Dean Devlin

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title: "Dean Devlin" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["20th-century-american-screenwriters", "21st-century-american-screenwriters", "film-producers-from-new-york-(state)", "american-male-actors-of-filipino-descent", "american-male-film-actors", "american-male-screenwriters", "american-people-of-jewish-descent", "living-people", "male-actors-from-new-york-city", "university-of-southern-california-alumni", "screenwriters-from-new-york-(state)", "american-film-directors-of-filipino-descent", "american-television-directors", "american-film-production-company-founders", "american-television-producers", "american-television-writers", "skydance-media-people", "year-of-birth-missing-(living-people)"] description: "American filmmaker" topic_path: "arts" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dean_Devlin" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary American filmmaker ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox person"]

Field	Value
image	Dean Devlin by Gage Skidmore.jpg
caption	Devlin at the 2023 WonderCon
name	Dean Devlin
birth_date
years_active	1980–present
occupation
children	1
::

| image = Dean Devlin by Gage Skidmore.jpg | caption = Devlin at the 2023 WonderCon | name = Dean Devlin | birth_date = | birth_place = | years_active = 1980–present | alma_mater = | occupation = | children = 1 | spouse = | parents =

Dean Devlin is an American screenwriter, producer, director, and actor of film and television. He is best known for his collaborations with director Roland Emmerich, and for his work on the Librarian and Leverage television franchises. He is a co-founder of the production companies Centropolis Entertainment and Electric Entertainment. He was a series regular of the short lived TV series Hard Copy.

Early life

Devlin's father, Don Devlin (1930–2000), an actor turned writer-producer who was noted for discovering Steven Spielberg, was Jewish, and his mother, Pilar Seurat, was a Filipino actress.

Career

Film

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e1/10.5.17DeanDevlinByLuigiNovi2.jpg" caption="Devlin at the 2017 [[New York Comic Con"] ::

Devlin appeared as an actor on numerous television shows throughout the 1980s. He also appeared in films including My Bodyguard, The Wild Life, Real Genius and Martians Go Home. Due to his youthful appearance, Devlin often played teenage characters despite being in his 20s.

Devlin gradually began writing scripts. His first produced screenplay was for Universal Soldier. He reached prominence as a writer/producer working alongside director Roland Emmerich, with whom he teamed after appearing in Emmerich's film Moon 44. Together they cowrote and produced Stargate, the first movie to have a web site. The team then produced Independence Day and Godzilla. They split following the 2000 Mel Gibson film The Patriot, but re-teamed to film Independence Day: Resurgence in 2016. Devlin has also produced Cellular, Who Killed the Electric Car?, and Flyboys.

Devlin's directorial debut was the action sci-fi film Geostorm for Warner Bros. The film was set for a March 2016 release, later rescheduled for October 2017. It starred Gerard Butler as the lead with Jim Sturgess, Abbie Cornish, Ed Harris and Andy García. The film made $221 million on a $120 million budget. In March 2018, Deadline Hollywood calculated the film lost Warner Bros. $71.6 million when factoring in all other expenses and revenues.

Devlin's second film as director was the 2018 thriller Bad Samaritan, starring Robert Sheehan and David Tennant.

Television

Devlin produced The Triangle miniseries, Leverage (of which he has directed twelve episodes), The Librarian franchise, and The Outpost. He also co-created The Visitor series.

In 2019 Devlin began working with the Philippine media conglomerate ABS-CBN to produce a new series called Almost Paradise (originally titled Off Tropic.) The series premiered in the United States on May 30, 2020, on WGN America, and premiered on Kapamilya Channel in 2021. It was filmed entirely in the Philippines and the majority of the cast members are Filipino, aside from the lead—played by Christian Kane, whom Devlin also worked with on the television shows Leverage and The Librarians.

Delvin produced The Ark TV series for Syfy, which aired starting in February 2023.

Video games

Devlin was an advisor to the video game company ZeniMax Media from 1999 to 2004. Additionally Devlin was involved in video game projects The 10th Planet and Godzilla Online.

Personal life

Devlin's daughter, Hannah Devlin, is an actress who guest starred in Devlin's TV series The Librarians: The Next Chapter.

Filmography

::data[format=table]

Year	Title	Director	Producer	Writer	Notes
1992	Universal Soldier				Co-writer with Richard Rothstein & Christopher Leitch
1994	Stargate				Co-writer with Roland Emmerich
1996	Independence Day				Co-writer with Roland Emmerich
1998	Godzilla				Co-writer with Roland Emmerich; co-wrote story with Emmerich, Terry Rossio & Ted Elliott
2000	The Patriot
2002	Eight Legged Freaks
2004	Cellular
2006	Who Killed the Electric Car?				Documentary
Flyboys
2011	Shakespeare High				Documentary
2013	Transit
2015	The Wannabe
2016	Independence Day: Resurgence				Co-writer with Roland Emmerich, Nicolas Wright, James A. Woods & James Vanderbilt
2017	Geostorm				Directorial debut
Co-writer with Paul Guyot
2018	Bad Samaritan
2025	One Big Happy Family	No	Yes	No
::

Television

The numbers in directing and writing credits refer to the number of episodes.

::data[format=table] | Year | Title | Functioned as | Network | Notes | Creator | Director | Writer | Executive producer | The Visitor | Godzilla: The Series | The Librarian: Quest for the Spear | The Triangle | Talk to Me | The Librarian: Return to King Solomon's Mines | Blank Slate | The Librarian: Curse of the Judas Chalice | Leverage | Brain Trust | The Librarians | The Outpost | Almost Paradise | Leverage: Redemption | The Ark | The Librarians: The Next Chapter | |---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---| | 1997–98 | | | (3) | | Fox | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 1998–2000 | | | | | Fox Kids | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 2004 | | | | | TNT | Television film | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 2005 | | | | | Sci-Fi Channel | Miniseries | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 2006 | | | | | TNT | Unaired pilot | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 2006 | | | | | Television film | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 2008 | | | | | Television film | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 2008 | | | | | Television film | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 2008–12 | | (16) | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 2011 | | | | | TBS | Unaired pilot | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 2014–18 | | (6) | (1) | | TNT | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 2018–21 | | | | | The CW | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 2020–present | | (1) | (2) | | WGN America season 1, Amazon Freevee season 2 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 2021–present | | (4) | (1) | | Amazon Freevee | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 2023 - present | | (1) | (1) | | Syfy | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 2025 - present | | (1) | (3) | | TNT | Showrunner | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ::

Acting roles

::data[format=table]

Year	Title	Role
1984	The Wild Life	Liquor Store Clerk
City Limits	Ernie
1985	Real Genius	Milton
1987	Hard Copy	David Del Valle
1989	Martians Go Home	Joe Fledermaus
1990	Moon 44	Tyler
1991	Total Exposure	Adult Bookstore Manager
::

Awards and nominations

::data[format=table]

Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films	Year	Nominated work	Category	Result	Golden Raspberry Awards	Hugo Awards	Online Film & Television Association	Sci-Fi Universe Magazine	Stinkers Bad Movie Awards
1996	Independence Day	Best Writer
1998		George Pal Memorial Award
1996	Independence Day	Worst Written Film Grossing Over $100 Million
1998	Godzilla	Worst Picture
Worst Screenplay
2016	Independence Day: Resurgence
1994	Stargate	Best Dramatic Presentation
1996	Independence Day
1996	Independence Day	Best Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Horror Picture
1996	Independence Day	Best Writing for a Genre Motion Picture
1998	Godzilla	[Worst Screenplay for a Film Grossing More than
$100 Million Using Hollywood Math](stinkers-bad-movie-awards)
::

References

References

1. Brown, Lourdes O.. (2000-12-19). "Don Devlin".
2. Longwell, Todd. (2025-10-10). "How ‘Star Trek’ and ‘Star Wars’ Fandom Inspired Dean Devlin to Become a Billion Dollar Producer".
3. (September 24, 2006). "Fil-Am producer Dean Devlin soars with 'Flyboys'". Philippine Daily Inquirer.
4. "Pilar Cerveris Obituary (2001) - Los Angeles, CA - Los Angeles Times".
5. (December 11, 2000). "Godzilla guy has a love for the game". Reed Business Information.
6. (June 24, 2011). "ID Forever: Emmerich is producing with Dean Devlin and Harald Kloser.". Collider.com.
7. (November 29, 2006). "FLYBOYS Squadron Gets Massive New Update-Free Update, Great Reviews, and a Real Fighter Pilot Flight!". [[Berkshire Hathaway]].
8. McNary, Dave. (11 April 2014). "Gerard Butler to Star in Sci-Fi Thriller 'Geostorm'". variety.com.
9. (2 May 2014). "Warner Bros Slots 'Geostorm' For 2016". [[Deadline Hollywood]].
10. "Jim Sturgess, Abbie Cornish in Talks to Join Gerard Butler in 'Geostorm'". hollywoodreporter.com.
11. [https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=geostorm.htm Box Office Mojo: Geostorm]
12. D'Alessandro, Anthony. (March 29, 2018). "What Were The Biggest Bombs At The 2017 B.O.? Deadline's Most Valuable Blockbuster Tournament".
13. (September 16, 2013). "Dean Devlin Sets Next Directorial Effort As Electric Entertainment Picks Up 2 Projects". Deadline.
14. (September 19, 1997). "FOX SETTLES LAWSUIT OVER 'THE VISITOR'". [[Digital First Media]].
15. Camus, Miguel R.. (September 26, 2019). "ABS-CBN begins Hollywood gamble with crime series".
16. (December 21, 2020). "'Together as One in 2021': Here are ABS-CBN's upcoming shows, offerings".
17. (19 January 2020). "Christian Kane Is Trying to Avoid Stress in 'Almost Paradise'". TVInsider.com.
18. (February 2, 2023). "Dean Devlin explains why 'The Ark' isn't 'woke' sci-fi: 'There's an attempt to politicize everything now'".
19. (September 23, 2001). "ZeniMax Media | profile – business advisory board".
20. McNicholas, Conor. (October 1995). "The Bizarre Tenth Planet".
21. "Godzilla Online".
22. https://twitter.com/Dean_Devlin/status/1950010625440276786
23. Petski, Denise. (March 20, 2024). "''The Librarians: The Next Chapter'': Callum McGowan, Three More Round Out Cast".

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