Edward Zwick Biography
Born: October 08, 1952
Date of Birth: October 8, 1952
Ed Zwick first hit the Hollywood radar screen as the producer/writer/director of the award-winning drama series Family, starring James Broderick (Matthew Broderick's father). Zwick landed the job after his short film, Timothy and the Angel, won first place in the student film competition at the 1976 Chicago Film Festival, catching the attention of the Family producers. He began as a story editor, then moved on to become a director and producer of the show, which ran from 1976 to 1980. Zwick went on to work on other critically-acclaimed series, including thirtysomething (for which he won an Emmy), My So-Called Life and Once and Again. In 1984, he won an "Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Dramatic Specials" Directors Guild of America award for the TV movie Special Bulletin.
His first venture into feature film directing came with About Last Night (1986), starring Demi Moore and Rob Lowe, then received a Golden Globe nomination for "Best Director -- Motion Picture" for the Academy-Award® winning Glory (1989) starring Matthew Broderick and Denzel Washington. He has also directed the major motion pictures Leaving Normal (1992), Legends of the Fall (1994) starring Brad Pitt and Courage Under Fire (1996) starring Meg Ryan and Denzel Washington. Zwick worked with Washington yet again in The Siege (1998), then directed The Last Samurai (2003), starring Tom Cruise.
In 2006, Ed directed the Oscar-nominated Blood Diamond and followed that up with the 2008 drama Defiance, which also earned an Oscar nomination. Two years later, he helmed Love and Other Drugs.
In 2014, Ed brought the story of American chess prodigy Bobby Fischer to the screen in Pawn Sacrifice. Ed's latest film reunited him with Tom Cruise. The men worked together on Jack Reacher: Never Go Back (2016).
As a producer of the 1999 Best Picture winner Shakespeare in Love, Zwick won an Academy Award®. He is also the recipient of the American Film Institute's Franklin J. Schaffner Award, a Lone Star Film & Television Award Best Director award, the Humanitas Award and a Writers Guild of America award.
Filmography (director):
Jack Reacher: Never Go Back (2016)Pawn Sacrifice (2014)
Love and Other Drugs (2010)
Defiance (2008)
Blood Diamond (2006)
The Last Samurai (2003)
The Siege (1998)
Courage Under Fire (1996)
Legends of the Fall (1994)
Leaving Normal (1992)
Glory (1989)
About Last Night (1986)