John Ridley

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American writer and director

title: "John Ridley" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1965-births", "living-people", "20th-century-african-american-writers", "20th-century-american-male-writers", "20th-century-american-novelists", "20th-century-american-screenwriters", "21st-century-african-american-writers", "21st-century-american-male-writers", "21st-century-american-novelists", "21st-century-american-screenwriters", "african-american-comics-writers", "african-american-film-directors", "african-american-male-writers", "african-american-novelists", "african-american-screenwriters", "african-american-television-directors", "american-comics-writers", "american-comics-artists", "american-crime-fiction-writers", "american-documentary-film-directors", "american-male-novelists", "american-male-screenwriters", "american-male-television-writers", "american-science-fiction-writers", "american-television-directors", "american-television-writers", "best-adapted-screenplay-academy-award-winners", "film-directors-from-wisconsin", "filmmakers-from-milwaukee", "marvel-comics-writers", "dc-comics-people", "novelists-from-wisconsin", "people-from-mequon,-wisconsin", "screenwriters-from-wisconsin", "american-showrunners", "writers-from-milwaukee", "best-screenplay-independent-spirit-award-winners"] description: "American writer and director" topic_path: "arts" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Ridley" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary American writer and director ::

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

Field	Value
name	John Ridley
image	John Ridley in Nov 2013.jpg
caption	Ridley in 2013
birth_name	John Ridley IV
birth_date
birth_place	Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S.
alma_mater	New York University
occupation	Screenwriter
Novelist
Television writer
Television director
years_active	1988–present
notable_works	12 Years a Slave
American Crime
spouse	Gayle Ridley
children	2
::

John Ridley IV (born October 1, 1964) is an American screenwriter, television director, novelist, and showrunner, known for 12 Years a Slave, for which he won an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. He is also the creator and showrunner of the anthology series American Crime. In 2017 he directed the documentary film Let It Fall: Los Angeles 1982–1992.

Early life

Ridley was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and was raised from the age of seven in Mequon, Wisconsin, with an ophthalmologist father, John Ridley III, and a mother, Terry Ridley, who was a special education teacher He has two sisters and is the middle sibling.

Ridley graduated from Homestead High School in Mequon, Wisconsin in 1982. Ridley is Christian.

Career

Following college, Ridley spent a year living and traveling in Japan. Then, he returned to New York and began performing standup comedy in New York City, and he made appearances on Late Night with David Letterman and The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. Moving to Los Angeles in 1990, he began writing for such television sitcoms as Martin, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, and The John Larroquette Show. After both writing and directing his film debut, the 1997 crime thriller Cold Around the Heart, he and Oliver Stone co-adapted Ridley's first novel, Stray Dogs (still unpublished when Stone bought the rights) into the 1997 Stone-directed film U Turn, which was released slightly earlier than Cold Around the Heart. Ridley went on to write the novels Love Is a Racket and Everybody Smokes in Hell.

He challenged himself to see how quickly he could write and sell a script, and produced and sold the original screenplay Spoils of War in 18 days, which was later adapted into the 1999 David O. Russell-directed Three Kings. Russell claimed he did not read Ridley's script, and just took the idea. Ridley received a "story by" credit negotiated among himself, Russell, and the releasing studio, Warner Bros. Ridley then became a writer and a supervising producer on the NBC crime drama Third Watch. His other novels are The Drift, Those Who Walk in Darkness, and A Conversation with the Mann. He also wrote the graphic novel The American Way.

From 2000 to 2010, he was a commentator and blogger for NPR. His blog was Visible Man, a play on Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man. In 2003, Ridley inked a one-year overall deal with Universal Network Television.

His work as screenwriter also includes 12 Years a Slave, making Ridley the second African American to win the award, after Geoffrey S. Fletcher (for Precious, based on the novel Push by Sapphire).

In April 2015, Ridley was developing an ABC television series involving an existing Marvel Comics character. However, by December 2019, the project was cancelled due to Marvel Television folding into Marvel Studios. Ridley later revealed that his cancelled project would have been a version of Eternals, which was instead developed as an unrelated movie directed by Chloé Zhao.

On April 16, 2018, it was announced that Ridley would direct and write an adaptation of his graphic novel The American Way produced by Blumhouse Productions.

On June 4, 2018, it was announced that Ridley would direct a feature film adaptation of the Robert Silverberg short story, Needle in a Timestack produced by Bron Studios. The film featured performances from Leslie Odom Jr., Freida Pinto, Cynthia Erivo, and Orlando Bloom.

In 2021, Ridley began writing a number of series for DC Comics. The series include a new Batman series 'The Next Batman' as part of the company's line-wide event 'Future State', and a 5-issue series 'The Other History of the DC Universe' a text-based story about the history of the non-white, non-American DC heroes such as Black Lightning and Katana.

In May 2021, Marvel Comics announced that Ridley will write Black Panther comics.

Controversy

Ridley wrote an essay for the December 2006 issue of Esquire, "The Manifesto of Ascendancy for the Modern American Nigger". As the Associated Press reported, Ridley's essay had an "in-your-face style to rip the black underclass", with readers criticizing "the fact that a black person had blasted other blacks. In a national magazine. With a mostly white audience. Using the n-word". In his essay, Ridley said: "It's time for ascended blacks to wish niggers good luck. Just as whites may be concerned with the good of all citizens but don't travel their days worrying specifically about the well-being of hillbillies from Appalachia, we need to send niggers on their way." South Florida Sun-Sentinel columnist Sherri Winston compared the essay to Chris Rock's monologue "Niggas vs. Black People" and commented: "...where Rock was hailed, Ridley was assailed." The essay gained renewed attention in 2014 after Ridley won an Academy Award for 12 Years a Slave.

In December 2007, during the Writers Guild of America strike against the major production studios, Ridley opted for legal status as a "union objector" or "fi-core," making him eligible to submit scripts to the studios while the strike was ongoing. In an op-ed published in the Los Angeles Times, Ridley explained: "After 15 years of being told shut up, sit down and be part of the groupthink, I decided I did not belong in the guild. The guild has a way to option out. I took the option." Ridley's screenplay for 12 Years a Slave was thus ineligible for a Writers Guild of America Award.

Personal life

Ridley is married to wife Gayle, a former script supervisor.

Legal issues

In April 2024, Asta Jonasson, an Asian American development executive, filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court (Case No. 24STCV08350) alleging gender and racial discrimination, wrongful termination, and retaliation after she requested equal pay. The suit named John Ridley IV, The Walt Disney Company, and ABC Studios as defendants, claiming they failed to address systemic pay disparities and a hostile work environment during productions including American Crime.

Jonasson's complaint cited instances where Ridley allegedly dismissed concerns about hiring disparities, including a 2020 incident where Apple TV+ challenged him over exclusively selecting white male department heads for Five Days at Memorial. Ridley reportedly responded, "They have me," referring to his own identity as a Black man in a leadership role. Ridley's attorney denied the allegations as “false,” to Rolling Stone while Disney and ABC declined to comment. A jury trial is scheduled for February 23, 2026, in Department 51 of the Los Angeles Superior Court.

Filmography

Film

::data[format=table]

Year	Title	Producer	Notes
1997	U Turn		Co-written with Oliver Stone
Cold Around the Heart
1999	Three Kings		Story by, screenplay by David O. Russell
2002	Undercover Brother		Co-written by Michael McCullers
2012	Red Tails		Story by, co-written by Aaron McGruder
2013	Jimi: All Is by My Side
12 Years a Slave		Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay
Nominated - BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay
Nominated - Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay
2016	Ben-Hur		Co-written by Keith Clarke
2017	Let It Fall: Los Angeles 1982–1992		Documentary
2021	Needle in a Timestack
2024	Shirley
::

Television

::data[format=table]

Year	Title	Creator	Notes
1993	Martin		3 episodes
1994	The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air		2 episodes
1995	The John Larroquette Show		2 episodes
1996	The Show		Episode: "Tom and Them"
1998	Team Knight Rider		Episode: "E.M.P."
1999	Trinity		Episode: "Having Trouble with the Language"
1999–2004	Third Watch		8 episodes
2003	Platinum		Directed episode: "Peace"
Static Shock		Episode: "Toys in the Hood"
2004	Justice League		Episode: "Starcrossed: Part II"
2005	Barbershop: The Series		Also developer;
Directed 3 episodes, wrote 7 episodes
2009	The Wanda Sykes Show
2015–2017	American Crime		Directed 5 episodes, wrote 8 episodes
2017	Guerrilla		Directed 3 episodes, wrote 5 episodes
2019	Godfather of Harlem		Episode: "By Whatever Means Necessary"
2022	Five Days at Memorial		Directed 3 episodes, wrote 5 episodes
::

Acting credits ::data[format=table]

Year	Title	Role	Episode
1993	Martin	Man with car (uncredited)	"Hollywood Swinging: Part 2"
1994	The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air	Himself	"Will's Up a Dirt Road"
2016	Lady Dynamite	Himself	"White Trash"
::

Awards and nominations

::data[format=table]

Year	Title	Awards
1997	Cold Around the Heart	Urbanworld Film Festival Jury Prize for Best Director
1999	Three Kings	Nominated—Golden Satellite Award for Best Original Screenplay (shared with David O. Russell)
Nominated—Writers Guild of America Award for Best Original Screenplay (shared with David O. Russell)
2002	Undercover Brother	Nominated—Black Reel Award for Best Screenplay
2013	12 Years a Slave	Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay
2015–2017	American Crime	NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Director in a Drama Series
Nominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Limited Series, Movie, or Dramatic Special
::

Works and publications

Novels

Ridley, John. Stray Dogs. New York: Ballantine Books, 1997.
Ridley, John. Love Is a Racket: A Novel. New York: Knopf, 1998.
Ridley, John. Everybody Smokes in Hell. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1999.
Ridley, John. A Conversation with the Mann: A Novel. New York: Warner Books, 2002.
Ridley, John. The Drift. New York: Knopf, 2002.
Ridley, John. Those Who Walk in Darkness New York: Warner Books, 2003.
Ridley, John, and Patricia R. Floyd. What Fire Cannot Burn. Prince Frederick, MD: Recorded Books, 2011, 2007.

Graphic novels

Ridley, John, and Ben Oliver. The Authority: Human on the Inside. La Jolla, CA: WildStorm Productions, 2004. 978-1-401-20070-1
Ridley, John. The Razor's Edge: Warblade #1-5. DC Comics. 2005.
Ridley, John, Georges Jeanty, and Karl C. Story. The American Way. La Jolla, Calif: WildStorm/DC Comics, 2007.
Ridley, John, Giuseppe Camuncoli, Andrea Cucchi, and José Villarrubia. The Other History of the DC Universe. DC Comics, 2021. ISBN 978-1-779-51197-3

Stage plays

Ridley, John. Ten Thousand Years. 2005 (world premiere).

Essays

References

Reardon, Patrick T.. (September 24, 1998). "John Ridley's Childhood Was Sunny, But His Novels Explore A Dark World". [[Chicago Tribune]].
"John Ridley - Box Office".
(1999). "Writers on Directors". [[Watson-Guptill Publications]].
(January 16, 2014). "Mequon native Ridley talks Oscar nominations for '12 Years A Slave'". [[Milwaukee Journal Sentinel]].
(January 31, 2008). "How to be a Famous Hollywood Writer". [[Milwaukee Magazine]].
(4 March 2014). "Oscar Winner John Ridley's Father Talks About Life Before Desegregation". [[WUWM]] Milwaukee.
Zeitchik, Steven, [http://www.pressherald.com/2016/08/21/a-ben-hur-for-our-time/ "A 'Ben-Hur' for our time"], ''Portland Press Herald'', August 21, 2016: "Downey and Burnett are staunch Catholics; Ridley is also a devout Christian, Huston and Bekmambetov, who was raised in a communist country, are more secular; Daniel and MGM principal Gary Barber are Jewish."
(October 8, 1999). "John Ridley, Easy Writer".
(May 2, 2007). "A Disenchanted Look at 'The American Way'". [[NPR]].
(2019-11-19). "John Ridley: On graphic novels and connecting art with social justice in Milwaukee".
(March 26, 2019). "Stories By John Ridley". NPR.
(July 18, 2007). "FAQ for John Ridley's Visible Man". NPR.
Adalian, Josef. (2003-08-13). "U TV makes home for 'Brother'".
(January 16, 2014). "What the Writer Had to Edit From '12 Years a Slave'". The New York Times.
(March 2, 2014). "A Landmark Oscar Win for '12 Years a Slave'". The New York Times.
(March 2, 2014). "Oscars 2014: '12 Years a Slave' wins for adapted screenplay". [[Los Angeles Times]].
Hibbard, James. (April 17, 2015). "Marvel teaming with John Ridley for mysterious superhero project — exclusive".
Goldberg, Lesley. (December 8, 2019). "Marvel TV Division Folded Into Studio Unit, Layoffs Expected". [[The Hollywood Reporter]].
Club, Comic Book. (2024-01-03). "John Ridley's Scrapped Marvel-ABC TV Show Was An Eternals Series".
(April 16, 2018). "John Ridley To Write, Direct Blumhouse Superhero Film 'The American Way'".
(June 4, 2018). "Leslie Odom Jr., Freida Pinto, Cynthia Erivo, Orlando Bloom & BRON Studios Join John Ridley's 'Needle In A Timestack'".
Gustines, George Gene. (2021-05-18). "Marvel Announces a New Black Panther Series". The New York Times.
Ridley, John. (December 2006). "The Manifesto of Ascendancy for the Modern American Nigger".
Prince, Richard. (November 29, 2006). "Esquire Joins Race-Epithet Controversy". [[Maynard Institute for Journalism Education]].
Teixeira, Erin. (March 1, 2007). "Breaking the rules: Debates inside black community go public". Augusta Focus.
Pitts, Leonard. (December 4, 2006). "The N-word, by any spelling, is still hateful". The Miami Herald.
Winston, Sherri. (May 16, 2007). "The growing divide between poor and middle-class blacks". South Florida Sun-Sentinel.
Dreher, Rod. (March 7, 2014). "Barbershop Guys Dig Into Hollywood Beef". NPR.
Seitzman, Michael. (January 4, 2008). "What "Fi-Core" Really Means".
Ridley, John. (January 8, 2008). "John Ridley goes fi-core". [[Los Angeles Times]].
McNary, Dave. (January 9, 2014). "Bitterness of WGA Strike Echoed in Exclusion of '12 Years a Slave'".
Thompson, Anne. (October 16, 2013). "Oscar-Winner John Ridley Talks Writing '12 Years a Slave' and Directing Hendrix Biopic 'All Is By My Side'". [[Indiewire.com]].
Grow, Kory. (2024-04-03). "Filmmaker John Ridley, ABC, and Disney Named as Defendants in Discrimination Lawsuit".
Cho, Winston. (2024-04-03). "Disney, ABC and John Ridley Sued For Discrimination By Former Development Executive".
"Case #24STCV08350".

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