Reinaldo Marcus Green

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Reinaldo Marcus Green
Reinaldo Marcus Green during an interview, March 2022.jpg
Born (1981-12-16) December 16, 1981 (age 43)
Bronx, New York, U.S.
Alma mater
Occupation(s)Film director, producer, writer
Years active2014–present

Reinaldo Marcus Green (born December 16, 1981) is an American director, producer and writer. His films include Monsters and Men (2018), Joe Bell (2020), and Bob Marley: One Love (2024). His 2021 film, King Richard , was nominated for Best Picture at the 94th Academy Awards.

Contents

Early life

Green was born in the Bronx to an African American father and a Puerto Rican mother and grew up in Staten Island among other areas of New York City. His parents divorced, and he and his brother Rashaad primarily lived with their father. They played baseball growing up and had MLB ambitions. [1]

Green attended Port Richmond High School. [2] [3] He went on to complete a Master of Education at Fairleigh Dickinson University, and taught at an elementary school. [4] He then worked at AIG for five years as a director of educational programming and talent acquisitions, needing the money to pay off his undergraduate loans. [5] [6] However, Green's department was downsized due to the financial crisis of 2007–2008. [7]

Disillusioned by Wall Street and introduced to film by his brother, Green enrolled in NYU Tisch School of the Arts' graduate film program when he was 27 and has since taught at the institution as an adjunct professor. [8] [9]

Career

Green first gained prominence through his early short films both solo and in collaboration with his brother. Among these were Stone Cars, which was shot on location in Cape Town, South Africa and showcased at the 2014 Cinéfondation in Cannes, and Stop, which was inspired by the killing of Trayvon Martin and premiered at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival. [10]

After receiving the Sundance Institute Fellowship in 2017, Green made his feature film debut with the 2018 drama Monsters and Men , which won the Special Jury Award for Outstanding First Feature at the Sundance Film Festival. [11] [12] [13] His next project was Joe Bell (2020), produced by Jake Gyllenhaal and Cary Joji Fukunaga, and starring Mark Wahlberg, Connie Britton, and Maxwell Jenkins. [11] For his first television project, Green directed three episodes of the British crime drama Top Boy for its third series, which premiered in 2019. [14]

In June 2019, it was announced Green would be directing a biopic titled King Richard , about tennis coach and father of American tennis players Venus and Serena Williams, Richard Williams, starring Will Smith in the titular role. The 2021 film has received a number of accolades. [11] [15]

Green directed the HBO miniseries We Own This City (2022), starring Jon Bernthal and based on the nonfiction book of the same name by Justin Fenton. [16] He directed another biopic titled Bob Marley: One Love (2024). The film depicts the life of reggae musician Bob Marley and stars Kingsley Ben-Adir in the titular role. [17] Bob Marley: One Love received mixed reviews but was well-received by audiences. [18] He is anticipated to direct an untitled dramedy for Lionsgate. [19]

In February 2025, Green was announced to direct and co-write an untitled television special for Marvel Studios focused on Frank Castle / Punisher, reuniting with Bernthal, who portrays the titular character and will also co-write the project. [20]

Filmography

Short film

YearTitleDirectorWriterProducer
2011The InterviewYesYesYes
One Way TicketYesYesYes
2012WhiteNoNoYes
ShowtimeNoNoYes
2013Street KidNoNoYes
FestusNoNoYes
2014Stone CarsYesYesYes
AnonymousYesYesExecutive
Nnowm deedeNoNoYes
The Zebra RoomYesYesYes
2015StopYesYesYes
Le BarrageNoNoYes
SemeliNoNoYes
2021In Max We TrustNoNoYes

Documentary short

YearTitleNotes
2016Mother Nature: Not MommyAlso cinematographer

Feature film

YearTitleDirectorWriter
2018 Monsters and Men YesYes
2020 Joe Bell YesNo
2021 King Richard YesNo
2024 Bob Marley: One Love YesYes

Television

YearTitleDirectorExecutive
Producer
Notes
2016–2017First StepYesNo5 episodes
2019 Top Boy YesCo-executive3 episodes
2021 Amend: The Fight for America YesNoDocumentary series
2022 We Own This City YesYesMiniseries

Acting credits

YearTitleRoleNotes
2009ChoicesYoung manShort film
2011 Gun Hill Road Prison Guard 2
The InterviewTy BedfordShort film
One Way TicketRei
2022 We Own This City Correctional officer #2Episode "Part Six"

References

  1. Conde, Arturo (19 November 2021). "Black and Latino 'King Richard' director Reinaldo Marcus Green talks dads, sports". NBC News. Retrieved 20 March 2022.
  2. https://statenislandarts.org/event/monsters-and-men-two-views/ [ dead link ]
  3. "Two Views: North Shore + Cinema Connex". downtownsi.nyc. Staten Island Arts. 16 October 2019. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
  4. Caprio, Kenna. "Venus and Serena Trusted Him With Their Father’s Story. And Their Own. Reinaldo Marcus Green, BA’03, MAT’05 (Flor)", FDU Magazine, Winter / Spring 2022. Accessed March 27, 2022. "'Venus and Serena are cultural icons. The epitome of Black excellence,' says Reinaldo Marcus Green. Green, BA’03, MAT’05 (Flor), didn’t grow up watching or playing tennis."
  5. "Reinaldo Marcus Green on the Disarming Power of Fiction". Musicbed Blog. 24 April 2019. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
  6. "Reinaldo Marcus Green". Filmmaker Magazine. 2015. Retrieved 20 March 2022.
  7. Galuppo, Mia (17 November 2021). "Raising Our Voices: How the 'King Richard' Crew Supported Black Girl Power". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 20 March 2022.
  8. "Reinaldo M. Green". tisch.nyu.edu. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
  9. Travers, Andrew (22 July 2021). "Reinaldo Marcus Green's Big Year". The Aspen Times. Retrieved 20 March 2022.
  10. "Play it By Ear: How Filmmaker Reinaldo Marcus Green Went From Working At Chuck E. Cheese To Playing His Film At Tribeca". Remezcla. 7 October 2015. Retrieved 20 March 2022.
  11. 1 2 3 Kroll, Justin (2019-06-13). "Will Smith's 'King Richard' Movie Finds Director in 'Monsters and Men' Filmmaker". Variety. Retrieved 2020-02-12.
  12. Clarke, Stewart (February 7, 2018). "Berlin: HanWay Boards Sundance Award Winner 'Monsters and Men'".
  13. "Reinaldo Marcus Green". IMDb.
  14. Romney, Jonathan (12 January 2019). "Reinaldo Marcus Green: 'I was asking myself: if I do nothing, am I a monster?'". The Guardian. Retrieved 20 March 2022.
  15. Obenson, Tambay (June 13, 2019). "'King Richard': Will Smith's Drama About Williams Sisters' Father Is His First Pairing With a Black Director".
  16. Luers, Erik (May 10, 2022). ""I Definitely Tried to Shoot This Series Like a Six-Hour Movie": Reinaldo Marcus Green on We Own This City". Filmmaker Magazine. Retrieved February 20, 2024.
  17. Gorber, Jason (February 20, 2024). "Interview: Director Reinaldo Marcus Green talks Bob Marley: One Love". That Shelf. Retrieved February 20, 2024.
  18. Murphy, J. Kim (February 17, 2024). "Box Office: 'Bob Marley: One Love' Gets Together $7.4 Million on Friday, 'Madame Web' Falls Behind With $4.3 Million". Variety. Retrieved February 20, 2024.
  19. Grobar, Matt (March 10, 2022). "'King Richard's Reinaldo Marcus Green To Write, Direct & Produce Family Dramedy For Lionsgate". Deadline. Retrieved February 20, 2024.
  20. Vlessing, Etan (February 25, 2025). "Jon Bernthal to Return in 'Punisher' Special for Marvel and Disney+". The Hollywood Reporter . Archived from the original on February 25, 2025. Retrieved February 25, 2025.