# Mike Medavoy

Morris Mike Medavoy (born January 21, 1941) is an American film producer and business executive. He is the co-founder of Orion Pictures, the former chairman of TriStar Pictures, the former head of production for United Artists, and the current chairman and CEO of Phoenix Pictures.

## Early life

Morris Mike Medavoy was born in Shanghai on January 21, 1941, the son of dress shop owner Dora and garage mechanic Michael Medavoy. His mother's shop mostly catered to Chinese actresses. His parents were both Russian-speaking Ukrainian Jews, with his mother being born in Harbin to immigrants from Odesa and his father born and raised in Ukraine. He has a younger sister named Ronnie. The family moved to Chile in 1947 and stayed until 1957, with Medavoy studying at the Liceo Valentín Letelier de Santiago. The family later moved to Los Angeles and lived with Medavoy's aunt. He became an American citizen in 1963, and graduated from UCLA the same year. Joining the U.S. Army Reserve in 1963, he served at Fort Ord in California until 1969.

## Career
### Early work

Medavoy began his career in the mail room at Universal Studios in 1964. In 1965, he became an agent at the General Artists Corporation, later moving to Creative Management Associates. He became Creative Management's vice president of the motion picture department in 1967, working with Steven Spielberg and Francis Ford Coppola, among others. He headed to International Famous Agency in 1970.
In 1974, United Artists brought Medavoy in as senior vice president of production. There he was part of the team responsible for making One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Rocky, and Annie Hall, which won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 1975, 1976, and 1977 respectively. United Artists made other notable films at the time including Apocalypse Now, Raging Bull and Network.

### Orion Pictures

In 1978, Medavoy co-founded Orion Pictures, a joint venture with Warner Bros., and fellow United Artists executives Arthur Krim; Robert Benjamin; Eric Pleskow; and William Bernstein. While Medavoy was at Orion, the company released notable and successful films including Amadeus, RoboCop, Dances with Wolves and The Silence of the Lambs.

### TriStar Pictures

In 1990, Medavoy became the chairman of TriStar Pictures and oversaw the release of films such as Philadelphia, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Sleepless in Seattle, Cliffhanger, The Fisher King, Legends of the Fall, and Hook. He left in 1994 after disputes with Sony Pictures chairman Peter Guber.

### Phoenix Pictures

In 1995, Medavoy co-founded Phoenix Pictures with Arnold W. Messer which they set up at Sony Pictures Entertainment in November. As its chairman and CEO, he co-produced such films as The People vs. Larry Flynt, The Thin Red Line, and Zodiac, among others. The Thin Red Line and The People vs. Larry Flynt received Oscar nominations. Phoenix Pictures also produced Shutter Island and Black Swan, both of which received critical acclaim.
In 2011, Medavoy announced a project depicting the 2010 Chilean mining accident that left 33 men trapped underground for 69 days. He collaborated with Chilean officials and Academy Award-nominated screenwriter José Rivera for the project, claiming "at its heart, [it is] about the triumph of the human spirit and a testament to the courage and perseverance of the Chilean people".
Medavoy is the co-chairman of the Burkle Center for UCLA's Center for International Relations and served as a member of the board of advisors at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University for five years. In 2002, Governor Gray Davis appointed him to the California Anti-Terrorism Information Center's Executive Advisory Board; he is a member of both the Council on Foreign Relations and the Homeland Security Advisory Council.
Also in 2011, Medavoy announced his collaboration with The Shanghai Film Group to create both a feature film and a six-hour miniseries. The feature was an adaptation of the novel The Cursed Piano, a love story set in Japanese-occupied China about persecuted Jews seeking refuge from occupied Europe. The mini-series, Tears of a Sparrow focuses in detail on the experiences of the Jews in Shanghai. Medavoy also worked on Dandelion Wine which was adapted from a novel with the same name written by Ray Bradbury.
In 2015, it was announced that he and Eric Esrailian would produce The Promise which stars Oscar Isaac and Christian Bale.

## Community contributions and other memberships

Medavoy was appointed to the board of directors of the Museum of Science and Industry in Los Angeles by Governor Jerry Brown and was appointed by Mayor Richard Riordan as a commissioner on the Los Angeles Board of Parks and Recreations. He is a member of the board of directors of the University of Tel Aviv.
He also serves on the board of trustees of the UCLA Foundation and is a member of the Chancellor's Associates, the Dean's Advisory Board at the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television; and the Alumni Association's Student Relations Committee.
Medavoy is also on the Baryshnikov Arts Center Advisory Committee in New York, and serves on the advisory board of the USC Center on Public Diplomacy. The Medavoys' charity work includes C.O.A.C.H. For Kids (Community Outreach Assistance for Children's Heath, with Cedar Sinai Medical Center) and Irena Medavoy is the Executive Vice Chairman. The agency provides free medical care to inner-city children.

## Political views

Medavoy has a history of supporting Democratic Party politicians. He served as co-finance chair of Gary Hart's 1988 presidential campaign, participated in Bill Clinton's presidential campaigns in 1992 and 1996, and supported Barack Obama's 2008 presidential campaign; his wife, Irena, served as the co-finance chair of the latter.

## Personal life

Medavoy was previously married to Marcia Rogers, the daughter of publicist Henry C. Rogers and the ex-wife of actor Mark Goddard; their wedding and divorce dates are unknown. Their son, Brian (born 1965), is also a film producer.
In 1986, Medavoy married political activist Patricia Duff, later divorcing in 1993. In 1995, Medavoy married Russian-American philanthropist and former model Irena Gerasimenko, with whom he has a son, Nick.
Medavoy was a close friend of actor Marlon Brando, and he is a co-executor of Brando's estate. In addition to his native Russian, he became fluent in Spanish while living in Chile and later in English after moving to the U.S.

## Awards

In 2011, UNICEF and Oscar winner Sean Penn presented the Medavoy family a humanitarian award,
* 1980 - Honored by the Society of Fellows of the Anti-Defamation League
* 1992 - Motion Picture Pioneer of the Year Award
* 1997 - UCLA Career Achievement Award
* 1998 - The Cannes Film Festival Lifetime Achievement Award
* 1999 - UCLA Neil H. Jacoby Award for Exceptional Contributions to Humanity
* 2002 - Israeli Film Festival's Lifetime Achievement Award
* 2004 - Florida Atlantic University's Louis B. Mayer Motion Picture Business Leader of the Year Award
* 2004 - UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television Honorary Member Award
* 2005 - Producers Guild of America Vision Award
* 2005 - Inducted into the Hollywood Walk of Fame and received a star on Hollywood Blvd.
* 2007 - Stella Adler Actors Studio Marlon Brando Award
* 2008 - Jerusalem Film Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award
* 2008 - International Student Film Festival Hollywood Lifetime Achievement Award
* 2009 - Declared the honorary Doctorate at the Academy of Art in San Francisco
* 2009 - Declared Chevalier of the French Government's Legion of Honor.
* 2009 - Independent Spirit Award
* 2010 - Bernardo O'Higgins award from the Chilean government
* 2011 - The Locarno Film Festival Raimondo Rezzonico Prize (Locarno, Switzerland)
* 2011 - Hebrew University Award
* 2011 - Danny Kaye Humanitarian Award
* 2012 - Shanghai International Film Festival – Outstanding Achievement Award
* 2014 - Satellite Awards Mary Pickford Award - Outstanding Artistic Contribution to the Entertainment Industry
* 2015 - Cinequest Maverick Spirit Award
* 2016 - Peabody Award - Listen to Me Marlon
* 2019 - RiverRun International Film Festival - Master of Cinema Award
* 2019 - Beverly Hills Film Festival - Legends Award

## Membership in film organizations

Membership in film organizations.
* Chairman of The Jury of the Tokyo Film Festival
* Advisor to The Shanghai Film Festival
* Advisor to The St. Petersburg Film Festival
* Member of the Board of the Academy of Motion Pictures, Arts and Sciences from 1977 to 1981
* One of the original founding members of the board of governors of the Sundance Institute (1978)
* Chairman Emeritus of the American Cinematheque
* Chairman Emeritus of the Stella Adler Actors Studio in New york

## Books

In 2002, Simon & Schuster published Medavoy's book, You're Only As Good As Your Next One: 100 Great Films, 100 Good Films and 100 For Which I Should Be Shot, co-written by Josh Young, which became a best-seller and was subsequently released in paperback in 2003. In 2009, Mike published American Idol After Iraq; Competing for Hearts and Minds in the Global Media Age, with co-author Nathan Gardels, editor of the National Political Quarterly.

## Filmography

Medavoy was a producer on the following films unless otherwise noted.

### Film

| Year | Film | Credit |
| 1997 | U Turn | CEO of Phoenix Pictures |
| 1998 | Urban Legend | CEO of Phoenix Pictures |
| 1998 | The Thin Red Line | CEO of Phoenix Pictures |
| 2000 | The 6th Day | |
| 2003 | Basic | |
| 2003 | Holes | |
| 2004 | In My Country | |
| 2005 | Stealth | |
| 2006 | All the King's Men | |
| 2006 | Miss Potter | |
| 2007 | Pathfinder | |
| 2007 | Resurrecting the Champ | |
| 2007 | Zodiac | |
| 2007 | License to Wed | |
| 2010 | Shutter Island | |
| 2010 | Shanghai | |
| 2010 | Black Swan | |
| 2012 | What to Expect When You're Expecting | |
| 2015 | The 33 | |
| 2015 | Absolutely Anything | Executive producer |
| 2016 | The Promise | |
| 2023 | The Last Voyage of the Demeter | |
| 2023 | Ozi: Voice of the Forest | |

#### As an actor

| Year | Film | Role |
| 1971 | The Christian Licorice Store | Hollywood Party Guest |

#### Thanks

| Year | Film | Role |
| 2007 | The Diving Bell and the Butterfly | Special thanks |
| 2011 | Homecoming | Thanks |

### Television

| Year | Title | Credit | Notes |
| 1996 | Soul of the Game | Executive producer | Television film |
| 1999 | Shake, Rattle and Roll: An American Love Story | Executive producer | |
| 2001 | In the Time of the Butterflies | Executive producer | Television film |
| 2002 | The Outsider | Executive producer | Television film |
| 2001−04 | The Chris Isaak Show | Executive producer | |
| 2011 | The Dreamsters: Welcome to the Dreamery | Executive producer | Television film |
| 2011 | The Dreamsters | Executive producer | |
| 2012 | Shushybye Baby | Executive producer | |
| 2017 | The Long Road Home | Executive producer | |
| 2018 | Altered Carbon | Executive producer | |

#### Thanks

| Year | Title | Role |
| 1998 | Stories from My Childhood | Special thanks |