Donald Paul Roos (born April 14, 1955) is an American

screenwriter A screenwriter (also called scriptwriter, scribe, or scenarist) is a person who practices the craft of writing for visual mass media, known as screenwriting. These can include short films, feature-length films, television programs, television ...

and

film director A film director or filmmaker is a person who controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfillment of that Goal, vision. The director has a key role ...

Life and career

Roos was born in upstate New York into a conservative Roman Catholic family of mostly Irish descent. He attended the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac (known simply as Notre Dame; ; ND) is a Private university, private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, United States. Founded in 1842 by members of the Congregation of Holy Cross, a Cathol ...

in Indiana. After graduating, Roos moved to Los Angeles, where he pursued a television screenwriting career. Roos supported himself by working as a word processor, and to this day jokes that he has that as a fall-back plan. Roos began his writing career when he had a friend of his impersonate an agent and represent him; a phone call led to a job with playwright

Mart Crowley Edward Martino Crowley (August 21, 1935 – March 7, 2020) was an American playwright best known for his 1968 play '' The Boys in the Band''. Biography Crowley was born in Vicksburg, Mississippi. After graduating from The Catholic University ...

('' The Boys in the Band''), who at the time was an executive producer of '' Hart to Hart''. Roos wrote for ''

The Colbys ''The Colbys'' (originally titled ''Dynasty II: The Colbys'') is an American prime time soap opera that originally aired on American Broadcasting Company, ABC from November 20, 1985, to March 26, 1987. Created by Richard and Esther Shapiro and E ...

'', '' Nightingales'', and other TV shows, before his spec scripts led to feature film writing assignments. His first major film was 1992's

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

-nominated '' Love Field'', an interracial drama starring

Michelle Pfeiffer Michelle Marie Pfeiffer ( ; born April 29, 1958) is an American actress. She was one of the most bankable stars in Cinema of the United States, Hollywood during the 1980s and 1990s, and her List of Michelle Pfeiffer performances, performances ...

and Dennis Haysbert. Roos's work as the writer of the film '' Single White Female'' has earned him a permanent space in Hollywood movie trivia, since that title has entered the lexicon in reference to the film's psychopathic lead character who begins to take on her roommate's identity. Roos is well known for his work writing strong and engaging female characters, a skill that has also been useful in his film direction, leading to

Independent Spirit Award The Independent Spirit Awards, originally known as the FINDIE or Friends of Independents Awards, and later as the Film Independent Spirit Awards, are awards presented annually in Santa Monica, California, to independent filmmakers. Founded in ...

nominations for actors

Lisa Kudrow Lisa Valerie Kudrow ( ; born July 30, 1963) is an American actress. She rose to international fame for her role as Phoebe Buffay in the American television sitcom ''Friends'', which aired from 1994 to 2004. The series earned her Primetime Emmy A ...

Christina Ricci Christina Ricci ( ; born February 12, 1980) is an American actress known for playing unusual characters with a dark edge. Ricci works mostly in Independent film, independent productions, but has also appeared in numerous box-office hits. She is ...

and

Maggie Gyllenhaal Margalit Ruth "Maggie" Gyllenhaal ( , ; born November 16, 1977) is an American actress and filmmaker. Part of the Gyllenhaal family, she is the daughter of filmmakers Stephen Gyllenhaal and Naomi Achs, and the older sister of actor Jake Gylle ...

. Roos himself has won a Best First Feature Independent Spirit Award, for '' The Opposite of Sex''. Roos has polished or written the screenplay to many high-profile studio films, sometimes as uncredited script doctor. With his husband - actor, writer, and film producer Dan Bucatinsky - he has two children, Eliza and Jonah.

Filmography

Film Television

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Roos, Don 1955 births Living people 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American screenwriters 20th-century American LGBTQ people 21st-century American male writers 21st-century American screenwriters 21st-century American LGBTQ people American male screenwriters American male television writers American television writers American soap opera writers Film directors from New York City American LGBTQ film directors American LGBTQ screenwriters LGBTQ people from New York (state) American showrunners University of Notre Dame alumni Screenwriters from New York City