Paul Haggis

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Paul Haggis (2013)

Paul Haggis (born March 10, 1953 in London , Ontario , Canada ) is a Canadian screenwriter , producer and director for film and television. He lives in Santa Monica , California and is a two-time Oscar winner .

Life

After attending an art school, where he was primarily concerned with photography, Paul moved to London , Great Britain , in 1974 to become a fashion photographer. After only one year he returned to Canada unsuccessfully and studied film at Fanshawe College. While he was also working as a road builder for his father, he wrote plays for the local theater in his spare time. However, his first two works received scathing reviews.

In 1977 he left Canada again to try his luck in Los Angeles. While he took on various low-paying jobs to keep himself and his wife Diane afloat, he took evening writing classes. He returned to Canada for his first assignment. CBC's Jack Humphrey gave him the opportunity to write the pilot for the new sitcom Hangin 'In .

His real breakthrough began when he met screenwriter Norman Lear , whose writing partner left him with an unfinished script for an episode of Diff'rent Strokes . Haggis offered his help and through the resulting script found her way into the writing team for the television series. This was followed by working on series that Haggis didn't necessarily like, but which were inevitable for financial reasons, such as One Day at a Time , Sweet Surrender , Love Boat and The Facts of Life . In 1987 the producer duo Edward Zwick and Marshall Herskovitz hired him for the ABC series The Best Years . His collaboration earned him two Emmy and a Golden Globe nominations. Haggis now had a reputation in Hollywood. In 1990 this series of successes led to the specially created series Hall , which only lasted 13 weeks on the air. In 1993 he was also responsible for the creation of the hit series Walker, Texas Ranger .

Shortly thereafter, Canadian producer Robert Lantos and then- CBS President Jeff Sagansky approached him to ask him to write a script for a series based on their idea. A Mountie in Chicago emerged and quickly established itself as a hit in Canada. The moderate success in America, however, led to the fact that CBS separated from the series and it fell entirely into Canadian hands after a year. Haggis left the project and handed over his responsibilities to his sister, Kathy Slevin . He then developed another series for CBS. EZ Street , a dark mafia series , was a success with critics, but here too the ratings fell short of expectations. It was discontinued after just ten episodes. The same fate befell his next series for CBS. Michael Hayes with David Caruso was discontinued after a 22-part season .

In 2000 Paul Haggis turned his attention to the film landscape. He and Mark R. Harris secured the film rights to two short stories by FX Toole . He adapted the first story into a screenplay entitled Million Dollar Baby with the intention of making it come true. After winning Morgan Freeman and Hilary Swank for the project, Clint Eastwood expressed an interest in directing the film. Haggis agreed and devoted his energies entirely to his long-term project LA Crash , which he was currently filming. While Million Dollar Baby established itself as one of the most respected films of 2005, LA Crash also became an unexpected hit, which was praised by film critics and eventually won the Oscar for Best Picture .

After he had written the script for the 21st film in the James Bond series with Casino Royale , he was also engaged for the sequel A Quantum of Solace . In the meantime, the Canadian filmmaker worked as a writer, director and producer on the crime series The Black Donnellys and in 2007 completed the film production In the Valley of Elah , in which Tommy Lee Jones and Charlize Theron play the leading roles. The thriller, which deals with the mysterious disappearance of a US war veteran from Iraq, was featured in the competition at the 64th Venice Film Festival in 2007 , but received no award.

In 2015 he directed the miniseries Show Me a Hero , developed by David Simon .

He is married to the American actress Deborah Rennard for the second time since 1997 .

Rape allegations

On January 5, 2018, Paul Haggis was publicly charged with sexual abuse, including two rapes, by four women, most recently in January 2013. One of the women was charged in December 2017 in the New York District Court. As a result, Haggis left the "Artists for Peace and Justice" foundation he founded.

Scientology membership and exit

Haggis was a member of Scientology for 35 years and had reached the highest initiate level of "Operating Thetan VII" during this time, but left the organization anyway in 2009. Haggis justified his departure in an open letter with the attitude of the faith community to the rights of homosexuals. " I could not, in good conscience, be a member of an organization where gay-bashing was tolerated " (German: "I could not be a member of an organization in which gay discrimination is tolerated with a clear conscience.") Haggis has two lesbians herself Daughters.

A year and a half after Haggis 'departure from the organization, the renowned journalist Lawrence Wright reported in detail in the American weekly newspaper The New Yorker about Haggis' departure from the organization. The report authorized by Haggis puts enormous pressure on the organization as it destroys the organization's bizarre founding myth . In 2015, Haggis appeared in Alex Gibney's documentary Scientology: A Prison of Faith , where he shared his experiences with the movement.

Filmography (selection)

watch TV

Movies

Video games

Awards

Nominations

Won

Web links

Commons : Paul Haggis  - Collection of Images

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Michael Dingendorf: Paul Haggis writes for "Bond 22". (No longer available online.) In: sf-radio.net. May 24, 2007, archived from the original on May 28, 2007 ; accessed on July 24, 2018 .
  2. ^ Allie Conti: 'Crash' Director Paul Haggis Accused of Multiple Rapes. In: vice.com. January 5, 2018, accessed July 24, 2018 .
  3. ↑ Haleigh Breest - v. - Paul Haggis. In: iapps.courts.state.ny.us. Retrieved July 24, 2018 .
  4. ^ Dominic Patten: Paul Haggis Facing Rape Accuser's Lawyers; Exits charity. In: deadline.com. January 9, 2018, accessed July 24, 2018 .
  5. ↑ Gay rights: Hollywood director leaves Scientology. In: spiegel.de. October 26, 2009. Retrieved July 24, 2018 .
  6. ^ Mark C. Rathbun: A very important letter. In: markrathbun.blog. October 14, 2009, accessed July 24, 2018 .
  7. ↑ Marc Pitzke: Dropout report - Hollywood director duped Scientology , Spiegel Online, February 14, 2011
  8. ↑ Lawrence Wright: The Apostate. Paul Haggis vs. the Church of Scientology. In: newyorker.com. February 14, 2011, accessed July 24, 2018 .
  9. ↑ Tobias Rapp : Church of Lies . In: Der Spiegel . No. 7 , 2011, p. 108-109 ( online ).
personal data
SURNAME Haggis, Paul
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Canadian screenwriter, producer and director
DATE OF BIRTH March 10, 1953
PLACE OF BIRTH London , Ontario, Canada