write Black Panther comics.
Personal life
Ridley is married to wife Gayle, a former script supervisor. They have two children.
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Director | Writer | Producer | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | U Turn | No | Yes | No | Co-written with Oliver Stone |
| Cold Around the Heart | Yes | Yes | No | ||
| 1999 | Three Kings | No | Story | No | Story by, screenplay by David O. Russell |
| 2002 | Undercover Brother | No | Yes | No | Co-written by Michael McCullers |
| 2012 | Red Tails | No | Yes | No | Story by, co-written by Aaron McGruder |
| 2013 | Jimi: All Is by My Side | Yes | Yes | No | |
| 12 Years a Slave | No | Yes | No | Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Nominated - BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Nominated - Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay |
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| 2016 | Ben-Hur | No | Yes | No | Co-written by Keith Clarke |
| 2017 | Let It Fall: Los Angeles 1982–1992 | Yes | No | Yes | Documentary |
| 2021 | Needle in a Timestack | Yes | Yes | Executive | |
| TBA | Shirley | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Television
| Year | Title | Director | Writer | Producer | Creator | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | Martin | No | Yes | No | No | 3 episodes |
| 1994 | The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air | No | Yes | No | No | 2 episodes |
| 1995 | The John Larroquette Show | No | Yes | Co-producer | No | 2 episodes |
| 1996 | The Show | No | Yes | Consulting | No | Episode: "Tom and Them" |
| 1998 | Team Knight Rider | No | Yes | No | No | Episode: "E.M.P." |
| 1999 | Trinity | No | Yes | No | No | Episode: "Having Trouble with the Language" |
| 1999–2004 | Third Watch | No | Yes | Consulting | No | 8 episodes |
| 2003 | Platinum | Yes | Yes | Executive | Yes | Directed episode: "Peace" |
| Static Shock | No | Yes | No | No | Episode: "Toys in the Hood" | |
| 2004 | Justice League | No | Yes | No | No | Episode: "Starcrossed: Part II" |
| 2005 | Barbershop: The Series | Yes | Yes | Executive | No | Also developer; Directed 3 episodes, wrote 7 episodes |
| 2009 | The Wanda Sykes Show | No | No | Executive | No | |
| 2015–2017 | American Crime | Yes | Yes | Executive | Yes | Directed 5 episodes, wrote 8 episodes |
| 2017 | Guerrilla | Yes | Yes | Executive | Yes | Directed 3 episodes, wrote 5 episodes |
| 2019 | Godfather of Harlem | Yes | No | No | No | Episode: "By Whatever Means Necessary" |
| 2022 | Five Days at Memorial | Yes | Yes | Executive | Yes | Directed 3 episodes, wrote 5 episodes |
Acting credits
| Year | Title | Role | Episode |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | Martin | Man with car (uncredited) | "Hollywood Swinging: Part 2" |
| 1994 | The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air | Himself | "Will's Up a Dirt Road" |
| 2016 | Lady Dynamite | Himself | "White Trash" |
Awards and nominations
| Year | Title | Awards |
|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Cold Around the Heart | Urbanworld Film Festival Jury Prize for Best Director |
| 1999 | Three Kings | Nominated—Golden Satellite Award for Best Original Screenplay (shared with David O. Russell) Nominated—Writers Guild of America Award for Best Original Screenplay (shared with David O. Russell) |
| 2002 | Undercover Brother | Nominated—Black Reel Award for Best Screenplay |
| 2013 | 12 Years a Slave | Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay
African-American Film Critics Association Award for Best Screenplay |
| 2015–2017 | American Crime | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Director in a Drama Series Nominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Limited Series, Movie, or Dramatic Special |
Works and publications
Novels
- Ridley, John. Stray Dogs. New York: Ballantine Books, 1997. ISBN: 978-0-345-41345-1
- Ridley, John. Love Is a Racket: A Novel. New York: Knopf, 1998. ISBN: 978-0-375-40142-8
- Ridley, John. Everybody Smokes in Hell. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1999. ISBN: 978-0-375-40143-5
- Ridley, John. A Conversation with the Mann: A Novel. New York: Warner Books, 2002. ISBN: 978-0-446-52836-8
- Ridley, John. The Drift. New York: Knopf, 2002. ISBN: 978-0-375-41182-3
- Ridley, John. Those Who Walk in Darkness New York: Warner Books, 2003. ISBN: 978-0-446-53093-4
- Ridley, John, and Patricia R. Floyd. What Fire Cannot Burn. Prince Frederick, MD: Recorded Books, 2011, 2007. ISBN: 978-1-456-10151-0
Graphic novels
- Ridley, John, and Ben Oliver. The Authority: Human on the Inside. La Jolla, CA: WildStorm Productions, 2004. 978-1-401-20070-1
- Ridley, John. The Razor's Edge: Warblade #1-5. DC Comics. 2005.
- Ridley, John, Georges Jeanty, and Karl C. Story. The American Way. La Jolla, Calif: WildStorm/DC Comics, 2007. ISBN: 978-1-401-21256-8
- Ridley, John, Giuseppe Camuncoli, Andrea Cucchi, and José Villarrubia. The Other History of the DC Universe. DC Comics, 2021. ISBN 978-1-779-51197-3
Stage plays
- Ridley, John. Ten Thousand Years. 2005 (world premiere).
Essays
See also
In Spanish: John Ridley para niños
