Bruce Anslie Evans (born September 19, 1946) is an American film director, producer and screenwriter best known for his work on '' Stand by Me'' (1986), ''

Jungle 2 Jungle ''Jungle 2 Jungle'' is a 1997 comedy film directed by John Pasquin, produced by Walt Disney Pictures and TF1 Films Productions, and starring Tim Allen, Martin Short, Lolita Davidovich, David Ogden Stiers, JoBeth Williams, and introducing Sam Hunt ...

'' (1997) and '' Mr. Brooks'' (2007).

Career

Evans's first writing credit was on the 1984 film ''

Starman ''StarMan'' is a 1996 fantasy novel by Australian writer Sara Douglass. It follows the second book in the series, '' Enchanter'', with Axis marching north with his army to confront a formidable enemy. Background ''StarMan'' was first published ...

'' with his partner Raynold Gideon, with whom he first worked on 1979's ''

A Man, a Woman, and a Bank ''A Man, a Woman, and a Bank'', also known as ''A Very Big Withdraw'', is a 1979 Canadian comedy crime film directed by Noel Black and starring Donald Sutherland, Brooke Adams and Paul Mazursky. The film was partially funded by McNichol, a produ ...

'' starring

Donald Sutherland Donald McNichol Sutherland (born 17 July 1935) is a Canadian actor whose film career spans over six decades. He has been nominated for nine Golden Globe Awards, winning two for his performances in the television films ''Citizen X'' (1995) an ...

. Their second film, 1986's '' Stand by Me'', which Evans also produced, was nominated for an

Independent Spirit Award The Independent Spirit Awards (abbreviated Spirit Awards and originally known as the FINDIE or Friends of Independents Awards), founded in 1984, are awards dedicated to independent filmmakers. Winners were typically presented with acrylic glas ...

for Best Feature; his and Gideon's screenplay in particular was nominated for the

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

for Best Writing (Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium), the

Independent Spirit Award for Best Screenplay Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independen ...

and the

Writers Guild of America Award The Writers Guild of America Awards is an award for film, television, and radio writing including both fiction and non-fiction categories given by the Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America West since 1949. Eligibility Th ...

for Best Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium. Evans and Gideon went on to write and produce the 1987 film ''

Made in Heaven ''Made in Heaven'' is the fifteenth studio album by the British rock band Queen, released on 6 November 1995 by Parlophone Records in the United Kingdom and by Hollywood Records in the United States. It was the band's first and only release so ...

'' before writing ''

Kuffs ''Kuffs'' is a 1992 American action comedy film directed by Bruce A. Evans and produced by Raynold Gideon. The film stars Christian Slater and Tony Goldwyn, as well as Milla Jovovich and Ashley Judd in her film debut. The film was written directl ...

'' (1992), which Evans directed and Gideon produced. The film, featuring

Christian Slater Christian Michael Leonard Slater (born August 18, 1969) is an American actor and producer. He made his film debut with a leading role in ''The Legend of Billie Jean'' (1985) and gained wider recognition for his breakthrough role as Jason "J.D." D ...

, won the Special Jury Prize at the 1992

Festival du Film Policier de Cognac The Festival du Film policier de Cognac ( en, Cognac Crime Film Festival) was an annual film festival that took place in Cognac, France from 1982 to 2007 (with no festival being held in 1991).1995 film ''

Cutthroat Island ''Cutthroat Island'' is a 1995 adventure swashbuckler film directed by Renny Harlin and written by Robert King and Marc Norman from a story by Michael Frost Beckner, James Gorman, Bruce A. Evans and Raynold Gideon. It stars Geena Davis, Matthew ...

'' after performing a rewrite of "a completely different version" of the script. After writing 1997's ''

'', a remake of the 1994

French film French cinema consists of the film industry and its film productions, whether made within the nation of France or by French film production companies abroad. It is the oldest and largest precursor of national cinemas in Europe; with primary influ ...

Un indien dans la ville ''Un indien dans la ville'' (''An Indian in the city'') is a 1994 French film by Hervé Palud. The film had a limited English language release under the title ''Little Indian, Big City''. Part of the movie was shot in Miami, Florida, United State ...

'', Evans and Gideon wrote "screenplays and rewrites and all of that kind of stuff" before their next credited film. They struggled to have their subsequent scripts produced as each demanded too high a budget for most studios, including what they regarded as a "great

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

love story", until they wrote the 2007 film '' Mr. Brooks'', starring

Kevin Costner Kevin Michael Costner (born January 18, 1955) is an American actor, producer, film director and musician. He has received various accolades, including two Academy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and two Screen Actor ...

as the

title character The title character in a narrative work is one who is named or referred to in the title of the work. In a performed work such as a play or film, the performer who plays the title character is said to have the title role of the piece. The title of ...

. With the idea of a seemingly normal business man who leads a second life as a

serial killer A serial killer is typically a person who murders three or more persons,A * * * * with the murders taking place over more than a month and including a significant period of time between them. While most authorities set a threshold of three ...

, they hoped to "make an adult film" and "change our image" as writers in the film industry. They originally conceived the project as a television series, which they pitched to a number of

television producers A television producer is a person who oversees one or more aspects of video production on a television program. Some producers take more of an executive role, in that they conceive new programs and pitch them to the television networks, but upon a ...

and studios in

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

. Their original version was considered "too soft", and their revised story, which was deemed "too dark", was written instead as a film

spec script A spec script, also known as a speculative screenplay, is a non-commissioned and unsolicited screenplay. It is usually written by a screenwriter who hopes to have the script optioned and eventually purchased by a producer, production company, or ...

. Fifteen years since ''Kuffs'', Evans said that, with ''Mr. Brooks'', directing again "was kind of like riding a bicycle". In addition to Evans and Gideon's intention of making two sequels to ''Mr. Brooks'', Evans said that "we have two originals in mind" and "there are a few criptsthat are kind of on hold that I would direct that other people have written".

Filmography

;Script and continuity department ;Miscellaneous crew

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Evans, Bruce A. 1946 births Living people American male screenwriters Film producers from California Writers from Long Beach, California Film directors from California Screenwriters from California