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Richard Donner (born Richard Donald Schwartzberg; April 24, 1930 – July 5, 2021) was an American filmmaker. Described as "one of Hollywood's most reliable makers of action blockbusters", Donner directed some of the most financially successful films of the 1970s and 1980s. His career spanning more than six decades crossed genres and influenced trends among filmmakers across the world. Donner began his career in 1957 as a television director. In the 1960s, he directed episodes of the series The Rifleman, The Man from U.N.C.L.E., The Fugitive, The Twilight Zone, The Banana Splits, and many others. Donner made his film debut with the low-budget aviation drama X-15 in 1961, but had his critical and commercial breakthrough with the horror film The Omen in 1976. He directed the landmark superhero film Superman in 1978, which provided an inspiration for the fantasy film genre to eventually gain artistic respectability and commercial dominance. Donner later went on to direct films in the 1980s such as The Goonies and Scrooged, while reinvigorating the buddy cop film genre with the Lethal Weapon series. Donner and his wife, Lauren, owned a production company, The Donners' Company, which is most successful for producing the Free Willy and X-Men film franchises. Donner also produced Tales from the Crypt and co-wrote several comic books for Superman publisher DC Comics. In 2000, Donner received the President's Award from the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films. Description above from the Wikipedia article Richard Donner, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Filmography
Movies and shows, newest first
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2024
Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story
Movie Self (archive footage)
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2023
Superpowered: The DC Story
TV show Self (archive footage)
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2020
Reunited Apart
TV show Self
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2020
Cursed Films
TV show Self - Director, The Omen
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2019
Valerie
Movie Self
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2019
Making Apes: The Artists Who Changed Film
Movie Self
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2018
Eli Roth's History of Horror
TV show Self
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2018
Davi's Way
Movie Self
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2017
Laddie: The Man Behind the Movies
Movie Self
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2017
Life After Flash
Movie Self
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2016
Close Encounters with Vilmos Zsigmond
Movie Self
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2014
Marlon Brando: An Actor Named Desire
Movie Self - Filmmaker
- 2013
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2013
Tales from the Warner Bros. Lot
Movie Self
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2012
Casting By
Movie Self
- 2012
More credits
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2010
Secret Origin: The Story of DC Comics
Movie Self (archive footage)
- 2010
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2009
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Movie Executive Producer
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2009
No Subtitles Necessary: Laszlo & Vilmos
Movie Self
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2008
Starz Inside: Comic Books Unbound
Movie Self - Director, Superman: The Movie
- 2006
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2006
Superman II: Restoring the Vision
Movie Self
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2006
Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut
Movie Man Walking by Diner (uncredited)
- 2006
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2006
16 Blocks
Movie Man Holding a Birthday Cake (uncredited)
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2005
The Curse of 'The Omen'
Movie Self
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2003
Timeline
Movie Man in Car (uncredited)
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2002
Ritual
Movie Producer
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2001
Out Cold
Movie Snooty Bartender (uncredited)
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2001
The Omen Legacy
Movie Self
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2001
Taking Flight: The Development of 'Superman'
Movie Self
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2001
Making 'Superman': Filming the Legend
Movie Self
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2000
666: The Omen Revealed
Movie
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2000
X-Men
Movie Executive Producer
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1999
Any Given Sunday
Movie Executive Producer
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1999
Tales from the Crypt: The Robert Zemeckis Collection
Movie Producer
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1999
Made Men
Movie Producer
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1998
Lethal Weapon 4
Movie Director
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1997
Double Tap
Movie Producer