Name Eric Red Role Screenwriter | ||
![]() | ||
Full Name Eric Joseph Durdaller Born February 16, 1961 (age 63) ( 1961-02-16 ) Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Spouse Meredith Casey (m. 2004), Taia Redd (m. 1987–1994) Parents Cornelius Gerard Durdaller, Nancy Durdaller Movies 100 Feet, The Hitcher, Bad Moon, Near Dark, Body Parts Similar People Michael Pare, Jake Wade Wall, Kathryn Bigelow, Dave Meyers, Mason Gamble |
100 feet an interview with writer director eric red
Eric Red (born Eric Joseph Durdaller; February 16, 1961) is an American screenwriter and director, best known for writing the horror films The Hitcher and Near Dark, as well as writing and directing Cohen and Tate.
Contents
- 100 feet an interview with writer director eric red
- Chattering with eric red
- Early life
- Writing career
- Fatal car crash
- Filmography
- References

Chattering with eric red
Early life
Red was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the son of Nancy (née Pickhardt) and Cornelius Gerard Durdaller. He attended the AFI Conservatory and graduated in 1983.
Writing career
The first film written by Red was Gunmen's Blues, a short he produced and directed while a student at the AFI Conservatory. He went broke trying to get national distribution for the film and had to drive a cab in New York City for a year to recoup.
His AFI thesis script, The Hitcher, was produced in 1986. A major studio remake of The Hitcher was released in 2007 with Red as a consultant. He wrote the original script to Lost Boys: The Tribe and narrated the film at the 2010 Screamfest Horror Film Festival in Los Angeles.
Eric Red published his first novel, Don't Stand So Close, in 2011.
Fatal car crash
Red was found to be at fault in a car accident that caused two deaths after he drove his truck into a crowded bar in Los Angeles on May 31, 2000. After the accident, Red apparently exited his vehicle, and attempted suicide by slitting his own throat with a piece of broken glass. Red survived the incident and was taken to the hospital under an alias and released weeks later. No criminal charges were brought, but a jury in a civil suit found that he had acted intentionally. The suit, which awarded over a million dollars to the families of the two men killed in the accident, was appealed to state and federal courts, which confirmed the original jury finding.