Joe Robert Cole
# Joe Robert Cole

Joe Robert Cole (born January 1, 1980) is an American filmmaker and actor. He is best known for his Emmy Award-nominated and Writers Guild of America Award-winning work on the first season of the true crime anthology television series American Crime Story, titled The People v. O. J. Simpson, and for co-writing the film Black Panther and its sequel, Wakanda Forever.

## Early life

Cole, an only child, moved around a lot growing up, which he felt "prepared" him to be a writer, a desire he only discovered during college. He soon applied to the University of California, Berkeley.

## Career

During his tenure at the university, Cole entered the film business, working as a writer on the 2006 film ATL, although not receiving a credit. In 2011, he released his first feature film as a director and writer, Amber Lake.

### Marvel Studios' program

After writing a "Chinatown-style cop script", Cole was invited to a meeting with Marvel Studios, where he was told that they had plans of doing a movie about the character War Machine. He pitched a story and was chosen to write the film, but, according to him, "they decided, based on what Iron Man 3 was going to be, they weren't going to do War Machine anymore." Marvel subsequently invited him to join its writers program.

In regards to the program, Cole said:

   The way it works—and I'm only speaking for myself here—is they give you an office and a character. You read all the comics with that character, then you come up with a story you see for that character. You present it, get notes and if everything moves along, you're greenlit to write the script.

In 2014, Cole wrote a script for a projected movie about the Inhumans.

### Television

In 2016, the television series American Crime Story was released. Cole served as co-producer of the first season, The People v. O. J. Simpson, and wrote two episodes, "The Race Card" (for which he was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Limited Series, Movie or a Dramatic Special) and "A Jury in Jail".

### Black Panther

While working on The People v. O. J. Simpson, Cole was approached by Marvel Studios' producer Nate Moore, wanting to know if he was willing to write a film about Black Panther. He immediately accepted. Cole was part of a competition, but was ultimately chosen to write the screenplay with director Ryan Coogler.

## Filmography

### Film

| Year | Title | Director | Writer | Notes |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| 2011 | Amber Lake | Yes | Yes | Also editor |
| 2018 | Black Panther | No | Yes | |
| 2020 | All Day and a Night | Yes | Yes | |
| 2022 | Black Panther: Wakanda Forever | No | Yes | |
| — | Untitled Snoop Dogg biopic film | No | Yes | In-development |

Acting role

* White Dwarf (2014) (As Joe)

### Television

| Year | Title | Director | Producer | Writer | Notes |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 2016 | The People v. O. J. Simpson: American Crime Story | No | Yes | Yes | Wrote episodes "The Race Card" and "A Jury in Jail" |
| 2023 | Class of '09 | Yes | Executive | No | 3 episodes |

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Title | Award/Nomination |
| - | - | - |
| 2016 | The People v. O. J. Simpson: American Crime Story | Black Reel Award for Outstanding Screenplay in a TV Movie or Limited Series ("The Race Card") Writers Guild of America Award for Television: Long Form – Adapted Nominated–Black Reel Award for Outstanding Screenplay in a TV Movie or Limited Series ("A Jury in Jail") Nominated–Image Award for Outstanding Writing in a Drama Series ("The Race Card") Nominated–Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Limited Series, Movie or a Dramatic Special ("The Race Card") |
