Scott Derrickson

Biography:

Scott Derrickson was raised in Denver, Colorado. He earned a double B.A. from Biola University—one in Humanities with a focus on philosophy and literature, and another in Communications with an emphasis on film, along with a minor in theology. He later completed his graduate studies at the USC School of Cinema-Television.

His first feature film was Hellraiser: Inferno, the fifth entry in the Hellraiser franchise, which went straight to video in 2000. Afterward, Derrickson and his writing partner Paul Harris Boardman spent several years doing script rewrites for various studios. Derrickson has said that although he was paid to write or revise 13 screenplays, none of them were produced, leaving him feeling creatively unfulfilled since his work was seen only by a small number of studio executives. Some of the unproduced screenplays he and Boardman worked on included Future Tense, The Mystic, Ghosting, and Mindbender.

Derrickson co-wrote and directed The Exorcism of Emily Rose, loosely inspired by the real-life case of Anneliese Michel. The film became a major hit, earning more than $144 million worldwide and landing on the Chicago Film Critics Association’s list of the “Top 100 Scariest Films Ever Made.” It also won the Saturn Award for Best Horror Film.

He went on to direct the 2008 remake of The Day the Earth Stood Still, starring Keanu Reeves and Jennifer Connelly. The movie earned more than $233 million worldwide.

In 2011, Derrickson collaborated with producer Jason Blum to write and direct the horror hit Sinister, starring Ethan Hawke. Made on a modest $3 million budget, the film received strong reviews and grossed more than $78 million globally. Derrickson co-wrote, but did not direct, the sequel.

His next project, Deliver Us from Evil (2014), was produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and based on Ralph Sarchie’s nonfiction book Beware the Night. Marketed as being inspired by true accounts, the film earned nearly $88 million on a $30 million budget.

Derrickson then directed Doctor Strange (2016) for Marvel Studios. The film was both a critical and commercial success and won the Saturn Award for Best Comic-to-Film Motion Picture. He was originally set to return for the sequel, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, with a release targeted for 2021. However, he stepped away from directing in early 2020 due to creative differences, though he stayed on as an executive producer. Leaving the project allowed him to concentrate on The Black Phone.

In 2021, Derrickson directed The Black Phone, adapted from Joe Hill’s short story and co-written with C. Robert Cargill. Reuniting with Ethan Hawke and James Ransone, the film was released in June 2022 to strong reviews. Derrickson has described the movie as deeply personal, rooted in themes he explored through years of therapy and connected to painful experiences from his own childhood. The film went on to win multiple awards, including several Saturn Awards, Fangoria Chainsaw Awards, and the Bram Stoker Award for Best Screenplay.

Derrickson wrote and directed the “Dreamkill” segment for the 2023 horror anthology V/H/S/85, which later received the Fangoria Chainsaw Award for Best Streaming Premiere.

In 2024, he completed The Gorge for Skydance Media, with Apple TV+ acquiring distribution rights. The film stars Anya Taylor-Joy, Miles Teller, and Sigourney Weaver.

In 2025, Derrickson returned to direct The Black Phone 2, working from his own script. Released on October 27th, the sequel became both a critical and commercial success.