Misha Green (born September 22, 1984, in Sacramento, California) is an American screenwriter, director, and producer. She is best known as the showrunner of the supernatural series Lovecraft Country on HBO and creator and executive producer of the historical drama Underground.[1]

Misha Green
Born (1984-09-22) September 22, 1984 (age 40)
Sacramento, California
Occupation(s)Screenwriter, director, producer
TelevisionLovecraft Country
Underground

Career

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Green has previously been a staff writer for Heroes and Sons of Anarchy[2] and a producer for Helix.[3]

In 2016, together with fellow Heroes alumnus Joe Pokaski, Green created Underground, a period drama about the Underground Railroad, which takes place primarily in the Antebellum South and bordering free states of the North. The first season premiered on WGN America on March 9, 2016,[4] and the show received a positive critical response.[5][6] On April 25, 2016, the network renewed Underground for a second season,[7] which premiered on March 8, 2017.

In 2020, Green wrote a supernatural horror show, Lovecraft Country, which was produced by Get Out director and writer Jordan Peele.[8] Based on Matt Ruff's novel of the same name, the series tackles race issues, set in the 1950s, while also utilizing elements of H. P. Lovecraft. The show received a "straight-to-series" order from HBO.[9] The series co-stars Underground star Jurnee Smollett-Bell. On July 2, 2021, HBO announced that the series would not be returning for a second season.[10] In James Andrew Miller's book Tinderbox: HBO's Ruthless Pursuit of New Frontiers, several writers of the show claimed it was cancelled due to Green's alleged creation of a toxic work environment.[11]

In January 2021, she was chosen by MGM to write and direct the sequel to 2018's Tomb Raider, a franchise she has described herself as a fan of since its first entries on PlayStation.[12][13] Green confirmed via her official Twitter account in May 2021 that the first draft of the script, with the working title Tomb Raider: Obsidian, had been completed.[14] In July 2021 Alicia Vikander told Collider that the sequel is still happening but had not been greenlit yet.[15] In September 2021 Green responded to a fan question about the status of the film, and indicated that she was still set to direct her own script.[13] In July 2022, it was reported that MGM had lost the film rights to the Tomb Raider franchise, after the window ran out to give the sequel the green light, culminating in Vikander's departure from the lead role. The rights reverted to the game company and prompted a bidding war among studios.[16]

In July 2021 Green signed a multi-year overall deal to create and develop television projects for Apple TV+.[17]

In April 2021 Green was announced as producer for the upcoming film, Cleopatra Jones.[18] She will also wrote and produced the Netflix film The Mother,[19] and write the upcoming Black Canary film for Warner Bros.[20]

In January 2023, she was announced to make her directorial debut with Sunflower, a Lionsgate film. The script was the first she sold after arriving in Hollywood.[21]

Filmography

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Film

Year Title Writer Producer
2023 The Mother Yes Yes

Television

Year Title Director Writer Producer Notes
2009 Sons of Anarchy No Yes No Episode "Potlatch" (also staff writer)
2009–10 Heroes No Yes No Episodes "Shadowboxing" and "The Art of Deception"
2011 Spartacus: Gods of the Arena No Yes No Episode "Beneath the Mask" (also story editor)
2012 Spartacus No Yes No Episode "Chosen Path" (also story editor)
2014 Helix No Yes No 3 episodes
2016–17 Underground No Yes Yes 18 episodes;
Also co-creator
2020 Lovecraft Country Yes Yes Executive Directed episode "Jig-a-Bobo";
Also developer and showrunner

Awards and nominations

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Year Award Category Work Result
2017 Black Reel Awards Outstanding Drama Series Underground Nominated
2020 Bram Stoker Awards Best Screenplay Lovecraft Country (for "Sundown") Nominated
Lovecraft Country (for "Jig-a-Bobo") Nominated
2021 Primetime Emmy Awards Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series Lovecraft Country (for "Sundown") Nominated
2021 Black Reel Awards Outstanding Drama Series Lovecraft Country Nominated
Outstanding Directing, Drama Series Nominated
Outstanding Writing, Drama Series Nominated
2021 NAACP Image Awards Outstanding Directing in a Drama Series Lovecraft Country (for "Jig-a-Bobo") Nominated
2021 International Online Cinema Awards Best Writing for a Drama Series Lovecraft Country (for "Meet Me in Daegu") Nominated
2021 Nebula Awards Ray Bradbury Award for Outstanding Dramatic Presentation Lovecraft Country Nominated
2021 Writers Guild of America Awards New Series Nominated

References

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  1. ^ Littleton, Cynthia (27 February 2015). "WGN America Gives Series Order to Slavery Drama 'Underground'". Variety. Retrieved March 11, 2016.
  2. ^ "Misha Green". Niad Management. Retrieved 11 March 2016.
  3. ^ Morales, Wilson. "Interview With WGN America's Underground Showrunners Misha Green & Joe Pokaski". Black Film. Retrieved March 11, 2016.
  4. ^ Petski, Denise (December 14, 2015). "'Underground' Gets March Premiere Date On WGN America". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved March 11, 2016.
  5. ^ "Underground: Season 1 (2016)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved March 9, 2017.
  6. ^ "Underground: Season 1". Metacritic. Retrieved March 9, 2017.
  7. ^ Kissell, Rick (April 25, 2016). "WGN America Renews 'Underground' for Second Season". Variety.com. Penske Business Media, LLC. Retrieved April 28, 2016.
  8. ^ "Lovecraft Country Comes to Life in Misha Green & Jordan Peele Produced HBO Series". PEOPLE.com. August 24, 2020. Retrieved August 24, 2020.
  9. ^ Fleming, Mike Jr. (May 16, 2017). "'Get Out's Jordan Peele Teams With WBTV, HBO & Bad Robot For 'Lovecraft Country' Drama Series; Misha Green Writing". Deadline. Retrieved May 16, 2017.
  10. ^ Andreeva, Nellie (2021-07-02). "'Lovecraft Country' Not Returning For Season 2 On HBO". Deadline. Retrieved 2022-05-14.
  11. ^ Hibberd, James (November 17, 2021). "James Andrew Miller on the Big Revelations in HBO Book Tinderbox". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on May 20, 2022. Retrieved May 23, 2022.
  12. ^ Fleming, Mike Jr (January 25, 2021). "MGM Sets 'Lovecraft Country's Misha Green To Write/Direct Next 'Tomb Raider' With Alicia Vikander Reprising As Lara Croft". Deadline. Retrieved January 26, 2021.
  13. ^ a b Green, Misha (23 September 2021). "Nope. I've been a fan of Tomb Raider since I first played the games back when Playstations were grey. And writing is the house of my best accomplishments. I'm saving all my nerves for directing it!". Twitter. Retrieved 14 May 2022.
  14. ^ Green, Misha (14 May 2021). "Still a long journey to production. Title's not even approved. But first draft finished!!! #TombRaider". Twitter. Retrieved 14 May 2022.
  15. ^ Chitwood, Adam (2021-07-20). "Alicia Vikander Says 'Tomb Raider' Sequel Isn't Yet Greenlit, But She's Hopeful It'll Happen". Collider. Retrieved 2022-05-14.
  16. ^ "Tomb Raider Bidding War Erupts as MGM Loses Film Rights". 2022-07-28. Retrieved 2022-08-09.
  17. ^ Otterson, Joe (July 9, 2021). "'Lovecraft Country' Creator Misha Green Sets Apple Overall Deal". Variety. Retrieved July 10, 2021.
  18. ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (April 29, 2021). "'Cleopatra Jones': 'Lovecraft Country' Scribe Ihuoma Ofordire To Pen Reboot Of 1973 Pic For Macro & Warner Bros". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved April 29, 2021.
  19. ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (February 1, 2020). "Jennifer Lopez To Star & Produce Action Pic 'The Mother' At Netflix, Niki Caro In Talks To Direct". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved February 1, 2021.
  20. ^ Kit, Borys (August 20, 2021). "'Birds of Prey' Spinoff In the Works With Misha Green, Jurnee Smollett". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on August 20, 2021. Retrieved August 22, 2021.
  21. ^ Vlessing, Etan (January 31, 2023). "Misha Green to Make Directorial Debut With Jurnee Smollett Thriller 'Sunflower'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved January 31, 2023.
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