Lee Daniels
Encyclopedia
Lee Louis Daniels is an American actor
, film producer
, and director
. He produced Monster's Ball
and directed the film Precious
, which received six Academy Award nominations, including Best Director; the film won two of the awards.
and attended Radnor High School
. After graduating, Daniels attended Lindenwood University
in St. Charles, Missouri. He began his career in entertainment as a casting director and manager after a chance meeting with a Hollywood producer, working on such projects as Under the Cherry Moon
and Purple Rain
. He continued managing talent, including several Academy Award nominees and winners. The documentary My Big Break
features Daniels early in his career when he was managing actor Wes Bentley
who starred as Ricky Fitts in American Beauty. In the documentary a dynamic Daniels animatedly comments on Bentley's reluctance to capitalize on his newfound celebrity status.
Lee also has a sister Joyce Daniels Fennell of Philadelphia, PA. Daniels and Joyce share the same
father, Officer William Daniels of West Philadelphia.
When he arrived in Hollywood, Daniels first worked for a nursing agency, then created his own agency at age 21. He sold his agency for approx $2 million and went to work as a production assistant. Later, he realized he had not paid taxes on his income but paid them off in time.
, the first production of Lee Daniels Entertainment, marked Daniels as the first African-American sole producer of an Academy Award-earning film. It was a critical and box-office success and was nominated for two Academy Awards in 2002: Best Original Screenplay and Best Actress, for which Halle Berry
won the Oscar.
In 2004 at the Sundance Film Festival
the film The Woodsman
premiered, starring Kevin Bacon
, Kyra Sedgwick
and Mos Def
. Daniels produced the film, which was nominated for three 2005 Independent Spirit Awards
; received the CICAE Arthouse Prize at the Cannes Film Festival
; the Jury Prize at the Deauville International Film Festival; and a "Special Mention for Excellence in Filmmaking" award from the National Board of Review.
Shadowboxer
, which starred Helen Mirren
, was Daniels's directorial debut at the 2006 Toronto International Film Festival
. The film had an all-star cast that included Cuba Gooding, Jr.
, Stephen Dorff
, Vanessa Ferlito
, Mo'Nique, Joseph Gordon-Levitt
and Macy Gray
. It was nominated for "Best New Director" at the San Sebastian Film Festival.
Mariah Carey
, with whom Daniels has a close friendship, was involved in the Daniels-produced 2008 film Tennessee
. Written by Russell Schaumberg and directed by Aaron Woodley (Rhinoceros Eyes), the film is about two brothers, played by Adam Rothenberg and Ethan Peck, who travel from New Mexico to Tennessee to search for their estranged father. Along the way they meet Krystal (Carey
), an aspiring singer who flees her controlling husband (Lance Reddick
) to join them on their journey.
His 2009 film Precious told the story of an obese, illiterate, 16-year-old girl who lives in a Section 8
tenement
in Harlem
(Gabourey Sidibe
) with her dysfunctional and abusive mother, Mary (Mo'Nique). She has been impregnated twice by her father, Carl, and suffers long-term physical, sexual, and mental abuse from her unemployed mother. The film screened at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival
and went on to garner widespread acclaim. Daniels was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director and Precious for Best Picture. Carey once again participated in the film, playing the role of a social worker.
Former president Bill Clinton
persuaded Daniels to produce public service announcements to encourage young people of color to vote. The campaign was launched in March 2004 and featured actor/musician LL Cool J
and Grammy winner Alicia Keys
. In 2010 Grace Hightower De Niro
, who appeared in Precious, presented Daniels with the Pratt Institute
's Creative Spirit Award.
Daniels is currently directing The Paperboy, a film based on the 1995 novel
published by American author Pete Dexter
starring Matthew McConaughey
, Zac Efron
, John Cusack
& Oscar winner Nicole Kidman
.
Daniels lives in New York City. He and his former partner, casting director Billy Hopkins, adopted Daniels' biological niece and nephew, Clara and Liam.Hopkins and Daniels later split up; since 2009, Daniels has been in a relationship with Andy Sforzini.
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
, film producer
Film producer
A film producer oversees and delivers a film project to all relevant parties while preserving the integrity, voice and vision of the film. They will also often take on some financial risk by using their own money, especially during the pre-production period, before a film is fully financed.The...
, and director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
. He produced Monster's Ball
Monster's Ball
Monster's Ball is a 2001 romantic drama film directed by Marc Forster, starring Billy Bob Thornton, Halle Berry, and Heath Ledger, and written by Milo Addica and Will Rokos. It was produced by Lionsgate and Lee Daniels Entertainment....
and directed the film Precious
Precious (film)
Precious , is a 2009 American drama film directed by Lee Daniels. Precious is an adaptation by Geoffrey S. Fletcher of the 1996 novel Push by Sapphire. The film stars Gabourey Sidibe, Mo'Nique, and Paula Patton...
, which received six Academy Award nominations, including Best Director; the film won two of the awards.
Early years
Daniels was born on Christmas Eve, 1959, in PhiladelphiaPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
and attended Radnor High School
Radnor High School
Radnor High School is the only public high school in Radnor Township, Pennsylvania and is part of the Radnor Township School District. It lies along the Pennsylvania Main Line, a collection of highly affluent Philadelphia suburbs...
. After graduating, Daniels attended Lindenwood University
Lindenwood University
Lindenwood University, often referred to as Lindenwood or LU, is a private, coeducational, liberal arts university located in Saint Charles, Missouri, United States...
in St. Charles, Missouri. He began his career in entertainment as a casting director and manager after a chance meeting with a Hollywood producer, working on such projects as Under the Cherry Moon
Under the Cherry Moon
Under the Cherry Moon is a 1986 film directed by and starring Prince as a gigolo named Christopher Tracy and Time member Jerome Benton as his partner, Tricky. Together, the pair swindle wealthy French women...
and Purple Rain
Purple Rain (film)
Purple Rain is a 1984 film directed by Albert Magnoli and written by Magnoli and William Blinn. Prince makes his film debut in this movie, which was developed to showcase his particular talents, hence, the film contains several extended concert sequences. The film grossed more than US$80 million at...
. He continued managing talent, including several Academy Award nominees and winners. The documentary My Big Break
My Big Break
My Big Break is a 2011 documentary film directed by Tony Zierra starring Wes Bentley, Tony Zierra, Brad Rowe, Chad Lindberg and Greg Fawcett...
features Daniels early in his career when he was managing actor Wes Bentley
Wes Bentley
Wesley Cook "Wes" Bentley is an American film actor known for his role of Ricky Fitts in American Beauty.-Early life:Bentley was born in Jonesboro, Arkansas, the son of Cherie and David Bentley, who are United Methodist ministers....
who starred as Ricky Fitts in American Beauty. In the documentary a dynamic Daniels animatedly comments on Bentley's reluctance to capitalize on his newfound celebrity status.
Lee also has a sister Joyce Daniels Fennell of Philadelphia, PA. Daniels and Joyce share the same
father, Officer William Daniels of West Philadelphia.
When he arrived in Hollywood, Daniels first worked for a nursing agency, then created his own agency at age 21. He sold his agency for approx $2 million and went to work as a production assistant. Later, he realized he had not paid taxes on his income but paid them off in time.
Career
Monster's BallMonster's Ball
Monster's Ball is a 2001 romantic drama film directed by Marc Forster, starring Billy Bob Thornton, Halle Berry, and Heath Ledger, and written by Milo Addica and Will Rokos. It was produced by Lionsgate and Lee Daniels Entertainment....
, the first production of Lee Daniels Entertainment, marked Daniels as the first African-American sole producer of an Academy Award-earning film. It was a critical and box-office success and was nominated for two Academy Awards in 2002: Best Original Screenplay and Best Actress, for which Halle Berry
Halle Berry
Halle Berry is an American actress and a former fashion model. Berry received an Emmy, Golden Globe, SAG, and an NAACP Image Award for Introducing Dorothy Dandridge and won an Academy Award for Best Actress and was nominated for a BAFTA Award in 2001 for her performance in Monster's Ball, becoming...
won the Oscar.
In 2004 at the Sundance Film Festival
Sundance Film Festival
The Sundance Film Festival is a film festival that takes place annually in Utah, in the United States. It is the largest independent cinema festival in the United States. Held in January in Park City, Salt Lake City, and Ogden, as well as at the Sundance Resort, the festival is a showcase for new...
the film The Woodsman
The Woodsman
The Woodsman is a 2004 drama film directed and co-written by Nicole Kassell, based on Fechter's play of the same name. The movie stars Kevin Bacon as a convicted child molester who must adjust to life after prison.-Plot:...
premiered, starring Kevin Bacon
Kevin Bacon
Kevin Norwood Bacon is an American film and theater actor whose notable roles include Animal House, Diner, Footloose, Flatliners, Wild Things, A Few Good Men, JFK, Apollo 13, Mystic River, The Woodsman, Trapped, Friday the 13th, Hollow Man, Tremors, Death Sentence, Frost/Nixon, Crazy, Stupid, Love....
, Kyra Sedgwick
Kyra Sedgwick
Kyra Minturn Sedgwick is an American actress.Sedgwick is best known for her starring role as Deputy Chief Brenda Leigh Johnson on the TNT crime drama The Closer. Sedgwick's role in the series won her a Golden Globe Award in 2007 and an Emmy Award in 2010...
and Mos Def
Mos Def
Dante Terrell Smith is an American actor and Emcee known by the stage names Mos Def and Yasiin Bey. He started his hip hop career in a group called Urban Thermo Dynamics, after which he appeared on albums by Da Bush Babees and De La Soul. With Talib Kweli, he formed the duo Black Star, which...
. Daniels produced the film, which was nominated for three 2005 Independent Spirit Awards
Independent Spirit Awards
The Independent Spirit Awards , founded in 1984, are awards dedicated to independent filmmakers. Winners were typically presented with acrylic glass pyramids containing suspended shoestrings representing the paltry budgets of independent films. In 1986, the event was renamed the Independent Spirit...
; received the CICAE Arthouse Prize at the Cannes Film Festival
Cannes Film Festival
The Cannes International Film Festival , is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films of all genres including documentaries from around the world. Founded in 1946, it is among the world's most prestigious and publicized film festivals...
; the Jury Prize at the Deauville International Film Festival; and a "Special Mention for Excellence in Filmmaking" award from the National Board of Review.
Shadowboxer
Shadowboxer
Shadowboxer is a 2005 thriller directed by Lee Daniels that stars Academy Award winners Cuba Gooding, Jr., Helen Mirren, and Mo'Nique. It opened in limited release in six cities: New York, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., Baltimore, Philadelphia, and Richmond, Virginia.-Plot:Mikey and his stepmother...
, which starred Helen Mirren
Helen Mirren
Dame Helen Mirren, DBE is an English actor. She has won an Academy Award for Best Actress, four SAG Awards, four BAFTAs, three Golden Globes, four Emmy Awards, and two Cannes Film Festival Best Actress Awards.-Early life and family:...
, was Daniels's directorial debut at the 2006 Toronto International Film Festival
Toronto International Film Festival
The Toronto International Film Festival is a publicly-attended film festival held each September in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In 2010, 339 films from 59 countries were screened at 32 screens in downtown Toronto venues...
. The film had an all-star cast that included Cuba Gooding, Jr.
Cuba Gooding, Jr.
Cuba M. Gooding, Jr. is an American actor. He is perhaps best known for his Academy Award-winning portrayal of Rod Tidwell in Cameron Crowe's 1996 film Jerry Maguire, and his critically acclaimed performance as Tré Styles in John Singleton's 1991 film Boyz n the Hood.-Early life:Gooding was born...
, Stephen Dorff
Stephen Dorff
Stephen Dorff is an American actor, best known for portraying Stuart Sutcliffe in Backbeat, Johnny Marco in Somewhere, and for his roles in Blade and Cecil B. DeMented.-Early life:...
, Vanessa Ferlito
Vanessa Ferlito
-Personal life:An Italian American, Ferlito was born in Brooklyn, New York. Her father died when she was three. Her mother and stepfather own a hair salon in Brooklyn...
, Mo'Nique, Joseph Gordon-Levitt
Joseph Gordon-Levitt
Joseph Leonard Gordon-Levitt is an American actor whose career as both a child and adult has included television series and theatrical films....
and Macy Gray
Macy Gray
Macy Gray is a Grammy Award-winning American R&B and soul singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress, famed for her distinctive raspy voice, and a singing style heavily influenced by Billie Holiday and Betty Davis.Gray has released five studio albums, with her fifth studio album, The Sellout,...
. It was nominated for "Best New Director" at the San Sebastian Film Festival.
Mariah Carey
Mariah Carey
Mariah Carey is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress. She made her recording debut with the release of her eponymous studio album in 1990, under the guidance of Columbia Records executive Tommy Mottola, whom she later married in 1993...
, with whom Daniels has a close friendship, was involved in the Daniels-produced 2008 film Tennessee
Tennessee (film)
Tennessee is a 2008 American drama film produced by Lee Daniels. V V S Films has acquired all Canadian rights for the movie, while the U.S. rights are owned by Lee Daniels Entertainment.Vivendi Entertainment has acquired all U.S...
. Written by Russell Schaumberg and directed by Aaron Woodley (Rhinoceros Eyes), the film is about two brothers, played by Adam Rothenberg and Ethan Peck, who travel from New Mexico to Tennessee to search for their estranged father. Along the way they meet Krystal (Carey
Mariah Carey
Mariah Carey is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress. She made her recording debut with the release of her eponymous studio album in 1990, under the guidance of Columbia Records executive Tommy Mottola, whom she later married in 1993...
), an aspiring singer who flees her controlling husband (Lance Reddick
Lance Reddick
Lance Reddick is an American theater, film and TV actor and musician born in Baltimore, Maryland. He starred in The Wire as Cedric Daniels, appeared in Oz as Detective Johnny Basil and appeared in the fourth and fifth seasons of Lost. He now has a prominent role in Fringe...
) to join them on their journey.
His 2009 film Precious told the story of an obese, illiterate, 16-year-old girl who lives in a Section 8
Section 8 (housing)
Section 8 of the United States Housing Act of 1937 , as repeatedly amended, authorizes the payment of rental housing assistance to private landlords on behalf of approximately 3.1 million low-income households...
tenement
Tenement
A tenement is, in most English-speaking areas, a substandard multi-family dwelling, usually old, occupied by the poor.-History:Originally the term tenement referred to tenancy and therefore to any rented accommodation...
in Harlem
Harlem
Harlem is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan, which since the 1920s has been a major African-American residential, cultural and business center. Originally a Dutch village, formally organized in 1658, it is named after the city of Haarlem in the Netherlands...
(Gabourey Sidibe
Gabourey Sidibe
Gabourey "Gabby" Sidibe is an American actress who made her acting debut in the 2009 film Precious, a role that brought her a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress.-Early life:...
) with her dysfunctional and abusive mother, Mary (Mo'Nique). She has been impregnated twice by her father, Carl, and suffers long-term physical, sexual, and mental abuse from her unemployed mother. The film screened at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival
2009 Sundance Film Festival
The 2009 Sundance Film Festival ran from January 15, 2009 until January 25 in Park City, Utah. It was the 25th iteration of the Sundance Film Festival.-Award winners:*Grand Jury Prize: Documentary - We Live in Public...
and went on to garner widespread acclaim. Daniels was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director and Precious for Best Picture. Carey once again participated in the film, playing the role of a social worker.
Former president Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
persuaded Daniels to produce public service announcements to encourage young people of color to vote. The campaign was launched in March 2004 and featured actor/musician LL Cool J
LL Cool J
James Todd Smith , better known as LL Cool J , is an American rapper, entrepreneur, and actor...
and Grammy winner Alicia Keys
Alicia Keys
Alicia Augello Cook , better known by her stage name Alicia Keys, is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and occasional actress. She was raised by a single mother in the Hell's Kitchen area of Manhattan in New York City. At age seven, Keys began playing the piano...
. In 2010 Grace Hightower De Niro
Grace Hightower
Grace Hightower De Niro is an American philanthropist, actress and singer.-Career:Hightower began a career in modeling after being spotted while working as a flight attendant for TWA....
, who appeared in Precious, presented Daniels with the Pratt Institute
Pratt Institute
Pratt Institute is a private art college in New York City located in Brooklyn, New York, with satellite campuses in Manhattan and Utica. Pratt is one of the leading undergraduate art schools in the United States and offers programs in Architecture, Graphic Design, History of Art and Design,...
's Creative Spirit Award.
Daniels is currently directing The Paperboy, a film based on the 1995 novel
The Paperboy (novel)
The Paperboy is a 1995 novel published by American author Pete Dexter.-Plot summary:Four years earlier Hillary Van Wetter was jailed for the murder of an unscrupulous local sheriff, Thurmond Call. Call had previously stomped Wetter's handcuffed cousin to death. Wetter is now on death row and...
published by American author Pete Dexter
Pete Dexter
Pete Dexter is an American novelist. He was the recipient of the 1988 National Book Award for Fiction for his novel Paris Trout.-Biography:Dexter was born in Pontiac, Michigan...
starring Matthew McConaughey
Matthew McConaughey
Matthew David McConaughey is an American actor.After a series of minor roles in the early 1990s, McConaughey gained notice for his breakout role in Dazed and Confused . He then appeared in films such as A Time to Kill, Contact, U-571, Tiptoes, Sahara, and We Are Marshall...
, Zac Efron
Zac Efron
Zachary David Alexander "Zac" Efron is an American actor. He began acting professionally in the early 2000s and became known with his lead roles in the Disney Channel Original Movie High School Musical, the WB series Summerland, and the 2007 film version of the Broadway musical Hairspray...
, John Cusack
John Cusack
John Paul Cusack is an American film actor and screenwriter. He has appeared in more than 50 films, including The Journey of Natty Gann, Say Anything..., Grosse Point Blank, The Thin Red Line, Stand by Me, Con Air, Being John Malkovich, High Fidelity, Serendipity, Runaway Jury, The Ice Harvest,...
& Oscar winner Nicole Kidman
Nicole Kidman
Nicole Mary Kidman, AC is an American-born Australian actress, singer, film producer, spokesmodel, and humanitarian. After starring in a number of small Australian films and TV shows, Kidman's breakthrough was in the 1989 thriller Dead Calm...
.
Personal life
Producer
- 2001: Monster's BallMonster's BallMonster's Ball is a 2001 romantic drama film directed by Marc Forster, starring Billy Bob Thornton, Halle Berry, and Heath Ledger, and written by Milo Addica and Will Rokos. It was produced by Lionsgate and Lee Daniels Entertainment....
- 2004: The WoodsmanThe WoodsmanThe Woodsman is a 2004 drama film directed and co-written by Nicole Kassell, based on Fechter's play of the same name. The movie stars Kevin Bacon as a convicted child molester who must adjust to life after prison.-Plot:...
- 2005: ShadowboxerShadowboxerShadowboxer is a 2005 thriller directed by Lee Daniels that stars Academy Award winners Cuba Gooding, Jr., Helen Mirren, and Mo'Nique. It opened in limited release in six cities: New York, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., Baltimore, Philadelphia, and Richmond, Virginia.-Plot:Mikey and his stepmother...
- 2008: TennesseeTennessee (film)Tennessee is a 2008 American drama film produced by Lee Daniels. V V S Films has acquired all Canadian rights for the movie, while the U.S. rights are owned by Lee Daniels Entertainment.Vivendi Entertainment has acquired all U.S...
- 2009: PreciousPrecious (film)Precious , is a 2009 American drama film directed by Lee Daniels. Precious is an adaptation by Geoffrey S. Fletcher of the 1996 novel Push by Sapphire. The film stars Gabourey Sidibe, Mo'Nique, and Paula Patton...
, the film adaptation of the novel Push by SapphireSapphire (author)Sapphire is an American author and performance poet.- Early life :Ramona Lofton was born in Fort Ord, California, one of four children of an Army couple who relocated within the United States and abroad. After a disagreement concerning where the family would settle, her parents separated, with...
Director
- 2005: ShadowboxerShadowboxerShadowboxer is a 2005 thriller directed by Lee Daniels that stars Academy Award winners Cuba Gooding, Jr., Helen Mirren, and Mo'Nique. It opened in limited release in six cities: New York, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., Baltimore, Philadelphia, and Richmond, Virginia.-Plot:Mikey and his stepmother...
- 2009: PreciousPrecious (film)Precious , is a 2009 American drama film directed by Lee Daniels. Precious is an adaptation by Geoffrey S. Fletcher of the 1996 novel Push by Sapphire. The film stars Gabourey Sidibe, Mo'Nique, and Paula Patton...
- 2012: The Paperboy
Actor
- 1986: A Little Off Mark (Steve, Mark's best friend)
- 2004: Agnes und seine Brüder
- 2005: ShadowboxerShadowboxerShadowboxer is a 2005 thriller directed by Lee Daniels that stars Academy Award winners Cuba Gooding, Jr., Helen Mirren, and Mo'Nique. It opened in limited release in six cities: New York, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., Baltimore, Philadelphia, and Richmond, Virginia.-Plot:Mikey and his stepmother...
(Man in Steam Room)