Peter Landesman's career in filmmaking and television began after establishing himself as an award-winning painter, novelist, and investigative journalist, with a background as a war correspondent for prominent publications such as the New York Times Magazine, Atlantic Monthly, and New Yorker, among others.
As a journalist, Landesman covered conflicts in Rwanda, Kosovo, and Afghanistan/Pakistan following the 9/11 attacks, and conducted groundbreaking investigations into various topics, including weapons trafficking, sex trafficking and slavery, drug and refugee trafficking, art and antiquities forgery, and con-artistry, as well as the anatomy of street gang violence in Los Angeles.
His journalism earned him two Overseas Press Club awards, considered the magazine world's equivalent of the Pulitzer Prize, for best International and Human Rights reporting.
Landesman has written and directed several films, including Parkland, which explores the immediate aftermath of the JFK assassination in Dallas, and Concussion, starring Will Smith, which tells the story of the whistle-blower who discovered the deadly effects of playing football.
His upcoming projects include The Last Battle, which chronicles the final and perhaps most remarkable battle fought in Europe during World War II, and The Mission, which follows the rescue of three American hostages kidnapped by the FARC in the Colombian Amazon.
Landesman has also written films such as Kill the Messenger, starring Jeremy Renner, and The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, starring Oprah Winfrey. Additionally, he is the creator and director of the upcoming television series, The Department, for AMC.
