Joe Roth | |
|---|---|
 Roth in December 2016 | |
| Born | Joseph Emanuel Roth (1948-06-13)June 13, 1948 (age 76)[1] New York City,New York, U.S. |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1974–present |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 3 |
Joseph Emanuel Roth (born June 13, 1948)[2][1] is an Americanfilm executive,producer anddirector. He co-foundedMorgan Creek Entertainment in 1988 and was chairman of20th Century Fox (1989–1993),Caravan Pictures (1993–1994), andWalt Disney Studios (1994–2000) before foundingRevolution Studios in 2000, thenRoth/Kirschenbaum Films in 2007.
Roth was born on June 13, 1948[1] to Frances and Lawrence Roth.[3] He has stated that hisJewish family faced various forms of harassment growing up in a heavily Catholic part ofLong Island, New York. This involved incidents like "a cross being burned on the lawn and some of Roth's schoolmates crossed themselves before they would speak to him."[4] In 1959, Roth's father volunteered his son to be a plaintiff in theACLU's effort to abolishmandatory prayer in public schools. The case, filed in New York, went through several appeals, finally reaching theU.S. Supreme Court in 1962. The Court ruled that such prayer wasunconstitutional under theFirst Amendment, in the landmark case ofEngel v. Vitale.[5]
Roth attendedBoston University, graduating in 1970 with abachelor's degree incommunication.[2]
Over the course of his career, he has produced over 40 films, and has directed six to date, including 1990'sCoupe de Ville, 2001'sAmerica's Sweethearts and 2006'sFreedomland.
In 1988 by Roth andJames Robinson co-foundedMorgan Creek Entertainment.[6] The name came from Roth's favorite film,The Miracle of Morgan's Creek.[7] The company had box-office hits includingYoung Guns andMajor League.
In 1989, Roth became chairman of 20th Century Fox, who were very successful under him, including hitsHome Alone,Die Hard 2 andWhite Men Can't Jump. His contract expired in July 1992 but he agreed to stay on as Fox Inc. chairmanBarry Diller had quit earlier in the year. He later announced in November 1992 that he was leaving Fox to set up an independent production company atThe Walt Disney Studios.[8][9]
In 1992, he co-foundedCaravan Pictures withRoger Birnbaum, which had a production deal withThe Walt Disney Studios. Roth moved on to be Disney studio chief on August 24, 1994.[10] Disney CEOMichael Eisner was so set on replacingJeffrey Katzenberg as Disney studio chief with Roth that he forgave the $15 million cost overrun debt forI Love Trouble and paid Roth $40 million of fees for 21 unproduced films under the deal.[11]
Roth, who was ranked 6th inPremiere Magazine's 2003 Hollywood Power List, produced the 76th annualAcademy Awards. Roth announced in October 2007 that, when Revolution's distribution deal withSony Pictures ended, that he would depart fromRevolution Studios to form his own production company,Roth Films.
On November 13, 2007, Roth was introduced as the majority owner of aSeattle, Washington–basedMajor League Soccer franchise along withPaul Allen.Seattle Sounders FC—which callsLumen Field home—began regular season play in 2009. On November 12, 2015, Roth passed on majority ownership toAdrian Hanauer.
Roth was married toDonna Arkoff whose father was movie producerSamuel Z. Arkoff.[12] They have three children.
The family resided in theDolores del Río House, designed by architectDouglas Honnold for Irish production designerCedric Gibbons and Mexican actressDolores del Río in 1929 in Pacific Palisades, Los Angeles, California.[13] In 2021, Roth paid $23 million for a 5,514 sq ft (512.3 m2), 1960s Midcentury home designed byDan Dworsky and renovated byWaldo Fernandez inBeverly Hills.[14]
Producer
Executive producer
Co-producer
Director
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | The Conversation | Production assistant | Uncredited |
| 1988 | Young Guns | Presenter | |
| Dead Ringers | |||
| 1990 | The Exorcist III |
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1976 | Tunnel Vision | Player-Announcer | |
| 1977 | Cracking Up | Man | Uncredited |
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Armageddon | Executive in charge of production | Uncredited |
| Year | Film | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Dead Presidents | Special thanks |
| 2002 | Punch-Drunk Love | |
| Gangs of New York | ||
| 2009 | Bandslam | Thanks |
Producer
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | 76th Academy Awards | Television special |
Executive producer
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Demons | TV movie |
| 2011 | Drew Carey's Improv-A-Ganza | |
| 2010–12 | Are We There Yet? | |
| 2012–14 | Anger Management | |
| 2019 | This Is Football | Documentary |
| 2020 | The Plot Against America | |
| 2021 | Panic |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | American Masters | Special thanks | Documentary |
| 2020 | The Last Dance |
