Gregory Rucka (born November 29, 1969) is an American writer known for the series of novels starring his character Atticus Kodiak, the creator-owned comic book series '' Whiteout'', '' Queen & Country'', '' Stumptown'' and '' Lazarus'', as well as lengthy runs on such titles as ''

Detective Comics ''Detective Comics'' (later retitled as ''Batman Detective Comics'') is an American comic book series published by Detective Comics, later shortened to DC Comics. The first volume, published from 1937 to 2011 (and later continued in 2016), is ...

'', ''

Wonder Woman Wonder Woman is a superheroine who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in ''All Star Comics'' Introducing Wonder Woman, #8, published October 21, 1941, with her first feature in ''Sensation Comic ...

'' and '' Gotham Central'' for

DC Comics DC Comics (originally DC Comics, Inc., and also known simply as DC) is an American comic book publisher owned by DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC is an initialism for "Detective Comics", an American comic book seri ...

, and '' Elektra'', ''

Wolverine The wolverine ( , ; ''Gulo gulo''), also called the carcajou or quickhatch (from East Cree, ''kwiihkwahaacheew''), is the largest land-dwelling species, member of the family Mustelidae. It is a muscular carnivore and a solitary animal. The w ...

'' and '' The Punisher'' for

Marvel Marvel may refer to: Business * Marvel Entertainment, an American entertainment company ** Marvel Comics, the primary imprint of Marvel Entertainment ** Marvel Universe, a fictional shared universe ** Marvel Music, an imprint of Marvel Comics ...

. He has written a substantial amount of supplemental material for a number of

' line-wide and inter-title crossovers, including " No Man's Land", "

Infinite Crisis "Infinite Crisis" is a 2005–2006 comic book storyline published by DC Comics, consisting of an eponymous, seven-issue comic book limited series written by Geoff Johns and illustrated by Phil Jimenez, George Pérez, Ivan Reis, and Jerry Ordway, ...

" and " New Krypton". Rucka made his debut as a screenwriter with the screenplay for the 2020 film '' The Old Guard'', based on his comic book series of the same name.

Early life

Greg Rucka was born in

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

and raised on the

Monterey Peninsula The Monterey Peninsula anchors the northern portion on the Central Coast (California), Central Coast of California and comprises the cities of Monterey, California, Monterey, Carmel-by-the-Sea, California, Carmel, and Pacific Grove, California, P ...

of California, in an area known to the locals as "Steinbeck Country". Rucka is Jewish. He first discovered comics at the Nob Hill Market in

Salinas, California Salinas (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Salt pan (geology), Salt Flats") is a city in the U.S. state of California and the county seat of Monterey County, California, Monterey County. With a population of 163,542 in the 2020 Census, Salinas is ...

, where at age five, he first saw digest-sized black and white reprints of

Stan Lee Stan Lee (born Stanley Martin Lieber ; December 28, 1922 – November 12, 2018) was an American comic book author, writer, editor, publisher, and producer. He rose through the ranks of a family-run business called Timely Comics which later bec ...

and

Jack Kirby Jack Kirby (; born Jacob Kurtzberg; August 28, 1917 – February 6, 1994) was an American comics artist, comic book artist, widely regarded as one of the medium's major innovators and one of its most prolific and influential creators. He grew ...

's work on '' The Incredible Hulk'', which he convinced his mother to buy. He began writing at a young age, and at age 10, he won a county-wide short story contest. He graduated from

Vassar College Vassar College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. Founded in 1861 by Matthew Vassar, it was the second degree-granting institution of higher education for women in the United States. The college be ...

with an A.B. in English. He then enrolled in the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in ...

's Master of Professional Writing program, graduating with a

Master of Fine Arts A Master of Fine Arts (MFA or M.F.A.) is a terminal degree in fine arts, including visual arts, creative writing, graphic design, photography, filmmaking, dance, theatre, other performing arts and in some cases, theatre management or arts admi ...

. He names

Douglas Adams Douglas Noel Adams (11 March 1952 – 11 May 2001) was an English author, humorist, and screenwriter, best known as the creator of ''The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy''. Originally a 1978 BBC radio comedy, ''The Hitchhiker's Guide to the ...

as his biggest influence."The Third Degree: Greg Rucka". '' Jupiter's Legacy'' #2 (June 2013)

Image Comics Image Comics is an independent American American comic book, comic book publisher and is the third largest direct market comic book and graphic novel publisher in the industry by market share. Its best-known publications include ''Spawn (comics) ...

. p. 27. Before becoming a professional fiction writer he worked in a number of other occupations, including house painting, restaurant work,

emergency medical technician An emergency medical technician (often, more simply, EMT) is a medical professional that provides emergency medical services. EMTs are most commonly found serving on ambulances and in fire departments in the US and Canada, as full-time and som ...

, security guard, technical writer, and fight choreographer.

Career

Rucka's writing career began with the Atticus Kodiak series. Kodiak is a bodyguard whose jobs are rarely as uncomplicated as they at first appear. The series to date consists of ''Keeper'', ''Finder'', ''Smoker'', ''Shooting at Midnight'', ''Critical Space'', ''Patriot Acts'', and ''Walking Dead''. These works garnered Rucka much critical acclaim and comparisons to the elite writers of crime/suspense fiction. The "Atticus" novels are notable for their realism and attention to detail, which is partly a product of Rucka's fight training and experience as an EMT. He has written six non-Atticus books: ''Fistful of Rain,'' ''Alpha,'' ''Bravo,'' ''A Gentleman's Game,'' ''Private Wars,'' and ''The Last Run''; the latter three are tie-ins to his comic book series '' Queen & Country''. In 1998, Rucka entered the comics industry with '' Whiteout'', published through Oni Press. ''Whiteout'' focuses on a murder in an

Antarctic The Antarctic (, ; commonly ) is the polar regions of Earth, polar region of Earth that surrounds the South Pole, lying within the Antarctic Circle. It is antipodes, diametrically opposite of the Arctic region around the North Pole. The Antar ...

base. It was followed by a sequel, '' Whiteout: Melt''. The majority of Rucka's work throughout the 2000s was for

, where he was involved with their main trinity of characters:

Superman Superman is a superhero created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, which first appeared in the comic book ''Action Comics'' Action Comics 1, #1, published in the United States on April 18, 1938.The copyright date of ''Action Comics ...

Batman Batman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Batman was created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on M ...

and

. Rucka wrote Batman on a regular basis in the ''

'' series following the events of " No Man's Land'". He wrote the novelization of the year-long arc. While writing ''Detective Comics'', he created a number of background characters that led to the co-creation of '' Gotham Central'' with co-writer

Ed Brubaker Ed Brubaker (; born November 17, 1966) is an American comic book writer, cartoonist and screenwriter who works primarily in the crime fiction genre. He began his career with the semi-autobiographical series '' Lowlife'' and a number of serials i ...

. His Batman work includes such story arcs as "Bruce Wayne: Murderer?" and " Bruce Wayne: Fugitive". as well as the ''Batman: Death and the Maidens'' limited series. From October 2003 to April 2006 he wrote ''Wonder Woman'' after having previously written the character in the '' Wonder Woman: The Hiketeia'' original

graphic novel A graphic novel is a self-contained, book-length form of sequential art. The term ''graphic novel'' is often applied broadly, including fiction, non-fiction, and Anthology, anthologized work, though this practice is highly contested by comics sc ...

. From 2002 to 2004, he did some work for Marvel, including the start of the third volume of ''

'', '' Elektra'' and the mini-series ''

Ultimate Daredevil and Elektra ''Ultimate Daredevil and Elektra'' is a four-issue comic book Limited series (comics), mini-series published by Marvel Comics written by Greg Rucka with art by Salvador Larroca. Marvel characters Daredevil (Marvel Comics character), Daredevil and ...

''. He has worked for

. The first volume of his series '' Queen & Country'' concluded in July 2007 with issue #32. He co-wrote ''

Countdown to Infinite Crisis ''DC Countdown'', commonly referred to as ''Countdown to Infinite Crisis'', is a one-shot publication and the official start of the "Infinite Crisis" storyline. It was released on 30 March 2005, sold out, and quickly went to a second printing. Wh ...

'', a one-shot and the official start of the ''

'' storyline, with

Geoff Johns Geoffrey Johns (born January 25, 1973) is an American comic book writer, screenwriter, and film and television producer. Johns's work on the DC Comics characters Green Lantern, Aquaman, Flash (comics), Flash, and Superman has drawn critical accl ...

and

Judd Winick Judd Winick (born February 12, 1970) is an American cartoonist, comic book writer and screenwriter, as well as a former reality television personality. He first gained fame for his stint on MTV's ''The Real World: San Francisco'' in 1994, before ...

. Rucka's work on both ''Wonder Woman'' and ''Gotham Central'' ended in 2006. Although he was not involved in the main storyline of ''Infinite Crisis'', he did write The OMAC Project which built towards the event, focusing on Batman's distrust of other superheroes. This led to the revival of ''

Checkmate Checkmate (often shortened to mate) is any game position in chess and other chess-like games in which a player's king is in check (threatened with ) and there is no possible escape. Checkmating the opponent wins the game. In chess, the king is ...

'', a UN authority that oversaw superheroes including

Sasha Bordeaux Sasha Bordeaux is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was at first primarily associated with superhero Batman, and she has subsequently evolved an association with Checkmate in two of its i ...

, an integral character of The OMAC Project. He was a co-writer on the weekly series '' 52'', which he co-wrote with Geoff Johns,

Grant Morrison Grant Morrison (born 31 January 1960) is a Scottish comic book writer, screenwriter, and producer. Their work is known for its nonlinear narratives, Humanism, humanist philosophy and counterculture, countercultural leanings. Morrison has writt ...

, and Mark Waid. This series chronicled in real-time the year following ''Infinite Crisis'', and saw Rucka focus on Renee Montoya of ''Gotham Central'' and the creation of the new Batwoman, Kate Kane. Rucka returned to the Batwoman character frequently over the years in a ''52'' sequel ''The Crime Bible'' and '' Final Crisis: Revelations'' before returning to the character in ''Detective Comics'' with artist J. H. Williams III, as well as reviving Renee Montoya in the book's second feature with artist Cully Hamner. Rucka wrote the screenplay for the "

Crossfire A crossfire (also known as interlocking fire) is a military term for the siting of weapons (often automatic weapons such as assault rifles or sub-machine guns) so that their arcs of fire overlap. This tactic came to prominence in World War I. ...

" segment in the direct-to-DVD anime '' Batman: Gotham Knight'', in which Crispus Allen, a character he created, appears. In 2009, Rucka and artist Eddy Barrows took over ''

Action Comics ''Action Comics'' is an American comic book/Comic anthology, magazine series that introduced Superman, one of the first major superhero characters. The publisher was originally known as Detective Comics Inc., which later merged into National ...

'' as the title moved its focus from Superman to Kryptonian heroes

Nightwing Nightwing is a superhero alias used by multiple characters in American comic books published by DC Comics. The most prominent bearer is Dick Grayson, the original Robin, who adopts the Nightwing identity to assert his independence from Batman. ...

and

Flamebird Flamebird is the name used by six different fictional comic book characters who have appeared in books published by DC Comics, specifically from the ''Superman'' and ''Batman'' mythos. The primary character to use the Flamebird name is Bette Kane ...

in the aftermath of the " New Krypton" story arc. As well as writing ''Action Comics'', Rucka co-wrote the main ''New Krypton'' 12 part series with ''Superman'' writer James Robinson. At Wondercon 2010 Rucka announced he would part ways with DC Comics to focus on his own projects, in part because of DC's failure to keep him on as writer of '' Wonder Woman: Earth One'' as promised. Rucka then wrote '' The Punisher'' for Marvel Comics. On July 11, 2011, Rucka launched the

webcomic Webcomics (also known as online comics or Internet comics) are comics published on the internet, such as on a website or a mobile app. While many webcomics are published exclusively online, others are also published in magazines, newspapers, or ...

''Lady Sabre and the Pirates of the Ineffable Aether'', a

steampunk Steampunk is a subgenre of science fiction that incorporates retrofuturistic technology and Applied arts, aesthetics inspired by, but not limited to, 19th-century Industrial Revolution, industrial steam engine, steam-powered machinery. Steampun ...

adventure series illustrated by Rick Burchett. New installments appear every Monday and Thursday. In May 2013, Rucka launched a

Kickstarter Kickstarter, PBC is an American Benefit corporation, public benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York City, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative project ...

campaign to fund the publication of a print edition of ''Lady Sabre'', and achieved their initial funding goal of $27,500 within eight hours. He wrote the creator-owned series, ''Black Magick'', which was drawn by

Nicola Scott Nicola Scott is a comics artist from Sydney, Australia whose notable works include ''Birds of Prey (comics), Birds of Prey'' and ''Secret Six (comics), Secret Six''. In 2016, she and writer Greg Rucka relaunched ''Wonder Woman'' for DC Comics R ...

and published by

. The Rucka/Scott creative team produced a new ''Wonder Woman'' series for DC Comics in June 2016 as part of the

DC Rebirth DC Rebirth is a 2016 relaunch by the American comic book publisher DC Comics of its entire Line (comics), line of ongoing monthly superhero comic book titles. Using the end of The New 52 (2011–2016) initiative in May 2016 as its launching point ...

relaunch. Rucka concluded his run on ''Wonder Woman'' as of issue #25. In 2017, Rucka wrote the creator-owned series ''The Old Guard'', which was drawn by Leandro Fernandez, colored by Daniela Miwa and published by Image Comics. In March 2017, Skydance Media picked up the rights to adapt the comic into a film with the same name. Rucka wrote the film's script. The film was released on

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

in July 2020. In July 2019, Rucka began writing the ''Lois Lane'' 12-issue limited series with artist Mike Perkins. In December 2019, Rucka began writing a second volume of ''The Old Guard'' called ''The Old Guard: Force Multiplied.'' In August 2023

released '' Heart of Stone'', an action-thriller starring Gal Gadot whose story was conceived by Rucka, and whose script was written by Rucka and Allison Schroeder.

Appearances in media

Rucka was featured as a character in the '' CSI: Crime Scene Investigation'' comic book mini-series '' Dying in the Gutters'', where he accidentally killed comics gossip columnist

Rich Johnston Richard "Rich" Johnston is a British comics creator, columnist, and founder of the comics news site ''Bleeding Cool''. '' The Comics Journal'' described Johnston as having claimed to be "the oldest extant comics news reporter on the Internet. ...

while attempting to kill

Joe Quesada Joseph Quesada (; born January 12, 1962'' Comics Buyer's Guide'' #1650; February 2009; page 107) is an American comic book artist, writer, editor, and television producer. He became known in the 1990s for his work on various Valiant Comics books, ...

over his perceived role in the cancellation of '' Gotham Central''. Rucka is one of several professional comics whose names were used for characters in an episode of the ninth season of the BBC police drama ''

New Tricks ''New Tricks'' is a British television police procedural comedy drama, created by Nigel McCrery and Roy Mitchell, produced primarily by Wall to Wall (until its final year, when it was handled by Headstrong Pictures), and broadcast on BBC On ...

''.

Personal life

Rucka, his wife, author Jen Van Meter, and their two children, lived in

Eugene, Oregon Eugene ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Lane County, Oregon, United States. It is located at the southern end of the Willamette Valley, near the confluence of the McKenzie River (Oregon), McKenzie and Willamette River, Willamette rivers, ...

, and live in

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

. Rucka names '' The Conversation'', ''

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid ''Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid'' is a 1969 American Western (genre), Western buddy film directed by George Roy Hill and written by William Goldman. Based loosely on fact, the film tells the story of Wild West outlaws Robert LeRoy Parker, k ...

'' and '' The Silence of the Lambs'' as his favorite films. He enjoys the music of

Dexter Gordon Dexter Gordon (February 27, 1923 – April 25, 1990) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist, composer, and bandleader. He was among the most influential early bebop musicians. Gordon's height was , so he was also known as "Long Tall Dexter" an ...

, Lester Bowie, Joe Jackson,

Warren Zevon Warren William Zevon (January 24, 1947 – September 7, 2003) was an American rock singer and songwriter. His most famous compositions include "Werewolves of London", "Lawyers, Guns and Money" and "Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner". All t ...

, and Melissa Ferrick. His other hobbies include role-playing games, computer games, playing the guitar and collecting action figures.

Awards

Wins

*2000

Eisner Award The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, commonly shortened to the Eisner Awards, are awards for creative achievement in American comic books. They are regarded as the most prestigious and significant awards in the comic industry and often referred ...

for Best Limited Series (for '' Whiteout: Melt'') *2002 Eisner Award for Best New Series (for '' Queen & Country'', with Steve Rolston) *2004 Eisner Award for Best Serialized Story (for '' Gotham Central'' #6-10: "Half a Life", with Michael Lark) *2004 Harvey Award for Best Single Issue or Story (for ''Gotham Central'' #6-10, with Michael Lark; tied with

Gilbert Hernandez Gilberto Hernández (born February 1, 1957), usually credited as Gilbert Hernandez and also by the nickname Beto (), is an American cartoonist. He is best known for his ''Palomar''/''Heartbreak Soup'' stories in ''Love and Rockets (comics), Love ...

and

Jaime Hernandez Jaime (sometimes spelled Xaime) Hernandez (born 1959) is the co-creator of the alternative comic book '' Love and Rockets'' with his brothers Gilbert and Mario. Early life Jaime Hernandez grew up in Oxnard, California.Aldama, p. 119. He is the ...

for '' Love and Rockets'' #9) *2010

GLAAD Media Award The GLAAD Media Award is a US accolade bestowed by GLAAD to recognize and honor various branches of the media for their outstanding portrayals of LGBTQ people and the issues that affect their lives. In addition to film and television, the Awards ...

for Outstanding Comic Book (for ''

'') *2011 Eisner Award for Best Short Story (for "Post Mortem" from ''I Am An Avenger'' #2, with Michael Lark).

Nominations

*1999

** Best Limited Series (for '' Whiteout'', with

Steve Lieber Steve Lieber (born May 19, 1967) is an American comic book illustrator known for his work on books such as ''Detective Comics'' and ''Hawkman'', and the critically acclaimed miniseries ''Whiteout (Oni Press), Whiteout'', which was adapted into a W ...

) ** Best Writer (for ''Whiteout'') *2000 Eisner Award ** Best Graphic Album: Reprint (for ''Whiteout'', with Steve Lieber) ** Best Writer (for '' Whiteout: Melt'') *2002 Eisner Award ** Best Continuing Series (for ''Queen & Country'', with Steve Rolston) ** Best Serialized Story (for '' Queen & Country'' #1-4: "Operation: Broken Ground", with Steve Rolston) ** Best Writer (for ''Queen & Country'') *2003 Eisner Award ** Best New Series (for '' Gotham Central'', with

and Michael Lark) ** Best Serialized Story (for ''Queen & Country'' #8-12: "Operation: Crystal Ball", with Leandro Fernández) ** Best Writer (for ''Queen & Country'' and '' Wonder Woman: The Hiketeia'') ** Best Writer (for ''Queen & Country'') *2003 Harvey Award for Best Writer (for ''Gotham Central'', with Ed Brubaker) *2004 Eisner Award ** Best Continuing Series (for ''Gotham Central'', with Ed Brubaker, Michael Lark, Brian Hurtt, and Stefano Gaudiano) ** Best Continuing Series (for ''Queen & Country'', with Jason Alexander, Carla Speed McNeil, and Mike Hawthorne) ** Best Serialized Story (for ''Queen & Country'' #13-15: "Operation Blackwall", with Jason Shawn Alexander) ** Best Writer (for ''Queen & Country'', ''

'' and ''

'') *2005 Eisner Award for Best Writer (for ''Queen & Country'' and ''Gotham Central'') *2007 Harvey Award for Best New Series (for '' 52'', with

, Mark Waid, and

Keith Giffen Keith Ian Giffen (November 30, 1952 – October 9, 2023) was an American comics artist and writer. He was known for his work for DC Comics on their ''Legion of Super-Heroes'' and ''Justice League'' titles as well as for being the co-creator of ...

) *2011 Eisner Award for Best Limited Series (for ''Stumptown'', with Matthew Southworth) *2014 Eisner Award for Best New Series (for '' Lazarus'', with Michael Lark)

Bibliography

Video games

*''AR-K: The Great Escape'' (writer) *'' Syphon Filter: Logan's Shadow'' (story designer)

References

External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rucka, Greg 1969 births Living people Skydance Media people 20th-century American Jews 21st-century American Jews 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American screenwriters Writers from San Francisco American male bloggers American bloggers American comics writers Jewish American screenwriters Jewish bloggers Emergency medical technicians Hugo Award–winning writers Marvel Comics writers DC Comics people University of Southern California alumni Vassar College alumni Writers from Portland, Oregon Image Comics writers