Samuel D. Hunter Named MTC's 2026-27 Judith Champion Playwriting Fellowship Recipient

​Manhattan Theatre Club has named Samuel D. Hunter as the 2026-27 recipient of the Judith Champion Playwriting Fellowship, which is awarded annually.
 
Fully supported by the late philanthropist and former MTC Patron Judith Champion, the Fellowship provides artistic and financial resources to one playwright each season to write and develop a new commissioned play while in residence at MTC. Fellowship recipients participate in the life of the institution in a manner tailored to their strengths and interests. In addition to a commission, the recipient is provided with a living allowance, access to office and rehearsal space, a ticket stipend, and a developmental workshop of at least one play during their fellowship year. Hunter succeeds the 2025-26 Fellow, Bess Wohl, and previous fellows Eboni Booth, Sanaz Toosi and Zora Howard.

Samuel D. Hunter

Samuel D. Hunter is an award-winning playwright and screenwriter whose deeply human stories explore faith, family and the American experience. Last season, Hunter made his Broadway debut with the critically acclaimed play Little Bear Ridge Road, starring Laurie Metcalf and Micah Stock, following its run at Chicago's Steppenwolf Theatre, where it received the Jeff Award for Best New Work. He simultaneously made his West End debut with Clarkston, starring Joe Locke, which received a WhatsOnStage Award nomination for Best New Play. Hunter's works include The Whale (Drama Desk Award, Lucille Lortel Award), A Case for the Existence of God (New York Drama Critics' Circle Award), A Bright New Boise (Obie Award), Greater Clements, Lewiston/Clarkston, and Grangeville, among others. His film adaptation of The Whale, directed by Darren Aronofsky and starring Brendan Fraser, earned him a BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay, and the film received two Academy Awards as well. On television, Hunter was a writer and producer on all four seasons of FX's “Baskets.” A MacArthur Fellow and Whiting Award recipient, Hunter's plays have been produced Off-Broadway, regionally, and internationally. A native of Moscow, Idaho, he holds degrees in playwriting from NYU, the Iowa Playwrights Workshop, and Juilliard.

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