Lawrence Grey (producer)

Last updated

Lawrence Grey is a Canadian-American film and television producer.

Contents

Grey launched his production company Grey Matter Productions in 2013. [1] Grey Matter's first film, Lights Out , was released by Warner Bros. and New Line Cinema on July 22, 2016. [2]

Career

Early career

Grey launched his producing career as a studio executive, serving as Executive Vice President and Co-Head of Production for Mandate Pictures from 2009–2011 and Senior Vice President of Production at Universal Pictures from 2006‑2009. [3]

From 2000 to 2006, Grey was an executive at Fox Searchlight Pictures. [4] During his time there, Grey found the script for Juno , which he packaged with director Jason Reitman and oversaw through production. While at Searchlight, Grey also oversaw the acquisition and production of the action-fantasy films Night Watch and Day Watch from Russian filmmaker Timur Bekmambetov, who went on to direct Wanted . [5] He developed Diary of a Mad Black Woman , Tyler Perry's first film. Additionally, he oversaw The Hills Have Eyes from French director Alexandre Aja, [6] Johnson Family Vacation , The Ringer , and 28 Weeks Later .

Grey co-produced the 2012 film Hope Springs starring Meryl Streep, Tommy Lee Jones and Steve Carell and directed by David Frankel ( The Devil Wears Prada ). He was the executive producer of the 2013 film Last Vegas , which starred Michael Douglas, Robert De Niro, Morgan Freeman, and Kevin Kline, and was directed by Jon Turteltaub. [7]

Grey Matter Productions

Grey launched his production banner Grey Matter Productions in 2013.

Most recently, Grey Matter released its first feature film, Lights Out, which is based on the short film by David Sandberg. [8] Sandberg also directed the feature adaptation, which was written by Eric Heisserer and produced alongside James Wan's production banner Atomic Monster. The film was released by New Line Cinema on July 22, 2016 with a $21.6 million opening in its first weekend. As of September 7, 2016, Lights Out has grossed $66.3 million in North America and $70.9 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $137.2 million. [9]

Previously, Grey sold Section 6, a film about the untold origin story of MI6, to Universal. [10] The project will be directed by Joe Cornish ( Attack the Block ). Grey also developed and sold Winter's Knight, a Viking‑themed reimagining of the Santa Claus legend to Sony Pictures. [11] The film will be directed by Joachim Ronning & Espen Sandberg, directors of the Academy Award®-nominated Kon-Tiki and the upcoming installment of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise.

In 2014, Grey Matter announced a partnership with the Bruce Lee estate to develop and produce the definitive biopic on the famous martial artist. [12]

In 2016, STX Entertainment and Grey Matter Productions announced an upcoming thriller starring Sylvester Stallone. The film, written by Dan Casey and to be directed by Jim Mickle, will go into production in late 2016. [13] Grey Matter also announced that it will produce a feature film about the recent Panama Papers scandal. Steven Soderbergh is also producing with an eye to direct, alongside Scott Z. Burns. The film is to be based on an upcoming book Secrecy World that Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Jake Bernstein is writing for Henry Holt and Company. Grey is teamed with Anonymous Content to develop, finance and produce. Grey, Michael Sugar, Burns and Soderbergh are producing. [14]

Personal life

A native of Montreal, Quebec, Canada, Grey is a graduate of Georgetown University Law Center. Grey is active in the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC).

Filmography

YearTitleDirectorNotes
2012 Hope Springs David Frankel Co-producer
2013 Last Vegas Jon Turteltaub Executive producer
2015 Hidden Duffer brothers
2016 Lights Out David F. Sandberg
2019 The Laundromat Steven Soderbergh
2021 Yes Day Miguel Arteta
2023 Pain Hustlers David Yates
2023 Family Switch McG

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David S. Goyer</span> American filmmaker, novelist, and comic book writer

David Samuel Goyer is an American filmmaker, novelist and comic book writer. He is best known for writing the screenplays for several superhero films, including Nick Fury: Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. (1998), the Blade trilogy (1998–2004), Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy (2005–2012), Man of Steel (2013) and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016). He has also directed four films: Zig Zag (2002), Blade: Trinity (2004), The Invisible (2007) and The Unborn (2009). He is the creator of the science fiction television series Foundation which is loosely based upon the Foundation series written by Isaac Asimov.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Channing Tatum</span> American actor (born 1980)

Channing Matthew Tatum is an American actor. Tatum made his film debut in the drama Coach Carter (2005), and had his breakthrough role in the 2006 dance film Step Up. He gained wider attention for his leading roles in the sports comedy She's the Man (2006), the comedy-drama Magic Mike (2012) and its sequels Magic Mike XXL (2015) and Magic Mike's Last Dance (2023), the latter two of which he also produced, and in the action-comedy 21 Jump Street (2012) and its sequel 22 Jump Street (2014).

Joachim Rønning is a Norwegian film director who previously worked in a partnership with Espen Sandberg, both of whom came from Sandefjord, Norway. As a directing team, they went under the name of Roenberg. They co-own one of Scandinavia's largest production companies for commercials called Motion Blur. Rønning now develops and directs film and television as a solo director.

Lawrence Inglee is an American film producer. Inglee most recently served as President of Production for Mosaic Film. He has worked as a producer on a number of films, including The Messenger by director Oren Moverman and The Day After Tomorrow by director Roland Emmerich.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">RatPac Entertainment</span> American media company

RatPac Entertainment, LLC is an American media and entertainment company that finances and produces motion pictures, television, documentaries, live theater, and podcasts, owned by Brett Ratner and James Packer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Annapurna Pictures</span> American independent media company

Annapurna Pictures is an American independent media company founded by Megan Ellison on April 2, 2011 and based in Los Angeles, California. It is active in film, television and theatrical production, film distribution, and video game publishing.

William Hunt Block is an American film producer who served as CEO of Miramax from April 2017 to October 2023. His producing credits include W. (2008), District 9 (2009), Fury (2014), Bad Moms (2016), Dirty Grandpa (2016), Halloween (2018), and Halloween Kills (2021).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">STX Entertainment</span> American media company

STX Entertainment is an American entertainment and media company. Founded in March 2014 by film producer Robert Simonds, the studio produces film, television, and digital media projects.

<i>Lights Out</i> (2016 film) 2016 American supernatural horror film

Lights Out is a 2016 American supernatural horror film directed by David F. Sandberg in his directorial debut, produced by Lawrence Grey, James Wan, and Eric Heisserer and written by Heisserer. It stars Teresa Palmer, Gabriel Bateman, Alexander DiPersia, Billy Burke, and Maria Bello. It is based on Sandberg's 2013 short film of the same name and features Lotta Losten, who starred in the short.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andy Muschietti</span> Argentine film director and screenwriter

Andrés Walter Muschietti is an Argentine filmmaker who achieved wide recognition with the 2013 film Mama. He gained further recognition for directing both films in the It film series, the 2017 film adaptation of the Stephen King novel and the second being its sequel, It Chapter Two. In 2023, he directed the DCEU film The Flash.

<i>The Bye Bye Man</i> 2017 supernatural horror film directed by Stacy Title

The Bye Bye Man is a 2017 American supernatural horror film directed by Stacy Title and written by Jonathan Penner, based on the chapter "The Bridge to Body Island" in Robert Damon Schneck's book The President's Vampire. The film stars Douglas Smith, Lucien Laviscount, Cressida Bonas, Doug Jones, Carrie-Anne Moss, Faye Dunaway, and Jenna Kanell.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David F. Sandberg</span> Swedish filmmaker (born 1981)

David F. Sandberg is a Swedish filmmaker. He is best known for his collective no-budget horror short films under the online pseudonym ponysmasher and for his 2016 directorial debut Lights Out, based on his 2013 acclaimed horror short of the same name. He also directed the horror film Annabelle: Creation (2017) as part of The Conjuring Universe, and the DC Extended Universe films Shazam! (2019) and Shazam! Fury of the Gods (2023).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Intrepid Pictures</span> US independent production company

Intrepid Pictures is an American independent film and television production company dedicated to producing elevated commercial content for global mainstream audiences. It was founded in 2004 by Trevor Macy and Marc D. Evans, and is currently run by Trevor Macy and Mike Flanagan. The company is based in Los Angeles, California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matt Tolmach</span> Producer

Matthew Tolmach is an American film producer and former co-president of production at Sony Pictures Entertainment.

Studio 8 is an American entertainment company founded in 2014, by Jeff Robinov, John Graham, Mark Miner and based in Culver City. It specializes in film and television production.

The Picture Company is an entertainment company founded in 2014, by Andrew Rona and Alex Heineman. It specializes in film, starting off moderately in 2018 with Jaume Collet-Serra's The Commuter and Albert Hughes' Alpha.

Amasia Entertainment is a Los Angeles based entertainment company founded in 2012 by Michael A. Helfant and Bradley Gallo. It specializes in film and television production.

<i>Ferrari</i> (2023 film) American film by Michael Mann

Ferrari is a 2023 American biographical sports drama film directed by Michael Mann and written by Troy Kennedy Martin. Based on the 1991 biography Enzo Ferrari: The Man, the Cars, the Races, the Machine by motorsport journalist Brock Yates, the film follows the personal and professional struggles of Enzo Ferrari, the Italian founder of the car manufacturer Ferrari S.p.A., during the summer of 1957. Adam Driver portrays the titular subject, and co-stars Penélope Cruz, Shailene Woodley, Sarah Gadon, Gabriel Leone, Jack O'Connell, and Patrick Dempsey.

References

  1. Miller, Daniel. "Hollywood 'Spec Script' Is Making a Comeback". latimes.com. Retrieved 1 April 2014.
  2. Murray, Rebecca. "'Lights Out': Lawrence Grey Interview on the Horror Film". showbizjunkies.com. Retrieved 18 April 2016.
  3. Siegel, Tatiana. "Lawrence Grey Joining Mandate Pictures". variety.com. Retrieved 31 January 2010.
  4. Borys, Kit; Siegel, Tatiana. "Grey Joining Uni as Vp Prod'n". hollywoodreporter.com. Retrieved 25 January 2007.
  5. LaPorte, Nicole. "Searchlight Casts Wider Beam". variety.com. Retrieved 19 March 2006.
  6. B., Brian. "The Hills Have Eyes To Begin Production". movieweb.com. Retrieved 17 June 2005.
  7. ""LAST VEGAS" Begins Production In Las Vegas". cbsfilms.com. Retrieved 5 November 2012.
  8. Murray, Rebecca. "'Lights Out': Lawrence Grey Interview on the Horror Film". showbizjunkies.com. Retrieved 18 April 2016.
  9. "Lights Out (2016) – Box Office Mojo". boxofficemojo.com. Retrieved 15 August 2016.
  10. Borys, Kit. "Universal's $1.2 Million Bid Wins Heated War for 'Section 6' Script". hollywoodreporter.com. Retrieved 12 October 2013.
  11. Fleming, Mike Jr. "'Section 6' And 'Winter's Knight' Producer Grey Matter Lands Funding, Sets 'It Follows' Helmer David Robert Mitchell's Next Pic". deadline.com. Retrieved 28 July 2015.
  12. Fleming, Mike Jr. "Bruce Lee Family Plans New Film Biopic". deadline.com. Retrieved 27 February 2015.
  13. Fleming, Mike Jr. "Jim Mickle To Direct Sylvester Stallone In STX Entertainment Thriller". deadline.com. Retrieved 13 June 2016.
  14. Fleming, Mike Jr. "Steven Soderbergh Plots Panama Papers Film Based On Jake Bernstein Book 'Secrecy World'". deadline.com. Retrieved 6 July 2016.