Petrie was born in
Canada to
Daniel Petrie Sr., a
film director, and
Dorothea, a producer, novelist, and actress. He attended
Northfield Mount Hermon School and the
University of Redlands, earning degrees in
psychology and
creative writing. a project that Stallone later took with him and developed into
Cobra. Despite the troubled production history, the film was a massive critical and financial success, grossing over $300 million worldwide from a $15 million budget and earning rave reviews from critics like
Janet Maslin and
Richard Schickel. In spite of much of the film's comedy having been improvised by the actors, Petrie's contributions earned him accolades in the form of
Academy Award and
Edgar Award nominations. Petrie wrote a number of well-known and well-received films throughout the 1980s and 1990s, including the off-beat
crime thriller The Big Easy starring
Dennis Quaid and
Ellen Barkin. He wrote two films for director
Roger Spottiswoode, the 1988
thriller film Shoot to Kill and the
Tom Hanks comedy Turner & Hooch, and produced a third,
The 6th Day. Much of his work falls under the umbrella of
crime fiction. He made his directorial debut with
Toy Soldiers, a 1991 action film revolving around a group of teenagers fighting terrorists that have taken over their
prep school. He served as the creator and executive producer of
Combat Hospital, a television
war drama series produced in his native
Canada. In addition to his creative pursuits, Petrie has been active in various entertainment industry organizations. He served as Vice President, and later President, of the
Writers Guild of America, West, and currently sits on its Board of Trustees. He also served as a member of the Board of Trustees for the
American Film Institute; a member of the Board of Governors for the
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences; and as a member of the Board of Advisers of the
Austin Film Festival and Screenwriting Conference. an independent
film finance and
production company. == Filmography ==