Editing American History X (section)

=== Development ===
[[File:Michael De Luca 2012.jpg|alt=Michael De Luca, former president of productions at New Line Cinema|thumb|187x187px|[[Michael De Luca]], former production president at New Line Cinema]]
Screenwriter [[David McKenna (writer)|David McKenna]] wrote the screenplay for ''American History X'' and sold the rights to New Line Cinema when he was 26.<ref>Writers on Writing Series 2007: ''A Conversation with David McKenna'', [2007], First Light Video Publishing.</ref> The inspiration for the story came from the [[Punk rock|punk-rock]] scene of McKenna's childhood, where he often witnessed violent behavior. "I saw a lot of bigotry growing up, and it made me think about writing something about the world of hate-mongers. The point I tried to make in the script is that a person is not born a racist. It is learned through environment and the people that surround you. The question that intrigued me is: why do people hate and how does one go about changing that? My premise was that hate starts in the family".<ref name="ProductionNotes">{{Cite web|url=http://www.cinemareview.com/production.asp?prodid=373|title=American History X - Movie Production Notes - CinemaReview.com|website=www.cinemareview.com|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030520131326/http://www.cinemareview.com/production.asp?prodid=373|archive-date=2003-05-20|access-date=2020-04-07}}</ref> In order to make the characters as realistic as possible, McKenna interviewed and observed the behavior of [[White power skinhead|skinheads]] during the writing process. He said "I had seen documentaries that just didn't ring true to me, and I wanted to write an accurate portrayal of how good kids from good families can get so terribly lost".<ref name="ProductionNotes" />

Producer John Morrissey, who read the script three years prior, was impressed by the script's intense characters and dialogue. [[Michael De Luca]], then-production president of New Line Cinema, said "I was intrigued by its intensity, conviction and brutal honesty. There was a brilliant character study woven into the screenplay, and I knew we had something special if we did it correctly".<ref name="ProductionNotes" /> In 1996, the producers first approached [[Dennis Hopper]] to direct the film.<ref name="Goldstein">{{Cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1998-sep-13-ca-22149-story.html|title=Courting Trouble|last=Goldstein|first=Patrick|date=1998-09-13|website=[[Los Angeles Times]]|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200719003329/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1998-sep-13-ca-22149-story.html|archive-date=2020-07-19|access-date=2020-04-08}}</ref> Hopper turned down the offer, [[Larry Clark]] was approached to direct the film, but turned it down due to a scheduling conflict,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://forenseek.app/remembering-american-history-x-interview-with-screenwriter-david-mckenna/|title=Remembering "American History X". Interview with Screenwriter David McKenna|website=forenseek.app|date=March 9, 2021|accessdate=2023-12-01}}</ref> [[Tony Kaye (director)|Tony Kaye]] was then approached to direct. Kaye, who had been De Luca's preferred choice from the beginning, accepted and made his [[List of directorial debuts|directorial debut]] in a feature film on ''American History X''. He took the contract to a [[synagogue]], "I signed it in front of the rabbi. I thought it would make it good", Kaye said.<ref name=":4">{{Cite news|last=Higginbotham|first=Adam|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/3665724/I-did-abominable-things.html|title=I did abominable things|newspaper=The Daily Telegraph|date=2007-06-09|access-date=2020-04-07|issn=0307-1235|archive-date=2020-04-07|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200407175718/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/3665724/I-did-abominable-things.html|url-status=live}}</ref> After the film was released, De Luca stated "It's everything I had hoped for. The performances are explosive and frightening, and the film dramatically demonstrates both the subtle and overt roots of racism while also showing the possibility for redemption".<ref name="ProductionNotes" />