---
name: "August Wilson"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/august-wilson"
roles: ["Writer"]
born: "27 April 1945"
died: "2 October 2005"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 2
average_fi1m_score: 68
average_as: "writer"
average_over: 2
updated: "2026-09-20T07:47:13.880496+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# August Wilson

Writer. Born 27 April 1945 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. Died 2 October 2005.

## Details

- **Work:** Writer
- **Born:** 27 April 1945, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
- **Died:** 2 October 2005
- **Academy Awards:** 1 Oscar nomination
- **Average Fi1m score:** 68, as writer, over 2 titles
- **Fi1m score by decade:** 2010s 70 (1), 2020s 65 (1)
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/August_Wilson, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q764812, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0933025/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/1238222

## Biography

August Wilson (27 April 1945 – 2 October 2005) was an American playwright. He is best known for a series of ten plays, collectively known as the Pittsburgh Cycle, which chronicle the experiences of African Americans in the 20th century.

His play *Fences* (1985) received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and the Tony Award for Best Play. *The Piano Lesson* (1987) also won the Pulitzer Prize. Wilson received a posthumous Academy Award nomination for the screenplay of the 2016 film adaptation of *Fences*, directed by and starring Denzel Washington.

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, britannica.com.*

## On Fi1m (2)

- *The Piano Lesson* (2024), Fi1m 65, Theatre Play — [page](https://film.one/film/the-piano-lesson.md)
- *Fences* (2016), Fi1m 70, Screenplay, Theatre Play — [page](https://film.one/film/fences.md)

## Complete filmography (6)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *The Piano Lesson* (2024), Theatre Play — Fi1m 65, [page](https://film.one/film/the-piano-lesson.md)
- *Ma Rainey's Black Bottom* (2020), Theatre Play
- *Fences* (2016), Theatre Play, Screenplay — Fi1m 70, [page](https://film.one/film/fences.md)
- *The Piano Lesson* (1995), Teleplay, Original Story, Producer
- *Wylie Avenue Days* (1991), as Interviewee
- *Hallmark Hall of Fame* (1951), series, Writer

## Awards

### Academy Awards — 0 won, 1 nominated

- 2017: Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay (nominated), for *Fences*

### Primetime Emmy Awards — 0 won, 1 nominated

- 1995: Outstanding Television Movie (nominated), for *Hallmark Hall of Fame*

### Other awards — 14 won, 17 nominated

- Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play 2007: Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play (nominated)
- Tony Award for Best Play 2007: Tony Award for Best Play (nominated)
- Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards 2005: Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards (won)
- Tony Award for Best Play 2005: Tony Award for Best Play (nominated)
- Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Play 2002: Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Play (won)
- Tony Award for Best Play 2001: Tony Award for Best Play (nominated)
- Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play 2000: Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play (nominated)
- Pulitzer Prize for Drama 2000: Pulitzer Prize for Drama (nominated), for *King Hedley II*
- National Humanities Medal 1999: National Humanities Medal (won)
- Black Literary Hall of Fame 1998: Black Literary Hall of Fame (won)
- Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play 1996: Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play (nominated)
- Tony Award for Best Play 1996: Tony Award for Best Play (nominated)
- Pulitzer Prize for Drama 1995: Pulitzer Prize for Drama (nominated), for *Seven Guitars*
- American Book Awards 1992: American Book Awards (won)
- Pulitzer Prize for Drama 1992: Pulitzer Prize for Drama (nominated), for *Two Trains Running*
- Tony Award for Best Play 1992: Tony Award for Best Play (nominated)
- Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame 1991: Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame (won)
- St. Louis Literary Award 1991: St. Louis Literary Award (won)
- Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play 1990: Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play (won)
- Pulitzer Prize for Drama 1990: Pulitzer Prize for Drama (won), for *The Piano Lesson*
- Tony Award for Best Play 1990: Tony Award for Best Play (nominated)
- Pulitzer Prize for Drama 1989: Pulitzer Prize for Drama (nominated), for *The Piano Lesson*
- Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play 1988: Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play (nominated)
- Tony Award for Best Play 1988: Tony Award for Best Play (nominated)
- Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play 1987: Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play (won)
- Pulitzer Prize for Drama 1987: Pulitzer Prize for Drama (won), for *Fences*
- Tony Award for Best Play 1987: Tony Award for Best Play (won), for *Fences*
- Whiting Award (Drama) 1986: Whiting Award (Drama) (won)
- Whiting Awards 1986: Whiting Awards (won)
- Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play 1985: Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play (nominated)
- Tony Award for Best Play 1985: Tony Award for Best Play (nominated)

*From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.*

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/august-wilson