Gillian Flynn (b. 1971) is an American author, screenwriter, and producer best known for her psychological thrillers Sharp Objects (2006), Dark Places (2009), and the global bestseller Gone Girl (2012), which sold over 15 million copies and was adapted into a hit film directed by David Fincher. Her works, translated into 40 languages, are noted for their morally complex female characters.
Born in Kansas City, Missouri, Flynn studied English and journalism at the University of Kansas before earning a master’s from Northwestern’s Medill School of Journalism. She worked as a writer and TV critic at Entertainment Weekly until 2008.
Her career spans novels, short stories (The Grownup), comics (Masks), and screenwriting. She adapted Gone Girl for film, co-wrote Widows (2018), and created Amazon’s Utopia (2020). Sharp Objects was adapted into an acclaimed HBO miniseries. Flynn also founded the Zando imprint Gillian Flynn Books in 2021 and is developing new projects, including an HBO Dark Places series, a film remake of Attack of the 50 Foot Woman with Tim Burton, and her fourth novel.
Flynn lives in Chicago with her husband, lawyer Brett Nolan, and their two children.