---
name: "Graham Yost"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/graham-yost"
fi1m_id: "graham-yost"
imdb_id: "nm0003662"
tmdb_id: 21206
wikidata_id: "Q2712978"
roles: ["Writer","Producer","Director"]
born: "5 September 1959"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 13
average_fi1m_score: 68
average_as: "writer"
average_over: 8
updated: "2026-10-05T01:28:27.502839+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."
---

# Graham Yost

## Identity

Graham Yost

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/graham-yost
- **Type:** Person
- **Fi1m ID:** graham-yost
- **IMDb ID:** nm0003662
- **TMDB ID:** 21206
- **Wikidata ID:** Q2712978
- **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graham_Yost, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q2712978, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0003662/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/21206

Writer and producer. Born 5 September 1959 in Etobicoke, Greater Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

## Details

- **Work:** Writer, Producer, Director
- **Born:** 5 September 1959, Etobicoke, Greater Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- **Active:** 1994–present
- **Also known as:** Graham John Yost, جراهام يوست
- **Titles on Fi1m:** 13: 1 directing, 8 writing, 4 producing
- **Frequently works with:** [Mark Gordon](https://film.one/person/mark-gordon.md), [Bruce McKenna](https://film.one/person/bruce-c-mckenna.md), [Christian Slater](https://film.one/person/christian-slater.md), [David Nutter](https://film.one/person/david-nutter.md), [Fred Golan](https://film.one/person/fred-golan.md), [Ingrid Escajeda](https://film.one/person/ingrid-escajeda.md), [Michael Dinner](https://film.one/person/michael-dinner.md), [Mikael Salomon](https://film.one/person/mikael-salomon.md)
- **Average Fi1m score:** 68, as writer, over 8 titles
- **Fi1m score by decade:** 1990s 61 (4), 2000s 73 (3), 2010s 84 (3), 2020s 74 (3)
- **Fi1m against the critics:** 69 to 61 across 7 titles
- **Score spread:** 3 at 80+, 3 at 60–79, 2 under 60
- **Genres:** Action 4, Thriller 4, Drama 3, Crime 2, Adventure 1, Mystery 1
- **Screen time:** 9 hours of reviewed films
- **Box office:** $796m across 5 films with figures
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graham_Yost, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q2712978, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0003662/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/21206

## Streaming the US now

- **HBO Max:** [*Band of Brothers*](https://film.one/tv/band-of-brothers.md) (89), [*The Pacific*](https://film.one/tv/the-pacific.md) (74)
- **Disney+:** [*Justified*](https://film.one/tv/justified.md) (87)
- **Netflix:** [*Speed*](https://film.one/film/speed.md) (86)
- **Apple TV:** [*Silo*](https://film.one/tv/silo.md) (75)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Fi1m on Graham Yost

> Graham Yost gives his people one clear problem and lets them talk their way round it. That made *Speed* an action film with a rule and *Justified* six years of the best dialogue on television. His own inventions, without a novelist underneath, have proved less durable.

A bomb on a bus will go off if the bus drops below 50 miles an hour. A Deputy Marshal gives a man twenty-four hours to leave Miami and shoots him across a lunch table when he does not. Two openings, sixteen years apart, and the same writer's habit: state the rule in one sentence, then make everyone on screen live with it. Yost has never directed and his name is seldom on the poster, but you can hear him.

He started in television in the late 1980s, on a children's series and sitcoms, and the screenplay for *Speed* (1994) got him out of that room. The features that followed through the 1990s did not repeat the trick; *Hard Rain* (1998) was received poorly. He went back to television, writing on *From the Earth to the Moon* (1998) and two episodes of *Band of Brothers* (2001), the highest score we have given anything with his name on it, though the credit there is shared with a large team. He created *Boomtown* (2002) and *Raines* (2007), and neither lasted long. Then *Justified* (2010–2015), six seasons of thirteen episodes, and since it *Sneaky Pete*, *Silo* (2023) and producing work on *The Americans* and *Slow Horses*.

What he does best is carry another writer's voice without dropping it. Elmore Leonard's people talk before they shoot, and most of them talk better than they shoot, and Yost kept that intact for six years with Fred Golan writing alongside him throughout. We went back to *Justified* expecting to admire it and found ourselves grinning through most of it, at Olyphant and Goggins saying things nobody says quite that well and both knowing it. That is Leonard's gift, and Yost's discipline was in not improving on it. On *Speed*, the gift is structural instead: he hands Jan de Bont a condition anyone can explain in one sentence and then keeps asking what a useful person could do under it.

The weaknesses are the same ones our reviews found. Left to write his own lines on *Speed*, Yost is uneven, and the thinner exchanges show once the bus slows down. *Justified* drifts for two seasons and makes its women wait too long. *Boomtown* had an ensemble structure critics liked and an audience that did not stay, and *Raines* went the same way. We have not reviewed *Silo* and will not judge it here, but it is worth noticing that it, too, comes from somebody else's novels.

Yost has said that writing is "all just problem solving". The record suggests he solves them best when somebody else has set the problem, and that *Justified*, where a novelist set it, is the one to start with.

## Biography

Graham John Yost is a Canadian screenwriter and television producer. Born on 5 September 1959 in Etobicoke, Ontario, he is the son of television presenter Elwy Yost. He graduated from the University of Toronto Schools and Trinity College at the University of Toronto.

Yost began writing for television on series such as *Hey Dude* and *Herman's Head*. His film credits include the screenplays for *Speed* (1994), *Broken Arrow* (1996) and *Hard Rain* (1998). He wrote episodes of the HBO miniseries *Band of Brothers* (2001) and created the series *Boomtown* (2002–2003). He later created and executive-produced *Justified* (2010–2015) and has written for *Silo*.

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

## On Fi1m (13)

### Directed (1)

- *The Pacific* (2010), Fi1m 74, Writer, Director, Co-Executive Producer — [page](https://film.one/tv/the-pacific.md)

### Wrote (8) — the average rests on these

- *Silo* (2023), Fi1m 75, Writer, Executive Producer, Creator — [page](https://film.one/tv/silo.md)
- *Justified* (2010), Fi1m 87, Writer, Creator, Executive Producer — [page](https://film.one/tv/justified.md)
- *Band of Brothers* (2001), Fi1m 89, Writer — [page](https://film.one/tv/band-of-brothers.md)
- *Mission to Mars* (2000), Fi1m 50, Screenplay — [page](https://film.one/film/mission-to-mars.md)
- *Hard Rain* (1998), Fi1m 61, Screenplay — [page](https://film.one/film/hard-rain.md)
- *Speed 2: Cruise Control* (1997), Fi1m 36, Characters — [page](https://film.one/film/speed-2-cruise-control.md)
- *Broken Arrow* (1996), Fi1m 60, Screenplay — [page](https://film.one/film/broken-arrow.md)
- *Speed* (1994), Fi1m 86, Writer — [page](https://film.one/film/speed.md)

### Produced (4)

- *Masters of the Air* (2024), Fi1m 66, Co-Executive Producer — [page](https://film.one/tv/masters-of-the-air.md)
- *Slow Horses* (2022), Fi1m 82, Executive Producer — [page](https://film.one/tv/slow-horses.md)
- *The Americans* (2013), Fi1m 91, Executive Producer — [page](https://film.one/tv/the-americans.md)
- *John Adams* (2008), Fi1m 81, Consulting Producer — [page](https://film.one/tv/john-adams.md)

## Complete filmography (27)

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

- *Masters of the Air* (2024), series, Co-Executive Producer — Fi1m 66, [page](https://film.one/tv/masters-of-the-air.md)
- *Justified: City Primeval* (2023), series, Executive Producer
- *Silo* (2023), series, Writer, Executive Producer, Creator — Fi1m 75, [page](https://film.one/tv/silo.md)
- *Slow Horses* (2022), series, Executive Producer — Fi1m 82, [page](https://film.one/tv/slow-horses.md)
- *The Grizzlies* (2019), Story, Writer
- *Sneaky Pete* (2015), series, Writer, Executive Producer, Story
- *The Americans* (2013), series, Executive Producer — Fi1m 91, [page](https://film.one/tv/the-americans.md)
- *Falling Skies* (2011), series, Writer, Executive Producer
- *Justified* (2010), series, Writer, Executive Producer, Creator — Fi1m 87, [page](https://film.one/tv/justified.md)
- *The Pacific* (2010), series, Director, Writer, Co-Executive Producer — Fi1m 74, [page](https://film.one/tv/the-pacific.md)
- *John Adams* (2008), series, Consulting Producer — Fi1m 81, [page](https://film.one/tv/john-adams.md)
- *Raines* (2007), series, Producer, Writer, Creator
- *Summerland* (2004), series, Writer
- *Boomtown* (2002), series, Writer, Producer, Executive Producer, Creator
- *Young Arthur* (2002), Writer
- *The Last Castle* (2001), Screenplay
- *Band of Brothers* (2001), series, Writer — Fi1m 89, [page](https://film.one/tv/band-of-brothers.md)
- *Mission to Mars* (2000), Screenplay — Fi1m 50, [page](https://film.one/film/mission-to-mars.md)
- *L.A. Doctors* (1998), series, Director
- *From the Earth to the Moon* (1998), series, Writer, Director, Supervising Producer
- *Hard Rain* (1998), Screenplay — Fi1m 61, [page](https://film.one/film/hard-rain.md)
- *Speed 2: Cruise Control* (1997), Characters — Fi1m 36, [page](https://film.one/film/speed-2-cruise-control.md)
- *Broken Arrow* (1996), Screenplay — Fi1m 60, [page](https://film.one/film/broken-arrow.md)
- *Speed* (1994), Writer — Fi1m 86, [page](https://film.one/film/speed.md)
- *The Powers That Be* (1992), series, Writer
- *Herman's Head* (1991), series, Writer
- *Legacy of Spies*, series, Executive Producer

## Gallery

- ![Graham Yost](https://film.one/media/person/63426/gallery-a3b832f8a6b1.jpg) Graham Yost — Peabody Awards, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/33/Graham_Yost_2011_%28cropped%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled)
- ![PHOTO CREDIT: ANDERS KRUSBERG / PEABODY AWARDS 62nd Annual Peabody Awards Luncheon Waldorf=Astoria Hotel May 19, 2003](https://film.one/media/person/63426/gallery-75132217624e.jpg) PHOTO CREDIT: ANDERS KRUSBERG / PEABODY AWARDS 62nd Annual Peabody Awards Luncheon Waldorf=Astoria Hotel May 19, 2003 — Peabody Awards, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a2/2003_Peabody_Awards_%288188358479%29.jpg/1280px-2003_Peabody_Awards_%288188358479%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![PHOTO CREDIT: ANDERS KRUSBERG / PEABODY AWARDS 62nd Annual Peabody Awards Luncheon Waldorf=Astoria Hotel May 19, 2003](https://film.one/media/person/63426/gallery-a3b6bc56b17f.jpg) PHOTO CREDIT: ANDERS KRUSBERG / PEABODY AWARDS 62nd Annual Peabody Awards Luncheon Waldorf=Astoria Hotel May 19, 2003 — Peabody Awards, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/69/2003_Peabody_Awards_%288188359549%29.jpg/1280px-2003_Peabody_Awards_%288188359549%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![PHOTO CREDIT: ANDERS KRUSBERG / PEABODY AWARDS 62nd Annual Peabody Awards Luncheon Waldorf=Astoria Hotel May 19, 2003](https://film.one/media/person/63426/gallery-71a9745e5207.jpg) PHOTO CREDIT: ANDERS KRUSBERG / PEABODY AWARDS 62nd Annual Peabody Awards Luncheon Waldorf=Astoria Hotel May 19, 2003 — Peabody Awards, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2d/2003_Peabody_Awards_%288189439100%29.jpg/1280px-2003_Peabody_Awards_%288189439100%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Graham Yost](https://film.one/media/person/63426/gallery-a4475d4e9784.jpg) Graham Yost — Image via TMDB
- ![Graham Yost](https://film.one/media/person/63426/gallery-5d539821e5b9.jpg) Graham Yost — Image via TMDB
- ![Graham Yost](https://film.one/media/person/63426/gallery-eea07564eefd.jpg) Graham Yost — Image via TMDB
- ![PHOTO CREDIT: ANDERS KRUSBERG / PEABODY AWARDS Elmore Leonard, Graham Yost and Timothy Olyphant 70th Annual Peabody Awards Luncheon Waldorf=Astoria Hotel May 23 (2011)](https://film.one/media/person/63426/gallery-f96864c93b6d.jpg) PHOTO CREDIT: ANDERS KRUSBERG / PEABODY AWARDS Elmore Leonard, Graham Yost and Timothy Olyphant 70th Annual Peabody Awards Luncheon Waldorf=Astoria Hotel May 23 (2011) — Peabody Awards, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/53/Elmore_Leonard%2C_Graham_Yost_and_Timothy_Olyphant%2C_May_2011_%281%29.jpg/1280px-Elmore_Leonard%2C_Graham_Yost_and_Timothy_Olyphant%2C_May_2011_%281%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![PHOTO CREDIT: ANDERS KRUSBERG / PEABODY AWARDS Elmore Leonard, Graham Yost and Timothy Olyphant 70th Annual Peabody Awards Luncheon Waldorf=Astoria Hotel May 23 (2011)](https://film.one/media/person/63426/gallery-42a4175ff37f.jpg) PHOTO CREDIT: ANDERS KRUSBERG / PEABODY AWARDS Elmore Leonard, Graham Yost and Timothy Olyphant 70th Annual Peabody Awards Luncheon Waldorf=Astoria Hotel May 23 (2011) — Peabody Awards, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/95/Elmore_Leonard%2C_Graham_Yost_and_Timothy_Olyphant%2C_May_2011_%2810%29.jpg/1280px-Elmore_Leonard%2C_Graham_Yost_and_Timothy_Olyphant%2C_May_2011_%2810%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)

---
© 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/graham-yost