Showrunner Steven S. DeKnight (Spartacus: House of Ashur, Buffy) with Des Doyle | State of the Arts

In the latest episode of the State of the Arts Podcast (@sotapod), host filmmaker and writer Des Doyle chats with Steven S. DeKnight, acclaimed screenwriter, director, producer, and creator/showrunner behind some of the most influential genre series of the past two decades.

Produced in partnership with Film Ireland and supported by Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland through the Screen Stakeholders Funding Scheme, the State of the Arts series explores the creative processes, industry challenges, and new opportunities that both Irish and international creatives face in today’s ever-evolving artistic landscapes.

In this conversation, DeKnight reflects on his journey breaking into the entertainment industry as a writer on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. He discusses his work writing, directing, and producing on iconic series such as Angel, Smallville, and Dollhouse, before creating the hit show Spartacus for Starz and showrunning season one of Marvel’s Daredevil. He also talks about making his feature directorial debut with Pacific Rim: Uprising and his return to the Spartacus universe with the upcoming Spartacus: House of Ashur.

Chapters

2:11 – Nerves for “House of Ashur” impending release
09:29 – Inside the Writers’ Room
12:25 – Season Orders & Long-Game Planning
13:32 – How the Strikes Shook Production
15:07 – Showrunner Writing Process Explained
16:46 – Running a Show: LA vs New Zealand
18:58 – Why DeKnight Hasn’t Yet Directed Spartacus
22:35 – 22-Episode TV vs Today’s 10-Episode Sweet Spot
25:19 – Sticking With “House of Ashur” + Other Projects
28:37 – DeKnight’s Comic Book Worlds
36:03 – Working With Comic Artists
37:08 – AI in Entertainment: Hot Takes & Concerns
40:30 – Showrunning in 2025: Budgets & Tech Shift
45:07 – Are Spec Scripts Still Worth It?
48:01 – Top Writing Advice: Passion, Persistence, Failure
51:33 – What Failure Really Looks Like in Hollywood
01:00:52 – Rapid-Fire Favourites: TV, Music & More

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Steven S. DeKnight

Steven attended the University of California at Santa Cruz where he graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Theatre Arts and went on to earn an M.F.A. in playwriting from UCLA. He got his start in the entertainment industry as a staff writer on the groundbreaking television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. He then wrote, directed, and produced on the series Angel, Smallville, and Dollhouse before creating and running the hit series Spartacus for the premium cable channel Starz. From there he went on to executive produce and showrun season one of the acclaimed Marvel/Netflix series Daredevil. He made his feature directorial debut with Pacific Rim: Uprising, the sequel to Guillermo del Toro’s international hit. He is currently the creator/executive producer of Spartacus: House of Ashur, a Spartacus spinoff series for Lionsgate/Starz.
A lover of comic books since before he could read, DeKnight has penned issues of Wolverine, Black Widow, and Conan the Barbarian for Marvel. He has also recently published his first two original graphic novels: Hard Bargain, a 1940’s supernatural detective noir for the acclaimed French comic book company Humanoids and, Beneath, a tense, socially relevant horror story for Comixology/Amazon.

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