Drew Goddard

Andrew Brion Hogan Goddard (born February 26, 1975) is an American film and television screenwriter, director, and producer. He began his career as a writer on television series, such as "Buffy the Vampire Slayer", "Alias", and "Lost". He also created the Netflix superhero series "Daredevil".
Goddard went on to co-write and make his directorial film debut with the horror-comedy film "The Cabin in the Woods" (2012). He then directed, wrote and produced the neo-noir thriller film "Bad Times at the El Royale" (2018).
Goddard wrote the screenplay for the science fiction films "Cloverfield" (2008) and "World War Z" (2013). For the science fiction film "The Martian" (2015), he earned the National Board of Review Award for Best Adapted Screenplay and a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay.
Early life and education.
Goddard was born in Houston, Texas and was raised in Los Alamos, New Mexico. He is the son of Colleen Mary (Hogan), a teacher, and Dr. Laurence Woodbury Goddard. He attended Los Alamos High School and graduated in 1993. He then enrolled in University of Colorado Boulder and graduated with B.A. in English in 1997.
Career.
2000s.
"Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and "Angel".
Goddard started his career as a staff writer for "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and "Angel", receiving a Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation for the former.
"Alias" and "Lost".
In 2005, he joined J. J. Abrams' Bad Robot team, where he wrote for both "Alias" and "Lost", winning—along with the "Lost" writing staff—the Writers Guild of America (WGA) Award for Best Dramatic Series. In 2006, during its third season, Goddard became the co-executive producer of "Lost".
"Cloverfield".
By February 2007, Goddard wrote his first feature, "Cloverfield", directed by Matt Reeves and produced by J. J. Abrams. "Cloverfield" made $168 million on a $25 million budget. "Empire" named it the fifth best film of 2008, and the film then went on to win the year's Saturn Award for Best Science Fiction Film.
2010s.
"The Cabin in the Woods".
Goddard's directorial debut, "The Cabin in the Woods", was co-written with Joss Whedon. "The Cabin in the Woods" was featured on Metacritic's best films of 2012 list, in addition to earning a 92% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The film would go on to win the year's Saturn Award for Best Horror or Thriller Film, as well as garnering Goddard Saturn's "Filmmaker Showcase Award".
"World War Z".
In 2012, Goddard—in addition to J. Michael Straczynski, Matthew Michael Carnahan and "Lost" showrunner Damon Lindelof—rewrote the third act of the screenplay ahead of reshoots for the film "World War Z" starring Brad Pitt and directed by Marc Forster. The film grossed $540 million on a $190 million budget. As a result, in June 2013, Paramount announced that it was moving ahead with a sequel.
"Daredevil" and "The Defenders".
In December 2013, Marvel officially announced that Goddard would be the executive producer and showrunner for the "Daredevil" television series produced by Marvel Television and broadcast on Netflix in 2015. Sony Pictures also announced that Goddard would write and direct a film based on the Sinister Six, though the project was eventually cancelled. In May 2014, Goddard withdrew from showrunning duties on the "Daredevil" TV series.
In February 2015, after the deal between Marvel and Sony to share the rights to Spider-Man was announced, it was reported that Goddard was in talks with Sony to helm the new Spider-Man reboot film, "", although it was later announced that Jon Watts would be the director. Goddard also executive produced and co-wrote an episode of the miniseries "The Defenders". The series featured a team-up of the Marvel Television superheroes, including Daredevil. It was released on Netflix in August 2017.
"The Martian".
Goddard wrote the film adaptation of Andy Weir's debut novel "The Martian", initially planning to direct it himself for 20th Century Fox. He later left the project when offered a chance to direct "Sinister Six", a now-canceled comic book adaptation based on a team of supervillains. "The Martian" was instead directed by Ridley Scott, and received wide critical acclaim. Goddard himself received an Academy Award nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay.
"Bad Times at the El Royale".
In November 2016, Goddard began writing a spec script for the neo-noir thriller film "Bad Times at the El Royale", which he sold to 20th Century Fox in March 2017, revealing he would also produce and direct. The film features an ensemble cast including Jeff Bridges, Cynthia Erivo, Dakota Johnson, Jon Hamm, Nick Offerman, and Chris Hemsworth. Released to mixed reviews on October 12, 2018, the film was a box-office flop, grossing $32 million worldwide against a $31.9 million budget.