Scott Rudin

Infobox actor
name = Scott Rudin

---

caption =
birthdate = birth date and age|1958|7|14
birthplace = New York City
deathdate =
deathplace =
othernames =
domesticpartner = John Barlow
academyawards = Best Picture
2008 "No Country for Old Men"
tonyawards = Best Musical
1994 "Passion"
Best Play
2000 "Copenhagen"
2002 "The Goat, or Who is Sylvia?"
2005 "Doubt"
2006 "The History Boys"
emmyawards = Outstanding Children's Program
1984 "He Makes Me Feel Like Dancin'"

Scott Rudin (born July 14, 1958) is an Academy Award-winning American film producer and a Tony Award-winning theatre producer.

Rudin lives in New York City with his longtime partner John Barlow, a Broadway theatre publicist and founding partner of Barlow/Hartman Public Relations.

Early life and work

Rudin was born and raised in the New York City area. At the age of fifteen, he started working as an assistant to theatre producer Kermit Bloomgarden. Later, he worked for producers Robert Whitehead and Emanuel Azenberg. In lieu of attending college, Rudin took a job as a casting agent and ended up starting his own company. His newly minted firm cast numerous Broadway shows, including "Pippin" (1972) for Stuart Ostrow and Bob Fosse and "Annie" (1977), for Mike Nichols. He also cast PBS's "" (1978), starring Sissy Spacek and William Hurt, and the films "King of the Gypsies" (1978), "The Wanderers" (1979), "Simon" (1980) with Alan Arkin and "Resurrection" (1980).citation |url=http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/contributor/1800020262/bio |title=Scott Rudin Biography |periodical=Yahoo! Movies |accessdate=2008-02-25 ]

Career

Producer

In 1980, Rudin moved to Los Angeles, taking up employment at Edgar J. Scherick Associates, where he served as producer on a variety of films including "I'm Dancing as Fast as I Can" (1981), the NBC miniseries "Little Gloria... Happy at Last" (1982) and the Oscar-winning documentary "He Makes Me Feel Like Dancin'" (1983).

After his stint at Edgar J. Sherick Associates, Rudin formed his own outfit, Scott Rudin Productions. His first film under that banner was Gillian Armstrong's "Mrs. Soffel" (1984). But, not long after, Rudin placed his production shingle in dormancy and joined 20th Century-Fox as an executive producer. At Fox, he met , a higher-level executive, with whom he would be working once again at Paramount Pictures years later. Rudin swiftly rose through the ranks at Fox and became president of production by 1986 at the age of 29. His stint at the top of Fox was short lived though, and he soon left and entered into a producing deal with Paramount.

Paramount and Tri-Star

On August 1, 1992, at the age of 34, Rudin allowed his contract with Paramount Pictures to expire and signed a deal with Tri-Star Pictures. Under the terms of his Paramount agreement, he was not given a development fund, the account from which top producers typically draw in order to cover movie acquisition and development expenses.

His deal with Tri-Star, however, was brief, and he soon moved back to Paramount under even more agreeable terms. Rudin's first look deal with Paramount Pictures lasted nearly fifteen years, ending in 2005. The terms of his contract granted him money to cover the overhead for Scott Rudin Productions and its 15 to 20-odd employees, along with a $3 million discretionary fund and a 7.5% cut of the back-end gross income.

After the resignation of Paramount's chairwoman, Sherry Lansing in 2004, and nearly simultaneous departure of Jonathan Dolgen (then president of the company), Rudin left the studio and set a five-year first-look pact with Disney that allowed him to make movies under their labels Touchstone Pictures, Walt Disney Pictures, Hollywood Pictures and Miramax Films. Although he had an often contentious relationship with Lansing, particularly at the end of her tenure when Paramount struggled for a single hit movie, her departure -- along with Dolgen's, helped instigate his move. Even though Rudin was not always fond of Lansing's later-term decisions, he still knew her well and had formed an amiable relationship with her -- more than could be said of his connections with the studio's incoming higher-ups.

Another significant reason for Rudin's departure was it allowed him to channel his more arty fare through Disney's Miramax Films subsidiary. Since Harvey and Bob Weinstein had left Miramax, the company they founded in 1979, Rudin felt he would be free at Disney to utilize its resources. Laura M. Holson of The New York Times wrote on April 21, 2005: "Rudin is likely to fill the gap [left by the departure of Harvey and Bob Weinstein] by providing the sort of high-quality, offbeat art films that Disney has struggled to create on its own." [ [http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/04/20/business/rudin.php Rudin leaving Paramount to join Disney - International Herald Tribune ] ]

When the Weinsteins were running Miramax and its sister label Dimension Films, however, Harvey Weinstein and Rudin, two of the hottest heads on Hollywood, had public confrontations during the production of The Hours (2002), which Rudin produced for Miramax Films after it became a "mini-major" studio subsidiary under Disney.

Rudin said, in an interview with the Los Angeles Times, "There is one shop in town [Miramax] that is making challenging movies. I think it's incredible that he [Weinstein] has found a way to run a business making these kind of movies." However, "we are both control freaks. We both want to run our own shows. When I'm doing a Miramax movie, I work for him. And I don't like that feeling. I chafe under that. I especially chafe under it when I feel that I'm on a leash." [ [http://www.imdb.com/news/sb/2003-03-05 Movie & TV News @ IMDb.com - Studio Briefing - 5 March 2003 ] ]

In fact, public spats between the two drifted into personal territory at times, such as the more memorable incident in which Rudin had his assistants goad Weinstein with innumerable cigarette cartons during one of the Miramax topper's attempts to quit smoking.

Consequently, after the Weinsteins' departure, the idea of becoming a top producer for the Miramax label was perhaps enticing. He would have free rein over the mini-major the Weinsteins nurtured for so many years, and the brothers would be unable to intercede.

Filmography

Over the years, Rudin has produced a diverse array of films, ranging from widely distributed arthouse fare to mainstream Hollywood features. He has been responsible for films by Jack Hofsiss ("I'm Dancing as Fast as I Can" starring Jill Clayburgh); John Schlesinger ("Pacific Heights" starring Melanie Griffith, Michael Keaton and Matthew Modine); Mike Nichols ("Regarding Henry" starring Harrison Ford and Annette Bening); and first-time directors Jodie Foster ("Little Man Tate" starring Foster, Diane Wiest and Adam Hann-Byrd); and Barry Sonnenfeld ("The Addams Family" starring Raúl Juliá, Anjelica Huston, Christopher Lloyd and Christina Ricci). Sonnenfeld's "The Addams Family" became a major franchise, andEmile Ardolino's hit "Sister Act" with Whoopi Goldberg and Maggie Smith spawned a sequel.

Rudin had a string of box-office failures in the early nineties, highlighted by "White Sands" (1992, with Willem Dafoe and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio), "Jennifer 8" (1992, with Andy Garcia and Uma Thurman) and "Life with Mikey" (1993). All three movies struggled among that year's competitive summer slate. However, Rudin was soon redeemed by the star-studded legal thriller "The Firm" (1993), which was his most profitable movie to date with a $270,248,367 worldwide gross, and "Searching for Bobby Fischer" (1993), which garnered critical acclaim. Surprisingly, shortly before "Bobby Fischer" was released, Fischer himself, the renowned young chess prodigy, popped out of hiding in Yugoslavia after 20 years in seclusion. At the time, Rudin was quoted by Army Archerd of "Variety" as saying, "I'm not concerned [about the reemergence of Fischer] . It can only be good, to help publicize the picture... He [Fischer] is never seen in the movie--he never appears." [ [http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117862293.html?categoryid=2&cs=1&query=%22scott+rudin%22 Reel-life Woody-Mia marriage looks familiar - Entertainment News, Army Archerd, Media - Variety ] ]

Subsequently, Rudin oversaw production of the romantic comedy "I.Q." (1994), starring Meg Ryan and Tim Robbins; the Paul Newman film "Nobody's Fool" (1994); the dark horse hit "Clueless" (1995), a breakout movie for Alicia Silverstone; and Sydney Pollack's remake, "Sabrina" (1995). In 1996, he produced "The First Wives Club", a hit comedy starring Bette Midler, Goldie Hawn and Diane Keaton. Keaton was also in Albert Brooks' "Mother" (1996, with Debbie Reynolds) and alongside Meryl Streep and Robert De Niro in "Marvin's Room" (1996), a film that also featured a young Leonardo DiCaprio playing an emotionally disturbed boy. Both were produced by Rudin. Later in '96, Rudin teamed with producer Brian Grazer on Ron Howard's "Ransom", which starred Mel Gibson, Rene Russo and Gary Sinise. Grazer had to get an exemption from his deal at Universal Pictures to join Rudin on that project, which has been the only movie the two powerhouse producers have worked on together. [ [http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117862744.html?categoryid=2&cs=1&query=%22scott+rudin%22 Helmer's story makes for bizarre '2 Days' - Entertainment News, Army Archerd, Media - Variety ] ]

Along with Robert Redford, Rudin also co-produced Steven Zaillian's adaptation of Jonathan Hare's non-fiction book "A Civil Action" (1998), starring John Travolta and Robert Duvall. In the movie, the two stars play opposing lawyers, who represent the residents of Woburn, Mass., on the one hand, and the multi-million dollar corporations, Beatrice Foods and Grace Industries, on the other. The film dramatizes events of the lawsuit, which produced the largest environmental out-of-court settlement in Massachusetts history, at a total of $69.4 million.

Through the nineties, Rudin was a prolific producer, putting together movies that include the following: "In & Out" (1997), starring Kevin Klein; the hit movie, "The Truman Show" (1998), with Jim Carrey; the Matt Stone and Trey Parker-developed movies, ' (1999) and ' (2004); Martin Scorsese's "Bringing Out the Dead" (1999); "Sleepy Hollow" (1999), with Johnny Depp; "Wonder Boys" (2000), starring Michael Douglas and Tobey Maguire, based on the award-winning novel by Michael Chabon; "Shaft" (2000), the remake with Samuel L. Jackson; the hit comedy, "Zoolander" (2001), starring Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson; three of Wes Anderson's arthouse, ensemble-cast hits "The Royal Tenenbaums" (2001), "The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou" (2004), and The Darjeeling Limited (2007); the well-received Jack Black starrer "School of Rock" (2003); "Orange County" (2002) written by "The School of Rock" writer, Mike White; "The Manchurian Candidate" (2004) with Meryl Streep, Denzel Washington and Liev Schreiber; Richard Eyre's "Iris" (2001), starring Judi Dench and Jim Broadbent, the latter of whom won an Oscar for his supporting role in the film; "The Stepford Wives" (2004), starring Nicole Kidman, Matthew Broderick, Glenn Close, Christopher Walken and Bette Middler; M. Night Shyamalan's "The Village" (2004), with Bryce Dallas Howard, Joaquin Phoenix, Adrien Brody, William Hurt and Sigourney Weaver; David O. Russell's "I Heart Huckabees" (2004), with Jason Schwartzman, Jude Law, Dustin Hoffman, Mark Wahlberg and Naomi Watts ; Mike Nichols' "Closer" (2004), starring Natalie Portman, Jude Law, Clive Owen and Julia Roberts; "Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events" (2004), starring Jim Carey, Jude Law and Meryl Streep (2004); "Freedomland" (2006), with Samuel L. Jackson; and "Failure to Launch" (2006), starring Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew McConaughey; among many others.

His most recent films include "Notes on a Scandal" (2006), starring Cate Blanchett and Judi Dench and based on the best-selling book ""; "Venus" (2006), starring Peter O'Toole; and "The Queen" (2006), starring Helen Mirren as Queen Elizabeth II, a role that won her an Oscar for Best Actress. O'Toole and Dench were also nominated for Oscars in the 2006-2007 season for their leading roles in their respective films. Only Mirren won. "Notes on a Scandal" received three other Oscar nominations: Blanchett for supporting role, Patrick Marber for Best Adapted Screenplay and Philip Glass Academy Award for Best Original Score. Most notably, "The Queen" was nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards, along with Stephen Frears for Best Director, and Peter Morgan for Best Original Screenplay. He will possibly take part in Paramount Pictures' 2009 musical remake of "Footloose" starring Zac Efron.

In 2007 Rudin produced the movie "Margot at the Wedding", a tragicomedy about a dysfunctional family starring Nicole Kidman, Jack Black and Jennifer Jason Leigh, and Wes Anderson's "The Darjeeling Limited".

Rudin is developing adaptations of the novels "The Corrections", "Special Topics in Calamity Physics" and the Pulitzer Prize-winning "The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay". He is also in various stages of production on the following projects, among many others: "The Other Boleyn Girl", based on the best-selling novel of the same name and starring Natalie Portman, Scarlett Johansson and Eric Bana; Kenneth Lonergan's "Margaret", with Anna Paquin; David Gordon Green's "The Goat"; an untitled Alan Ball project; and a Wes Anderson picture, "The Fantastic Mr. Fox", the latter of which is based on the Roald Dahl book of the same name and starring George Clooney, Anjelica Huston, Cate Blanchett and Jason Schwartzman.

2008 Academy Awards

In January 2008, two of Rudin's productions -- the Coen Brothers' "No Country for Old Men", which they adapted from the Cormac McCarthy book of the same name, and Paul Thomas Anderson's "There Will Be Blood", which he adapted from the Upton Sinclair novel, "Oil!" -- were nominated for eight Oscars a piece at the 2008 Academy Awards, including a Best Picture nod for each of them. The two films shared the distinction of being the most nominated movie at that years Oscar ceremony. Ultimately, "No Country for Old Men" won the Best Picture prize, and Rudin and Joel and Ethan Coen were each awarded an Oscar statuette for the achievement.

Theatre

Rudin also continues to produce for the theatre. He co-produced the unsuccessful staging of David Henry Hwang's "Face Value" with Stuart Ostrow and Jujamcyn Theaters. He started a deal with Jujamcyn to develop and produce new plays for the theater chain. In 1994, Rudin won Best Musical Tony Award for his production of Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine's "Passion". The following year, he, along with others, produced Kathleen Turner's Broadway comeback, "Indiscretions", and Ralph Fiennes New York theatre debut in "Hamlet". In 1996, Rudin produced the revival of the Stephen Sondheim and Larry Gelbart musical "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum", which starred Nathan Lane, Ernie Sabella and Mark Linn-Baker. Rudin also produced "The Goat or Who Is Sylvia?", "Seven Guitars", "The Ride Down Mt. Morgan", "Copenhagen", "Deuce", "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?", "The History Boys", "Beckett/Albee", "Closer", "The Blue Room", and "Doubt". He has won five Tony Awards and five Drama Desk Awards for his productions.

References

External links

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* [http://www.ibdb.com/person.asp?ID=23801 Scott Rudin at the Internet Broadway Database]
* [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1589/is_2003_Sept_30/ai_110917233 More Out Power Brokers, "The Advocate", Sept. 30, 2003]