Neal Marshall Stevens is an American screenwriter, author, teacher and writer, best known for writing several Hollywood horror films such as Thirteen Ghosts.
Neal Marshall Stevens | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Screenwriter, educator |
| Known for | Hellraiser: Deader Thirteen Ghosts |
Stevens studied at NYU’s Graduate School of Film and Television.
He began his career on Laurel Entertainment’s series, Monsters which aired from 1988 to 1991.[1] He went on to work as Laurel’s Senior Story editor on other projects, including The Vernon Johns Story, Precious Victims and Stephen King’s The Stand. He wrote Thirteen Ghosts, a 2001 remake of the 1960 film 13 Ghosts by William Castle, for Dark Castle Entertainment.[2] In the US, the film opened ranking 2nd, making $15,165,355.[3] His original screenplay, Deader was bought by to Dimension Pictures, and subsequently produced as Hellraiser: Deader, a 2005 sequel in the long-running horror franchise created by Clive Barker.[4][5]
Into the late 2000s and 2010s, much of Stevens' output would veer towards direct-to-video releases. He would write Puppet Master: Axis Termination, the twelfth film in the titular series for Full Moon Pictures, and the later sequel Blade: The Iron Cross in 2020.
In 2012, Stevens wrote the comic Havoc Brigade.[6] In 2022, Stevens published a screenwriting manual, A Sense of Dread: Getting Under the Skin of Horror Screenwriting.[7][8] The book draws from his extensive film experience and analyzes concepts of fear and how they can be applied in cinema. He also teaches screenwriting at Maharashi International University [9]