Walter Hill is the author, and later director, of moody, extremely stylized, almost existential action films. His protagonists are silent loners with strong moral codes; other characters are usually little more than stereotypes, and his plots are deceptively simple. Hill sees all his screenwriting as mere reworkings of the film themes that intrigued him as a youth: "I'm always making Westerns. But Hollywood has decided that people don't like Westerns anymore, so I have to make these other movies and pretend they're not Westerns." His films are not just rooted in Westerns, but in American film noir and Japanese samurai films, and even as he reworks established themes, he creates his own unique and original work.

Hill was born in Long Beach, California, and educated at the University of the Americas in Mexico City and at Michigan State University. After graduating, he worked odd jobs, including construction work...