Manoj Nelliyattu Shyamalan (pronounced ) (born August 6, 1970), known professionally as M. Night Shyamalan , is an Academy-award nominated Indian American writer-director of major studio films, known for making movies with contemporary supernatural plots that usually climax with a twist ending. He is also known for filming his movies (and staging his plots) in and around Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Shyamalan released his first film, Praying with Anger , in 1992 while he was a New York University student. His second movie, the major feature film Wide Awake , made in 1995 but not released until 3 years later, failed to find financial success. Shyamalan gained international recognition when he wrote and directed 1999's The Sixth Sense , which was nominated for six Academy Awards including Best Director and Best Original Screenplay. He followed The Sixth Sense by writing and directing Unbreakable , released in 2000, which received mixed reviews. His 2002 film Signs gained both critical and financial success, but The Village (2004) was a critical disappointment whose box office fell hard after a strong opening weekend, and Lady in the Water (2006) performed even worse. His latest film, The Happening (2008), did financially better than his previous effort but was also panned by critics; in its entire American run, it grossed only slightly more than Signs made its opening weekend.