Perhaps best known for his role on MTV's The Real World, Judd Winick (born February 12, 1970) is an American cartoonist and comic-book writer. He began his career with the humor strip Nuts and Bolts while attending the University of Michigan, but Winick first found critical success with Pedro And Me - an autobiographical comic that told the story of how he and his Real World co-star (the late HIV-positive gay-rights activist Pedro Zamora) became best friends.
Winnick's first success in the mainstream comics field was The Adventures of Barry Ween, Boy Genius, and he is currently under an exclusive contract with DC Comics. His other works include The Life and Times of Juniper Lee; Marvel's Exiles; and DC's Batman, Green Arrow, Green Lantern, The Outsiders, and Batwing in DC's "New 52."
In 2015, Winick published Hilo: The Boy Who Fell to Earth, the first in a series of children's books. (Parents, please note that if your kid loves Hilo, Barry Ween is not more of the same.) Since then, he has written nine more books in the series, with an eleventh set to release in 2025. In 2024, it was announced
that the books will be adapted into a CG animated TV series by Sinking Ship Entertainment; Winick is attached as an executive producer and wrote the script for the pilot episode.
While he lived in Boston, he was roommates with Brad Meltzer, who wrote for the same Green Arrow comic book as him.
Comics written by Judd Winick:
- The Adventures of Barry Ween, Boy Genius
- Batman
- Batwing — issues #1-14, #0
- Catwoman
- Exiles
- Green Arrow
- Green Lantern
- Hilo
- Justice League: Generation Lost
- Superman/Shazam: First Thunder
- Titans/Young Justice: Graduation Day
- The Outsiders
- Power Girl
Judd Winick's works contain examples of the following tropes:
- Buffy Speak: Is very fond of this, particularly in The Adventures of Barry Ween, Boy Genius, where Barry would often utilize this trope to explain complicated scientific concepts to his non-genius best friend (and to occasionally Hand Wave certain impossible feats).
- The Cameo: Winick and his wife Pam Ling appear in a cameo in Pedro, a 2008 film about Pedro Zamora.
- Catchphrase: Winick's almost as bad as Chris Claremont when it comes to reusing certain phrases. "That's a little on the nose" sees a lot of use, as does threatening someone with head trauma by saying he'll be "in a lower reading group."
- Deadpan Snarker: Barry Ween being the Ur-Example in his bibliography.
- So My Kids Can Watch: Hilo: The Boy Who Fell To Earth is a prime example of this, as the idea for such a series genuinely came from Winick's then seven year old son, who asked if he could read any of his Dad's books. Upon realizing that none of his earlier work fit the bill, Winick left his successful run on DC's Catwoman to write something fit for his children.
- Strawman Political: Winick's early work tended to use these in order to prop up a character delivering an Author Tract, though he's gotten better about integrating his beliefs into his work over the years.
- Very Special Episode: Three notable examples—the "gay bashing" story from Green Lantern, the "Speedy has HIV" story from Green Arrow and the "child abduction" story in Outsiders (featuring John Walsh from America's Most Wanted).
- Writer on Board: As noted above, Winick has very distinct (often progressive) views and he tends to use his work as a platform for them. Much of this stems from his real life friendship with the late Pedro Zamora (an HIV-positive Gay Rights activist) and his relationship and subsequent marriage to fellow The Real World alum Pam Ling (which prompted him to include more diverse casts in his writing).