David Giler

Respected producer/screenwriter David Giler came to filmmaking by way of television, punching up scripts for late 1960s shows such as "The Gallant Men," "The Man from U.N.C.L.E.," and "Kraft Suspense Theatre." By 1974, he took his expertise in the action genre to the big screen, turning in a tightly-wound screenplay for "The Parallax View," a political thriller starring Warren Beatty. Giler went on to write the well-received comedies "The Black Bird" (1975) and "Fun with Dick and Jane" (1977) before tackling his most fondly remembered project, the 1979 sci-fi horror classic "Alien." Initially brought in to produce the film, Giler and co-producer Walter Hill assisted in an extensive rewrite of the original Dan O'Brannon-authored script, resulting in a much-publicized battle over the ultimate screenplay credit. The controversy failed to inhibit Giler's involvement in the "Alien" franchise, with his growing list of producer credits in coming decades including multiple sequels to the original film, as well as a contentious rewrite of the third movie in the series, "Alien 3" (1992). David Giler died on December 19, 2020 at the age of 77.