Hunter's illustrious career in journalism began in 1971 when he took on the role of copy editor at the esteemed Baltimore Sun. As his expertise and passion for film criticism grew, he ascended to the position of film critic in 1982, where he honed his craft and developed a reputation for incisive and insightful reviews.
In 1997, Hunter made the move to the Washington Post, assuming the esteemed position of movie critic. His exceptional writing and critical thinking earned him the American Society of Newspaper Editors Distinguished Writing Award in 1998, a testament to his mastery of the craft.
The pinnacle of his career came in 2003 when he was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Criticism, a prestigious honor that recognized his outstanding contributions to film criticism. Despite his success, Hunter decided to take a buyout from the Post in 2008, marking the end of his tenure as a prominent film critic.
However, Hunter's creative endeavors did not cease with his departure from the Post. In 1980, he published his first novel, The Master Sniper, the first of 24 novels that would follow. He also authored three nonfiction volumes: Violent Screen: A Critic's 13 Years on the Front Lines of Movie Mayhem; Now Playing at the Valencia: Pulitzer Prize-Winning Essays on Movies; and American Gunfight: The Plot to Kill Harry Truman and the Shoot-out that Stopped It.
