Neal H. Moritz
Neal H. Moritz (born June 6, 1959) is an American film producer and formerly executive at Sony Pictures, and currently an executive at Paramount Pictures. He is the founder of Original Film and most known for I Know What You Did Last Summer, I Am Legend and the Fast & Furious franchise, and the television shows Prison Break and The Big C. His films have earned more than $5 billion as of 2012.[2]
Neal H. Moritz | |
---|---|
Moritz at the 2010 San Diego Comic Con | |
Born | |
Alma mater | USC School of Cinematic Arts |
Occupation | Film producer |
Spouse(s) | Sarah Trimble Moritz |
Early life and family
Neal H. Moritz was born in Los Angeles, California, to Milton Moritz and Barbara (née Levin). His paternal grandfather, Joseph Moritz, owned movie theaters in Pittsburgh and was an early investor in American International Pictures (AIP). Milton Moritz was born in Pittsburgh and moved to California after falling ill with rheumatic fever at age eight, when his doctor suggested the family move to a better climate. He was head of marketing at AIP and was later CEO and president of the National Association of Theatre Owners of California/Nevada. Moritz is from a Jewish family.[3][4][5][6]
Moritz grew up in Westwood and graduated from UCLA, where he participated in a Semester at Sea program. When he came back, he gave away several backpacks that were popular with Chinese students. He had so many requests for the backpacks that he and a friend began a company importing purses and bags from Taiwan. He sold the company to an investor, and returned to school.[4] He earned a master's degree from the University of Southern California's School of Cinema-Television in 1985. He is a member of the school's Alumni Development Council.[7] As of April 2017, Moritz has been married for 15 years and has two children, aged 17 and 14.[4]
One of his earliest movies was Juice with Tupac Shakur.[4] Moritz has more than 70 films to his credit, including I Know What You Did Last Summer, Urban Legend, Cruel Intentions, The Skulls, The Fast Saga franchise, Not Another Teen Movie, XXX, S.W.A.T., Evan Almighty, I Am Legend, Made of Honor, Total Recall and 21 Jump Street.
Moritz is also credited for Prison Break, and he produced Cabin by the Lake, its sequel Return to Cabin by the Lake and The Glass House. In December 2011, Moritz announced plans to produce a reboot of the Starship Troopers film franchise; this reboot is said to be more faithful to the source material than the previous films, which feature little in common with the original novel apart from the general setting and character names.[8][9]
Starting in 2018, Moritz and Original Film began a first-look deal for Paramount Pictures starting January 1, 2018, leaving his longtime home, Sony Pictures, after over 20 years.[10] However, he still maintains his overall deal at Sony Pictures Television.[11] A month later, the rights for the Sonic the Hedgehog film were transferred from Sony to Paramount, leaving most of the original staff intact.[12]
In October 2018, Moritz filed a lawsuit against Universal Pictures for breach of oral contract and committing promissory fraud after the distributor removed him as lead producer on Hobbs & Shaw. Furthermore, it was revealed in May 2019 that Universal had blacklisted Moritz from any future Fast & Furious installments.[13] Despite this, he received producer credit for the upcoming 2021 film F9.[14]
Filmography
All films, he was producer unless otherwise noted.
Film
Sony Pictures
NBCUniversal
Year | Title | Director | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2000 | The Skulls | Rob Cohen | Under Universal Pictures |
2001 | The Fast and the Furious | ||
2003 | 2 Fast 2 Furious | John Singleton | |
2006 | The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift | Justin Lin | |
2007 | Evan Almighty | Tom Shadyac | |
2009 | Fast & Furious | Justin Lin | |
2011 | Fast Five | ||
The Change-Up | David Dobkin | ||
2013 | Fast & Furious 6 | Justin Lin | |
R.I.P.D. | Robert Schwentke | ||
2014 | Search Party | Scot Armstrong | Under Focus World |
2015 | Furious 7 | James Wan | Under Universal Pictures and Legendary Entertainment |
2017 | The Fate of the Furious | F. Gary Gray | |
2021 | F9 | Justin Lin | Under Universal Pictures |
Lionsgate
Year | Title | Director | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1994 | The Stoned Age | James Melkonian | Under Trimark Pictures |
1999 | Held Up | Steve Rash | |
2001 | Soul Survivors | Stephen Carpenter | Under Artisan Entertainment |
2011 | The Music Never Stopped | Jim Kohlberg | Under Lionsgate Films and Roadside Attractions |
2018 | Hunter Killer | Donovan Marsh | Under Lionsgate Films and Summit Entertainment |
Walt Disney Motion Pictures
Year | Title | Director | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1997 | Volcano | Mick Jackson | Under 20th Century Fox |
2002 | Sweet Home Alabama | Andy Tennant | Under Touchstone Pictures |
2019 | The Art of Racing in the Rain | Simon Curtis | Under 20th Century Fox |
WarnerMedia
Year | Title | Director | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2004 | Torque | Joseph Kahn | Under Warner Bros. and Village Roadshow Pictures |
2007 | I Am Legend | Francis Lawrence | |
2013 | Jack the Giant Slayer | Bryan Singer | Under Warner Bros. and New Line Cinema |
Other studios
Year | Film | Studio | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1992 | Juice | Paramount Pictures | |
2003 | Out of Time | MGM Distribution Co. | |
2020 | Sonic the Hedgehog | Paramount Pictures | |
Spenser Confidential | Netflix | ||
2022 | Untitled Sonic the Hedgehog sequel | Paramount Pictures | |
Danger Mouse[15] | In Development | ||
Sexcrimes | In Development | ||
Direct-to-video
- Cruel Intentions 2 (2000)
- The Skulls II (2002) (Executive producer)
- The Skulls III (2004)
- Cruel Intentions 3 (2004)
- Devour (2005)
- I'll Always Know What You Did Last Summer (2006)
- Species: The Awakening (2007)
- S.W.A.T.: Firefight (2011)
- S.W.A.T.: Under Siege (2017)
As an actor
Year | Film | Role |
---|---|---|
2001 | The Fast and the Furious | Ferrari Driver |
2003 | 2 Fast 2 Furious | Swerving Cop |
S.W.A.T. | Luxury Car Driver |
Thanks
- My Trip to the Dark Side (2011)
Television
All works, he was executive producer unless otherwise noted.
- Shasta McNasty (1999)
- Still Life (2003)
- Greg the Bunny (2002–04)
- Tru Calling (2003–05)
- Point Pleasant (2005–06)
- The Big C (2010–13)
- Save Me (2013)
- Prison Break (2005–17)
- Happy! (2017–19)
- The Boys (2019–present)
- Fast & Furious Spy Racers (2019–present)
- Preacher (2016–19)
- S.W.A.T. (2017–present)
TV Movies
- Framed (1990)
- Blind Justice (1994)
- The Rat Pack (1998)
- Monster! (1999)
- Cabin by the Lake (2000)
- Hendrix (2000)
- Electra's Guy (2000)
- Class Warfare (2001)
- Return to Cabin by the Lake (2001)
- Shotgun Love Dolls (2001)
- The Pool at Maddy Breaker's (2003)
- Vegas Dick (2003)
- Not Another High School Show (2007)
- SIS (2008)
- Prison Break: The Final Break (2009)
TV Pilots
- Mr. Ed (2004)
- Untitled Dave Caplan pilot (2008)
- Cruel Intentions (2016)
- Roadside Picnic (2017)
References
- "Neal H Moritz, Born 06/06/1959 in California". CaliforniaBirthIndex.org.
- Fernandez, Jay A. (March 9, 2012). "'21 Jump Street' Producer Neal H. Moritz Talks Tips for Surviving on Set". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved April 14, 2017.
- Shollar, Masha (August 3, 2016). "Native son recalls hand in 'Golden Age' of B movies". The Jewish Chronicle. Retrieved April 14, 2017.
- "'B.S. Pod': The History of the 'Fast & Furious' Franchise With Neal Moritz". The Ringer. April 11, 2017. Retrieved April 14, 2017.
- "Neal Moritz, a producer with his finger on the pulse of the populace". Los Angeles Times. March 14, 2011. Retrieved April 14, 2017.
- Goldstein, Patrick (March 9, 1999). "Moritz Makes His 'Intentionsxxx' Clear". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 14, 2017.
- "Alumni Development Council" (PDF). In Motion. USC: 2. Fall 2016. Retrieved April 14, 2017.
- "A New Invasion: 'Starship Troopers' Headed for a Remake". Archived from the original on December 4, 2011. Retrieved December 3, 2011.
- "'Starship Troopers' Reboot Officially In The Works". Screen Rant. December 2, 2011. Retrieved April 14, 2017.
- McNary, Dave (September 6, 2017). "Neal Moritz Signs First-Look Deal With Paramount". Variety. Retrieved May 13, 2019.
- Galuppo, Mia (September 6, 2017). "Neal Moritz Moves First-Look Deal to Paramount". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved May 13, 2019.
- McNary, Dave (October 2, 2017). "'Sonic the Hedgehog' Movie Lands at Paramount". Variety. Retrieved May 13, 2019.
- Holmes, Adam (May 9, 2019). "The Fast And Furious Franchise Has Fired Its Longtime Producer". Cinema Blend. Retrieved May 13, 2019.
- "The Fast Saga website". Retrieved February 1, 2020.
- http://www.empireonline.com/news/story.asp?NID=45602