Deric Washburn is an American screenwriter.

Washburn graduated from Harvard College in 1959.^[1] He began his career as a playwright, penning the off-Broadway plays Ginger Anne^[2] and The Love Nest.^[3]

He is best known for having written the original screenplay of The Deer Hunter after having co-written the story with Michael Cimino, with whom he had previously worked on scripting the science fiction film, Silent Running in 1971.^[4] The film won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 1978.

Washburn and Cimino spent three days writing the story, and then Washburn spent a month writing the script. Cimino then tried to deny him screenwriting credit. Washburn went to arbitration and was given full credit.^[5]

Filmography

• Silent Running (1971)
• The Deer Hunter (1978)
• The Border (1982)
• Extreme Prejudice (1987)

Unproduced scripts

• Heavy Dust, adapted from Manhunt by Peter Maas^{[citation needed]}
• Gun for Sale, adapted from the book of the same name by Graham Greene^{[citation needed]}
• Warrior, based on a screenplay by Dale Herd and Winston Jones^[6]
• The Murder of Napoleon, adapted from the book of the same name by Ben Weider and David Hapgood^[7]

Awards

As a member of the Actors Studio playwriting project, he received a $1500.00 award from the Edward Albee Foundation in 1964.^[8]

As a writer, Washburn was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Writing (Original Screenplay) and a WGA Award for "Best Drama Written Directly for the Screen" for The Deer Hunter, along with Quinn Redeker, Louis A. Garfinkle and Michael Cimino.^[4][9]