James Vanderbilt
James Platten Vanderbilt (born November 17, 1975) is an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. He is best known for writing the films Zodiac (2007), The Amazing Spider-Man (2012) and its sequel The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014), and Independence Day: Resurgence (2016). He co-wrote, produced, and co-storied Scream (2022), Scream VI (2023) and Scream 7 (2026).
James Vanderbilt

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- Name
- James Vanderbilt
- Birth Name
- James Platten Vanderbilt
- Born
- November 17, 1975
- Education
- University of Southern California
- Occupation
- * Screenwriter
- Nationality
- United States
- Fields
- film production
- Languages
- English
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wikidata · Q919049 · wikipedia · James Vanderbilt
In this article
Biography
Biography
Vanderbilt produced several films, including The House with a Clock in Its Walls (2018), Ready or Not (2019) and Ready or Not 2: Here I Come (2026). He also wrote, directed, and co-produced Truth (2015) and Nuremberg (2025).
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — James Vanderbilt • Birth Name — James Platten Vanderbilt • Born — November 17, 1975 • Education — University of Southern California • Father — Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt III • Relatives — Vanderbilt family • Occupation — * Screenwriter • director • producer • Children — 2
Early life and education
Early life and education
A sixth-generation member of the Vanderbilt family of New York, James is the son of Alison Campbell (née Platten) and Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt III. His paternal great-grandfather Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt Sr. died on the in the 1915 sinking, his paternal grandfather, Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt Jr., once chaired the New York Racing Association, and his maternal grandfather, Donald Campbell Platten, was the chief executive and chairman of Chemical Bank. Journalist Anderson Cooper is his second cousin through Cooper's mother, Gloria Vanderbilt. Vanderbilt was raised in Norwalk, Connecticut, and attended school at New Canaan Country School. He is a graduate of St. Paul's School and the University of Southern California.
Career
Career
His production company, Mythology Entertainment, started in 2011. It was reincorporated as Project X Entertainment in 2019. In May 2016, Mythology acquired intellectual property rights to Slender Man from the character's creator Eric Knudsen. Vanderbilt produced the film Slender Man in 2018. In 2020, Vanderbilt co-wrote the script for Scream, the fifth installment of the Scream franchise. The film was released on January 14, 2022. Vanderbilt's most recent project, Nuremberg, is about the Nuremberg trials and was released on November 7, 2025.
Personal life
Personal life
Vanderbilt has been married to Amber Freeman since 2005, the couple has two children together; Jack and Charles.
Filmography
Filmography
• Year — Title — Writer — Producer — Director — Notes • 2003 — Darkness Falls — Jonathan Liebesman • Basic — John McTiernan • The Rundown — Peter Berg • 2007 — Zodiac — David Fincher • 2010 — The Losers — Sylvain White • 2012 — The Amazing Spider-Man — Marc Webb • 2013 — White House Down — Roland Emmerich • 2014 — The Amazing Spider-Man 2 — Story — Marc Webb • 2015 — Truth — Himself — Directorial debut • 2016 — Independence Day: Resurgence — Roland Emmerich • 2018 — Slender Man — Sylvain White • The House with a Clock in Its Walls — Eli Roth • 2019 — Murder Mystery — Kyle Newacheck • Ready or Not — Matt Bettinelli-Olpin Tyler Gillett — Cameo, Mr. Le Bail • 2022 — Scream • Ambulance — Michael Bay • Bed Rest — Lori Evans Taylor • 2023 — Scream VI — Matt Bettinelli-Olpin Tyler Gillett • Murder Mystery 2 — Jeremy Garelick • 2024 — Abigail — Matt Bettinelli-Olpin Tyler Gillett • 2025 — Fountain of Youth — Guy Ritchie • Nuremberg — Himself • 2026 — Scream 7 — Story — Kevin Williamson • Ready or Not 2: Here I Come — Matt Bettinelli-Olpin Tyler Gillett — Cameo, Mr. Le Bail • 2027 — Untitled The Mummy Returns sequel • TBA — White Elephant — Eli Craig Executive producer • Altered Carbon (2018) • Suspiria (2018) • American Dream/American Knightmare (2018) • The Night Agent (2023)
Text attribution
Licensing
Text attribution
Part of the biographical narrative on this page reuses licensed material. Its origin, revision and licence are recorded here.
The biographical narrative on this page is based on the Wikipedia article James Vanderbilt, revision 1373746424 (EN edition), by its contributors. VALÉORINE has edited that text and built its own documentary record around it. The reused material is available under CC BY-SA 4.0, and this page's reuse of it is offered under the same licence. Everything else on this page — the chronology, the holdings, the evidence, the plates and the connections — is VALÉORINE's own record. Sources and licences.
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Johnston, Laure. Notes on People. The New York Times. December 6, 1975.
- 2.Sps.edu.
- 3.James Vanderbilt goes back in time for David Fincher's Zodiac. www.moviemaker.com.
- 4.Familytreemaker.genealogy.com
- 5.Barron, James. Donald C. Platten, Ex-Chairman Of Chemical Bank, Is Dead at 72. The New York Times. August 27, 1991.
- 6.Hersam Acorn Newspapers Archives. The New Canaan Advertiser. May 5, 2005.
- 7.Saroyan, Strawberry. Amber Freeman and Jamie Vanderbilt. The New York Times. May 22, 2005.
- 8.Fleming, Mike Jr. Phoenix Co-President Bradley Fischer Forms Mythology With Scribes Laeta Kalogridis And James Vanderbilt. Deadline. November 18, 2011.
- 9.Fleming, Mike Jr. James Vanderbilt, William Sherak & Paul Neinstein Launch Project X Entertainment With Spyglass Deal. Deadline. October 30, 2019.
- 10.Rogers, Katie. 'Slender Man,' a Horror Meme, Gets Ready to Step Out of the Shadows. The New York Times. May 6, 2016.
- 11.D'Alessandro, Anthony. Scream: David Arquette Returning As Dewey Riley In Spyglass Media Group Reboot. Deadline Hollywood. May 18, 2020.
- 12.Miska, Brad. Relaunch of 'Scream' Slashing Into Theaters on January 14, 2022!. BloodyDisgusting. August 28, 2020.
- 13.Kroll, Justin. New Scream Movie From Spyglass Media Will Be Released by Paramount (EXCLUSIVE). Variety. June 24, 2020.
- 14.Brew, Caroline. Russell Crowe, Rami Malek and Michael Shannon to Star in Nazi Drama 'Nuremberg'. Variety. 7 December 2023.
- 15.Allan Freeman Obituary (2014) - Los Angeles, CA - Los Angeles Times. Legacy.com.
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James Vanderbilt is recorded as having studied at University of Southern California, St. Connected to 1 other published record in the VALÉORINE Encyclopedia.
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Paul's School and New Canaan Country School
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