Jerry Bruckheimer in Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006)
Great stories, well told. They can be for audiences in darkened movie theaters or home living rooms. They can feature great movie stars or introduce new talent. They can be true adventure, broad comedy, heartbreaking tragedy, epic history, joyous romance or searing drama. They can be set in the distant or recent past, an only-imagined future or a familiar present. Whatever their elements, though, if they begin with a lightning bolt, they are stories being told by JERRY BRUCKHEIMER (Producer), and they will be great stories, well told.
The numbers—of dollars and honors—are a matter of often-reported record. Bruckheimer’s films have earned worldwide revenues of over $13.5 billion in box-office, video and recording receipts. In the 2005- 6 season, he had nine series on network television, a feat unprecedented in nearly 60 years of television history. His films—14 of which have grossed over $100 million domestically—have been acknowledged with 35 Academy Award® nominations, five Oscars®, four Golden Globes®, 43 Emmy® award nominations, seven Emmys®, 16 People’s Choice nominations, six People’s Choice Awards, and numerous MTV Awards, including one for Best Picture of the Decade.
But the numbers exist only because of Bruckheimer’s uncanny ability to find the stories and tell them on film. He is, according to the Washington Post, “the man with the golden gut.” He may have been born that way, but more likely, his natural gifts were polished to laser focus in the early years of his career. His first films were the 60-second tales he told as an award-winning commercial producer in his native Detroit. One of those mini-films, a parody of “Bonnie and Clyde” created for Pontiac, was noted for its brilliance in Time magazine and brought the 23-year-old producer to the attention of world-renowned ad agency BBD&O, which lured him to New York.
Four years on Madison Avenue gave him the experience and confidence to tackle Hollywood, and, not yet 30, he was at the helm of memorable films like “Farewell, My Lovely,” “American Gigolo” and 1983’s “Flashdance,” which changed Bruckheimer’s life by grossing $92 million in the U.S. alone and pairing him with Don Simpson, who would be his producing partner for the next 13 years.
Together, the Simpson/Bruckheimer juggernaut produced one hit after another, including “Top Gun,” “Days of Thunder,” “Beverly Hills Cop,” “Bad Boys,” “Dangerous Minds” and “Crimson Tide.” Boxoffice success was acknowledged in both 1985 and 1988, when the National Association of Theater Owners (NATO) named Bruckheimer Producer of the Year. And in 1988, the Publicists Guild of America named him, along with Simpson, Motion Picture Showmen of the Year.
In 1996, Bruckheimer produced “The Rock,” re-establishing Sean Connery as an action star and turning an unlikely Nicolas Cage into an action hero. “The Rock,” named Favorite Movie of the Year by NATO, grossed $350 million worldwide and was Bruckheimer’s last movie with Simpson, who died during production.
Now on his own, Bruckheimer followed in 1997 with “Con Air,” which grossed over $230 million, earned a Grammy® and two Oscar® nominations and brought its producer the ShoWest International Box Office Achievement Award for unmatched foreign grosses.
Then came Touchstone Pictures’ megahit “Armageddon,” starring Bruce Willis, Billy Bob Thornton, Ben Affleck and Steve Buscemi. Directed by Michael Bay, it was the biggest movie of 1998, grossing nearly $560 million worldwide and introducing legendary rock band Aerosmith’s first number-one single, “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing.”
By the end of the millennium, Bruckheimer had produced “Enemy of the State,” starring Will Smith and Gene Hackman and “Gone in 60 Seconds,” starring Cage, Angelina Jolie and Robert Duvall, both grossing over $225 million worldwide; “Coyote Ugly,” whose soundtrack album went triple platinum; and the NAACP Image Award-winning “Remember the Titans,” starring Denzel Washington. His peers in the Producers Guild of America acknowledged his genius with the David O. Selznick Award for Lifetime Achievement in Motion Pictures.
He began the 21st century with triple Oscar® nominee “Pearl Harbor.” Starring Affleck, Josh Hartnett and Kate Beckinsale and directed by Bay, the film was hailed by World War II veterans and scholars as a worthy re-creation of the event that brought the United States into the war. In addition to multiple award nominations and the Oscar® for Best Sound Editing, it earned over $450 million in worldwide box office and has topped $250 million in DVD and video sales.
“Black Hawk Down,” the story of the 1993 Battle of Mogadishu, starred Hartnett, Eric Bana and Ewan McGregor and was directed by Ridley Scott. The adaptation of the Mark Bowden bestseller was honored with multiple award nominations, two Oscars® and rave reviews.
And then in 2003, Bruckheimer unveiled “Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl.” Starring Johnny Depp, Orlando Bloom, Geoffrey Rush and Keira Knightley and directed by Gore Verbinski, the comedy/adventure/romance grossed more than $630 million worldwide, making it Bruckheimer’s highest-grossing film, earning five Academy Award® nominations and spawning two upcoming sequels.
Since then, The Films That Begin With The Lightning Bolt have included “Bad Boys II”; the raucously funny “Kangaroo Jack,” a family film that won an MTV Award for Best Virtual performance for the kangaroo; “Veronica Guerin,” starring a luminous Cate Blanchett as the Irish journalist murdered by Dublin crime lords; and “King Arthur,” with Clive Owen starring in the revisionist retelling of the Arthurian legend.
In 2004, “National Treasure,” starring Cage and Sean Bean in a roller-coaster adventure about solving the mystery of untold buried treasure, opened to cheering audiences and grossed more than $335 million worldwide.
Teaming for the sixth time with director Tony Scott, Bruckheimer is currently in production on “Déjà Vu,” the story of an ATF agent who falls in love with a complete stranger as he races against time to track down her brutal killer. The film stars Denzel Washington, Jim Caviezel, Paula Patton and Val Kilmer and is scheduled for a late 2006 release.
Could the master film storyteller make the same magic in 47 minutes for the living-room audience? Apparently. As Time magazine recently wrote, “The most successful producer in film history…is on his way to becoming the most successful producer in the history of TV.”
Bruckheimer brought the power of the lightning bolt to television in 2000 with “C.S.I.,” starring William Petersen and Marg Helgenberger. It quickly became the number-one show on television, averaging 25 million viewers a week and, along with its two spin-offs, “C.S.I.: Miami”—distinguished as the biggest television series on a global scale in 2005—and “C.S.I.: NY,” helped catapult languishing CBS back to the top of the broadcast heap.
Bruckheimer Television broadened its imprint by telling compelling stories and delivering viewers in huge numbers with “Without a Trace,” “Cold Case,” three-time Emmy® award-winning “Amazing Race” and “Close to Home” for CBS and “E-Ring” for NBC.
In 2006, Bruckheimer was honored with a Doctor of Fine Arts degree from The University of Arizona, his alma mater. “Bruckheimer is unique in the industry in that his creative vision spans both large and small screens. We are pleased to recognize his work through this honor,” said Maurice Sevigny, dean of the UA College of Fine Arts.
Bruckheimer has been successful in many genres and multiple mediums because he’s a great storyteller. Look for the lightning bolt. The best stories are right behind it.
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