Ryan Leone

Ryan Leone (born August 3, 1985) is an American novelist, film producer, artist, and prison reform activist. He is best known for his semi-autobiographical addiction novel Wasting Talent. Leone wrote his first novel while serving a five year federal prison sentence for his involvement with an international heroin cartel called The Mendoza Clan.[1]

Leone in 2019

The Mendoza Clan was an Oaxacan Indian family that operated a heroin ring out of Mexico and reportedly smuggled millions of dollars worth of drugs into the United States for over two decades.[2]

The film rights to Wasting Talent were optioned in 2017 by William De Los Santos, screenwriter and producer of the addiction film Spun.[3]

In the January/February 2018 issue of Penthouse magazine, De Los Santos said, "It captivated me with the poetry in how he told the story." when asked why he had optioned Leone's debut novel.[4]

Idiot Savant: The Savage Life of Ryan Leone, a documentary about Leone's drug addiction and outlaw lifestyle went into production in the fall of 2017. Jim Uhls screenwriter of Fight Club, had expressed his desire to be involved in the production of the film.[5][6]

In 2018, Leone launched a non-profit organization called The Prodigy Foundation, in an effort to end mass incarceration and expand literacy in American prisons.[7]

Leone released a comedy album of spoken word stories in 2020 called Drug Stories for Truckers volume one. The album featured guest appearances from Johnny Depp, Tommy Chong, Nick Stahl, "Freeway" Rick Ross, Simon Rex, and George Jung[8]