For over 40 years, producer Kathleen Kennedy Has been at the forefront of some of Hollywood’s most successful movies. As a long-time collaborator with director Steven Spielberg, Kennedy has been an essential addition to his work and has played a central role as producer on everything from et the extra-terrestrial Straight to more recent releases like Lincoln. With an incredible talent for producing absolute megahits at the box office, Kennedy has earned her status as a Hollywood legend.
Although many will associate Kennedy with her involvement in some of the best movies ever, as she executive produced series like Back to the future And even the best picture winner Schindler’s ListShe has also been a lead producer on countless other acclaimed classics. With perhaps the most impressive resume in all of Hollywood, Kathleen’s role as President of LucasFilm has her overseeing it all Star Wars– Related releases since 2012But that’s only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to her appeal.
Directed by Steven Spielberg
After first meeting director Steven Spielberg while working on his 1979 comedy 1941Kathleen Kennedy quickly became the filmmaker’s secretary and in 1981 took a significant role in his professional life. Along with Spielberg, Kennedy co-founded the production company Amblin Entertainment, and Kennedy’s first film as a producer was et the extra-terrestrial. As the quintessential example of Spielberg’s unique emotional and nostalgia-inducing style, this fruitful partnership would continue for decades to come as it produced some of the filmmaker’s greatest releases.
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The Money Pit (1986)
Directed by Richard Benjamin
While Kathleen Kennedy was best known for her work with Steven Spielberg, she also produced several acclaimed releases by other filmmakers, such as the Richard Benjamin comedy The money pit. Starring Tom Hanks and Shelley Long, this hilarious independent remake of the Cary Grant comedy Mr. Blandings is building his dream house Featured plenty of slapstick humor. Although The money pit Was slated by critics and failed to build a lasting legacy, looking back, that is An early indication of Hanks’ immediate comedic talent and bright future as one of Hollywood’s biggest stars.
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Arachnophobia (1990)
Directed by Frank Marshall
Kathleen Kennedy produced the horror comedy Arachnophobia Along with Richard Vane to tell the hilarious story of a California town overtaken by a deadly spider species. like The directorial debut of Kennedy’s husbandFrank Marshall, Arachnophobia Featuring incredible performances from Jeff Daniels and Jeff Goldblum, who excelled in this underrated, fast-paced thriller that’s sure to scare the life out of any arachnophobic viewers. Marshall said that was his intention Arachnophobia is that it would be like “A rollercoaster“(by New York Times), and he wanted viewers”To be scared but laughing.”
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hook (1991)
Directed by Steven Spielberg
With Amblin Entertainment, Kathleen Kennedy and Steven Spielberg tackle JM Barrie’s classic story of Peter Pan With a clever twist when the sequel story focused on the misadventures of his old arch enemy Captain Hawk. Hook Featuring an older Peter Pan who, having forgotten his childhood adventures, returns to Neverland once again. While Spielberg himself expressed disappointment with HookIt has remained a favorite among audiences, primarily due to Robin Williams’ incredible characterization of Captain Hook.
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Jurassic Park (1993)
Directed by Steven Spielberg
The true magic of Steven Spielberg and Kathleen Kennedy’s creative partnership was encapsulated by the astonishing achievement of Jurassic Park. As a spellbinding depiction of dinosaur life, the CGI seen in Jurassic Park Signal a new era in cinema Where movies could finally depict what was previously practically impossible. As the most successful movie of 1993, Jurassic Park led to the development of an entire franchise, and Kennedy returned as an executive producer for The Lost World: Jurassic Park and acted as a full producer for Jurassic Park III.
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The Bridges of Madison County (1995)
Directed by Clint Eastwood
Kathleen Kennedy turns her producing talents to yet another Hollywood icon for the Clint Eastwood romance, The Bridges of Madison County. Starring Eastwood and Meryl Streep, the story of an Italian war bride and National Geographic The photographer was a hit with viewers who showed up to witness their intense, four-day love affair. While Sidney Pollack was originally attached as director, Eastwood soon took over directing duties and co-produced the film alongside Kennedy.
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Twister (1996)
Directed by Jan de Bont
The iconic disaster movie Twister Reunited Kathleen Kennedy with Jurassic Park Writer Michael Crichton how, along with Ian Brice, the trio produced this engaging story of tornado chasers. Taking in almost $500 million at the box office (via The numbers), Twister was a major hit for Kennedy, and it showed that even without Spielberg in the director’s chair, she could produce incredible mega hits. The legacy of Twister was so great that a standalone sequel was made nearly 20 years later with The latest release from Twisters Starring Glenn Powell.
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The Sixth Sense (1999)
Directed by M. Night Shyamalan
With one of the biggest movie twists of all time, The sixth sense was the psychological thriller that put M. Night Shyamalan on the map and was nominated for six Academy Awards, including Best Picture. With the backing of the Kennedy/Marshall Company, husband-and-wife Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall co-produced The sixth sense Along with Barry Mendel. The success of The sixth sense Shown Kennedy’s increasing success away from movies associated with Steven Spielberg.
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AI Artificial Intelligence (2001)
Directed by Steven Spielberg
Steven Spielberg AI Artificial Intelligence had a complex production history and was originally intended to be directed by Stanley Kubrick as “A picaresque robot version of Pinocchio“(by Pantelli.) While Kubrick was unable to finish the project before his death in 1999, Spielberg took over along with Kathleen Kennedy and Bonnie Curtis as producers. The result was a sentimental and insightful sci-fi story about a childlike android in need of a mother’s love that stood as One of Spielberg’s most emotionally resonant films And a unique and exciting entry in his huge filmography.
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War of the Worlds (2005)
Directed by Steven Spielberg
Steven Spielberg’s Alien Invasion adaptation of HG Wells’ 1898 novel The war of the worlds Saw producer Kathleen Kennedy returned to the same disaster movie stills that made Twister Such success the previous decade. with The serious star power of Tom Cruise In the lead role, some truly impressive visuals, and well-known source material, it’s no surprise War of the Worlds Taking over $600 million at the box office (via Box Office Mojo.) As yet another incredible success for Kennedy and Spielberg, War of the Worlds Signaling the continued strength of their collaboration in the 21st century,
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The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (2007)
Directed by Julian Schnabel
In a career packed with blockbuster hits, The French-language biographical drama The Diving Bell and the Butterfly was something of an anomaly among Kathleen Kennedy’s producing credits. However, that didn’t make the story of a man suffering from locked-in syndrome after a stroke any more amazing. Co-produced by the Kennedy/Marshall Company, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly was a breathtaking film that allowed viewers to experience the trauma of ​​this debilitating illness by telling its story from the perspective of Jean-Dominique Bauby, a paralyzed man with fully functional mental faculties.
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The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008)
Directed by David Fincher
Although the majority of Kathleen Kennedy’s production work with major directors was done in collaboration with Steven Spielberg, her role as producer for David Fincher The interesting case of Benjamin Button was under the Kennedy/Marshall Company banner. While Spielberg was originally attached to an adaptation of the F. Scott Fitzgerald story back in 1991, with Tom Cruise as the proposed star, it never came to fruition, and Kennedy and Frank Marshall bought the rights (via Collider.) a very successful movie, Benjamin Button Was nominated for 13 Academy AwardsIncluding Best Picture and Best Actor for Brad Pitt.
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War Horse (2011)
Directed by Steven Spielberg
Steven Spielberg reunited many of his long-standing collaborators for War Horse, a drama centered on Joey, a bay Irish hunter touching countless lives during the First World War. with Kathleen Kennedy and Spielberg as co-producersCinematographer Janusz Kaminski, editor Michael Kahn, production designer Rick Carter, and composer John Williams all worked on the film, War Horse Had the whole story of a modern Spielberg classic. With serious emotional resonance and impressive visuals, War Horse was a late career triumph for both Spielberg and Kennedy.
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Lincoln (2012)
Directed by Steven Spielberg
Lincoln was a co-production between Amblin Entertainment and the Kennedy/Marshall Company that saw Steven Spielberg and producer Kathleen Kennedy tell the story of the last four months of Abraham Lincoln’s life. As a powerful depiction of the end of the Civil War and the abolition of slavery, Lincoln Starring Daniel Day-Lewis in one of his best roles. Spielberg first considered making the project in 1999 Starring Liam Neeson (by Hollywood elsewhere.) However, Neeson is old from this part, and it took 13 years to come to fruition.
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Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (2023)
Directed by James Mangold
Kathleen Kennedy has been busy as the president of Lucasfilm since 2012 and has overseen everything from Star Wars Sequels to their impressive slate of Disney+ TV series. However, in between all these projects, Kennedy still found time to co-produce Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, The final outing for Harrison Ford as the titular archaeologist. While The dial of destiny was a fun final adventure, its bloated budget meant that although it grossed $384 million (via Box Office Mojo), it is still considered a box office bomb.
Sources: New York Times, The numbers, Pantelli, Box Office Mojo, Collider, Hollywood elsewhere, Box Office Mojo