John Dahl (born June 15, 1956) is an American film and television director and writer, best known for his neo-noir films from the early 1990s, Red Rock West and The Last Seduction, both of which are regarded as cult classics. After 2007's You Kill Me, Dahl moved from directing feature films into directing television series.

Early life John Dahl was born and raised in Billings, Montana, the second of four children (his brother is filmmaker Rick Dahl). Dahl's father worked as an insurance salesman, and his mother was a homemaker. He graduated from Billings Senior High School in 1974.

Dahl's interest in film began at the age of seventeen, when he first saw A Clockwork Orange at a Billings drive-in theater, as told to Robert K. Elder in an interview for The Film That Changed My Life.

He first attended the Montana State University, and then transferred to Montana State University's School of Film and Photography, where he received a degree in film. While at MSU, Dahl was a student of Bill Pullman. His first feature film at MSU was titled The Death Mutants made for $12,000. While at Montana State he played guitar in the punk rock band "The Pugs". He also met his wife, Beth Friedberg at MSU, and after graduation they both left Montana to attend the AFI Conservatory in Los Angeles.

Career

Dahl moved to Los Angeles in 1982, beginning his career by drawing storyboards for music video directors. He would go on to work on feature films Robocop, Something Wild and Married to the Mob as a storyboard artist and assistant director. Dahl also directed multiple music videos, notably for Kool & the Gang and Joe Satriani.

Dahl's first work on a feature film was on 1987's crime thriller P.I. Private Investigations, which he wrote. The film did not achieve a cinema release. Dahl's first feature film as a director was 1989's noir thriller Kill Me Again, which he also wrote; the film was a box office failure which garnered mixed reviews. Dahl's second feature film was 1993's Red Rock West, which Dahl again wrote. Although the film achieved only a modest box office, it was a significant critical success with Roger Ebert describing it as "a diabolical movie that exists sneakily between a western and a thriller, between a film noir and a black comedy," and awarding the film three-and-a-half stars out of four.

Dahl followed up Red Rock West with another tale of greed and deceit, this time told from the female perspective, with a critically-acclaimed performance by Linda Fiorentino in 1994 crime thriller, The Last Seduction. Both Red Rock West and The Last Seduction were instant cult classics, however Dahl's hot streak ended with 1996's Unforgettable, starring Ray Liotta and Linda Fiorentino once more, which gained decidedly mixed reviews and was a box office bomb . Dahl rebounded from this disappointment with 1998's well-received crime drama film about the underground world of high-stakes poker, Rounders,starring Matt Damon and Edward Norton. Dahl followed this up with 2001's successful thriller Joy Ride. However, despite an apparent return to form, Dahl's 2005 The Great Raid attracted mixed reviews and failed at the box office. Although Dahl's 2007 You Kill Me attracted generally positive reviews, it again failed at the box office. You Kill Me is Dahl's last feature film to date, as after this he has pivoted to directing television shows.

In his career as a television director, Dahl has directed multiple shows, including Hannibal (TV series), and House of Cards.

Personal life Dahl and his wife, Beth, have four children, and live in Los Angeles.

Filmography Film Year Title Director Writer 1987 P.I. Private Investigations 1989 Kill Me Again 1993 Red Rock West 1994 The Last Seduction 1996 Unforgettable 1998 Rounders 2001 Joy Ride 2005 The Great Raid 2007 You Kill Me

Television Year Title Notes 1995 Fallen Angels Episode "Tomorrow I Die" 2005 Tilt Episode "Shuffle Up and Deal" 2007 Life Episode "Powerless" 2007-2014 Californication 10 episodes 2008-2010 True Blood 4 episodes 2008-2013 Dexter 16 episodes2009 Fear Itself Episode "Chance" Battlestar Galactica Episode "The Oath" United States of Tara 2 episodes Breaking Bad Episode "Down" 2009-2013 The Vampire Diaries 4 episodes2010 Terriers Episode "Agua Caliente" Caprica 2 episodes 2010-2011 Hellcats 2 episodes 2010-2015 Justified 6 episodes 2011-2012 Shameless 2 episodes2012 Falling Skies Episode "Love and Other Acts of Courage" Homeland Episode "The Clearing" Arrow Episode "Year's End" 2013 Person of Interest Episode "Dead Reckoning"2013-2014 The Americans 2 episodes The Bridge 3 episodes 2013-2015 Hannibal 2 episodes 2013-2020 Ray Donovan 11 episodes2014 Outlander 2 episodes The Strain Episode "Loved Ones"2015 House of Cards 2 episodes House of Lies 2 episodes Aquarius Episode "It's Alright Ma. (I'm Only Bleeding.)" Jessica Jones Episode "AKA Sin Bin" 2015-2017 The Affair 5 episodes 2016 Kingdom 2 episodes 2016-2020 Billions 4 episodes2017 Iron Fist 2 episodes; also executive producer, 1 episode The Good Doctor Episode "Oliver" 2017-2018 SEAL Team 2 episodes 2018 The Looming Tower 2 episodes 2019-2020 Yellowstone 4 episodes 2019 The Walking Dead Episode "The World Before" 2019-2024 Evil 8 episodes 2019 For All Mankind 2 episodes 2020 Servant Episode "Balloon" 2021 American Rust 5 episodes2022Super Pumped2 episodes2024Manhunt2 episodes 2025Poker FaceEpisode "Hometown Hero"

References

External links