Jeffrey Ryan Nichols (born December 7, 1978) is an American filmmaker, director, screenwriter, and producer.[3] His films are characterized by their Southern United States backdrop and ambience, depictions of rural and working class characters and their struggles, American masculinity, and the cultural clash between traditionalism and modernism.[4][5][6][7][8] He is also known for his longstanding collaboration with actor Michael Shannon, who has appeared in all of his feature films to date.
After graduating from UNCSA in 2001, Nichols had written his first screenplay, Shotgun Stories, with actor Michael Shannon in mind to play the lead, and contacted the actor through former UNCSA film professor and independent filmmaker Gary Hawkins, who knew Shannon through the Sundance Institute.[12][2] The film was shot on a budget of $250,000, and released in 2007.
Six of Nichols' films have featured Shannon: Shotgun Stories, Take Shelter, Mud, Midnight Special, Loving and The Bikeriders. Speaking of his frequent collaboration with Shannon, Nichols stated: "(Shannon) is not just a collaborator; he has become family to me. I owe my career to Michael Shannon. I learned how to direct from directing Michael Shannon. So, from the outside, it can feel kind of cute, but it’s not. I love that guy, and I want him in movies because he’s the greatest actor in the world. And if you’re a director and you have access to the greatest actor in the world, it makes sense that you would call him all the time."[15]
In 2016, Nichols was hired to direct a remake of Alien Nation,[16] but the project never came to fruition. "That’s one of the reasons it’s taken me so long to make another film," Nichols said in a 2023 interview. "I spent like four years on that. And we were at the 1-yard line. I had a cast, we were ready to go, but the universe didn’t want me to make that right then."[17] Later, it was revealed that the script Nichols wrote for Alien Nation would be retooled into an original film and produced by Paramount Pictures.[15]
In 2018, he directed the short film Long Way Back Home, which was inspired by a song of the same name that was written by his brother Ben and released by the country punk band, Lucero. It stars Michael Shannon, who searches the streets and backroads of Memphis for his two younger brothers, played by Garrett Hedlund and Scoot McNairy.[18]
In November 2020, it was announced that Nichols would be directing and writing the screenplay for A Quiet Place: Day One.[20] In May 2021, it was announced he finished the script for the film.[21] However, he departed the project in October 2021,[22] to focus on a new science fiction project also in development at Paramount Pictures.[23]
In May 2024, it was announced that Nichols would direct adaptations of the Cormac McCarthy novels The Passenger and Stella Maris with New Regency, which also backed Nichols' most recent directorial effort The Bikeriders, producing.[26]
Several recurring filmmaking techniques are identifiable in Nichols's films. He has established a filmmaking history which involves repeat collaborations such as with actor Michael Shannon and cinematographer Adam Stone, who both have worked with Nichols on all of his projects from Shotgun Stories to The Bikeriders.[29][30] Additionally, the Tennessee-based alternative country band Lucero, whom Nichols' older brother Ben founded, has contributed songs to the several soundtracks of Nichols' work.[3]
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