caption birth_place birth_date yearsactive birthname image article_title name occupation
daniels at the outfest legacy awards 2013 philadelphia , pennsylvania 24 december 1959 1986 -- present lee louis daniels lee daniels 2013.jpg lee daniels
 lee daniels actor , director , producer , screenwriter
lee daniels

lee louis daniels -lrb- born december 24 , 1959 -rrb- is an american actor , film producer , director , and screenwriter .
he produced `` monster 's ball '' and directed `` precious '' , which received six academy award nominations , including best director ; the film won two of the awards .
in 2013 , daniels directed `` the butler , '' a historical fiction drama featuring an ensemble cast portraying unique events on the 20th century presidents of the united states at the white house .
daniels is also the co - creator , director , writer , and producer of the critically acclaimed television series `` empire '' that debuted in 2015 .
