Gary Ross (born November 3, 1956) is an American writer, director and actor. He is best known for directing Pleasantville and Seabiscuit, both of which featured Tobey Maguire in the lead role.

Life and career

Ross was born in Los Angeles, California, the son of screenwriter Arthur A. Ross. Ross's first produced screenplay was 1988's Big, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. He also received a Best Original Screenplay nomination for 1993's Dave. He wrote early drafts of 1992's Mr. Baseball and 1994's Lassie. He wrote the screenplay for 1998's Pleasantville, which also marked his directorial debut. In 2003, he wrote, directed and produced Seabiscuit based on Seabiscuit: An American Legend by Laura Hillenbrand, for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. He wrote the screenplay for 2008's The Tale of Despereaux based on the Newbery Medal-winning children's book by Kate DiCamillo. He has also written the screenplay for the forthcoming remake of 1954's Creature From the Black Lagoon on which his father was a screenwriter. He has written scripts titled Dog Years and The Free State of Jones which have not yet been produced as feature films.

Directing career

Ross started directing with the film Pleasantville, which was nominated for three Academy Awards: Best Art Direction, Best Costume Design and Best Original Score. In 2003, he directed, produced and wrote the film Seabiscuit, which was nominated for seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture. He is currently directing the film The Crusaders for which Danny Strong wrote the screenplay based on Jack Greenberg's book Crusaders in the Courts. Ross is rumored to soon begin work on The Free State of Jones based on his own screenplay.

Producing career

Ross has produced several films starting with the 1988 film Big, which he co-produced. Ross produced more films, including Trial and Error (1997) and Pleasantville (1998), which he also wrote and directed. In 2003, he produced the film Seabiscuit, about the legendary race horse. He recently produced 2008's The Tale of Despereaux, for which he also wrote the screenplay. He will also produce the forthcoming films Creature From the Black Lagoon, The Crusaders and possibly The Free State of Jones.

Filmography

• 2012: Venom re-writer, director
• 2011: Spider-Man 4 re-writer
• 2011: The Giver Producer, director, writer
• 2011: The Creature from the Black Lagoon Producer, writer (pre-production)
• 2010: The Crusaders Director (in production)
• 2008: The Tale of Despereaux Producer, writer
• 2003: Seabiscuit Producer, director, writer
• 1998: Pleasantville Producer, director, writer
• 1997: Trial and Error Producer
• 1993: Dave Writer
• 1992: Mr. Baseball Writer
• 1988: Big Writer

References

1. http://www.filmreference.com/film/87/Gary-Ross.html

External links