Tracy Oliver

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Tracy Oliver
EducationStanford University (BA)
University of Southern California (MFA)
Occupation(s)Writer, producer, director, actress

Tracy Yvonne Oliver is an American film and television writer, producer, director, and actress. Oliver originally starred in the web series The Mis-Adventures of Awkward Black Girl, before serving as a staff writer on ABC's The Neighbors and STARZ's Survivor's Remorse.

Oliver has co-written three movies: Barbershop: The Next Cut (2016), Girls Trip (2017), and Little (2019), with Girls Trip making her the first African-American woman to write a film that grossed over US$100 million.[1] Oliver also created and wrote the BET television series First Wives Club and wrote the screenplay to the 2019 film adaptation of The Sun Is Also a Star.[2] Oliver also runs a production company, Tracy Yvonne Productions.[3]

Career[edit]

Oliver is an alum of Stanford University, where she double majored in American Studies and Drama. After graduating from Stanford, Oliver attended the USC School of Cinematic Arts and graduated in 2010 with a Master's of Fine Arts in Producing for Film, Television and New Media (now known as the Peter Stark Producing Program). After earning her Masters, Oliver created the black theater company Black Stage.[4][5] She portrayed Nina, the antagonist to Issa Rae's "J", in Rae's 2011-12 web series The Mis-Adventures of Awkward Black Girl.[5] In addition to acting in Awkward Black Girl, Oliver also served as a writer and producer.[5] Oliver wrote and circulated a spec script for a movie called Marriage Is for White People.[4] The script got the attention of Dan Fogelman, who then hired her as a staff writer on ABC's The Neighbors.[4] Oliver then became a staff writer and story editor on STARZ's Survivor's Remorse.[6][4]

Oliver partnered with Black-ish creator Kenya Barris to write the comedies Barbershop: The Next Cut (2016), starring Ice Cube and Cedric the Entertainer. The movie received positive reviews and grossed $55 million on a budget of $20 million. Oliver and Barris then co-wrote Girls Trip (2017), starring Queen Latifah, Regina Hall, Jada Pinkett Smith, and Tiffany Haddish.[1] Girls Trip received positive reviews and grossed over $140 million worldwide, making Oliver the first African-American woman to write a film that grossed over $100 million.[1]

She re-teamed with Barris on the 2019 film Little, which he co-produced and she co-wrote; she also received a "story by" credit.[7] She also wrote the screenplay of the 2019 film The Sun Is Also a Star, based on Nicola Yoon's novel.

Oliver also created and wrote the BET television series First Wives Club.[2] She directed an episode of the show, making her directorial debut.

Oliver serves as creator, writer, and executive producer of the Amazon Studios half-hour television series Harlem,[8] a single camera comedy starring Meagan Good, Grace Byers, Jerrie Johnson and Shoniqua Shandai.[9] Malcolm D. Lee, who directed Girl's Trip, directed the first two episodes.[9]

A follow-up to Girl's Trip is reportedly in the works, with Oliver having written a treatment for it.[10] Oliver has also been reported to be writing a reboot to the 1995 film Clueless.[11]

Oliver was included on the 2020 Ebony Power 100 List.[12] More recently, she signed an overall deal with Apple.[13]

Filmography[edit]

Television[edit]

Year(s) Series Functioned as Ref.
Writer Creator Executive producer Actress Director
2011–2012 The Mis-Adventures of Awkward Black Girl Yes No No Yes[a] No [4]
2012–2013 The Neighbors Yes No No No No [14]
2014–2015 Survivor's Remorse Yes[b] No No No No [15]
2019–2021 First Wives Club Yes Yes Yes No Yes [16]
2021 Harlem Yes Yes Yes No No [17]

Film[edit]

Year Film Functioned as Notes Ref.
Writer Executive producer Director
2016 Barbershop: The Next Cut Yes No No [15]
2017 Girls Trip Yes No No [4]
Trip Yes No Yes Short film [18]
2019 Little Yes No No [19]
The Sun Is Also a Star Yes Yes No [20]
2022 The Blackening Yes No No [21]

Notes

  1. ^ Lead role as Nina, 13 episodes.
  2. ^ Credited as executive story editor.

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c "'Girls Trip' screenwriter Tracy Oliver talks making movie history". NBC News. 26 October 2017. Retrieved 2018-02-07.
  2. ^ a b Lopez, Kristen. "Tracy Oliver Brings The Past Back With 'First Wives Club' And More". Forbes. Retrieved 2020-04-16.
  3. ^ "BET Networks Partners With Tracy Oliver's Production Company, Tracy Yvonne Productions, on the Return of "PROJECT CRE8"". www.businesswire.com. 2020-01-27. Retrieved 2020-04-16.
  4. ^ a b c d e f Obenson, Tambay (2019-05-16). "'Girls Trip' Screenwriter Tracy Oliver Has a Winning Strategy: Show Nerve". IndieWire. Retrieved 2020-04-16.
  5. ^ a b c "Writer Tracy Oliver Opens Up About Issa Rae, 'First Wives Club' And Her Real 'Girls Trip'". Essence.com. Retrieved 2018-02-07.
  6. ^ "Tracy Oliver Rewrites the Script for Her Career". Retrieved 2018-02-07.
  7. ^ Harriot, Michael (January 9, 2019). "#BlackGirlMagic: Black-ish Star Marsai Martin Set to Become Youngest Executive Producer in Hollywood History". The Grapevine. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
  8. ^ Jacobs, Meredith (14 January 2020). "Amazon Studios Announces Cast for Untitled Tracy Oliver Project". TV Insider. Retrieved 2020-04-16.
  9. ^ a b "Tracy Oliver Sets Main Cast for Amazon Comedy Series, Reunites With 'Girls Trip' Director Malcolm D Lee". TheWrap. 2020-01-14. Retrieved 2020-04-16.
  10. ^ Lattanzio, Ryan (2020-03-29). "Tiffany Haddish Says She and Her 'Girls Trip' Co-Stars Are Blazing Ahead on a Sequel". IndieWire. Retrieved 2020-04-16.
  11. ^ Harris, Hunter (2019-06-19). "Little's Tracy Oliver Is Rewriting All Your Favorite Movies. Clueless Is Next". Vulture. Retrieved 2020-04-16.
  12. ^ #teamEBONY (2020-02-26). "2020 EBONY POWER 100 LIST". EBONY. Retrieved 2020-11-10.
  13. ^ "Tracy Oliver Inks Eight-Figure Overall Deal at Apple". The Hollywood Reporter. 2021-03-25. Retrieved 2021-03-27.
  14. ^ White, Peter (March 25, 2021). "Tracy Oliver Lands Eight-Figure Overall Deal With Apple". Deadline. Retrieved November 12, 2021.
  15. ^ a b Penrice, Ronda Racha (April 15, 2016). "Meet Tracy Oliver, Who Will Make You Laugh at Barbershop: The Next Cut". The Root. Retrieved November 12, 2021.
  16. ^ Turchiano, Danielle (June 23, 2020). "Tracy Oliver on Finding the Humor, Heart and Heist of 'First Wives Club'". Variety. Retrieved November 12, 2021.
  17. ^ Jones, Marcus (3 November 2021). "Harlem trailer touts guest stars Whoopi Goldberg, Jasmine Guy, and a Cousin Skeeter reunion". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2 December 2021.
  18. ^ Williams, Aaron (September 20, 2017). "Jhene Aiko Searches For Love And Closure In Her Short Film 'Trip'". Uproxx. Retrieved November 12, 2021.
  19. ^ Sharf, Zack (April 22, 2019). "'Little' Screenwriter Speaks Out Against Film's 'Insensitive' Transphobic Joke: 'I Did Not Write It'". IndieWire. Retrieved November 12, 2021.
  20. ^ Galuppo, Mia; Sun, Rebecca (May 31, 2018). "'Riverdale' Star Charles Melton Joins Yara Shahidi in 'The Sun Is Also a Star' (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved November 12, 2021.
  21. ^ Radheyan Simonpillai, "TIFF 2022: The Blackening is horror comedy, not trauma porn" Archived 2022-09-25 at the Wayback Machine. Now, September 9, 2022.

External links[edit]

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