Walter F. Parkes

Last updated

Walter F. Parkes
BornWalter Steven Fishman
(1951-04-15) April 15, 1951 (age 73)
Bakersfield, California, U.S.
Occupation Film producer, screenwriter, media executive
Spouse Laurie MacDonald

Walter F. Parkes (born April 15, 1951) is an American producer, screenwriter, and media executive. The producer of more than 50 films, including the Men in Black series and Minority Report, he is the co-founder and co-chairman of Dreamscape Immersive. [1] [2]

Contents

Parkes and his wife and business partner, producer Laurie MacDonald, helped to build DreamWorks, with Parkes the head of its motion picture division, [3] and the two later moved to Amblin Entertainment, where Parkes served as president. [4] He has been nominated for three Academy Awards, receiving his first nomination as the director/ producer of the 1975 documentary The California Reich ; his second for co-writing the original screenplay for WarGames ; and his third as a producer of Awakenings . [5] Parkes and MacDonald created the Parkes + Macdonald production company (P+M, P+M Image Nation) in 2010, collaborating on the productions of a number of films, including films that Amblin has released.

Life and career

Parkes was born in Bakersfield, California. He attended Yale University, and graduated cum laude in 1973. [6] WarGames , co-written by Parkes with Lawrence Lasker and Walon Green, garnered a Best Original Screenplay Oscar nomination. Parkes and Lasker co-produced several films, including Sneakers and Awakenings , a Best Picture Oscar nominee in 1990. Other films Parkes produced or on which he served as executive producer include, the Men in Black series, The Kite Runner , Golden Globe-winning Sweeney Todd , Dinner for Schmucks , Gladiator , Minority Report , Catch Me If You Can , The Ring , The Terminal , Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events , Road to Perdition , A.I. Artificial Intelligence , Deep Impact , Twister , The Legend of Zorro and Amistad .

In 1994, Parkes was named President of Steven Spielberg's Amblin Entertainment and later that year, he and his wife and business partner Laurie MacDonald [7] were tapped to help create the DreamWorks SKG motion picture studio. As the studio's president, Parkes, in partnership with MacDonald, oversaw development and production of all DreamWorks' film projects, including three consecutive Best Picture Oscar winners: American Beauty , Gladiator and A Beautiful Mind — the latter two in partnership with Universal Studios. Other films produced during their tenure include: Cameron Crowe's Almost Famous , Robert Zemeckis' What Lies Beneath , Adam McKay's Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy , Michael Mann's Collateral , and Steven Spielberg's Academy Award- and Golden Globe-winning drama Saving Private Ryan , which was the top-grossing film domestically of 1998.

Parkes is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, The Writers Guild of America and the Global Business Network. He is on the board of directors for the Center for A New American Security (CNAS).

Parkes and MacDonald live in Santa Monica, California, and have two children, Jane MacDonald and Graham Joseph. [7]

Parkes + MacDonald production company

Its origins go back to 1991 when Parkes and MacDonald founded their own production company Aerial Pictures, which was first set up at Columbia Pictures. In 1993, it was moved to 20th Century Fox. [8] Later that year, it was moved and merged into Amblin Entertainment, and later to DreamWorks Pictures, so that Parkes could fill the seat left by the departure of Kathleen Kennedy. [9]

In 2005, they revived the idea of having their own production company, which is called "Parkes + MacDonald Productions" (aka P+M), and set up at DreamWorks Pictures. [10]

In 2012, the duo struck a deal with Imagenation Abu Dhabi (now Image Nation) to form a joint venture organization. [11] [12] Since then, P+M has collaborated on the productions of a number of films that Amblin and Image Nation have produced, including the Men in Black film series from the third film onwards. [12]

Filmography

Film

Producer

Executive producer

Screenwriter

Television

YearTitleWriterExecutive
Producer
CreatorNotes
1991 Eddie Dodd YesYesYes6 episodes
1994 Birdland YesYesYes7 episodes
1997-2001 Men in Black: The Series NoYesNo53 episodes
2014 Crossbones NoYesNo8 episodes
2015 The Slap YesYesDeveloperMiniseries
WarriorNoYesNoTV movie

Related Research Articles

<i>Men in Black</i> (1997 film) 1997 film by Barry Sonnenfeld

Men in Black is a 1997 American science fiction action comedy film based on Lowell Cunningham's eponymous comic book series, which was itself based on the “Men in black” conspiracy theory. Produced by Columbia Pictures and Amblin Entertainment in association with MacDonald Parkes Productions, and distributed by Sony Pictures Releasing, it is the first installment in the Men in Black franchise. Directed by Barry Sonnenfeld from a screenplay and screen story written by Ed Solomon, it stars Tommy Lee Jones and Will Smith in the lead roles, with Linda Fiorentino, Vincent D'Onofrio, and Rip Torn in supporting roles. In the film, Kevin Brown / Agent K (Jones) and James Darrell Edwards III / Agent J (Smith) investigate a series of seemingly unrelated criminal incidents related to the extraterrestrial lifeforms which live in secret on Earth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Universal Pictures</span> American film studio

Universal City Studios LLC, doing business as Universal Pictures is an American film production and distribution company, a division of Universal Studios, which is owned by NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thomas Newman</span> American composer

Thomas Montgomery Newman is an American composer and conductor best known for his many film scores. In a career that has spanned over four decades, he has scored numerous films including The Player (1992), The Shawshank Redemption (1994), The Horse Whisperer (1998), American Beauty and The Green Mile, Pay It Forward (2000), In the Bedroom (2001), Road to Perdition and White Oleander, Finding Nemo (2003) and its sequel Finding Dory (2016), Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events (2004), Cinderella Man (2005), WALL-E (2008), the James Bond films Skyfall (2012) and Spectre (2015), Bridge of Spies (2015), 1917 (2019), and Elemental (2023). He also composed the music for the HBO drama series Six Feet Under (2001) and 2003 miniseries Angels in America. Throughout his career, he has collaborated extensively with directors such as Sam Mendes, Andrew Stanton, Frank Darabont, Steven Soderbergh, Jon Avnet, John Madden and John Lee Hancock.

<i>A Series of Unfortunate Events</i> Book series by Lemony Snicket

A Series of Unfortunate Events is a series of thirteen children's novels written by American author Daniel Handler under the pen name Lemony Snicket. The books follow the turbulent lives of orphaned siblings Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire. After their parents' death in a fire, the children are placed in the custody of a murderous villain, Count Olaf, who attempts to steal their inheritance and causes numerous disasters with the help of his accomplices as the children attempt to flee. As the plot progresses, the Baudelaires gradually confront further mysteries surrounding their family and deep conspiracies involving a secret society, which also involves Olaf and Snicket, the author's own fictional self-insert.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kathleen Kennedy (producer)</span> American film producer (born 1953)

Kathleen Kennedy is an American film producer and president of Lucasfilm. In 1981, she co-founded the production company Amblin Entertainment with Steven Spielberg and her eventual husband Frank Marshall.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amblin Entertainment</span> American film production company

Amblin' Entertainment, Inc., formerly named Amblin Productions and Steven Spielberg Productions, is an American film production company founded by director and producer Steven Spielberg, and film producers Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall in 1980. Its headquarters are located in Bungalow 477 of the Universal Studios backlot in Universal City, California. It distributes all of the films from Amblin Partners under the Amblin Entertainment banner.

<i>The Mask of Zorro</i> 1998 swashbuckler film by Martin Campbell

The Mask of Zorro is a 1998 American swashbuckler film based on the fictional character Zorro by Johnston McCulley. It was directed by Martin Campbell and stars Antonio Banderas, Anthony Hopkins, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and Stuart Wilson. The film features the original Zorro, Don Diego de la Vega (Hopkins), escaping from prison to find his long-lost daughter (Zeta-Jones) and avenge the death of his wife at the hands of the corrupt governor Rafael Montero (Wilson). He is aided by his successor (Banderas), who is pursuing his own vendetta against the governor's right-hand man while falling in love with de la Vega's daughter.

<i>Lemony Snickets A Series of Unfortunate Events</i> 2004 film by Brad Silberling

Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events is a 2004 American black comedy adventure film directed by Brad Silberling from a screenplay by Robert Gordon, based on the first three novels of the book series A Series of Unfortunate Events: The Bad Beginning (1999), The Reptile Room (1999), and The Wide Window (2000), by Lemony Snicket. It stars Jim Carrey, Liam Aiken, Emily Browning, Timothy Spall, Catherine O'Hara, Billy Connolly, Cedric the Entertainer, Luis Guzmán, Jennifer Coolidge, and Meryl Streep, and Jude Law as the voice of Lemony Snicket.

DreamWorks Television was an American television distribution and production company based in Universal City, California, that was a division of DreamWorks. It folded into Amblin Television in 2013.

Laurie MacDonald is an American film producer. She is married to Walter F. Parkes. MacDonald and Parkes helped build the original DreamWorks SKG, where Parkes served as the head of its motion picture division. After their time at DreamWorks, they founded their own production company, Parkes + MacDonald.

<i>Men in Black 3</i> 2012 science fiction action film directed by Barry Sonnenfeld

Men in Black 3 is a 2012 American science fiction action comedy film based on the Marvel Comics series of a similar name, in turn based on the conspiracy theory. Produced by Columbia Pictures and Amblin Entertainment in association with Parkes+MacDonald Image Nation and Hemisphere Media Capital, and distributed by Sony Pictures Releasing, it is the sequel to Men in Black II (2002) and the third installment in the Men in Black franchise. Directed by Barry Sonnenfeld and written by Etan Cohen, the film stars Will Smith, Tommy Lee Jones and Josh Brolin, with Jemaine Clement, Michael Stuhlbarg, Bill Hader and Emma Thompson in supporting roles. In the film, James Darrell Edwards III / Agent J (Smith) is required to go back in time to prevent the assassination of his partner Kevin Brown / Agent K (Jones), the fallout of which threatens the safety of Earth.

Robert Gordon is an American screenwriter and film producer. His writing credits consist of Addicted to Love (1997), Galaxy Quest (1999), Men in Black II (2002), and Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events (2004). He also was an associate producer on Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow (2004).

The 26th Young Artist Awards ceremony, presented by the Young Artist Association, honored excellence of young performers under the age of 21 in the fields of film and television for the year 2004, and took place on April 30, 2005, at the Sportsmen's Lodge in Studio City, Los Angeles, California.

<i>Men in Black</i> (film series) Film series

Men in Black is a series of American science fiction action comedy films directed by Barry Sonnenfeld, and based on the Malibu / Marvel comic book series The Men in Black by Lowell Cunningham, which was itself based on a UFO conspiracy theory. The first film, Men in Black, was released in 1997, the second film, Men in Black II in 2002, the third film, Men in Black 3 in 2012, and the fourth film, a spin-off Men in Black: International in 2019. Amblin Entertainment and MacDonald/Parkes Productions produced all four films and distributed through Columbia Pictures.

DreamWorks Pictures is an American film studio and distribution label of Amblin Partners. It was originally founded on October 12, 1994, as a live-action film studio by Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg, and David Geffen, of which they owned 72%. The studio formerly distributed its own and third-party films. It has produced or distributed more than ten films with box-office grosses of more than $100 million each.

Amblin Partners American entertainment company

Storyteller Distribution Co., LLC, doing business as Amblin Partners, LLC., is an American independent entertainment production company. It develops and produces films under the Amblin Entertainment and DreamWorks Pictures banners, as well as television series through Amblin Television. The company's investment partners include Reliance Group's Reliance Entertainment, Lionsgate, Alibaba Group's Alibaba Pictures, and NBCUniversal/Comcast's Universal Pictures. Films produced by Amblin Partners are primarily distributed by Universal in North America and select international territories, and by third-party distributors through Mister Smith Entertainment in other countries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amblin Television</span> TV production division of Amblin Partners

Storyteller TV Distribution Co., LLC, doing business as Amblin Television, is the television production division of Amblin Partners. It was established in 1984 by Amblin Entertainment as a small-screen production arm for Steven Spielberg's Amazing Stories anthology series for NBC. The company has produced television series including Tiny Toon Adventures, Animaniacs, SeaQuest DSV, ER, Falling Skies, and The Americans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steven Spielberg's unrealized projects</span>

The following is a list of unproduced Steven Spielberg projects in roughly chronological order. During his long career, American film director Steven Spielberg has worked on a number of projects which never progressed beyond the pre-production stage under his direction. Some of these projects fell in "development hell" or were officially canceled, some were turned over to other production teams, and still others never made it past the speculative stage.

The Zanuck Company is an American motion picture production company. It is responsible for such blockbusters as Jaws, The Sting, Cocoon, Driving Miss Daisy, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Alice in Wonderland.

Marvin Levy is an American publicist, specialized in marketing and public relations. He is most noted for having been a long time marketer for director Steven Spielberg at Amblin Entertainment.

References

  1. Barnes, Brooks (September 26, 2017). "Coming Soon to AMC Theaters: Virtual Reality Experiences". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved February 2, 2018.
  2. Fink, Charlie. "Dreamscape's Big Dreams for Immersive VR". Forbes. Retrieved February 2, 2018.
  3. Duke, Paul F. (May 23, 2000). "D'Works reups film co-toppers". Variety. Retrieved February 2, 2018.
  4. BRAXTON, GREG (January 27, 1994). "'Birdland' Pair Unruffled by It All : Entertainment: Executives Walter F. Parkes and Laurie MacDonald are getting ready to take over at Spielberg's Amblin, but say, 'We can't afford to get ahead of ourselves.'". Los Angeles Times. ISSN   0458-3035 . Retrieved February 2, 2018.
  5. "Parkes and MacDonald Renew DreamWorks Deal". May 23, 2000. Retrieved February 2, 2018.
  6. Kaplan, Fred (February 19, 2016). "'WarGames' and Cybersecurity's Debt to a Hollywood Hack". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved February 2, 2018.
  7. 1 2 "Walter F. Parkes (1951– )". FilmReference.com. Retrieved January 10, 2011.
  8. Ayscough, Suzan (June 7, 1993). "Aerial alights at Fox, ends deal at Colpix". Variety . Retrieved April 19, 2020.
  9. O'Sheen, Kathleen (November 9, 1993). "Aerial duo to Amblin". Variety . Retrieved April 19, 2020.
  10. LaPorte, Nicole (May 17, 2005). "Dream team takes flight". Variety . Retrieved April 19, 2020.
  11. Kilday, Gregg (April 25, 2012). "Walter Parkes and Laurie MacDonald Form New Joint Venture With Image Nation". The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved April 19, 2020.
  12. 1 2 Siegel, Tatiana (September 24, 2015). "Walter Parkes and Laurie MacDonald on New 'Malala' Doc, Feminist Barbie and a Revived 'Men in Black' (Sans Will Smith)". The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved March 9, 2019.