Hancock (film) Hancock (film) Hancock is a 2008 American superhero comedy film directed by Peter Berg and starring Will Smith, Charlize Theron, and Jason Bateman. It tells the story of a vigilante superhero, John Hancock (Smith) from Los Angeles whose reckless actions routinely cost the city millions of dollars. Eventually one person he saves, Ray Embrey (Bateman), makes it his mission to change Hancock's public image for the better. The story was originally written by Vincent Ngo in 1996. It languished in "development hell" for years and had various directors attached, including Tony Scott, Michael Mann, Jonathan Mostow, and Gabriele Muccino before
John Lee Hancock John Lee Hancock John Lee Hancock, Jr. (born December 15, 1956) is an American screenwriter, film director, and producer. He is best known for directing the sports drama films "The Rookie" (2002) and "The Blind Side" (2009), and the historical drama films "Saving Mr. Banks" (2013) and "The Founder" (2016). Hancock's debut as a screenwriter and director came in 1991 with "Hard Time Romance". He worked on two more films as a screenwriter with "A Perfect World" and "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" before making his next directing effort in 2002 with the sports drama "The Rookie",