Jonathan Benjamin Hurwitz (born November 15, 1977) is an American screenwriter, director, and producer best known for his work on Cobra Kai (with Hayden Schlossberg and Josh Heald), the Harold & Kumar films, and American Reunion (with Schlossberg).
Early life
Hurwitz was born in Byram, New Jersey, and lived there for two years. He then moved to Roxbury for 5 years, although following that he grew up mostly in Upper St. Clair Township, Pennsylvania and Randolph, New Jersey. As Schlossberg (who was in college at The University of Chicago) frequently came to visit, he got to know Heald as well.
The idea for the first Harold and Kumar film, Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle developed while they were living in Los Angeles. Hurwitz and Schlossberg decided to write a low-budget stoner film and base the main characters on their high school friends from Randolph High School. They based the character of Harold on their real-life friend Harold Lee. Hurwitz got the idea to base the film around White Castle from his own experience craving White Castle burgers when he lived in Pennsylvania for several years. At the time, Pennsylvania did not have any White Castle locations and Hurwitz had to have family members bring him frozen White Castle burgers from New Jersey. It was later followed by Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay and A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas. They also wrote and directed the fourth theatrical entry in the American Pie franchise, writing and directing American Reunion (2012). In 2015, the trio signed a deal with Lionsgate.
They currently work on Cobra Kai, a continuation of The Karate Kid franchise. Hurwitz & Schlossberg created the show, along with their close friend Josh Heald. The trio serve as executive producers, show runners, writers, and directors on the series. As of 2021, he and his friend Hayden Schlossberg, along with Josh Heald via Counterbalance Entertainment has signed a deal with Sony Pictures Television.
Filmography
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Year
! Title
! Director
! Writer
! Producer
! class="unsortable"| Notes
|-
| 2004 || Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle || || || ||
|-
|rowspan=2| 2008 || Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay || || || ||
|-
| Harold & Kumar Go to Amsterdam || || || || short film
|-
| 2011 ||A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas || || || ||
|-
| 2012 ||American Reunion || || || ||
|-
| 2018 || Blockers || || || ||
|-
| 2018−2025 || Cobra Kai || || || ||Also co-creator
|-
| 2021 || Plan B || || || ||
|-
| 2023 || Obliterated || || || ||
|-
| 2026 || 72 Hours || || || ||
|}
See also
- Hayden Schlossberg
- Josh Heald