Richard O'Brien (born Richard Smith on March 25, 1942) is a stuntman, actor and writer. He is best known for writing the musical The Rocky Horror Show and its 1975 film adaptation The Rocky Horror Picture Show. His participation included writing the songs, and acting in the film. He is also known as presenter of The Crystal Maze.

O'Brien was born in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, United Kingdom. In 1952, he emigrated with his family to Tauranga, New Zealand where his father had purchased a sheep farm. He returned to England in 1964.

Due to the enormous success and cult status The Rocky Horror Picture Show gained, O'Brien tried to recreate the success with a sequel, 1981's Shock Treatment . None of the original cast besides O'Brien appeared in the film, though it did have the characters of Brad and Janet. It did poorly in theaters and did not attain any type of cult status.

In 2004, Hamilton, New Zealand City Council honoured O'Brien's contribution to the arts with a statue in his likeness.

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