American History X is a 1998 American crime drama film directed by Tony Kaye in his feature directorial debut and written by David McKenna. Starring Edward Norton, Edward Furlong, Fairuza Balk, Stacy Keach, Elliott Gould, Avery Brooks, and Beverly D'Angelo, the film follows Derek (Norton) and Danny Vinyard (Furlong), two skinhead brothers from Los Angeles who are involved in the white supremacist movement. After Derek serves three years in prison for killing two gang members, he is released on parole a changed man and tries to prevent Danny from being indoctrinated further.
McKenna wrote the script based on his own childhood and experiences of growing up in San Diego. He sold the script to New Line Cinema, which was impressed by the writing. Steve Tisch and Lawrence Turman served as executive producers on the film. Principal photography began in Los Angeles on March 17, 1997, and concluded on May 21. Prior to the film's release, Kaye and New Line Cinema were in disagreements over the final cut of the film, which Norton had played a pivotal role in editing. The final version was 40 minutes longer than Kaye's 95-minute cut, which resulted in him publicly disowning the film through dozens of trade paper advertisements, thus negatively affecting his directing career.
American History X was theatrically released in limited screenings in the United States on October 30, 1998, before expanding to wide release on November 20. The film received critical acclaim, with Norton's performance earning widespread praise. It was a modest success at the box office, grossing $23.8 million against its $20 million production budget. Norton won the Satellite Award for Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama at the 3rd Satellite Awards, and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor at the 71st Academy Awards and the Saturn Award for Best Actor at the 25th Saturn Awards.
A follow-up, African History Y, with Kaye returning as director, as well as serving as co-writer and co-producer, and starring Djimon Hounsou, was in development as of 2020.
