Grant Heslov

Grant Heslov is an American actor and filmmaker known for his producing and writing collaborations with George Clooney, which have earned him four Oscar nominations. As a co-producer of Argo, he received the Academy Award for Best Picture in 2013. As an actor, he has appeared in films including True Lies (1994), Black Sheep (1996), Enemy of the State (1998), and The Scorpion King (2002), as well as performing supporting roles in several films made with Clooney.

Personal life Heslov was raised in the Palos Verdes area of Los Angeles County. His father, Arthur Heslov, was a dentist, and his mother, Jerrie (née Rosen), a businesswoman. He has two older brothers, Steven and Michael. Heslov is Jewish.

He attended Palos Verdes High School, then the University of Southern California . He is a member of Phi Kappa Psi.

Heslov is married to Lysa Hayland-Heslov, a producer.

Career Heslov's acting credits include the films True Lies, Dante's Peak, Enemy of the State, The Scorpion King, Good Night and Good Luck, Congo, Black Sheep, and Catch Me If You Can. He has also appeared in such TV series as Murder, She Wrote, Happy Days, Seinfeld, Family Ties, Spencer, Mama's Family, L.A. Law, Matlock, Sleeper Cell and The X-Files.

In 2001, he joined Section Eight Productions as director of development, and then he became head of the television division when they started its business in 2003.

In August 2006, Heslov and George Clooney started Smokehouse Pictures and began writing screenplays for production. He was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay (with Clooney) and as producer for Best Film for Good Night, and Good Luck. Clooney and Heslov also won the Golden Osella for Best Screenplay for the film. Heslov also appears in the film as Don Hewitt, the director of the TV series See It Now, around which the movie is centered. He directed a screen adaptation of The Men Who Stare at Goats, starring Clooney, Ewan McGregor, Jeff Bridges, and Kevin Spacey and co-produced The American starring Clooney in 2012. He also worked on 2011's The Ides of March. In June 2012, he was invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

In 2013, Heslov, alongside Clooney and Ben Affleck, won the Academy Award for Best Picture for Argo (2012). The three also won the Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Drama and the BAFTA Award for Best Film.

Heslov directed the first and fifth episodes of the 2019 miniseries Catch-22, on which he was also executive producer.

In 2024, it was announced Heslov and George Clooney will co-write and Clooney will star in Good Night, and Good Luck, a Broadway adaptation of the film Good Night, and Good Luck. For the play, he was nominated for a Drama League Award and won the 2025 Outer Critics Circle John Gassner Award for Playwriting with Clooney.

Filmography

Executive producer Playground (2009) (Documentary) The Art of Political Murder (2020) (Documentary) Ticket to Paradise (2022) How to Build a Truth Engine (2023) (Documentary)

Acting roles Year Title RoleNotes 1985 The Journey of Natty GannParker's Gang The Boys Next DoorJoe Gonzales 1986 Legal EaglesUsher 1988 SunsetCar Attendant License to DriveKarl 1989 Dangerous CurvesWally Wilder Catch Me if You CanNevil 1990 Vital SignsRick 1993 SeinfeldCar ThiefEpisode: The Smelly Car 1994 True LiesFaisal 1995 CongoRichard 1996 Black SheepRobbie Mieghem The BirdcageNational Enquirer Photographer 1997 Dante's PeakGreg 1998 Enemy of the StateLenny Waiting for WoodyJosh Silver 2000 Rocket PowerLance (voice)Episode: "Big Air Dare" 2002 BugGordon - Guy in Bug Suit The Scorpion KingArpidJustice LeagueDoctor (voice)Episode: "Injustice for All" 2005 Good Night, and Good LuckDon Hewitt 2008 LeatherheadsSaul Keller 2012 Lost AngelesFilm Producer 2014 The Monuments MenBattlefield Doctor

Awards and nominations