Etan Cohen (Hebrew: איתן כהן; born March 14, 1974) is an Israeli-American screenwriter and film director who has written scripts for Hollywood movies, including Idiocracy, Tropic Thunder, Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa, Men in Black 3, and The Bad Guys.
Etan Cohen | |
|---|---|
| Born | March 14, 1974 |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | Harvard College |
| Occupation(s) | Film director, screenwriter |
| Years active | 1995–present |
Early life and education edit
Born in Israel to a Jewish family, Cohen grew up in Sharon, Massachusetts. He graduated from the Maimonides School and Harvard College, where he wrote for the Harvard Lampoon.[1][2]
Career edit
This section of a biography of a living person needs additional citations for verification. (May 2021) |
His first produced scripts, in 1995 and 1997, were for Beavis and Butthead, where he was credited as Ethan Cohen.[citation needed] He has since written for other Mike Judge-directed projects, including King of the Hill from 2001 to 2005, and for the feature film Idiocracy in 2006. In the late 1990s he worked on two other television series – the animated Recess and the short lived It's Like, You Know.... In 2007, he wrote the short film ‘My Wife is Retarded,’.[3] After scripting Idiocracy, he worked on the animated series, American Dad! and wrote the episode, "Failure Is Not a Factory-Installed Option". The American Dad! minor character of the same name is named for him.
In 2008, Cohen co-wrote, along with Ben Stiller and Justin Theroux, the action-comedy film Tropic Thunder. He also wrote Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa, which earned an Annie Award nomination for best Writing in a Feature Production.
Cohen penned the script for 2012's Men in Black 3. In 2015, he made his directorial debut with Get Hard, which he also co-wrote.
Cohen wrote and directed the 2018 film Holmes & Watson. The film earned him a Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Director.[4]
Personal life edit
Cohen is an observant Jew.[5] He keeps kosher and does not work on the Jewish Sabbath and he and his wife send their children to a Jewish day school.[5]
Filmography edit
Films edit
| Year | Title | Director | Writer | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Idiocracy | No | Yes | Co-wrote with Mike Judge |
| 2008 | Tropic Thunder | No | Yes | Co-wrote with Justin Theroux and Ben Stiller |
| 2008 | Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa | No | Yes | Co-wrote with Eric Darnell and Tom McGrath Nominated – Annie Award for Best Writing in an Animated Feature Production[6] |
| 2012 | Men in Black 3 | No | Yes | |
| 2015 | Get Hard | Yes | Yes | Directorial debut Co-wrote with Jay Martel and Ian Roberts |
| 2018 | Holmes & Watson | Yes | Yes | Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Director[7] |
| 2022 | The Bad Guys | No | Yes | Additional screenplay material by Yoni Brenner and Hilary Winston Also executive producer with Aaron Blabey and Patrick Hughes |
| 2022 | Puss in Boots: The Last Wish | No | Yes | Additional screenplay material |
| TBA | Brothers | No | Yes | Co-wrote with Macon Blair |
Television edit
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1995–1997 | Beavis and Butt-head | |
| 1999 | It's Like, You Know | |
| Recess | ||
| Timon & Pumbaa | ||
| 2001–2005 | King of the Hill | Annie Award for Best Writing in an Animated Television Production[8] |
| 2006 | American Dad! |
Awards and nominations edit
| Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Annie Award | Writing in an Animated Television Production | King of the Hill | Won | [9] |
| 2007 | US Comedy Arts Festival | Comedy Festival Award for Best Short Film | My Wife Is Retarded | Won | [10] |
| 2009 | Annie Award | Best Writing in an Animated Feature Production | Madagascar 2 | Nominated | [9] |
| 2019 | 39th Golden Raspberry Awards | Worst Director | Holmes & Watson | Won | [11] |
References edit
- ^ Smith, Lynn (August 15, 2008). "The joke is on you". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved August 12, 2019.
- ^ Chris Lee (May 29, 2012). "The Movie Redemption of 'Men in Black 3' Scribe Etan Cohen". The Daily Beast. IAC. Retrieved August 12, 2019.
- ^ "My Wife is Retarded". IMDb.
- ^ Howard, Annie (February 22, 2019). "Worst Director - Razzie Awards: 'Holmes & Watson' Named Worst Picture of the Year". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved August 12, 2019.
- ^ a b Zeitchik, Steven (March 13, 2015). "Etan Cohen, director of 'Get Hard,' is used to confounding expectations". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 28, 2020.
- ^ "Annie Awards - 36th Annie Awards". Annie Awards. Retrieved April 30, 2023.
- ^ Montgomery, Daniel (February 23, 2019). "2019 Razzie winners announced: Full list of Razzie Award winners in all 10 categories [WATCH]". GoldDerby. Retrieved April 30, 2023.
- ^ "Annie Awards - 32nd Annie Awards". Retrieved April 30, 2023.
- ^ a b "Etan Cohen - Awards". IMDb. Retrieved January 31, 2024.
- ^ Sciretta, Peter (February 13, 2007). "The 2007 U.S. Comedy Arts Festival Film Program Line-Up". /Film. Retrieved April 30, 2023.
- ^ "2019 Razzie winners announced: Full list of Razzie Award winners in all 10 categories [WATCH]". February 23, 2019.