Ridley Scott

Sir Ridley Scott was born on November 30, 1937, in London, England. A celebrated film director, screenwriter, and producer, Scott is renowned for his atmospheric visual style across various genres such as science fiction, crime, and historical epics. With a career spanning decades, he stands among the highest-grossing directors worldwide, amassing $5 billion in global box office earnings.

Scott began his journey at the prestigious Royal College of Art before entering the world of television, where he started as a designer and director. He then moved into advertising as a commercial director before making his feature film debut with The Duellists (1977). His next venture, Alien (1979), brought him widespread recognition and cemented his place in cinematic history.

Throughout his illustrious career, Scott's films have showcased memorable imagery of diverse urban environments - from 2nd-century Rome in Gladiator (2000) to its 2024 sequel, 12th-century Jerusalem in Kingdom of Heaven (2005), medieval England in Robin Hood (2010), ancient Memphis in Exodus: Gods and Kings (2014), contemporary Mogadishu in Black Hawk Down (2001) to futuristic cityscapes of Los Angeles in Blade Runner (1982) and extraterrestrial worlds in Alien, Prometheus (2012), The Martian (2015), and Alien: Covenant (2017).

Scott has been nominated for three Academy Awards - Directing for Thelma & Louise, Gladiator, and Black Hawk Down. Gladiator won the Academy Award for Best Picture, while The Martian received a nomination in the same category. In 1995, Scott and his brother Tony received a British Academy Film Award for Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema.

His influential films Alien, Blade Runner, and Thelma & Louise were selected for preservation by the Library of Congress due to their cultural, historical, or aesthetic significance. In 2004, Scott ranked 10th on a BBC list of most influential people in British culture.

In addition to his film work, Ridley Scott has made significant contributions to television, earning ten Primetime Emmy Award nominations. He won twice - for Outstanding Television Film for the HBO film The Gathering Storm (2002) and Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Special for the History Channel's Gettysburg (2011). He was also nominated for RKO 281 (1999), The Andromeda Strain (2008), and The Pillars of the Earth (2010).

In recognition of his extraordinary talent and achievements, Scott was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 2003 and appointed a Knight Grand Cross by King Charles III in 2024.