Neil Labute is an American film director, screenwriter and playwright. Born Neil L. Labute on March 19, 1963 in Detroit, Michigan, USA, he was raised in Spokane, Washington. He went to Brigham Young University (BYU) to study theater, where he met actor Aaron Eckhart, who became one of the leading stars in some of his films.

Labute earned his Master of Fine Arts degree in dramatic writing from New York University, and was the recipient of a literary fellowship to study at the Royal Court Theatre. He also did graduate work at the University of Kansas, New York University, and the Royal Academy of London.

Among Labute’s films included In the Company of Men, a recipient of New York Critics Circle Award for Best First Feature and Filmmaker’s Trophy at the Sundance Film Festival, Your Friends and Neighbors, Nurse Betty, Possession, The Shape of Things, a film adaptation of his play with the same title, The Wicker Man, Lakeview Terrace and Death at a Funeral. His plays included Bash: Reasons to be Pretty, Latter-Day plays, The Shape of Things, The Distance From Here, The Mercy Seat, Autobahn, This Is How It Goes, Some Girl(s), Wrecks, In a Dark Dark House, Helter Skelter, The Furies and The War on Terror.

As an author, LaBute has worked on several fictional pieces which have been published in The New Yorker, The New York Times, Harper’s Bazaar and Playboy to name a few. The Grove/Atlantic has published a collection of his short stories.