Jez Butterworth | |
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 Butterworth in 2019 | |
| Born | Jeremy Butterworth (1969-03-04)4 March 1969 (age 56) London, England |
| Occupation |
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| Education | St John's College, Cambridge |
| Notable works |
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| Partner | Laura Donnelly |
| Relatives | John-Henry Butterworth (brother) |
Jeremy Butterworth (born 4 March 1969) is a British playwright, screenwriter, and film director. He has gained recognition for his unique voice in contemporary theater, often blending themes of myth,folklore, andrealism. He has received aTony Award and twoLaurence Olivier Awards.
Butterworth started his career with his play, a comedic dark crime dramaMojo (1995) which earned theLaurence Olivier Award for Best New Comedy. He found acclaim with his playJerusalem which has been described as "the greatestBritish play of the 21st century".[1] He wrote the playThe Ferryman (2017) about a formerIRA volunteer set inThe Troubles, which won both theLaurence Olivier Award for Best New Play and theTony Award for Best Play. His latest playThe Hills of California (2024) debuted in London and made its Broadway transfer in the same year.
He made his directorial film debut withMojo (1997) based on hisown play of the same name. He has since written the screenplays for films such as theerotic thrillerBirthday Girl (2001), the political dramaFair Game (2010), the science fiction action filmEdge of Tomorrow (2014), theJames Brown biopicGet On Up (2014), theWhitey Bulger crime dramaBlack Mass (2015), and sports dramaFord v Ferrari (2019). He has also co-written screenplays forJames Bond filmSpectre (2015) and theIndiana Jones franchise filmIndiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (2023).
Butterworth was born in London, England, on 4 March 1969. He has three brothers: older brothers Tom (born 1966) and Steve (born 1968); and younger brotherJohn-Henry (born 1976). He also has a sister, Joanna. He attendedVerulam Comprehensive School,St Albans, andSt John's College, Cambridge, where he studied the Englishtripos and graduated in 1991.[2] All his brothers have been active in film and theatre: Steve is a producer, while Tom and John-Henry are writers.[citation needed]
Butterworth's playMojo, which premiered at theRoyal Court Theatre in 1995, won the 1996Laurence Olivier,[3]Evening Standard, The Writer's Guild, and theGeorge Devine awards, and the Critic's Circle Award. Butterworth also wrote and directed the film adaptation ofMojo (1997). The film featuredHarold Pinter.[4]
In 1999 Butterworth was one of the recipients of the VEurope Prize Theatrical Realities awarded to theRoyal Court Theatre[5] (withSarah Kane,Mark Ravenhill,Conor McPherson,Martin McDonagh).[6] Butterworth co-wrote and directed the filmBirthday Girl (2001), which was produced by his brother Steve and starredNicole Kidman.[7]
Butterworth received positive reviews of his playThe Night Heron (2002), which premiered in the West End at theRoyal Court Theatre.The Guardian reviewer wrote: "Can a play be simultaneously very good and very bad? I believe so."[8]The Winterling also ran at the Royal Court in 2006. TheBritish Theatre Guide wrote: "The Winterling can be a difficult play but contains rich veins of comedy."[9] His playParlour Song[10] opened in New York to "rave reviews" at theAtlantic Theatre Company,Off-Broadway in March 2008.[11] The play then played at theAlmeida Theatre, with Michael Billington ofThe Guardian writing, "After the more erraticThe Night Heron andThe Winterling, Butterworth shows that he has a compassionate understanding of the quiet desperation that stalks Britain's new estates. He exactly captures the mundane madness beneath the bland routine of affluence."[12]
Butterworth's fourth play for the Royal Court Theatre wasJerusalem, which premiered in July 2009 to positive reviews. Described as a "contemporary vision of life in [England's] green and pleasant land",Jerusalem was the second important Butterworth production in London in 2009.[13] The production starredMark Rylance as Johnny Byron, and featuredMackenzie Crook as Ginger in a supporting role. It was a sell-out at the Royal Court, won theEvening Standard Theatre Award andCritics' Circle Theatre Award for the best play of 2009 and, with the same cast, transferred to theApollo Theatre on Shaftesbury Avenue in January 2010.[14]
Jerusalem opened on Broadway in April 2011, with many of the original UK cast.[15] It returned to London later that year, again playing at the Apollo. In January 2014Jerusalem opened at theSan Francisco Playhouse,[16] where it also received rave reviews.[17]Jerusalem was nominated for the 2011Tony Award, Play.[18] Mark Rylance won the 2011 Tony Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Play.[15] Jez and John-Henry Butterworth were named recipients of theWriters Guild of America West's 2011Paul Selvin Award for their screenplay for the filmFair Game (2010), directed byDoug Liman and starringNaomi Watts andSean Penn.[19]
On 26 October 2012, Butterworth's playThe River opened at the Royal Court Theatre, starringDominic West,Laura Donnelly andMiranda Raison, with an appearance byGillian Saker.[20][21]The River had its US premiere on Broadway at theCircle in the Square Theatre in a limited engagement in October 2014, starringHugh Jackman and directed byIan Rickson.[22] Reception was positive, with London critics finding the work "lyrical", "beautifully written" and "suffuse[d] with wonder and beauty".[23]
Butterworth's playThe Ferryman opened at theRoyal Court Theatre in April 2017. Directed bySam Mendes,[24] it became the fastest selling play in the Royal Court Theatre's history.[25] Set in rural South Armagh in 1981 and focusing on the events surrounding the deaths of theIRA hunger strikers, it received 15 five-star reviews, including all the major UK papers.The Irish Times said, "Although Butterworth is English,The Ferryman feels like a thoroughly Irish play, not only because there is not a single false note in the dialogue."[26] TheHuffington Post said that it was "one of the two or three greatest plays of the decade". But,The Guardian's Sean O'Hagan wrote, "I'm from Northern Ireland and it doesn't ring true", and it was "so close to a cultural stereotype as to be offensive".[27] Two weeks laterThe Irish Times printed an opinion piece by actor Gerard Lee (ofFather Ted)[28] entitled "In defence ofThe Ferryman". He challenged negative comments, calling the play "layered and powerful".[29]
The Ferryman won the 2017Evening Standard Award for Best Play, the 2018Critics' Circle Award for Best New Play, the 2018WhatsOnStage Award for Best New Play, and the 2018Olivier Award for Best New Play.[30] It has played for over 350 performances at the Gielgud Theatre and transferred to Broadway in October 2018. The play won the 2019Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play and Tony Award for Best Play.[31] In 2019 he wrote the screenplay for the sports dramaFord v. Ferrari directed byJames Mangold starringChristian Bale andMatt Damon. The film received positive reviews.[32]
In 2023 he wrote the fifth installment of theIndiana Jones franchise,Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny reunited with directorJames Mangold. The film was not a commercial success and received mixed reviews.[33][34] David Rooney ofThe Hollywood Reporter wrote, "This is a big, bombastic movie that goes through the motions but never finds much joy in the process" adding that the screenplay "feel[s] of something written by committee".[35]
Butterworth has said thatHarold Pinter has been a major influence on his work: "I know and admire Harold Pinter enormously. He has a ginormous influence on me. Conversations with him have inspired my work."[11]
| Year | Title | Director |
|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Mojo | Himself |
| 2001 | Birthday Girl | |
| 2007 | The Last Legion | Doug Lefler |
| 2010 | Fair Game | Doug Liman |
| 2014 | Edge of Tomorrow | |
| Get On Up | Tate Taylor | |
| 2015 | Black Mass | Scott Cooper |
| Spectre | Sam Mendes | |
| 2019 | Ford v Ferrari | James Mangold |
| 2021 | Flag Day | Sean Penn |
| 2023 | Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny | James Mangold |
| 2028 | The Beatles — A Four-Film Cinematic Event†[a] | Sam Mendes |
Uncredited
| Year | Title | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | Night of the Golden Brain | Television movie | [40] |
| 1996 | Christmas | Television movie | |
| 2017–2021 | Britannia | 26 episodes | [41] |
| 2019 | The Monologue Project | Episode: "Mojo" | |
| 2022 | Mammals | 6 episodes | [42] |
| 2024 | The Agency | 10 episodes | |
| 2025 | MobLand | 10 episodes |
| Year | Title | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Mojo | Royal Court Theatre | [43] |
| 2002 | The Night Heron | Royal Court Theatre, West End | |
| 2003 | Atlantic Theater Company, Off-Broadway | ||
| 2006 | The Winterling | Royal Court Theatre, West End | |
| 2008 | Parlour Song | Atlantic Theatre Company, Off-Broadway | |
| 2009 | Almeida Theatre, West End | ||
| Jerusalem | Royal Court Theatre, West End | ||
| 2011 | Music Box Theater, Broadway | [44] | |
| 2012 | The River | Royal Court Theatre, West End | [45] |
| 2014 | Circle in the Square Theatre, Broadway | [46] | |
| 2017 | The Ferryman | Royal Court Theatre, West End | [47] |
| 2018 | Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre, Broadway | [48] | |
| 2024 | The Hills of California | Harold Pinter Theatre, West End | |
| Broadhurst Theatre, Broadway | [49] |
In July 2017, Butterworth revealed he had declined the offer of appointment asOfficer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) due to theConservative government's pledge to holda referendum on Britain's membership of the European Union.[50] He was elected aFellow of the Royal Society of Literature in 2019.[51]
| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Evening Standard Theatre Award | Most Promising Playwright | Mojo | Won | |
| 1996 | Laurence Olivier Award | Best New Comedy | Won | ||
| 1999 | Europe Theatre Prize | Europe Prize Theatrical Realities | Won | ||
| 2010 | Laurence Olivier Award | Best New Play | Jerusalem | Nominated | |
| 2011 | Tony Award | Best Play | Nominated | [52] | |
| New York Drama Critics' Circle Award | Best Foreign Play | Won | [53] | ||
| 2017 | Critics' Circle Theatre Award | Best New Play | The Ferryman | Won | [54] |
| 2018 | Laurence Olivier Award | Best New Play | Won | ||
| 2019 | Tony Award | Best Play | Won | [55] | |
| New York Drama Critics' Circle Award | Best Play | Won | [56] | ||
| 2024 | Laurence Olivier Award | Best New Play | The Hills of California | Nominated | [57] |
| 2025 | Tony Award | Best Play | Nominated | [58] | |
| Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Broadway Play | Nominated | |||
| Dorian Awards | Outstanding Broadway Play | Nominated |
