David Ayer

David Ayer (born January 18, 1968) is an American filmmaker. Born in Champaign, Illinois, Ayer grew up in Los Angeles, California, where his experiences in South Central Los Angeles became the inspiration for many of his screenplays.

Ayer made his breakthrough with his screenplay to Training Day, directed by Antoine Fuqua, and made his directorial debut with Harsh Times. Ayer wrote and directed End of Watch, which was acclaimed for its realistic portrayal of Los Angeles police.

Ayer's other films include Fury, The Tax Collector, Sabotage, Suicide Squad, The Beekeeper, and A Working Man.

Early life and education

Ayer was born in Champaign, Illinois, on January 18, 1968, and grew up in Bloomington, Minnesota, and Bethesda, Maryland, where he was kicked out of his house by his parents as a teenager. Ayer lived with his cousin in Los Angeles, California, where his experiences in South Central Los Angeles became the inspiration for many of his films. Ayer dropped out of high school and painted houses for a living. Ayer enlisted in the U.S. Navy as a submarine sonar technician (STS) aboard the USS Haddo (SSN-604). He has spoken favorably about his time in the Navy and has credited it with his successful filmmaking career. His grandfather was also in the Navy in the 1950s. He told BBC Radio 4's The Film Programme that he "did not feel good" about suggesting that Americans, rather than the British, had captured the naval Enigma cipher: "It was a distortion ... a mercenary decision ... to create this parallel history in order to drive the film for an American audience. Both my grandparents were officers in the Second World War, and I would be personally offended if somebody distorted their achievements."

Ayer's directorial debut was with a film he also wrote, Harsh Times -- an action-drama set on the streets of South Central Los Angeles, showing how drug use and past military experiences affects people's attempts to lead normal lives. He went on to direct the action thriller Street Kings, which was released in 2008.

Ayer later wrote and directed End of Watch, an action thriller about the daily lives of two South Central Los Angeles policemen, played by Jake Gyllenhaal and Michael Peña. The film was released in the fall of 2012 to profitable box-office returns and favorable reception from critics, with Roger Ebert naming it as the fourth-best film of 2012, hailing it as "one of the best police movies in recent years". His next film was the action thriller Sabotage, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger; the film was released on March 28, 2014. He wrote and directed the World War II-set action film, Fury, starring Brad Pitt, Shia LaBeouf and Logan Lerman; the film was released in October 2014.

Ayer wrote and directed the film adaptation of the comic book Suicide Squad, which was released on August 5, 2016. The film, along with Ayer's directing, received negative reviews, though it became his most commercially successful film to date.

Ayer also directed Bright, "a contemporary cop thriller, but with fantastical elements", starring Will Smith and Joel Edgerton with a script penned by Max Landis that Ayer rewrote. Netflix picked up the film for a $90 million deal. The film was released on December 22, 2017. On January 3, 2018, Netflix confirmed they were moving ahead with the sequel for Bright, with Smith and Edgerton reprising their roles and Ayer directing and writing the script with Evan Spiliotopoulos, the filming of which began in March 2019. This ultimately did not happen due to Will Smith's schedule, and on May 5, 2020, he was replaced with Louis Leterrier as Ayer wanted to focus on The Dirty Dozen remake for Warner Bros.

On December 13, 2016, Ayer was brought on board to direct the spin-off of Suicide Squad, Gotham City Sirens, which evolved into Birds of Prey, directed by Cathy Yan, and starring Margot Robbie reprising her role of Harley Quinn. Gotham City Sirens remained in development, but as of April 2021, Gotham City Sirens has been put on pause.

Ayer established Cedar Park Entertainment on January 4, 2018, with former head of programming at Audience Network, Chris Long. Primarily established to produce films and television shows, the first film Cedar Park produced was 2020's The Tax Collector, Ayer's second collaboration with actor Shia LaBeouf. On June 21, 2018, it set a first look deal with Entertainment One, and it will cover television series, both scripted and unscripted.

In May 2022, Ayer signed on to direct action thriller The Beekeeper for Miramax, written by Kurt Wimmer and starring Jason Statham, with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer later acquiring domestic distribution rights. In October 2023, it was announced that Ayer and Statham would reunite to work on A Working Man, from a screenplay by Sylvester Stallone and Ayer, based on the novel Levon's Trade by Chuck Dixon, with production expected to begin in March 2024.

Filmography Film Year Title Director Writer Producer 2000 U-571 2001 Training Day The Fast and the Furious 2002 Dark Blue 2003 S.W.A.T. 2005 Harsh Times 2008 Street Kings 2012 End of Watch 2014 Sabotage Fury 2016 Suicide Squad 2017 Bright 2020 The Tax Collector 2024 The Beekeeper 2025 A Working Man 2026 Heart of the Beast

Cameo roles

Unrealized projects Year Title and description2000sSquids, a coming-of-age story set on a nuclear submarine during the waning days of the Cold War. The Wild Bunch, a modern-day remake of the 1969 film for Warner Bros. Pictures Ayer had written his own script, "updating the tale", according to Film Review. Mafia Cop, A film based on the life and story of Louis Eppolito, who was convicted of murdering for the mob while serving as an NYPD detective. A remake of The Wild Geese that would’ve been directed by Rupert Sanders Armored, an American remake of the 2004 French thriller Cash Truck with Andrew Kevin Walker as co-writer and F. Gary Gray to direct. The film would eventually be directed and co-written by Guy Ritchie and released as Wrath of Man. A feature film adaptation of the Wired article "Deep Sea Cowboys," about a deep-sea salvage crew. Last Man, a science fiction action film for New Regency and 20th Century Fox. 2010sA reboot of Commando for 20th Century Fox. An untitled series about U.S. Special Forces soldiers who take on new lives undercover inside the LA underworld. A remake of Scarface for Universal Pictures from a screenplay by Jonathan Herman and the Coen brothers. Family Crimes, a Latina crime drama series for Starz that Ayer was set to direct, write, and executive produce alongside Jerry Bruckheimer, Jonathan Littman, and KristieAnne Reed. The Bone Church, a television series adaptation of Stephen King's poem that Ayer was set to executive produce with Chris Long. Cointelpro, a script written by Leon Hendrix and Ajani Jackson that’s set in 1960s Chicago and centers on a campaign to tear apart the young Civil Rights movement from the inside. Sons and Soldiers, a television adaptation of Bruce Anderson's World War II novel, Ayer was also set to direct the pilot episode and produce. Major Crimes, an anthology series that would follow the most daring heists, robberies, and crimes in Los Angeles history. Ayer would’ve executive produced alongside Chris Long and Tucker Tooley. A war film about the Second Battle of El Alamein for Lionsgate Films from a screenplay by James Coyne. DEA, a crime drama written by Craig Gore that Ayer was going to executive produce for eOne and Fox Entertainment Troubleshooter, a high-octane, off-beat family soap written by Sheri Elwood North Hollywood, a film based on the deadly 1997 North Hollywood shootout that Ayer would’ve produced and was to be directed by Albert Hughes. The Dirty Dozen, a contemporary-set reboot of 1967 film of the same name that was going to be a co-production between Genre Films and Warner Bros. Pictures. 2020sSix Years, a feature film adaptation of Harlan Coben's novel for Netflix, with Ayer also set to produce the film with his Cedar Point Entertainment partner Chris Long. End of Watch, a television adaptation of the 2012 film that Ayer was set to executive produce and co-write a pilot for Fox. Lollipop, a racing series that will invite audiences to actively participate in a virtual racing circuit linked to the plot.