With tributes hailing him for defying 1980s and ’90s culture, it’s emerged ‘New Jack City’ screenwriter Barry Michael Cooper has died aged 66.
‘New Jack City’ screenwriter Barry Michael Cooper has died aged 66.
Best known for penning the 1991 cult classic starring Ice-T, his death was confirmed on Thursday (23.01.25) by the Maryland Chief Examiner’s Office, with an autopsy pending.
His friend, journalist Nelson George, also announced the news in a Substack post, citing information given by Barry’s son Matthew Cooper.
Nelson said: “Barry helped define pop culture in the ’80s and ’90s with his early reporting on crack, by naming Teddy Riley’s sound ‘new jack swing’ and writing star vehicles for Wesley Snipes (‘New Jack City’, ‘Sugar Hill’) and Tupac (‘Above the Rim’.)”
Describing Barry as “Harlem to his core”, Nelson also noted while the writer spent much of his later life in Baltimore, his roots remained central to his work.
Born and raised in Harlem, Barry began his career as a journalist for The Village Voice in the 1980s, reporting on the crack epidemic and urban culture. His transition into screenwriting came with his debut feature ‘New Jack City’, which starred Wesley Snipes and Chris Rock alongside Ice-T.
The film became a cultural phenomenon and was followed by 1994’s ‘Sugar Hill’ and ‘Above the Rim’ – completing what is known as Barry’s ‘Harlem Trilogy’.
In a 2007 interview with Stop Smiling, Barry reflected on the impact of ‘New Jack City’, saying: “If there was no ‘New Jack’, there would be no ‘Boyz n the Hood’, there would be no ‘Menace II Society’, because it let the public know, and more importantly let the suits in the studios know, that these movies make money. I think it set it off.”
Barry’s credits spanned eight films, television series, and video games, including co-writing ‘NBA 2K16’ and contributing to Spike Lee’s ‘She’s Gotta Have It’.
He directed the 2005 film ‘Blood on the Wall$’ and returned to filmmaking in 2019 with the short film ‘Guilt’.
Barry posted a selfie on Instagram as recently as 16 January, paying tribute to assassinated civil rights icon Martin Luther King, captioning it: “15 January 2025 – Dr. MLK Day – ‘Am I My Brother’s Keeper?’ – Baltimore, Md.”
He is survived by his son, Matthew.
‘New Jack City’ screenwriter Barry Michael Cooper dead aged 66
