Judd Apatow
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Judd Apatow | |
|---|---|
 Apatow at Hollywood Life Magazine’s 7th Annual Breakthrough Awards, 2007 |
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| Born | December 6, 1967 Syosset, New York |
| Occupation | Film director Writer Producer Actor |
| Spouse(s) | Leslie Mann |
| Official website | |
Judd Apatow (born December 6, 1967) is an American screenwriter, director and producer. He is best known for producing a distinct series of successful comedy films, including Celtic Pride, Anchorman, The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Talladega Nights, Knocked Up, Superbad, Walk Hard, Drillbit Taylor and Forgetting Sarah Marshall. He also is the founder of Apatow Productions, a film production company that also developed the critically acclaimed cult television series Freaks and Geeks and Undeclared.
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[edit] Early life
Apatow was born in Syosset, New York to a Jewish family.[1] His sense of humor provided access to friends while growing up.[2] Obsessed with comedy, Apatow's childhood hero was Steve Martin.[2] He has an older brother Robert and a younger sister Mia;[2] his father was a real estate developer, and his mother worked at a comedy club in Southampton.[2]
Apatow's parents divorced when he was 12 years old. His brother Robert went to live with their grandparents, sister Mia went moved in with their mother. Apatow went to live with his father, visiting his mother on weekends. Both parents understood and supported his obsession with comedy.[2] Apatow got his comic start while attending Syosset High School, where he hosted a program called Club Comedy on the school's 10-watt radio station WKWZ. He relied on his mother's contacts at the comedy club to gain access to the comedians;[2]during this time, he managed to interview Steve Allen, Howard Stern, Harold Ramis and John Candy, along with then-unknowns Jerry Seinfeld, Jay Leno, Steven Wright and Garry Shandling. [3]
[edit] Career
[edit] Early career
He began performing stand-up comedy at age 17, during his senior year of high school.[2] After graduating from high school in 1985, he moved to Los Angeles and enrolled in the screenwriting program at University of Southern California.[2][4] While at USC he organized and hosted a number of on-campus "Comedy Night" events featuring headliners such as Saturday Night Live performer Kevin Nealon. Apatow introduced the acts at these events with short standup routines of his own. He also began volunteering at Comic Relief and introducing comedians at the Improv.[2] Apatow dropped out of USC after two years and moved into an apartment with comedian Adam Sandler, whom he met at the Improv.[2] He also continued performing standup comedy; and he admits that although his act was well-written, he was unable to develop his own unique comedic personality.[5]
After finding little success as a performer himself, Apatow began writing jokes for others[3] including up-and-coming star Roseanne Barr.[5] He appeared on HBO's 15th Annual Young Comedians Special in 1992.[1] In 1990, Apatow met Ben Stiller outside of an Elvis Costello show, and they became friends.[2] In 1992, Apatow produced The Ben Stiller Show for Fox. Although the show was critically acclaimed and earned Apatow and the rest of the writing staff an Emmy Award, Fox canceled the show in 1993.
Apatow's manager, Jimmy Miller, introduced him to comedian Garry Shandling, who hired Apatow as a writer and producer for The Larry Sanders Show in 1993. Apatow worked on the show for five years until the show's end in 1998.[5] Apatow credits Garry Shandling as his mentor for influencing him to write comedy that is more character-driven.[5] Apatow earned six Emmy nominations for his work on Larry Sanders.
Apatow was hired to re-write Lou Holtz' script for the movie The Cable Guy, which was released in 1996. He expected the film to be a huge success, but it ultimately had a mediocre box office success and poor reviews.[6] It was during the shooting of the film, however, that Apatow met his wife, actress Leslie Mann.
Apatow's next script was entitled Making Amends and had Owen Wilson attached as a man in Alcoholics Anonymous who decides to apologize to everyone he has ever hurt. Apatow used Cameron Crowe and Crowe's movie Jerry Maguire as a role model. However, the film was never made.[6] Apatow did an uncredited rewrite of the 1998 Adam Sandler comedy The Wedding Singer.[6]
In 1999 and 2001, Apatow produced the television series Freaks and Geeks and Undeclared, both of which were quickly canceled due to low ratings, lasting only one season each, but which Susan Wloszczyna called "two of the most acclaimed TV series to ever last only one season".[7]
Apatow additionally wrote and produced 3 TV pilots that were never aired: "North Hollywood", "Sick in the Head" and "Life on Parole" (with Brent Forrester). Apatow has screened and introduced them at "The Other Network", a festival of un-aired TV pilots produced by Un-Cabaret.
[edit] Career success
In 2004, Apatow produced the hit comedy Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, starring Will Ferrell, his first hit after a string of critically acclaimed, relatively obscure shows.
In 2005, he directed and co-wrote the comedy The 40-Year-Old Virgin with Steve Carell, which was nominated for best original screenplay by the Writers Guild of America.[8] The 40-Year-Old Virgin was a sleeper hit,[6] grossing $177,378,645 worldwide and making many critics' Top 10 lists for the year.[2] Also in 2005, Apatow wrote the Jim Carrey comedy Fun with Dick and Jane.
Apatow's film, Knocked Up, was released in June 2007 to wide critical acclaim. Apatow wrote the initial draft of the film on the set of Talladega Nights.[5] In addition to being a critical success, the film was also a commercial hit, continuing Apatow's newfound mainstream success.
In August of 2007, Apatow produced the film Superbad, which was written by Seth Rogen and his writing partner Evan Goldberg. A concept Rogen and Goldberg had created as teens, Apatow convinced Rogen to write the film as a vehicle for himself in 2000. Rogen and Goldberg finished writing the film, but were unable to find a studio interested in producing it. Apatow then enlisted Rogen and Goldberg to write Pineapple Express, a stoner action movie that he felt would be more commercial. After the success of Anchorman and The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Apatow was still unable to sell both Superbad and Pineapple Express; it was only after he produced the commercial hit Talladega Nights that Sony Pictures Entertainment decided to produce both.[6] At this point, Rogen was unable to play the lead for Superbad, as he had grown too old to play the part of Seth. Subsequently, he was cast in a supporting role as a police officer and friend Jonah Hill took his role as the high school student. Apatow credits Rogen for influencing him to make his work more "outrageously dirty."[5] In August 2007, Superbad opened at #1 in the box office to critical acclaim, taking in $33 million in its opening weekend. [9] Industry insiders claimed Apatow was now a brand unto himself, creating movies geared toward older audiences, who would watch his movies even when the films delved into the teen genre.[10]
Discussing the balance his films strike between R-rated vulgarity and a more wholesome sentimentality, the writer-director explained his position as, "I like movies that are, you know, uplifting and hopeful...and I like filth!"[11]
Apatow has helped to foster the acting careers of Steve Carell and Seth Rogen, and also tends to work with his close friends.[5] He has frequently worked with producer Shauna Robertson, whom he met on the set of Elf.[6] He reunited with Jason Segel and Amy Poehler for the 2001 Fox sitcom pilot, North Hollywood. He tries to keep a low budget on his projects and usually makes his movies about the work itself rather than using big stars.[5] After his success in film, he hired the entire writing staff from Undeclared to write movies for Apatow Productions.[5] He never fires writers and he keeps them on projects through all stages of productions.[5] Apatow is not committed to any specific studio, but his projects are typically set up at Universal and Sony.[5]
He served as producer and writer for the musician biopic spoof Walk Hard starring John C. Reilly, which was released in December of 2007. While the film received positive reviews, it was a commercial failure, having only made back half of its budget. He most recently served as producer for Drillbit Taylor starring Owen Wilson and his wife Leslie Mann and written by Seth Rogen, which opened in March of 2008 to mostly negative reviews. For the rest of 2008, he serves as producer for Forgetting Sarah Marshall starring former Freaks and Geeks star Jason Segel and former Veronica Mars star Kristen Bell, Step Brothers, which reunites Talladega Nights stars Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly, and Pineapple Express starring Seth Rogen and James Franco, who costarred with Rogen on Freaks and Geeks. In addition, as well as serving as a co-writer for Pineapple Express, he served as co-writer for the Adam Sandler starrer You Don't Mess with the Zohan, which Sandler and Robert Smigel also co-wrote.
New York Magazine noted that [former Apatow associate] Mike White ... was "disenchanted" by Judd Apatow's later films, "objecting to the treatment of women and gay men in Apatow's recent movies," saying of Knocked Up, "At some point it starts feeling like comedy of the bullies, rather than the bullied."[12]
Apatow has claimed to strive to avoid marginalizing women in his work and to develop authentic female characters. Following many of these accusations, in a highly publicized Vanity Fair interview, lead actor Katherine Heigl admitted that though she enjoyed working with Apatow, she had a hard time enjoying [Knocked Up] itself, calling the movie, "a little sexist," claiming that the film "paints the women as shrews, as humorless and uptight." In response to accusations of sexism ... Apatow did not initially deny the validity of such accusations, saying flippantly, "I'm just shocked she [Heigl] used the word 'shrew.' I mean, what is this, the sixteen-hundreds?"[13]
[edit] Upcoming projects
He serves as producer for the Harold Ramis-directed biblical comedy The Year One starring Jack Black and Superbad star Michael Cera, which is set to be released June 5, 2009. He is also set to release his third directorial feature on July 31, 2009, which is yet untitled. He wrote the film by himself, and it is set to star Adam Sandler, Seth Rogen, and Leslie Mann. Filming is expected to begin in September of 2008, depending on the Screen Actors Strike of 2008. Sandler and Rogen will play a pair of stand up comics and the film will contain more dramatic elements than Apatow's previous efforts.[14]
[edit] Personal life
Apatow admires filmmakers James L. Brooks, Hal Ashby, Robert Altman and John Cassavetes.[6] The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences rejected his application for membership, even though he was sponsored by Academy Award-winning screenwriters Akiva Goldsman and Stephen Gaghan.[7]
Apatow is married to actress Leslie Mann, whom he met on the set of The Cable Guy and who has appeared in both The 40-Year-Old Virgin and Knocked Up.[15] The couple have two daughters, Maude and Iris. Both girls appeared in Knocked Up.[16] He currently resides in Los Angeles, California with his family.[2]
[edit] Trademarks
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This section does not cite any references or sources. (April 2008) Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed. |
- His works frequently involve teenagers in high school or young adults in college: Superbad, Freaks and Geeks, Undeclared, Drillbit Taylor.
- Much of the dialogue in his films is improvised by the actors.
- Most of his characters are from their late teens to mid-twenties: Knocked Up, Superbad, Freaks and Geeks, Undeclared, etc. The notable exception to this rule is the title character in The 40 Year Old Virgin and his love interest, who is supposedly "a hot grandmother."
- He frequently uses actors he has worked with in main, supporting and cameos, such as Seth Rogen, Will Ferrell, Steve Carrell, Jason Segel, Jonah Hill, Paul Rudd, Leslie Mann, Ben Stiller, Bill Hader, and James Franco.
- His produced films have been shot digitally rather than on film. Films directed by him are shot on film.
- His films frequently use profanity.
- His films generally don't allow female characters to develop beyond their relationships to the key male characters. While the male lead characters often show shades of emotion and do crazy things 'just because', Apatow's female leads rarely get the same chance; the dialogue in female scenes rarely moves beyond the men in their lives
[edit] Filmography
[edit] Movies
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1992 | Crossing the Bridge | Associate producer |
| 1995 | Heavyweights | Writer, executive producer |
| 1996 | Celtic Pride | Story, screenplay, executive producer |
| The Cable Guy | Producer | |
| 2004 | Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy | Producer |
| 2005 | Kicking & Screaming | Executive producer |
| The 40 Year Old Virgin | Director, writer, producer | |
| Fun with Dick and Jane | Story, screenplay | |
| 2006 | Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby | Producer |
| The TV Set | Executive producer | |
| 2007 | Knocked Up | Director, writer, producer |
| Superbad | Producer | |
| Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story | Writer, producer | |
| 2008 | Drillbit Taylor | Producer |
| Forgetting Sarah Marshall | Producer | |
| Step Brothers | Producer (completed) | |
| Pineapple Express | Producer (completed) | |
| 2009 | Year One | Producer (post-production) |
| Untitled Judd Apatow/Adam Sandler Comedy | Director, writer, producer (pre-production) | |
| Get Him to the Greek | Producer (pre-production) |
[edit] Other Films
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Wake Up, Ron Burgundy: The Lost Movie | Producer (direct-to-video) |
| 2006 | American Storage | Executive producer (short film) |
[edit] Television
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1992-1993 | The Ben Stiller Show | Co-creator, writer, executive producer |
| 1993-1998 | The Larry Sanders Show | Director, writer, co-executive producer, consulting producer |
| 1994-1995 | The Critic | Writer, consulting producer |
| 1999-2000 | Freaks and Geeks | Director, writer, executive producer |
| 2001-2002 | Undeclared | Creator, director, writer, executive producer |
[edit] References
- ^ a b Michaels, Chad. "Judd Apatow Interview", Wild About Movies, May 23, 2007. Retrieved on 2007-06-04.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Minton, Jeff. "Judd Apatow's Family Values", New York Times, 2007-05-27. Retrieved on June 4, 2007.
- ^ a b Maher, Ken. "Gross-out for grown-ups", Times Online, May 31, 2007. Retrieved on 2007-06-04.
- ^ Notable Alumni, USC School of Cinematic Arts.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Abramowitz, Rachel. "Judd Apatow, the mayor of comedy", The LA Times, 2007-05-13. Retrieved on June 4, 2007.
- ^ a b c d e f g Thompson, Anne. "Hot Apatow new king of comedy", Variety, 2007-05-11. Retrieved on June 4, 2007.
- ^ a b Wloszczyna, Susan. "For Apatow, opportunity knocks," USA Today, 2007-05-06. Retrieved on June 4, 2007.
- ^ Buckalew, Brett. "No Longer a Feature Film Virgin", Filmstew.com, August 18, 2006. Retrieved on 2007-06-04.
- ^ "How did 'Superbad' top the box office?", Los Angeles Times, August 23, 2007. Retrieved on 2007-08-26.
- ^ "Paul Dergarabedian Watch: Paul D. Explains the Judd Apatow Phenomenon", New York Magazine Holdings LLC, August 20, 2007. Retrieved on 2007-08-26.
- ^ The Big Picture -Judd Apatow Interview
- ^ Mike White Calls Out Judd Apatow -- Vulture -- Entertainment & Culture Blog -- New York Magazine.
- ^ Marketing Genius Judd Apatow Turns Katherine Heigl's ‘Knocked Up’ Slam Into a Sales Pitch -- Vulture -- Entertainment & Culture Blog -- New York Magazine.
- ^ http://www.mtv.com/movies/news/articles/1588439/20080531/story.jhtml
- ^ Koltnow, Barry. "A couple that films together ...", The Orange County Register, June 1, 2007. Retrieved on 2007-06-04.
- ^ "Judd Apatow emerges as behind-the-scenes maestro in thriving comedy era", The Boston Herald, May 5, 2007. Retrieved on 2007-06-04.
[edit] External links
- Judd Apatow at the Internet Movie Database
- Judd Apatow at MySpace
- E-mail exchange with Mark Brazill — published in Harper's
- The Other Network
[edit] Interviews
- Bullz-Eye.com Interview — 6 August 2005
- NPR: Morning Edition Sunday audio interview — 21 August 2005
- LA Times Article — 15 May 2007
- Knocked Up press junket interview (transcript and audio) — 18 May 2007
- NPR Fresh Air Interview w/ Seth Rogen — 31 May 2007
- Wired Magazine Story — May 2007
- Elvis Mitchell The Treatment Interview — 6 June 2007
- Rollng Stone Interview — 7 June 2007
- LA Weekly Story — 5 June 2007
- Peter Bart Essay In Variety — 31 August 2007
- ReelzChannel Exclusive — 13 December 2007
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| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| NAME | Apatow, Judd |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION | Film director, Writer, Producer, Actor |
| DATE OF BIRTH | December 6, 1967 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Syosset, New York |
| DATE OF DEATH | |
| PLACE OF DEATH | |
