Joel Silver

Joel Silver (born July 14, 1952) is an American film producer, most well-known for action films including the Lethal Weapon series, The Matrix trilogy, the first two Die Hard movies, and Predator. He is the owner of Silver Pictures and co-founder of Dark Castle Entertainment. He has been a rival to Michael Eisner, former CEO of The Walt Disney Company, since their days at Paramount Pictures.

Life and career

Silver was born and raised in South Orange, New Jersey, the son of a writer and a public relations executive. He attended Columbia High School in Maplewood, New Jersey. He finished his undergraduate studies at the New York University's Tisch School of the Arts.

Silver began his career at Lawrence Gordon Productions, where he eventually became president of motion pictures for the company. He earned his first screen credit as the associate producer on The Warriors and, with Gordon, produced 48 Hrs., Streets of Fire, and Brewster's Millions. In 1985, he formed Silver Pictures and produced successful action films such as Commando (1985), the Lethal Weapon franchise, the first two films of the Die Hard series, and the The Matrix franchise of action films.