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54-509: Brett Ratner (born March 28, 1969) is an American film director and producer. He directed the Rush Hour film series , The Family Man , Red Dragon , X-Men: The Last Stand , Tower Heist , and Hercules . He is a producer of several films, including the Horrible Bosses series, as well as executive producer on other projects, including the films The Revenant and War Dogs and

108-524: A Clio Award for Best Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Commercial. He appeared in over 75 commercials for numerous products, among which were Ivory Snow , Dunkin' Donuts ' "Munchkins" donut holes , and Post Raisin Bran . Throughout the 1970s, Reese appeared in features and interviews on New York's WNBC-TV . He was a guest on numerous television talk shows, most notably The Mike Douglas Show , where he made several appearances and also served as

162-562: A French police official involved in Lee and Carter's (Chan and Tucker's characters) case. Tzi Ma reprises his role as Ambassador Han, Lee's boss and friend who appeared in the first installment. This film has received an M rating by the Office of Film and Literature Classification (Australia) and a PG-13 rating by the MPAA for "sequences of action violence, sexual content, nudity and language". Additionally,

216-473: A book of Scott Caan 's photographs. In 2011, Ratner established Rat TV with 20th Century Fox Television . He brought former NBC development executive Chris Conti on as president of the venture. On August 4, 2011, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced Ratner would produce the 84th Academy Awards with Don Mischer . However, Ratner resigned on November 8, 2011, after remarking that "rehearsal

270-400: A co-producing deal with Warner Bros. that included 75 films. RatPac Entertainment has co-financed 81 theatrically released motion pictures exceeding $ 17 billion in worldwide box office receipts. RatPac's co-financed films have been nominated for 59 Academy Awards , 25 Golden Globes and 43 BAFTAs and have won 25 Academy Awards, 8 Golden Globes and 24 BAFTAs. In January 2017, Ratner received

324-456: A con-man accused of organizing a prison break, was Ratner's first collaboration with comedian Chris Tucker . The film's budget was $ 25 million. In 1998, he directed Rush Hour , an action-comedy starring Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker , which was released in September 1998 and went on to become the studio's highest-grossing film and the highest grossing comedy at the time. Ratner uses music on

378-431: A fourth film was being worked on with Chan and Tucker, and stated that he would welcome Brett Ratner back as a director if he would "do it in the right way." Sarkissian expressed some dissatisfaction with the third film, and admitted he wants the potential fourth film to be grittier, and have new ideas. Sarkissian is reportedly working on choosing which out of "four or five" screenwriters he has been talking to, should work on

432-567: A fund aimed at investments in Chinese media companies. Ratner made $ 40 million after the release of Gravity , which was RatPac's first investment. In June 2014, Ratner's RatPac Entertainment and Class 5 Films acquired the film rights to the non-fiction article "American Hippopotamus", by Jon Mooallem , about the meat shortage in the U.S. in 1910 to import hippopotamuses. The film was produced by Ratner in collaboration with Edward Norton and William Migliore. On April 18, 2017, Access Entertainment,

486-537: A guest host. In 1982, he and his mother voiced a series of syndicated, 90-second radio spots titled Mason and Mom , in which they offered lighthearted advice to children's questions, with Reese sharing a child's perspective, while his mother offered an adult's. At age eight, Reese wrote a memoir, titled, The Memoirs of Mason Reese, in cahoots with Lynn Haney (1974), joking to a Washington Post interviewer in 1982, "Oh yes, I think my second volume should be out any day now." After retiring from acting Reese became

540-416: A hard commitment to a budget and start date for the film. Rush Hour 2 was released on August 3, 2001 and grossed $ 347,425,832 worldwide, making it the most financially successful film in the series. The film received mixed reviews compared with the first film. Other than Chan and Tucker, no cast members return to reprise their roles from the first film. John Lone , Zhang Ziyi , and Roselyn Sánchez join

594-605: A keynote address as part of the Cannes Film Festival in May 2017 where he referred to television as the future of production. Ratner participated in the eighth annual Cannes Film Finance Forum. In March 2017, Ratner spoke out against film critic aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes at the Sun Valley Film Festival, calling it a destructive force in the film industry. He expressed respect for traditional film critics and said

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648-553: A library of 76 Warner Bros. films was put up for sale, with investors in the fund backing the library to cash out. Vine Alternative Investments made a high bid for the library, but in January 2019, Warner Bros. exercised their rights to match the bid for the library and essentially acquired RatPac-Dune's stakes. The cost was estimated at nearly $ 300 million. Ratner appeared on the MTV series Punk'd when Hugh Jackman , who portrays Wolverine in

702-605: A major studio. Packer's stake in the company was later bought out by Len Blavatnik 's First Access Entertainment . The company makes 25 films annually. By 2017, the company co-financed over 50 films which had 51 Oscar nominations and earned a total of over $ 10 billion in box office. RatPac and Dune Entertainment formed a film investment vehicle, which in September 2013, entered a multi-year, 75-film co-producing partnership with Warner Bros. The company has partnered with New Regency , advertising firm WPP , CMC Capital Partners, and Shanghai Media Group . Ratner worked with CMC to form

756-479: A potential Rush Hour 4 ", but stressed "nothing's been okayed yet". In a short interview with Vulture in 2011, Ratner stated that the cost of making a follow-up to X-Men: The Last Stand would have cost more than X-Men: First Class and "that's why another Rush Hour 4 probably won't get made, either: It'd be too much to pay me, Chris [Tucker], and Jackie [Chan] to come back." In August 2011, in an interview with The Breakfast Club , Tucker stated in response to

810-468: A potential fourth film, stating “Yeah, we’re talking about it now doing another one, and we’re trying to get it going. I think we might be able to get one going. I love working with Jackie and I think we could do a really fun one.” In April 2017, it was reported that Indian actor Shah Rukh Khan had said yes to join the Rush Hour 4 cast. By October 2017, Chan said that the script for Rush Hour 4 has been in

864-486: A remake of Snow White , Mirror Mirror (2012), based on the screenplay The Brothers Grimm: Snow White by Melisa Wallack. In 2014, he produced Horrible Bosses 2 , the sequel to his 2011 film. Ratner executive-produced the Rush Hour TV series based on the Rush Hour film series. In 2015, Ratner produced Black Mass , a biopic about gangster James "Whitey" Bulger , played by Johnny Depp . The same year, Ratner

918-596: A restaurateur with multiple businesses in the New York City area. He owned Paladar, a now-defunct Pan-Latino restaurant located in Manhattan 's Lower East Side . He then opened Destination Bar and Grille located on Avenue A in the East Village , which is also now closed. He opened a sports bar called The Luxury Box, which closed in 2015. Reese starred as himself in the 1990 short film Whatever Happened to Mason Reese ,

972-502: A situation which inspired Brett Ratner to become a board member of the nationwide nonprofit organization Chrysalis, which helps the homeless find work. Ratner attended Rabbi Alexander S. Gross Hebrew Academy elementary school and attended Alexander Muss High School in Israel and graduated in 1986 from Miami Beach Senior High School . While growing up in Miami Beach, Ratner was an extra on

1026-573: A star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his contributions to the motion picture industry, located at 6801 Hollywood Boulevard . In 2017, numerous women in Hollywood came forward with allegations of sexual misconduct, sexual assault, or harassment against Ratner. He has not produced a film in Hollywood since then, and he emigrated to Israel in 2023. Ratner was born and raised in Miami Beach, Florida ,

1080-466: A subsidiary of Access Industries , acquired James Packer 's ownership stake in RatPac. The next year, Warner Bros. announced that they were cutting ties with the company after Brett Ratner's sexual harassment allegations with Rampage as the final film to be co-financed by the company with Warner Bros., and the final film produced by RatPac overall. In November 2018, RatPac-Dune's minority ownership stake in

1134-553: Is an American former child actor and restaurant entrepreneur who appeared in numerous television commercials in the 1970s, including Underwood Deviled Ham , Ivory Snow , Dunkin' Donuts , and Post Raisin Bran . Mason Reese is the son of William Reese and former actress Sonia Darrin . He attended Saint Michael's Montessori School, a non-denominational elementary school that was housed in St. Michael's Episcopal Church in Manhattan, through

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1188-562: Is for fags". Ratner later apologized for his remarks. Eddie Murphy , who was scheduled to host the ceremony, also resigned in deference to a new production team. Ratner was replaced by Brian Grazer , and Murphy was replaced by previous Oscar host Billy Crystal . Ratner announced the Brett Ratner Florida Student Filmmaker Scholarship at the Key West Film Festival in 2015. The $ 5,000 scholarship

1242-597: The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in 2013. In October 2017, during the Me Too movement , a former talent agency employee accused Ratner of rape. On November 1, 2017, six women, including Olivia Munn and Natasha Henstridge , accused Ratner of sexual assault and harassment, as well as following an actress into a bathroom without invitation and masturbating as another entered his trailer to deliver food. The same month, Elliot Page accused Ratner of sexual harassment and outing

1296-598: The X-Men films, was the subject of a practical joke that made it appear Ratner's $ 3.6 million home in Beverly Hills was destroyed by a BBQ grill explosion. Ashton Kutcher later arrived at his home and hugged him. In April 2007, Fox announced that he, Carrie Fisher , Garry Marshall and Jon Avnet would be the judges for the network's filmmaking-competition/reality TV series, On the Lot . He appeared as himself in an episode of

1350-456: The 1990s. When he was a sophomore at New York University Tisch Schools of the Arts, he was manager and executive producer for B.M.O.C. (Big Man On Campus), one of the first white rap groups. While a student at NYU , he released his first short film Whatever Happened to Mason Reese ? . The rap group Public Enemy attended the film's premiere and asked Ratner to make the group's music videos. Ratner did

1404-467: The Sunset , starring Pierce Brosnan and Salma Hayek . The action comedy film revolves around a master thief pulling off one last big score, with an FBI agent in hot pursuit. In 2006, Ratner directed X-Men: The Last Stand , then directed Rush Hour 3 , which was released in 2007. Ratner directed a television commercial for Wynn Las Vegas featuring Steve Wynn on top of Encore Las Vegas in 2008. In

1458-594: The cast while actors Don Cheadle , Saul Rubinek , Gianni Russo , and Jeremy Piven have guest or cameo appearances. The first two Rush Hour films both begin in Hong Kong and end in a United States airport. Rush Hour 3 was officially announced on May 7, 2006, and filming began on July 4, 2006. The film, set in Paris and Los Angeles , was first released on August 10, 2007, and grossed $ 256,585,882 worldwide. Academy Award -winning film director Roman Polanski co-stars as

1512-529: The debut videos for Prime Minister Pete Nice before working with Redman , LL Cool J , Heavy D and Wu-Tang Clan . He has directed music videos for artists such as Mariah Carey Madonna , Miley Cyrus , Jay-Z and was scheduled to direct a video for Michael Jackson before its production was cancelled. He directed Carey's "We Belong Together", "I Still Believe", "Obsessed" and "Heartbreaker" and others. Ratner had his motion picture debut when he directed Money Talks in 1997. The film, an action-comedy about

1566-468: The film was not screened in Chinese theaters in 2007 to make way for a larger variety of foreign films, according to a business representative (The quota for imported films is 20 each year). Because of the films' collective box-office success, director Brett Ratner and writer Jeff Nathanson are considering the production of a fourth installment. In the DVD audio commentary for Rush Hour 3 , Brett Ratner joked that

1620-514: The fourth Rush Hour film could be released in 2012. Ratner and Nathanson are exploring many concepts, including the use of the motion capture technique for the possible sequel and various different film projects with Chan and Tucker. It has been reported that the fourth film may be set in Moscow. In July 2009, in an interview, Ratner stated that he "has been in contact with a long list of stars including Danny DeVito and Jet Li for possible roles in

1674-507: The fourth grade. In late 1975, he transferred to the Professional Children's School , also in Manhattan. Beginning at age four, Reese appeared in television commercials and was known for his red hair and the distinctive, high-pitched voice with which he delivered his lines. The most memorable of these was an ad for Underwood Deviled Ham , in which he mispronounced the word "smorgasbord" as "borgasmord." The commercial garnered Reese

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1728-506: The premise of the film series aired from March to August 2016, with Jon Foo as Chief Inspector Lee and Justin Hires as James Carter. The films' original director Brett Ratner signed on as the show's executive producer, along with Rush Hour producers Arthur M. Sarkissian , Jeff Ingold , and Jon Turteltaub . Turtletaub also directed the pilot episode with Bill Lawrence penning the series alongside Blake McCormick . James Lew , who worked on

1782-465: The project for more than a year with producers including Sarkissian and Roger Birnbaum , Disney Studios Chief Joe Roth put the project into turnaround, citing concerns about the $ 34-million budget, and Chan's appeal to American audiences at the time. Several studios were interested in acquiring the project. New Line Cinema was confident in Ratner's talents, having done Money Talks with him, so they made

1836-499: The question of a fourth by saying, " Rush Hour 4 ? Maybe you know, because that's a different kind of movie. You got the action and the stuff like that, and they pay 20 million dollars too... I'm just joking! No, you know Jackie Chan, you know I love working with him and those type of movies you can redo them and it's different, we'll see but I don't know though. But we've got some new stuff coming, so we'll see what happens." In July 2012, series producer Arthur M. Sarkissian stated that

1890-635: The same year, Ratner directed the ensemble comedy caper Tower Heist , starring Ben Stiller and Eddie Murphy . The film was originally based on an idea from Eddie Murphy titled 'Trump Heist' and was about disgruntled employees of Donald Trump planning to rob Trump Tower , though references to Trump were removed from the film. In early 2021, Ratner announced that he will direct a long-gestated Milli Vanilli biopic, which would be his first project since Paramount 's 2014 film Hercules for Millennium Media . In February 2021, Millennium Media stated it would not be moving forward with Ratner's project. Ratner

1944-544: The scene where Inspector Lee accidentally grabs Detective Johnson's ( Elizabeth Peña ) breasts is a reference to Jackie Chan's film Mr. Nice Guy (1997). Rush Hour began as a spec script written in 1995 by screenwriter/novelist Ross LaManna . The screenplay was sold by LaManna's William Morris agent Alan Gasmer to Hollywood Pictures , a division of the Walt Disney Company, with Arthur Sarkissian attached as producer. After attaching director Ratner and developing

1998-502: The script is coming together, stating: "We're working on a few things on the script right now, so we’re trying to get into production. But we’re working on it and trying to get it going." He reiterated this in a podcast appearance in April that the fourth film was still a possibility, but that "it's not in pre-production. We're working on a few things [for] the script. Jackie wants to do it. I want to do it. The studio wants to do it." By 2018, in

2052-485: The script. In August 2014, Chan stated that the studio still wants to make Rush Hour 4 , but that he will only participate if he can see a quality script first, stating "I don’t want to do a rubbish script just because they want to make the movie". Both Chan and Tucker met for dinner to discuss Rush Hour 4 in June 2015. In November 2016, while promoting Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk , Tucker reaffirmed his optimism for

2106-467: The set of Scarface and was able to watch Miami Vice film around town. Shortly before Ratner's high school graduation, his mother and biological father married with the intention of legitimizing his status. He is a 1990 graduate of New York University . In 2010, he cited Martin Scorsese 's 1980 film Raging Bull as his inspiration to enter the world of film. Ratner began directing music videos in

2160-507: The set to inspire the production, and when filming Rush Hour , a Michael Jackson song he played for inspiration ended up in the film after Chris Tucker began dancing in the middle of a scene. Ratner directed The Family Man , a drama starring Nicolas Cage , in 2000. In 2001, Ratner directed Rush Hour 2 . In 2002, he directed Red Dragon , the prequel to The Silence of the Lambs , about Hannibal Lecter . In 2004, Ratner directed After

2214-542: The site reduces film criticism to a number. Ratner has served on the boards of the Simon Wiesenthal Center and Museum of Tolerance, Chrysalis, Ghetto Film School, Best Buddies and the Los Angeles Police Foundation. He served on the dean's council of NYU Tisch School of the Arts and serves on the board of directors of Tel Aviv University 's School of Film and Television. He donated $ 1 million to

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2268-446: The son of Marsha Presman and Ronald Ratner. He grew up in a middle-class Jewish family. His grandfather was d-CON mail order rat poison company founder and real estate developer Lee Ratner . His mother was born in Cuba and immigrated to the U.S. in the 1960s with her parents, Fanita and Mario Presman, whose families themselves originally moved to Cuba from Eastern Europe. Ratner's mother

2322-498: The stunts for all 3 films, was a stunt coordinator for the series. It was announced that Jon Foo and Justin Hires would star as Detectives Lee and Carter for the CBS series, along with Aimee Garcia and Jessika Van in regular roles. The series was cancelled after one season. This section includes characters who will appear or have appeared in notable roles. Juntao The Dragon Lady #165 Mason Reese Mason Reese

2376-459: The television series Entourage , which was shot at his Beverly Hills home, In 2009, Ratner created The Shooter Series which compiled his work, including interviews with Ratner, and a short film about Mickey Rourke 's transition into boxing. In 2009, Ratner established Rat Press, a publishing company. The company reissued a Playboy interview with Marlon Brando and Robert Evans as well as an account of NFL player Jim Brown , and released

2430-421: The television series Prison Break . Ratner got his start directing with music videos in the 1990s, and directed his first motion picture, Money Talks , in 1997. Overall, the films Ratner has directed have earned over $ 2 billion at the global box office. Ratner is the co-founder of RatPac Entertainment , a film production company. Ratner led RatPac's partnership with Dune Entertainment in September 2013 for

2484-499: The then-18-year-old Page as gay (before Page came out as a trans man) in front of many onlookers including Anna Paquin , who later confirmed the story. A former fashion model came forward regarding an incident involving Russell Simmons and Ratner back in 1991, when Simmons coerced her to perform oral sex while Ratner was present. On November 1, 2017, the same day as the allegations of six women, Warner Bros. announced it had severed ties with Ratner. Afterwards, Ratner announced that he

2538-429: The wake of sexual misconduct allegations against Ratner by several actresses, Warner Bros. sources presumed that it's highly unlikely that Ratner will be directing Rush Hour 4 . In March 2019, That Hashtag Show reported that a female led Rush Hour reboot was in development by STXfilms with Li Bingbing in the lead. In December 2022, the fourth film was confirmed to be in development by Chan. A TV series based on

2592-506: The works and shooting for the film will most likely start in 2018 if Tucker agrees to be in the film. He stated that he was optimistic about Tucker accepting due to his previous claims of being on board for the film. In February 2018, Tucker confirmed the production of Rush Hour 4 . He stated on ESPN's podcast, The Plug : "It's happening. This is gonna be the rush of all rushes. Jackie is ready and we want to do this so that people don't ever forget it." In February 2019, Tucker reported that

2646-433: Was "[stepping] away from all Warner Bros.-related activities" and Warner Bros. was reviewing the issue. In April 2018, Warner Bros. announced that they would not renew their $ 450-million co-producing deal with RatPac. Director Executive Producer Producer Executive Soundtrack Producer Director Executive producer Producer Producer Executive producer Rush Hour (film series) Rush Hour

2700-488: Was an executive producer of the television series Prison Break , which aired from 2005 to 2009, and directed its pilot episode. In 2011, Ratner produced the TV documentary, American Masters: Woody Allen – A Documentary . That same year, he produced Horrible Bosses , a comedy about employees plotting to kill their bosses. Horrible Bosses opened at the domestic box office with $ 28.1 million in its first weekend. Ratner produced

2754-496: Was awarded to The Cook, The Knife and The Rabbit's Finger , which was directed by Agustina Bonventura and Nicolas Casanas. Ratner worked with international beverage brand Diageo to produce The Hilhaven Lodge, a blended whiskey named for his Beverly Hills estate. The bottle is modeled after the estate and features a wood cork, and the bottle is shaped to resemble bay windows. The drink is a mixture of 26-year-old rye, 15-year-old Tennessee whiskey, and six-year bourbon. Ratner delivered

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2808-401: Was executive producer of The Revenant , starring Leonardo DiCaprio . He was an executive producer on the 2016 film War Dogs , directed by Todd Phillips and starring Jonah Hill and Miles Teller . In December 2012, Ratner and Australian media mogul James Packer formed a joint venture, RatPac Entertainment. The firm will produce independent films and co-produce big-budget films with

2862-508: Was released on September 18, 1998, grossing $ 245,300,000 worldwide. Martin Lawrence was originally considered for the role of James Carter. Chris Tucker was finally chosen for the part. Director Brett Ratner, a big fan of Jackie Chan's Hong Kong movies, felt that American audiences would not be familiar with the jokes in Jackie's other movies, and deliberately re-used some of his gags. For example,

2916-487: Was sixteen when he was born. Ratner has said that he "really didn't know" his biological father, and that he considers Alvin Malnik , a lawyer and businessman with alleged organized crime ties who opened the restaurant The Forge in Miami Beach, to be his father, "the one who raised" him. Malnik was a friend of Lee Ratner and not romantically involved with Marsha Presman. Ratner's biological father became homeless in Miami Beach,

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