Daniel Knauf

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"Wilfred Schmidt" redirects here. For the English footballer who was born Wilfred Schmidt, see Wilf Smith (footballer, born 1946).

Daniel Knauf
Portrait of Daniel Knauf, 2023
Born
United States
Occupations
  • Screenwriter
  • television producer

Daniel Knauf, sometimes credited under the pseudonyms Wilfred Schmidt and Chris Neal, is an American television screenwriter and producer, as well as comic book writer, best known for his creation of the 2003 HBO series Carnivàle.

Early life

Born and raised in

employee benefits consultant and later a health insurance broker, writing once he was able to support himself and his family financially.[2][1]

Origins of Carnivàle

Hoping to become a

polio that confined his father to a wheelchair, which Knauf felt his father was defined by.[3][2] After meeting with a number of television writers at a Writers Guild of America retreat in the mid-90s, he started to think that his screenplay might work as a television piece. He took the first act and reworked it as a television pilot, but shelved the script again when he could not get the project produced.[2]

Career

Knauf went on to write the 1994 HBO-produced

television movie Blind Justice,[5] and, during a low-point in his screenwriting career, created his own website, posting his resume and Carnivàle's first act online.[2] He created the 2001 television pilot Honey Vicarro and was a writer and consulting producer for the television series Wolf Lake. He was also writer and director on the 2002 film Dark Descent (his sole directing credit)[1] before a television production scout brought Carnivàle to television producers Scott Winant and Howard Klein, who brought it to HBO where the series ended up being produced,[5] twelve years after Knauf had first drafted the script.[2]

Since Carnivàle was cancelled in 2005, Knauf has moved on to write for

Supernatural and Standoff, also serving as a co-executive producer on Standoff. He worked as a writer for the Christian Slater drama My Own Worst Enemy
in 2008.

From 2006 to 2008, he and his son Charles Knauf wrote issues #7–18 & #21–28 of Iron Man Vol.4 (later retitled Iron Man: Director of S.H.I.E.L.D.) for Marvel Comics,.[6] In 2008 they wrote a 9 issue The Eternals series.[7][8]

In July 2008, he and Charles had completed & submitted a four-hour

RHI Entertainment, with Paolo Barzman directing.[10]
Ultimately the network did not option it as a series.

He was a consulting producer for the latter part of the first season of historical action drama Spartacus: Blood and Sand. Knauf wrote two episodes for the first season. Knauf co-wrote with Andrea Berloff and Caleb Pinkett the script for a mystery thriller, The Legend of Cain,[11] but it has not been produced.

Knauf was the writer and showrunner of the short-lived

The Blacklist
with the beginning of season two.

Filmography

Daniel Knauf in 2016

Films

Year Title Credit Notes
2012 Bxx: Haunted Writer & executive producer
2002 Dark Descent Writer & director as Wilfred Schmidt

Television

Year Title Credit Notes
2020–2021 The Astronauts Creator, writer & executive producer 9 episodes
2014–2017
The Blacklist
 Writer & co-executive/executive producer 59 episodes
2013–2014 Dracula Writer & executive producer
2010 Spartacus: Blood and Sand Writer & consulting producer 6 episodes
2009 The Phantom Writer 2 episodes
2008 My Own Worst Enemy Writer & co-executive producer 6 episodes
Fear Itself Writer Family Man (#1.3)
2006–2007 Standoff Writer, Consulting Producer & co-executive producer 11 episodes
2006
Supernatural
 Writer Something Wicked (#1.18)
2003–2005 Carnivàle Creator, writer & executive producer 24 episodes
2001–2002 Wolf Lake Writer & consulting producer 7 episodes
2001 Honey Vicarro Writer & executive producer TV movie
1994 Blind Justice Writer

References

  1. ^ a b c "Daniel Knauf: Creator/Executive Producer". HBO. Retrieved May 2, 2008.
  2. ^ a b c d e Tuohy, Wendy (December 16, 2004). "Freaking hell". The Age. Retrieved May 2, 2008.
  3. ^ a b c ""The Making of a Magnificent Delusion": Daniel Knauf". HBO. Archived from the original on June 6, 2008. Retrieved May 2, 2008.
  4. ^ Baird, Jonathan David. "The Enquiring Hitchhiker Interviews Daniel Knauf Creator of the TV Series Carnivale". The Freehold. Retrieved September 5, 2013.
  5. ^ a b Frankel, Daniel (June 16, 2004). "Carnivale: Where mysticism's often meted out in meticulously slow fashion". Variety. Retrieved May 2, 2008.
  6. ^ Weiland, Jonah (September 27, 2005). ""Carnivale" Creator Daniel Knauf to Write "Iron Man"". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved May 2, 2008.
  7. ^ Minnick, Remy (July 27, 2007). "CCI: Charles & Daniel Knauf: Waking Up from An Eternal Slumber". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved May 2, 2008.
  8. ^ "Eternal Glory of the King: Knaufs talk "Eternals"". Comic Book Resources. June 11, 2008.[permanent dead link]
  9. ^ Rogers, Vaneta. "SDCC '08 - The Knaufs Bring the Phantom to Sci Fi", Newsarama, July 29, 2008
  10. ^ "Phantom' Mini-Series Gets Greenlight". Cinema Spy. Retrieved January 13, 2011.
  11. ^ "Image Gallery and Preview of Supernatural Episode 8.04 - Bitten". October 18, 2012.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Daniel Knauf.
Preceded by Iron Man writer
2006–present
(with Charles Knauf) 		Succeeded by
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