Jeb Stuart (writer)

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title: "Jeb Stuart (writer)" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1956-births", "living-people", "20th-century-american-male-writers", "20th-century-american-screenwriters", "20th-century-people-from-arkansas", "20th-century-people-from-north-carolina", "21st-century-american-male-writers", "21st-century-american-screenwriters", "21st-century-people-from-north-carolina", "american-historical-fiction-writers", "american-horror-writers", "american-male-television-writers", "american-television-writers", "american-science-fiction-writers", "american-television-producers", "american-thriller-writers", "film-directors-from-arkansas", "film-directors-from-north-carolina", "film-producers-from-arkansas", "film-producers-from-north-carolina", "northwestern-university-faculty", "people-from-gastonia,-north-carolina", "screenwriters-from-arkansas", "screenwriters-from-north-carolina", "stanford-university-alumni", "university-of-north-carolina-at-chapel-hill-alumni", "writers-from-charlotte,-north-carolina", "writers-from-little-rock,-arkansas"] description: "American writer, film director and producer (born 1956)" topic_path: "arts" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeb_Stuart_(writer)" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary American writer, film director and producer (born 1956) ::

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

Field	Value
name	Jeb Stuart
birth_date
birth_place	Little Rock, Arkansas, U.S.
alma_mater	University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Stanford University
occupation	Screenwriter
film director
film producer
years_active	1988–present
known_for	Vikings: Valhalla
Die Hard
The Fugitive
spouse	Anne Bryant Stuart
::

| name = Jeb Stuart | birth_date = | birth_place = Little Rock, Arkansas, U.S. | alma_mater = University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Stanford University | occupation = Screenwriter film director film producer | years_active = 1988–present | known_for = Vikings: Valhalla Die Hard The Fugitive | spouse = Anne Bryant Stuart

Jeb Stuart (born January 21, 1956) is an American screenwriter, film director, and producer, known for writing blockbuster action films such as Die Hard (1988) and The Fugitive (1993), and creating the Netflix television series Vikings: Valhalla (2022–2024).

Early life and education

Stuart grew up in Charlotte, North Carolina, and Gastonia, North Carolina, and graduated from Ashbrook High School. His father Dr. James Stuart was minister at First Presbyterian Church in Gastonia.

He received Bachelor's and Master's degrees from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, as well as a Masters of Arts in communications from Stanford University in Palo Alto, California.

He is a former member of the graduate faculty at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, where he taught in the Writing for Stage and Screen Program.

Career

Stuart's first screenplay was for the 1988 action film Die Hard, which was later revised by veteran screenwriter Steven E. de Souza. Adapted from the Roderick Thorp 1979 novel Nothing Lasts Forever, the film was a massive financial and critical success, spawning four sequels and being considered one of the greatest and most influential action films of all time.

He helped write the science-fiction horror film Leviathan (1988) and the Sylvester Stallone prison thriller Lock Up (1989).

Stuart was heavily involved in the writing of The Fugitive (1993), reworking David Twohy's original draft while on set and working with director Andrew Davis and stars Harrison Ford and Tommy Lee Jones.

He wrote an early draft of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, entitled Indiana Jones and the Saucer Men from Mars, in 1995.

In 1997, he made his directorial debut with Switchback, a thriller starring Dennis Quaid and Danny Glover. The film's negative critical reception led to Stuart semi-retiring from filmmaking for over a decade, before returning by writing, producing, and directing Blood Done Sign My Name (2010), adapted from the autobiography of author and historian Timothy Tyson.

He is the creator of Netflix's Vikings: Valhalla, a historical fiction drama television series and a sequel to History's Vikings. This spin-off series starts a century after the original series and tells the tales of some of the best known Northmen in history: Leif Erikson, Freydis and Harald Hardrada.

Accolades

Stuart has been nominated for a Writers Guild of America Award for Best Adapted Screenplay as well as nominated twice for an Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Motion Picture Screenplay.

He has received recognition for his writing from the American Film Institute and is a recipient of a Nicholl Fellowship in Screenwriting, administered by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, of which he has been a member for over 25 years.

Personal life

He was married to his high school sweetheart Anne Bryant Stuart from March 1, 2001 until her death. They had two children, Alexandra "Lexi" Stuart and Baker Stuart.

Filmography

Film

::data[format=table]

Year	Film	Writer	Producer	Director	Notes
1988	Die Hard				Co-written with Steven E. de Souza
Nominated for Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Motion Picture
1989	Leviathan				Co-written with David Webb Peoples
Next of Kin
Lock Up				Co-written with Richard Smith and Henry Rosenbaum
1990	Vital Signs				Co-written with Larry Ketron
Another 48 Hrs.				Co-written with John Fasano and Larry Gross
1993	The Fugitive				Co-written with David Twohy
Nominated – Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Motion Picture and WGA Award for Best Screenplay
1995	Just Cause				Co-written with Peter Stone
1997	Fire Down Below				Co-written with Philip Morton
Switchback
2010	Blood Done Sign My Name
2026	Takeover				Co-written with Brandon M. Easton
::

Also uncredited wrote an earlier draft for Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008).

Television

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

Year	Title	Writer	Executive Producer	Creator	Notes
2020	The Liberator
2022–2024	Vikings: Valhalla				Also showrunner
::

Awards and nominations

Nominations

• 1988 Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Motion Picture: Die Hard (with Steven E. de Souza)
• 1993 Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Motion Picture: The Fugitive (with David Twohy)
• 1993 Writers Guild of America Award for Best Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published: The Fugitive (with David Twohy)

References

References

1. (2013). "Jeb Stuart". [[The New York Times]].
2. "'Die Hard' screenwriter planted roots in Gastonia".
3. https://www.wearethemighty.com/mighty-movies/the-liberator-jeb-stuart/>
4. Caryn James. (1988). "Die Hard". [[The New York Times]].
5. (December 9, 2015). "Guest Blog: Jeb Stuart". Austin Film Festival.
6. (July 16, 2013). "Ode to Joy: Why ''Die Hard'' Is Still the Best Action Movie of the Modern Era". Pajiba.
7. "10 Reasons Why Die Hard Is the Best Action Movie Ever Made". IFC.
8. Breihan, Tom. "Die Hard humanized (and perfected) the action movie". Film.
9. George, Kat. "15 Reasons 'Die Hard' Is The Greatest Movie of All Time (No, Shut Up, It Actually Is)".
10. (September 3, 2013). "Exclusive Interview: Andrew Davis on The Fugitive 20th Anniversary". CraveOnline.
11. Chitwood, Scott. (February 29, 2000). "Indiana Jones and the Saucer Men from Mars". [[IGN]].
12. "Episode 74: A Conversation With 'Die Hard' Scribe Jeb Stuart". Writer's Bone.
13. (November 19, 2019). "'Vikings: Valhalla': Netflix Orders 'Vikings' Sequel Series From Michael Hirst, Jeb Stuart & MGM TV".

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