Shane Black
| Shane Black | |
|---|---|
| Born | December 16, 1961 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania |
| Other names | Harry Lime, Holly Martins, Henry Langham, Benn Slack |
| Occupation | Screenwriter, actor, film director |
| Years active | 1987–current |
Shane Black (born December 16, 1961)[1] is an American actor, screenwriter and film director. He wrote such late 1980s and early 1990s action movie hits as Lethal Weapon (1987) and made his directorial debut with the film Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005). His acting credits include Predator (1987). Shane Black attended University of California, Los Angeles.
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Early life[edit]
Shane Black was born and raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania,[2] the son of Paul and Patricia Ann Black. His father was in the printing business.[1] After living in the suburbs of Lower Burrell and Mount Lebanon, Pennsylvania his family moved to to Fullerton, California during his sophomore year of high school.[2] There he attended Sunny Hills High School [3] and later attended UCLA where he majored in film and theater.
Career[edit]
Acting[edit]
Black's first acting role came in the film Predator; since then he has acted in a further five films and in one television episode for the TV series Dark Justice.
Screenwriting[edit]
The majority of Black's career is in screenwriting. He sold his first screenplay Lethal Weapon released in 1987 for $250,000[citation needed] and was paid $125,000[citation needed] as a co-writer of Lethal Weapon 2, released in 1989. He received $1.75 million[citation needed] for his screenplay The Last Boy Scout, released in 1991, and $1 million for Last Action Hero released in 1993.[citation needed]
Black has admitted[where?] that many of the scripts he had written for other directors were rewritten to a point where they scarcely resembled his product.
Black used the pseudonyms Harry Lime and Holly Martins, the names of two leading characters in the film The Third Man, for certain projects.[citation needed]
Directing[edit]
Black made his directorial debut with 2005's Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, and later directed the film Iron Man 3, which he co-wrote with Drew Pearce, which As of June 2013[update] was worldwide the fifth highest grossing film of all time.[4][5]. Black's next projects are the American version of Death Note, based on the manga series[6][7] and Doc Savage.[7][8][9]
Style[edit]
Black has a recognizable writing style where he often adds comments (referred to as "Shane Blackisms")[10] and jokes about the situations taking place in the story. He also sometimes directs comments at studio executives and certain script readers. Examples of these include:
From Lethal Weapon:
| “ | EXT. POSH BEVERLY HILLS HOME - TWILIGHT
The kind of house that I'll buy if this movie is a huge hit. Chrome. Glass. Carved wood. Plus an outdoor solarium: A glass structure, like a greenhouse only there's a big swimming pool inside. This is a really great place to have sex.[11] |
” |
From The Last Boy Scout:
| “ | Remember Jimmy's friend, Henry, who we met briefly near the opening of the film? Of course you do, you're a highly-paid reader or development person. | ” |
He has used kidnapping as a plot device in several films: Lethal Weapon, The Last Boy Scout, The Long Kiss Goodnight, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and Iron Man 3.
Black gave a list of techniques he uses when writing films in an interview with The Guardian.[12]
Black also used a Christmas theme in Lethal Weapon, The Long Kiss Goodnight, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and Iron Man 3.
Awards and honors[edit]
Black received the Distinguished Screenwriter Award from the Austin Film Festival October 21, 2006. In 2005, he received the Best Original Screenplay award for Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang' from the San Diego Film Critics Association.
Filmography[edit]
Screenwriting[edit]
- Lethal Weapon (1987)
- The Monster Squad (with Fred Dekker) (1987)
- Lethal Weapon 2 (1989) (Story Only)
- The Last Boy Scout (1991)
- Last Action Hero (1993)
- The Long Kiss Goodnight (1996)
- Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005)
- A.W.O.L. (2006) (as Holly Martins)
- Iron Man 3 (with Drew Pearce) (2013)
Directing[edit]
- 2005: Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
- 2013: Iron Man 3
Producing[edit]
- 1991: The Last Boy Scout (executive producer)
- 1996: The Long Kiss Goodnight (producer)
- 2006: A.W.O.L. (executive producer) (as Harry Lime)
Acting[edit]
- 1987: Predator as Hawkins
- 1988: Dead Heat as Patrolman
- 1991: Dark Justice (TV; 1 episode, "Nowhere to Hide")
- 1993: RoboCop 3 as Donnelly
- 1994: Night Realm
- 1997: As Good as It Gets as Brian, Cafe 24 manager
- 1997: An Alan Smithee Film: Burn Hollywood Burn as himself
- 2002: The Boy Scout as Henchman #2
References[edit]
- ^ a b "Shane Black Biography (1961-)". FilmReference.com. Retrieved November 16, 2012.
- ^ a b Vancheri, Barbara (June 8, 2012). "Film Notes: A local connection to 'Iron Man 3'". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Archived from the original on November 16, 2012. Retrieved November 16, 2012.
- ^ Winters, Laura. "Shane Black, Coming Back With a 'Bang': 'Lethal Weapon' Writer Rearms With Sendup", Washington Post, 6 November 2005, retrieved June 29, 2007.
- ^ "BOX OFFICE: IRON MAN 3 Is Now The Fifth Highest Grossing Movie Of All-Time". Retrieved 9 June 2013.
- ^ "Iron Man 3 Twist Has Fans Torn". Business Insider. 05/2013.
- ^ "Warner Bros Taps Shane Black For Japanese Manga 'Death Note'". Deadline.com. 2011-01-13. Retrieved 2011-01-14.
- ^ a b Shane Black On His Death Note And Doc Savage Movies
- ^ Siegel, Tatiana (February 22, 2010). "Columbia revives Doc Savage". Variety. Retrieved 2010-02-27.
- ^ 'Iron Man 3' Director Shane Black to Direct 'Doc Savage' for Sony
- ^ "WordPlay: Column 23". Terry Rossio, 1997. Retrieved 8 August 2011.
- ^ "Lethal Weapon, script". The Daily Script. Retrieved 8 August 2011.
- ^ Delaney, Sam (May 22, 2009). "Crash, bang, wallop what a picture". The Guardian (London). Retrieved 2009-05-23.
External links[edit]
- Shane Black at the Internet Movie Database
- Shane Black at AllRovi
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