Andrew Niccol's BIO

Andrew M. Niccol (born 1964) is a screenwriter, producer, and director. He wrote and directed Gattaca, S1m0ne, and Lord of War. He also wrote and co-produced The Truman Show, which earned him an Academy Award nomination for best original screenplay in 1999, and The Terminal in 2004, directed by Steven Speilberg.

Niccol was born in Paraparaumu, New Zealand and grew up in Auckland. He left New Zealand at age 21 and began directing commercials in London, England.

After making ads for ten years, Niccol decided to relocate to Hollywood in order to make movies that "lasted longer than 60 seconds." Though he wrote the screenplay for The Truman Show before Gattaca, it was the latter film that became Niccol's Hollywood debut as a writer as well as director. A sleek tale of the near future and the troubling reach of science, Gattaca pitted imperfect, naturally birthed, wannabe astronaut Ethan Hawke against a system that favored the genetically engineered perfection aptly embodied by Uma Thurman and Jude Law. Though critics and the Academy admired Gattaca's visual craft and intelligence, American audiences were less than taken with its measured tone and philosophical bent; Niccol's freshman effort was better received in Europe.

Niccol's screenplay for The Truman Show, however, became an unalloyed success. Co-produced by Niccol, directed by fellow down under talent Peter Weir, and famously featuring Jim Carrey in his first "straight" starring role, The Truman Show's vision of a TV-made man who is the unwitting star of a life manufactured for perpetual broadcast was lauded by the critics for its smart satire of contemporary media culture. After becoming the rare summer blockbuster that also had a brain, The Truman Show earned three Oscar nominations, including Best Original Screenplay for Niccol. After this one-two punch, Niccol was set to direct and produce his screenplay Simone (2000).

Another take on The Truman Show's fascination with media-made reality and fantasy, Simone starred Al Pacino as a desperate Hollywood filmmaker who gets more than he bargained for when his digitally created eponymous bombshell becomes a celebrity sensation. After sitting on the shelf for two years, Simone was finally released in August 2002.During the production of S1m0ne, he met model Rachel Roberts, with whom he has one son, Jack.

After S1mone, Niccol went on to write the story for The Terminal which was given to Steven Speilberg to direct, starring Tom Hanks. His third shot at directing his own script is possibly his most intriguing cinematic vision yet.  Lord of War is a jaundiced but exciting look at the black-market international drug trade, with an incredible cast including Nicolas Cage and Ethan Hawke. Given the controversial subject matter, studios were predictably hesitant and financing was eventually secured from foreign investors. Attracting top-notch talent, however, was easy, as Nicolas Cage and Ethan Hawke eagerly signed on for far less than their usual rates.

Andrew Niccol is currently working on his latest project The Cross , staring Orlando Bloom, Vincent Cassel, John Goodman, and Olga Kurylenko. Filming slated to start in September 2009, and the film should have a 2010 release.

Biography compiled from: IMDB bio, Lucia Bozzola - All Movie Guide, Jay S. Jacobs, Thomas Leupp

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