Susan Downey | |
|---|---|
 Downey in 2014 | |
| Born | Susan Nicole Levin (1973-11-06)November 6, 1973 (age 52) Schaumburg, Illinois, U.S. |
| Alma mater | University of Southern California |
| Occupation | Producer |
| Years active | 1995–present |
| Title | President (executive), Team Downey |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 |
Susan Nicole Downey (néeLevin; born November 6, 1973)[1] is an Americanfilm producer. Until February 2009, she was co-president ofDark Castle Entertainment and executive vice president of production atSilver Pictures,Joel Silver's production company. Susan is married toRobert Downey Jr.[2] The couple has formed their own production house namedTeam Downey.
Levin was born inSchaumburg, Illinois, to Rosie Levin, a homemaker, and Elliott Levin, a businessman.[3] She became interested in the movie business at age 12.[1] She graduated fromSchaumburg High School as class valedictorian in 1991.[1][4] She isJewish.[5][6]
Interested in pursuing a career in film production, Levin moved to California and graduatedsumma cum laude from theUniversity of Southern CaliforniaSchool of Cinematic Arts.[7] She began her career atThreshold Entertainment, where she oversaw the development and production of projects based on well-known properties for both the company's film and television slates. These include the feature filmsMortal Kombat andMortal Kombat Annihilation, as well as the 22-episode TV seriesMortal Kombat: Conquest which ran on bothTNT and insyndication.[8]
Downey held the dual posts of co-president ofDark Castle Entertainment and Executive Vice President of Production at Silver Pictures. Joining Silver Pictures in 1999, she oversaw the development and production of feature films released under both banners, includingThirteen Ghosts andSwordfish.
In 2002, she made her producing debut as a co-producer onGhost Ship and then co-produced the 2003 releaseCradle 2 the Grave. Downey went on to produce the featuresGothika andHouse of Wax, and also served as an executive producer on the critically acclaimed comedic thrillerKiss Kiss Bang Bang.
Downey later produced Neil Jordan's psychological dramaThe Brave One, starringJodie Foster and Terrence Howard; Guy Ritchie's comedyRocknRolla, starringGerard Butler,Tom Wilkinson,Thandiwe Newton,Idris Elba, Chris Bridges and Jeremy Piven; the horror thrillerOrphan, starring Vera Farmiga and Peter Sarsgaard; and the thrillerWhiteout, starringKate Beckinsale.
She was also an executive producer on the Hughes brothers' post-apocalyptic dramaThe Book of Eli, starring Denzel Washington and Gary Oldman.[9]
Downey was working on production for Guy Ritchie's crime filmRocknRolla, during which her husband Robert Downey Jr., visited her office at Silver Pictures and learned about Ritchie's plans for a newSherlock Holmes film; at her husband's request, Susan set up a meeting with Ritchie, and soon the film had Robert Downey Jr. as its lead.[10] The film became the first time since 2005'sKiss Kiss Bang Bang that the Downeys had worked together, and according to Robert Downey Jr., the couple enjoyed it very much because they did not have to "miss each other" during the long production.[11]
Sherlock Holmes opened to good reviews and record-breaking box office over the Christmas holiday in 2009. It was the couple's most financially successful joint venture to date,[12] and netted Robert Downey Jr. his third Golden Globe Award, his first forBest Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy. In his satirical, self-deprecating acceptance speech, he started off by thanking his wife: "First of all, I would like to thank Susan Downey for telling me thatMatt Damon was going to win, 'so don't bother to prepare a speech.' That was at about 10AM." He continued his speech by noting all the people he supposedly wasn't going to thank (indirectly thanking them for giving him a chance to be in the movie) and again singled out his wife for tribute: "I mean, I really don't want to thank my wife, because I could be bussing tables at the Daily Grill right now if not for her."[13]
Susan worked with the production staff ofIron Man 2,Due Date andSherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows alongside her husband, allowing the couple to work together again after the firstSherlock Holmes completed production.
In June 2010, Robert and Susan Downey announced the formation of theirWarner Bros.-based production companyTeam Downey, and hired David Gambino to be president of production.[14] Their first producing project isYucatan, a heist film originally crafted by Steve McQueen as a star vehicle for himself.[14]
Columbia Pictures announced on October 20 it had obtained the rights to Neil Strauss' non-fiction 2009 bestsellerEmergency! This Book Will Save Your Life. The book is to be developed into a feature produced by Team Downey.[15]
The Downeys are also developing a musical project for Warner Bros. from a pitch by "Next to Normal" composers Brian Yorkey and Tom Kitt.[16]
Team Downey produced the family dramaThe Judge (2014), starring Downey Jr.[17]
In 2011, Team Downey announced plans to produce the tragic, shark-infested tale of theUSSIndianapolis and the exoneration of her captain (decades later) due to the efforts of schoolboy Hunter Scott.[18]
Susan Levin's first full-credit producer job was for the 2003 thrillerGothika, starringHalle Berry and Levin's future husband, actorRobert Downey Jr. Downey – who was in the process of divorcing his first wife,Deborah Falconer[19] — has said that his most memorable recollection about shootingGothika was "romancing the producer";[20] Levin stated toJames Lipton onInside the Actors Studio that while she thought Downey was "an amazing actor that we were lucky to have in our movie",[20] her first impression of him was that he was "weird."[20] The two quietly struck up a romance – though she turned down his romantic advances twice for fear that their relationship would not last through the completion of shooting because "he's an actor; I have a real job." The couple eventually made their relationship public in the fall of 2003.[21]
Downey proposed to Levin on November 5, 2003, the night before her 30th birthday.[21] They were married on August 27, 2005, in aJewish ceremony atAmagansett, New York.[22][23] She gave birth to their son, Exton Elias Downey, on February 7, 2012, in Los Angeles, California.[24] On July 9, 2014, Downey Jr. announced via his Facebook and Twitter that he and his wife were expecting a daughter in November.[25][26] Their daughter, Avri Roel, was born on November 4, 2014.[27]
Downey credits his wife with helping him with his former drug and alcohol habits, which he quit in 2003, and revitalising his career. "The old saying is true – behind every good man there's an incredible woman. I owe a huge amount – if not all – of my success to Susan. We make a great team, and all that luck I spoke about, that's Susan."[28]Sherlock Holmes directorGuy Ritchie describes the couple as "the greatest illustration of a symbiotic marriage that I've ever seen. It's a real yin and yang, and it's made him a joy to work with. Robert would be a pain in the ass if he didn't have Susan to police him."[29] One of Downey's biceps bears a tattoo which reads "Suzie Q" as a tribute to her.[30]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Ghost Ship | Co-producer | Credited as Susan Levin |
| 2003 | Cradle 2 the Grave | Co-producer | Credited as Susan Levin |
| 2003 | Gothika | Producer | Credited as Susan Levin |
| 2005 | House of Wax | Producer | Credited as Susan Levin |
| 2005 | Kiss Kiss Bang Bang | Executive producer | Credited as Susan Levin |
| 2007 | The Reaping | Producer | |
| 2007 | The Invasion | Executive producer | |
| 2007 | The Brave One | Producer | |
| 2008 | RocknRolla | Producer | |
| 2009 | Orphan | Producer | |
| 2009 | Whiteout | Producer | |
| 2009 | Sherlock Holmes | Producer | |
| 2010 | The Book of Eli | Executive producer | |
| 2010 | Due Date | Executive producer | |
| 2010 | Iron Man 2 | Executive producer | |
| 2011 | Unknown | Executive producer | |
| 2011 | Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows | Producer | |
| 2014 | The Judge | Producer | |
| 2020 | Dolittle | Producer | |
| 2020–2023 | Perry Mason | Executive Producer | |
| 2021–2024 | Sweet Tooth | Executive Producer | |
| 2022 | The Bond | Executive Producer | [31] |
| The Sunshine Place | Executive Producer | [32] | |
| "Sr." | Herself | Documentary; also producer | |
| 2025 | Play Dirty | Executive Producer | [33] |
| International | |
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| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
