Patrick Melton is an American screenwriter, producer and novelist.

Film career

In 2004, Melton won the third season of

Project Greenlight ''Project Greenlight'' is an American documentary television series focusing on first-time filmmakers being given the chance to direct a feature film. It was created by Alex Keledjian, developed by Eli Holzman and produced by Ben Affleck, Matt ...

, along with

Marcus Dunstan Marcus Dunstan is an American screenwriter and director who, along with frequent collaborator Patrick Melton, wrote screenplay for the film ''Feast (2005 film), Feast'', which was the winner of Season Three of the filmmaking competition reality T ...

and

John Gulager John Thompson Gulager (born December 19, 1957) is an American actor, cinematographer and film director. He is the son of actors Clu Gulager and Miriam Byrd-Nethery, and the brother of actor Tom Gulager. Career For Gulager's directorial debut, ...

. The television show premiered on

Bravo Bravo(s) or The Bravo(s) may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music Groups and labels * Bravo (band), a Russian rock band * Bravo (Spanish group), represented Spain at Eurovision 1984 * Bravo Music, an American concert band music publishing compa ...

and resulted in the horror/comedy film ''

Feast A banquet (; ) is a formal large meal where a number of people consume food together. Banquets are traditionally held to enhance the prestige of a host, or reinforce social bonds among joint contributors. Modern examples of these purposes inc ...

'' and two sequels followed, '' Feast II: Sloppy Seconds'' and '' Feast III: The Happy Finish''. However, it was Melton's involvement with the '' Saw series'', that brought him worldwide recognition and international box office success. He wrote ''

Saw IV ''Saw IV'' is a 2007 horror film directed by Darren Lynn Bousman from a screenplay by Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan, and a story by Melton, Dunstan, and Thomas Fenton. A sequel to '' Saw III'' (2006) and the fourth installment in the ''Sa ...

'', ''

Saw V ''Saw V'' is a 2008 horror film directed by David Hackl, in his directorial debut, from a screenplay by Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan. A sequel to '' Saw IV'' (2007) and the fifth installment in the ''Saw'' film series, it stars Tobin Bel ...

'', ''

Saw VI ''Saw VI'' is a 2009 horror film directed by Kevin Greutert (in his directorial debut) and written by Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan. A sequel to ''Saw V'' (2008) and the sixth installment in the ''Saw'' film series, it stars Tobin Bell, Cos ...

'', and ''

Saw 3D ''Saw 3D'' (also released as ''Saw: The Final Chapter'') is a 2010 American 3D film, 3D horror film directed by Kevin Greutert and written by Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan. A sequel to ''Saw VI'' (2009) and the seventh installment in the Sa ...

'' for a worldwide take of nearly $500,000,000. Additionally, Melton wrote the home invasion thriller ''

The Collector ''The Collector'' is a 1963 thriller novel by English author John Fowles, in his literary debut. Its plot follows a lonely young man who kidnaps a female art student in London and holds her captive in the cellar of his rural farmhouse. Divided ...

'', which was directed by Dunstan. Melton and Dunstan adapted the graphic novel ''Smoke and Guns'' by Kirsten Baldock and Fabio Moon. In the fall of 2006,

Dimension Films Dimension Films was an American independent film and television production and distribution label founded in 1992, and currently owned by independent studio Lantern Entertainment. Formally one of the American " mini-majors" (i.e., small to m ...

preemptively acquired a dark and edgy horror/thriller spec script from Melton and Dunstan titled ''The Neighbor'' for a six-figures. Additionally, the writing team of Melton and Dunstan have performed writing duties on

Lionsgate Lions Gate, Lion Gate or similar terms may refer to: Gates *Lion Gate at Mycenae in Greece *Lion Gate, one of the entrances to the ancient Hittite city of Hattusa, now in Turkey *Lion Gate, one of the entrances to the gardens of Hampton Court Pala ...

's ''

My Bloody Valentine 3D ''My Bloody Valentine 3D'' is a 2009 American 3D film, 3D slasher film directed and co-edited by Patrick Lussier, and written by Todd Farmer and Zane Smith. A remake of the 1981 Canadian film My Bloody Valentine (film), of the same name, ...

'', ''

Piranha 3D ''Piranha 3D'' is a 2010 American 3D horror comedy film that serves as a remake of the comedy horror film '' Piranha'' (1978) and an entry in the ''Piranha'' film series. Directed by Alexandre Aja and written by Pete Goldfinger and Josh Sto ...

'' by

Alexandre Aja Alexandre Jouan-Arcady, known professionally as Alexandre Aja (; born 7 August 1978), is a French filmmaker best known for his work in the horror genre. He rose to international stardom for his 2003 horror film '' Haute Tension'' (known as ''Hi ...

, a remake of Clive Barker's Hellraiser, a remake of

William Castle William Castle (born William Schloss Jr.; April 24, 1914 – May 31, 1977) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and actor. He is known for the horror film, horror and thriller film, thriller B movie, B-movies he directed durin ...

's classic horror film ''

The Tingler ''The Tingler'' is a 1959 American horror film produced and directed by William Castle. It is the third of five collaborations between Castle and writer Robb White, and starring Vincent Price. The film tells the story of a scientist who discov ...

'' at Columbia Pictures for producer

Neal Moritz Neal H. Moritz (born June 6, 1959) is an American film producer and founder of Original Film. He has produced over 70 major motion pictures which have grossed a total of over $12 billion worldwide as of 2021. He is best known for the ''Fast & Fu ...

, a remake of ''

Scanners ''Scanners'' is a 1981 Canadian science fiction horror film written and directed by David Cronenberg and starring Stephen Lack, Jennifer O'Neill, Michael Ironside, and Patrick McGoohan. In the film, "scanners" are psychics with unusual telep ...

'' by

David Cronenberg David Paul Cronenberg (born March 15, 1943) is a Canadian film director, screenwriter, producer and actor. He is a principal originator of the body horror genre, with his films exploring visceral bodily transformation, infectious diseases, and ...

, a film adaptation of the classic sci-fi TV anthology ''

The Outer Limits ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...

'' for MGM, and the action/adventure tentpole ''

Pacific Rim The Pacific Rim comprises the lands around the rim of the Pacific Ocean. The '' Pacific Basin'' includes the Pacific Rim and the islands in the Pacific Ocean. The Pacific Rim roughly overlaps with the geological Pacific Ring of Fire. List ...

'' by

Guillermo del Toro Guillermo del Toro Gómez (; born 9 October 1964) is a Mexican filmmaker, author, and artist. His work has been characterized by a strong connection to fairy tales, Gothic fiction, gothicism and horror fiction, horror often blending the genres ...

for

Legendary Pictures Legendary Entertainment, LLC (also known as Legendary Pictures or simply Legendary) is an American mass media and film production company based in Burbank, California, founded by Thomas Tull. The company has often collaborated with the major stu ...

and

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI), commonly known as Warner Bros. (WB), is an American filmed entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California and the main namesake subsidiary of Warner Bro ...

The sequel to Melton and Dunstan's horror film ''The Collector'', titled '' The Collection'', and again directed by Dunstan, started filming in Atlanta, GA during the spring of 2011. It was theatrically released in 2012. In November 2011, it was announced that Melton's debut horror/thriller novel, ''Black Light'', would be adapted into a film with producer

Michael De Luca Michael De Luca (born August 13, 1965) is an American film studio executive, film producer and screenwriter. He is also the former president of production at both New Line Cinema and DreamWorks. De Luca has been nominated for three Academy Aw ...

. In December 2011, Melton sold a sci-fi pitch titled ''Rise'' to Warner Bros. along with his writing partner Marcus Dunstan. David Karlak was attached to direct and

Roy Lee Roy Lee (born March 23, 1969) is an American film and television producer. His production company, Vertigo Entertainment, has a first-look deal with Lionsgate. Early life Lee was born in 1969 at Wyckoff Heights Hospital in Brooklyn, New York, ...

was attached to produce. In July 2012, ''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...

'' reported that Melton and Dunstan were hired to adapt the ''

God of War A war god in mythology associated with war, combat, or bloodshed. They occur commonly in polytheism, polytheistic religions. Unlike most gods and goddesses in polytheistic religions, monotheistic deities have traditionally been portrayed in their ...

'' film. In September 2012, ''

Deadline Hollywood ''Deadline Hollywood'', commonly known as ''Deadline'' and also referred to as ''Deadline.com'', is an online news site founded as the news blog ''Deadline Hollywood Daily'' by Nikki Finke in 2006. It is updated several times a day, with en ...

'' reported that Melton and Dunstan were hired to rewrite the fantasy project ''

Waterproof Waterproofing is the process of making an object, person or structure waterproof or water-resistant so that it remains relatively unaffected by water or resists the ingress of water under specified conditions. Such items may be used in wet env ...

'' for Legendary Pictures. In June 2013, Melton sold a sci-fi pitch titled ''

Outliers In statistics, an outlier is a data point that differs significantly from other observations. An outlier may be due to a variability in the measurement, an indication of novel data, or it may be the result of experimental error; the latter ar ...

'' to

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc., formerly 20th Century Fox, is an American film studio, film production and Film distributor, distribution company owned by the Walt Disney Studios (division), Walt Disney Studios, the film studios division of the ...

along with his writing partner Marcus Dunstan. David Karlak is attached to direct and

Peter Chernin Peter Chernin (born May 29, 1951) is an American film and television producer, businessman and investor. He is the chairman and CEO of The Chernin Group (TCG), which he founded in 2010. TCG manages, operates and invests in businesses in the media ...

is attached to produce. In 2015 they co-wrote a screenplay for the 11th ''

Halloween Halloween, or Hallowe'en (less commonly known as Allhalloween, All Hallows' Eve, or All Saints' Eve), is a celebration geography of Halloween, observed in many countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christianity, Western Christian f ...

'' installment, which was originally planned with a release in 2015 under the direction of Dunstan. In October 2016, Melton, along with partner Dunstan, were selected to write for the adaptation of

Brandon Sanderson Brandon Winn Sanderson (born December19, 1975) is an American author of high fantasy, science fiction, and young adult books. He is best known for the Cosmere fictional universe, in which most of his fantasy novels, most notably the '' Mistb ...

's ''

The Way of Kings ''The Way of Kings'' is an epic fantasy novel written by American author Brandon Sanderson and the first book in ''The Stormlight Archive'' series. The novel was published on August 31, 2010, by Tor Books. ''The Way of Kings'' consists of one p ...

''.

Filmography

Film

Television

In October 2006, the duo sold their first television idea to FOX titled ''The Vineyard''. It was a raunchy half-hour horror/comedy with

Family Guy ''Family Guy'' is an American animated sitcom created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series premiered on January 31, 1999, following Super Bowl XXXIII, with the rest of the first season airing from April 11, 1999. Th ...

show runner Chris Sheridan attached as executive producer. In 2008, Melton and Dunstan sold an hourlong drama to

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...

titled ''The Good Neighbor''. Melton and Dunstan collaborated with

Clive Barker Clive Barker (born 5 October 1952) is an English writer, filmmaker, and visual artist. He came to prominence in the 1980s with a series of short stories collectively named the ''Books of Blood'', which established him as a leading horror author ...

in 2009 and sold an hourlong drama titled Clive Barker's Hotel to

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...

McG The Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), also known locally as the 'G, is a sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne, Victoria. Founded and managed by the Melbourne Cricket Club, it is the largest stadium in the Southern Hemisphere, the el ...

was attached to produce.

Novels

On October 5, 2011, Melton's debut novel, ''Black Light'', co-written with Marcus Dunstan and Stephen Romano, was released by

Mulholland Books Mulholland Books (US) is an imprint of Little, Brown and Company, a division of the Hachette Book Group. It specializes in publishing mysteries, thrillers, and suspense novels. History Little, Brown and Company announced the creation of Mulholl ...

, an imprint of

Little, Brown and Company Little, Brown and Company is an American publishing company founded in 1837 by Charles Coffin Little and James Brown in Boston. For close to two centuries, it has published fiction and nonfiction by American authors. Early lists featured Emil ...

, and in the UK by

, an imprint of

Hodder & Stoughton Hodder & Stoughton is a British publishing house, now an imprint of Hachette.H ...

. It is currently being adapted into a film for producer

Personal life

Melton attended the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (U of I, UIowa, or Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized int ...

at the same time as

Brian Thompson Brian Thompson commonly refers to: * Brian Thompson (businessman) (1974–2024), UnitedHealthcare CEO killed in 2024 * Brian Thompson (actor) (born 1959), American screen actor It may also refer to: Sports * Brian Thompson (footballer, born 1938) ...

did. They were not close friends, but they knew each other. They also both graduated in 1997.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Melton, Patrick 21st-century American dramatists and playwrights Living people Loyola Marymount University alumni People from Champaign, Illinois University of Iowa alumni Year of birth missing (living people)