David Hardin Beaird (August 19, 1952 – February 6, 2019)[1] was an American film and stage director, screenwriter, and playwright.

In 1973, he was recipient of the Joseph Jefferson Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for his performance in the play The Hot l Baltimore at the Ivanhoe Theatre in Chicago, Illinois.

In 1991, he adapted the play into the movie Scorchers, with Faye Dunaway, James Earl Jones, Emily Lloyd, Jennifer Tilly, and Leland Crooke in the leading roles.

In 1992, Beaird created the 13-part television series Key West in which an Ohio factory worker played by Fisher Stevens wins the lottery and goes to live the writer's life in Florida, with Hemingway as his inspiration.

Beaird's final film, released in 2005, was The Civilization of Maxwell Bright, starring Patrick Warburton, Marie Matiko, Jennifer Tilly, Eric Roberts, and Simon Callow.