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Elie Samaha (Arabic: إيلي سماحة) is a film producer in Los Angeles, with production credits beginning with The Immortals in 1995. He has produced over 83 works, primarily films along with some video games. He produced The Boondock Saints (1999), Battlefield Earth (2000), Driven (2001), 3,000 Miles to Graceland (2001), Heist (2001), The Pledge (2001), Spartan (2004), among many others.[1]
Elie Samaha | |
|---|---|
| Occupation | Film producer |
| Years active | 1995–present |
| Spouses | |
Samaha built his reputation in Hollywood first as the owner of Celebrity Cleaners and then with his nightclub on Sunset Strip, the Roxbury. Parlaying the Hollywood friendships he formed through his clubs, Samaha was given a distribution deal with Warner Bros. Pictures in 1998.
Career
editSamaha was a co-owner/founder of the dry cleaner chain Celebrity Cleaners and co-owner of the Roxbury nightclub in Los Angeles.
Between 1997 and 2004, Samaha produced films under the Franchise Pictures studio title, which included films such as The Boondock Saints, Mercy, Battlefield Earth, The Whole Nine Yards, Get Carter, Angel Eyes and Driven.
Samaha specialized in rescuing stars' pet projects. Franchise Pictures sought out stars whose projects were stalled at the major studios, bringing them aboard at reduced salaries. Samaha's approach was to produce star vehicles more cheaply than the larger studios.[2] His unorthodox deals raised eyebrows and the entertainment industry magazine Variety commented that they were "often so complex and variable as to leave outsiders scratching their heads".[3] As Samaha put it during an interview about Battlefield Earth, "I said, 'If John [Travolta] wants to make this movie, what does he want to get paid?' ... Because I do not pay anybody what they make. That is not my business plan."[4]
He is currently the President of Take 3 Productions, which produced Breaking Brooklyn (2016), a dance film starring Louis Gossett Jr., Nathan Kress and Colin Critchley.[5]
In 2000, Samaha was sued by Intertainment Pictures, his business partners on a number of films. Intertainment won a $70 million judgment against Samaha for fraudulently overcharging them for production costs on the films.[6]
In 2021, he founded Luminosity Entertainment LLC with film producer and financier Daniel Diamond (whose previously served as President of Worldwide Distribution of Franchise) and GVN founder Geno Taylor, to distribute, produce, and finance movies in the U.S., as well as handle international sales,[7] in which headquartered in West Hollywood.
Films
editHe was a producer in all films unless otherwise noted.
Film
edit| Year | Film | Credit | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | The Immortals | ||
| 1996 | Hollow Point | Executive producer | |
| Danger Zone | |||
| The Last Days of Frankie the Fly | |||
| Natural Enemy | Direct-to-video | ||
| 1997 | American Perfekt | Executive producer | |
| The Maker | Executive producer | ||
| The Peacekeeper | Executive producer | ||
| Top of the World | |||
| Lesser Prophets | Executive producer | ||
| 1998 | Monument Ave. | ||
| 20 Dates | Executive producer | ||
| Shadrach | Executive producer | ||
| Scar City | |||
| This Is My Father | Executive producer | ||
| Break Up | |||
| No Code of Conduct | |||
| Sweepers | |||
| Free Money | Executive producer | ||
| A Murder of Crows | |||
| 1999 | Tycus | Executive producer | Direct-to-video |
| The Confession | |||
| Entropy | |||
| Restraining Order | Executive producer | ||
| The Boondock Saints | |||
| Woman Wanted | Executive producer | ||
| Storm Catcher | Executive producer | Uncredited
| |
| If... Dog... Rabbit... | |||
| The Third Miracle | |||
| The Big Kahuna | |||
| The White River Kid | |||
| 2000 | Things You Can Tell Just by Looking at Her | Executive producer | |
| Animal Factory | |||
| Jill Rips | Executive producer | Uncredited
| |
| Mercy | |||
| The Whole Nine Yards | Executive producer | ||
| Battlefield Earth | |||
| Auggie Rose | Executive producer | ||
| The Art of War | Executive producer | ||
| Get Carter | |||
| Desperate But Not Serious | Executive producer | ||
| 2001 | The Pledge | ||
| The Caveman's Valentine | |||
| Green Dragon | |||
| 3000 Miles to Graceland | |||
| Driven | |||
| Angel Eyes | |||
| Plan B | Executive producer | ||
| Viva Las Nowhere | Executive producer | ||
| Heist | |||
| 2002 | Zig Zag | ||
| FeardotCom | Executive producer | ||
| Avenging Angelo | |||
| City by the Sea | |||
| Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever | |||
| Half Past Dead | |||
| 2003 | The Foreigner | ||
| The In-Laws | |||
| Alex & Emma | |||
| 2004 | Spartan | ||
| Laws of Attraction | Executive producer | ||
| The Whole Ten Yards | |||
| Out of Reach | Direct-to-video | ||
| Funky Monkey | Executive producer | ||
| 2005 | Into the Sun | ||
| A Sound of Thunder | Executive producer | ||
| Dead Fish | Executive producer | ||
| 2006 | Tristan & Isolde | ||
| Rescue Dawn | Executive producer | ||
| Van Wilder: The Rise of Taj | |||
| 2007 | If I Had Known I Was a Genius | Executive producer | |
| Game of Life | Executive producer | ||
| I Could Never Be Your Woman | Executive producer | ||
| Trainwreck: My Life as an Idiot | |||
| The Flock | |||
| 7-10 Split | Executive producer | ||
| The Anna Nicole Smith Story | Executive producer | ||
| 2008 | Impulse | Executive producer | Direct-to-video |
| Columbus Day | Executive producer | ||
| 2009 | The Six Wives of Henry Lefay | Executive producer | |
| 2016 | Exposed | Executive producer | |
| 2018 | Breaking Brooklyn | ||
| 2023 | Back on the Strip | ||
| TBA | Exorcist Archives | Executive producer | Completed |
| Paralysis | Executive producer | In production | |
| Kill ‘Em All 2 | Executive producer | Post-production | |
| Prophets of Change | Executive producer | Post-production |
- As an actor
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 20 Dates | Producer | Voice role |
- As writer
| Year | Film |
|---|---|
| 1995 | The Immortals |
- Music department
| Year | Film | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever | Executive soundtrack producer |
- Thanks
| Year | Film | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Wonderland | The producers and director wish to thank |
| 2018 | Billionaire Boys Club | Special thanks |
Television
edit| Year | Title | Credit | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | On the Border | Executive producer | Television film |
| 2012 | KDOC First Night 2013 | Executive producer | Television special |
| 2015 | The 3rd Annual Noble Awards | Executive producer | Television special |
See also
edit
References
edit- ^ Vagg, Stephen (March 10, 2020). "Ten Billionaires Who Were Stung by Hollywood". Filmink.
- ^ Shprintz, Janet (July 31, 2009). "Legal eagle says Elie fudged budgets". Variety.
- ^ Bing, Jonathan (June 9, 2003). "The Samaha Syndrome". Variety.
- ^ Hirschberg, Lynn (May 14, 2000). "The Samaha Formula for Hollywood Success". The New York Times. Retrieved January 19, 2008.
- ^ Lincoln, Ross A. (January 4, 2016). "Louis Gossett Jr Is 'Breaking Brooklyn': Jay Huguley Has 'Heart, Baby'".
- ^ Shprintz, Janet (June 17, 2004). "Samaha slammed".
- ^ Wiseman, Andreas (September 23, 2021). "Elie Samaha Returns With Production & Distribution Firm Luminosity, Teams With Industry Vets Daniel Diamond & Geno Taylor".
External links
edit- Elie Samaha at IMDb