https://indianpedia.org/index.php?action=history&feed=atom&title=Lee_TamahoriLee Tamahori - Revision history2026-07-31T19:15:05ZRevision history for this page on the wikiMediaWiki 1.45.4https://indianpedia.org/index.php?title=Lee_Tamahori&diff=427268&oldid=prevAjay Kumar at 06:11, 14 September 20232023-09-14T06:11:28Z<p></p>
<p><b>New page</b></p><div>{{Short description|New Zealand filmmaker}}<br />
'''Warren Lee Tamahori''' ({{IPAc-en|ˌ|t|ɑː|m|ə|ˈ|h|ɔː|r|i}}; born 17 June 1950) is a [[New Zealand]] filmmaker best known for directing the 1994 film ''[[Once Were Warriors (film)|Once Were Warriors]]'', the 2001 film ''[[Along Came a Spider (film)|Along Came a Spider]]'', and 2002's [[James Bond]] film ''[[Die Another Day]]''.<br />
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==Upbringing and early career==<br />
Tamahori was born in [[Wellington]], New Zealand. He is of [[Māori people|Māori]] ancestry on his father's side and British on his mother's.<br />
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Tamahori grew up in [[Tawa, New Zealand|Tawa]], a northern suburb of [[Wellington]], [[North Island]], [[New Zealand]]. Educated at Tawa School and [[Tawa College]],<ref>{{cite news|last=Dutta|first=Kunal|title=Lee Tamahori: The director who has sympathy with the devil|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/profiles/lee-tamahori-the-director-who-has-sympathy-with-the-devil-2333277.html|access-date=8 November 2012|newspaper=The Independent|date=7 August 2011}}</ref> he began his career as a commercial artist and photographer. He moved into the film industry in the late 1970s, initially getting in the door by working for nothing, then working as a boom operator for [[Television New Zealand]], and on the feature films: ''Skin Deep'', ''[[Goodbye Pork Pie]]'', and ''[[Bad Blood (1981 film)|Bad Blood]]''.<br />
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In the early 1980s ''Pork Pie'' director [[Geoff Murphy]] promoted Tamahori to become an assistant director on ''[[Utu (film)|Utu]]'', and he subsequently worked as first assistant director on ''[[The Silent One]]'', Murphy's ''[[The Quiet Earth]]'', ''[[Came a Hot Friday]] ''and ''[[Merry Christmas, Mr Lawrence]]''. In 1986 Tamahori co-founded production company Flying Fish, which specialised in making commercials. Tamahori made his name with a series of high-profile television commercials, including one awarded 'Commercial of the Decade'.<ref name=mi6>{{<br />
cite web | date = 12 March 2006 | work = Bond News<br />
| url=http://www.mi6-hq.com/news/index.php?itemid=3468<br />
| title = Meet the real Lee Tamahori – locals speak up for shamed director<br />
| publisher = mi6-xxx.com | access-date =25 September 2010}}</ref><br />
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==Feature films==<br />
Tamahori had directed a number of shorter dramas for television before he made his feature film debut in 1994 with ''[[Once Were Warriors (film)|Once Were Warriors]]'', a gritty depiction of a violent Māori family. The film had problems finding funding, but it went on to break box office records in New Zealand. Overseas it sold to many countries and won rave reviews from ''Time'' magazine, ''Village Voice'', and ''The Melbourne Age'', with ''Time'' and ''The Age'' naming it one of the ten best films of the year.<br />
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Tamahori moved to Hollywood and directed the period thriller ''[[Mulholland Falls]]'' (1996), although this was not received well critically or commercially. This was followed by the successful wilderness film ''[[The Edge (1997 film)|The Edge]]'' (1997), which starred [[Anthony Hopkins]] and [[Alec Baldwin]] and ''[[Die Another Day]]'' (2002), the twentieth and most successful [[James Bond]] film made up until that point. He also directed [[Toodle Fucking-Oo|an episode]] of ''[[The Sopranos]]'' and the thriller ''[[Along Came a Spider (film)|Along Came a Spider]]'' (2001).<br />
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Tamahori's next film was the sequel to ''[[XXX (2002 film)|XXX]]'' (2002), titled ''[[XXX: State of the Union]]'' (2005), starring [[Ice Cube]] and [[Willem Dafoe]]; he replaced the original film's director, [[Rob Cohen]]. In 2007 he directed ''[[Next (2007 film)|Next]]'', a science fiction [[action film]] based on ''[[The Golden Man]]'', a short story by [[Philip K. Dick]]. The film starred [[Nicolas Cage]], [[Julianne Moore]] and [[Jessica Biel]]. The drama ''[[The Devil's Double]]'' starring [[Dominic Cooper]] was released in 2011, a dramatisation of [[Latif Yahia]]'s claims that he was forced to become body double to [[Uday Hussein]], son of Saddam.<ref>{{<br />
cite web | url = http://www.empireonline.com/news/feed.asp?NID=27196<br />
| title =Exclusive Pic From The Devil's Double<br />
| publisher = Empireonline <br />
| access-date=25 September 2010}}</ref><ref>{{<br />
cite web | date = 7 April 2010 | work = IMDb | publisher = Amazon<br />
| title = The Devil's Double <br />
| url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1270262/}}</ref><br />
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In 2012 Tamahori was attached to the action epic ''Emperor'', about a young woman seeking revenge for the execution of her father by [[Holy Roman Emperor]] [[Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor|Charles V]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.screendaily.com/lee-tamahori-signs-on-for-corsans-emperor/5037938.article|title = Lee Tamahori signs on for Corsan's Emperor}}</ref> [[Adrien Brody]] was cast in 2014 as the Emperor<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2014/05/cannes-corsan-pairs-lee-tamahori-with-adrien-brody-for-emperor-732893/|title=Cannes: Corsan Pairs Lee Tamahori with Adrien Brody for 'Emperor'|date=19 May 2014}}</ref> opposite [[Sophie Cookson]] as the young woman, also cast in 2014.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://variety.com/2014/film/news/sophia-cookson-emperor-adrien-brody-1201285251/|title = TORONTO: Sophie Cookson Starring Opposite Adrien Brody in 'Emperor'|date = 18 August 2014}}</ref> The film was finished and screened at Cannes in 2017<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/discovering-an-emperor-wi_b_5573456|title=Discovering an Emperor with Adrien Brody and Lee Tamahori in Cannes|date=10 July 2014}}</ref> but its release has been {{As of|2020|alt=held up}} by legal challenges.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/emperor-producer-paul-breuls-arrested-fraud-allegations-1018677|title='Emperor' Producer Paul Breuls Arrested on Fraud Allegations|date=5 July 2017}}</ref><!--- as of template is used "invisibly": I want to add article to Category:Articles containing potentially dated statements, since this statement will become dated once the film gets released. But visibly phrasing this as "As of 2019, the movie isn't released" is not necessary. ---><br />
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In 2015 Tamahori directed ''Mahana'', his first feature made in New Zealand since ''Once Were Warriors''. The rural-set drama was based on the novel ''Bulibasha'' by [[Witi Ihimaera]], and starred [[Temuera Morrison]], whom he had earlier directed in ''Once Were Warriors''. The movie was released in New Zealand in March 2016, after debuting at the Berlin Film Festival.<ref>{{ cite web | url = http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/CU1510/S00360/mahana-the-nz-story-that-brought-lee-tamahori-home.htm | title =Mahana – the NZ Story That Brought Lee Tamahori Home<br />
| publisher = Scoop | date=27 October 2015}}</ref><br />
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==Personal life==<br />
Tamahori has been married twice and has two sons, one from each marriage.<ref name=mi6 /><br />
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In January 2006, Tamahori was arrested on [[Santa Monica Boulevard]] when, according to Los Angeles police, he entered an undercover policeman's car while [[Drag (clothing)|wearing a woman's dress]] and offered to perform a sex act in exchange for money.<ref name="SMH">{{cite news |last1=Munn |first1=Eric |title=Tamahori's double life |url=https://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/celebrity/tamahoris-double-life-20060205-gdmwr0.html |work=Sydney Morning Herald |date=5 February 2006 |language=en}}</ref> In February 2006, he pleaded [[no contest]] in a Los Angeles court to a charge of criminal trespass in return for prosecutors dropping charges of prostitution and loitering. He was placed on 36 months' probation and ordered to perform 15 days of community service.<ref name="McCammon">{{cite news |last1=McCammon |first1=McCammon |title=Tamahori charges dropped, ordered to clean up Hollywood |url=https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/tamahori-charges-dropped-ordered-to-clean-up-hollywood/DVFUNMJJNQ7VYVNNHFI5VR2RZU/ |work=NZ Herald |date=24 February 2006}}</ref><ref name="LAT">{{cite news |last1=Blankstein |first1=Andrew |last2=So |first2=Hemmy |title=Bust Shows Seamy Side of Street |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2006-feb-24-me-director24-story.html |work=Los Angeles Times |date=24 February 2006}}</ref><br />
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==Filmography==<br />
*''Thunderbox'' (1989)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nzonscreen.com/title/e-tipu-e-rea-thunderbox-1989|title = E Tipu e Rea - Thunderbox &#124; Television &#124; NZ on Screen}}</ref><br />
*''[[Once Were Warriors (film)|Once Were Warriors]]'' (1994)<br />
*''[[Mulholland Falls]]'' (1996)<br />
*''[[The Edge (1997 film)|The Edge]]'' (1997)<br />
*''[[Along Came a Spider (film)|Along Came a Spider]]'' (2001)<br />
*''[[Die Another Day]]'' (2002)<br />
*''[[XXX: State of the Union]]'' (2005)<br />
*''[[Next (2007 film)|Next]]'' (2007)<br />
*''[[The Devil's Double]]'' (2011)<br />
*''[[Mahana (film)|Mahana]]'' (2016)<br />
*''[[The Convert]]'' (2023)<br />
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==References==<br />
{{reflist}}<br />
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==External links==<br />
* Lee Tamahori [http://thehollywoodinterview.blogspot.com/2008/03/lee-tamahori-hollywood-interview.html ''The Hollywood Interview'']<br />
*Lee Tamahori [http://www.nzonscreen.com/person/lee-tamahori/biography NZ On Screen ''biography'']<br />
* {{IMDb name|id=0848414}}<br />
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{{Lee Tamahori}}<br />
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{{Authority control}}<br />
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Tamahori, Lee}}<br />
[[Category:1950 births]]<br />
[[Category:Living people]]<br />
[[Category:New Zealand Māori people]]<br />
[[Category:New Zealand film directors]]<br />
[[Category:Indigenous filmmakers in New Zealand]]<br />
[[Category:People educated at Tawa College]]<br />
[[Category:People educated at Massey High School]]<br />
[[Category:Ngāti Porou people]]<br />
[[Category:Māori-language film directors]]</div>Ajay Kumar