Tony Gilroy Tony Gilroy is one of the most sought after screenwriters in Hollywood. With a skill for delivering smart, contemporary thrillers, he is perhaps best known for his work on the hugely successful Bourne films and his award-winning Michael Clayton (2007). The New York native has been writing for the screen for more than 20 years. An early creative collaboration with director Taylor Hackford produced the dark family mystery Dolores Claiborne (1995), supernatural legal thriller The Devil’s Advocate (1997) and tense kidnap drama Proof Of Life (2000). He also helped deliver action juggernaut Armageddon (1998), a worldwide box office hit for producer Jerry Bruckheimer. As the writer of the Bourne films, across the series, he has shaped a hugely successful thriller franchise, which resounded with audiences around the world. His character-led corporate thriller Michael Clayton won him critical acclaim for its portrayal of a law firm embroiled in corruption, as well as both BAFTA and Oscar in association with The JJ Charitable Trust
Sunday 29 September, BFI Southbank
nominations. Latterly, he’s taken to directing his own scripts with The Bourne Legacy (2012) and Michael Clayton. Gilroy has worked across the full spectrum of Hollywood screenwriting. He says the films that inspire him must have “a singular voice. You get some really strong point-of-view all the way through. The more concentrated, consolidated and ballsy that is – those are our best films.” [collider.com] TAYLOR HACKFORD Tony Gilroy writes smart and clean. There’s no cutesy bullshit on the page – just incisive dialogue and minimal description, which propel you deep inside his characters and narrative. That doesn’t mean Tony’s got no ego… he has it in abundance. He doesn’t suffer fools, which makes him a tough date for some studio execs. However, they have to give him respect, because his terse, intelligent style cuts right to the quick of today’s cynical, narcissistic society. Tony’s words, spoken so dynamically by Al Pacino’s ‘Devil’ in the final scenes of The Devil’s Advocate, have become a modern mantra – I’ve heard them repeated verbatim by cinema students in several major universities around the world. 7