Gary Ross (born November 3, 1956) is an American screenwriter, director, and producer. He is best known for writing and directing the fantasy comedy-drama film Pleasantville (1998), the sports drama film Seabiscuit (2003), the dystopian action film The Hunger Games (2012), and the heist comedy film Ocean's 8 (2018). Ross has been nominated for four Academy Awards.
Early life and education Gary Ross was born on November 3, 1956, in Los Angeles, California, the son of Gail and Arthur A. Ross, an Oscar-nominated screenwriter (Brubaker). His family is Jewish.
He attended (though did not graduate from) the University of Pennsylvania.
Career Ross worked as a fisherman, worked on Ted Kennedy's 1980 Presidential campaign, consulted on both Michael Dukakis 1988 presidential campaign's and Bill Clinton's presidential campaigns, and wrote a novel before being hired to write screenplays for Paramount Pictures.
Big was his first produced screenplay. Co-written with Anne Spielberg (sister of Steven), it led to an Academy Award nomination and a Writers Guild of America Award. He went on to write several other successful films, including Dave in 1993. In 1998, he wrote and directed Pleasantville, and in 2003, he wrote, directed and produced Seabiscuit, based on Seabiscuit: An American Legend by Laura Hillenbrand. The film earned seven Academy Award nominations.
Ross took on the high-profile project of co-adapting and directing the film adaptation of the first book in Suzanne Collins's Hunger Games trilogy. The film was released on March 23, 2012, and earned $672.8 million worldwide. Although the film was financially and critically successful, Ross opted to not adapt or direct the sequels, citing the rushed production schedule (particularly for both writing and directing) as his main reason.
Ross also wrote and produced the animated feature The Tale of Despereaux, based on the Newbery Medal-winning children's book by Kate DiCamillo. His first book, Bartholomew Biddle and the Very Big Wind, was published by Candlewick Press in 2012. A children's book, it is written completely in verse.
His next two films as a director and writer were the period drama Free State of Jones (2016) and the heist film Ocean's 8 (2018).
Filmography Year Title Director Writer Producer 1988 Big 1992 Mr. Baseball 1993 Dave 1994 Lassie 1997 Trial and Error 1998 Pleasantville 2003 Seabiscuit 2008 The Tale of Despereaux 2012 The Hunger Games 2016 Free State of Jones 2018 Ocean's 8
Teleplay The Hitchhiker (1986) (Episode "Man of Her Dreams")
Uncredited rewrite Desert Warrior (2025)
Executive producer The Misery Brothers (1995) Untitled Ocean's Eleven prequel (2027)
Acting roles Year Title Role 1993 Dave Policeman #2 1995 The Misery Brothers Redwood Stump 2003 Seabiscuit Pimlico Track Announcer
Awards and nominations
Year Title Award 1988 Big Saturn Award for Best WritingNominated- Academy Award for Best Original ScreenplayNominated- Writers Guild of America Award for Best Original Screenplay 1993 Dave Paul Selvin AwardNominated- Academy Award for Best Original ScreenplayNominated- Writers Guild of America Award for Best Original Screenplay 1998 Pleasantville Satellite Award for Best Original ScreenplayProducers Guild of America for Most Promising ProducerNominated- Satellite Award for Best Film – Musical or ComedyNominated- Satellite Award for Best DirectorNominated- Saturn Award for Best Writing 2003 Seabiscuit USC Scripter AwardNominated- Academy Award for Best PictureNominated- Academy Award for Best Adapted ScreenplayNominated- Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best ScreenplayNominated- Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding DirectingNominated- Producers Guild of America Award for Best Theatrical Motion PictureNominated- Writers Guild of America Award for Best Adapted ScreenplayNominated- Satellite Award for Best Adapted Screenplay
References
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