Avi Lerner
Encyclopedia
Avinoam Lerner is an Israeli-born film producer, primarily of American
action movies.
, but soon re-located to South Africa
, where he produced several films in that country and also owned a chain of movie theaters there until he re-located once again to Los Angeles
in the early 1990s. In 1991, he served as President of the independent production/distribution company, Global Pictures.
Lerner founded two production companies, Nu Image and Millennium Films with Trevor Short, Danny Dimbort, and Danny Lerner. The companies have a varied output, though the vast majority are action films. Most of the action films Avi produces are filmed in Bulgaria
, where he owns a studio.
Nu Image & Millennium Films bought independent film studio First Look Studios and have restructured the organization to distribute their specialty films.
Nu Image has recently produced the 2010 family film Cool Dog with First Look, as Millennium Films recently produced Drive Angry
.
, Steven Seagal
, Wesley Snipes
, Dolph Lundgren
, and Chuck Norris
, usually released as direct-to-video
. Lerner produced Rambo
starring Sylvester Stallone
, and Righteous Kill
starring Robert De Niro
and Al Pacino
for Millennium Films and Emmett Furla Films. He produced The Expendables
, directed by Stallone.
Other features Lerner has had a hand in include: End Game
, starring Cuba Gooding Jr. and James Woods
; Edison
, starring Morgan Freeman
, Kevin Spacey
, and Justin Timberlake
, 16 Blocks
, The Black Dahlia
, The Wicker Man
, and even Werner Herzog's
Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans
, starring Nicolas Cage
. He is also listed as a producer in the thriller Trespass
.
On August 2011, while asian superstar Donnie Yen
was having a vacation with his family in the states, he reportedly received an invitation by Avi Lerner to star in The Expendables 2
. It was stated that Donnie Yen is considering the offer, and has many films at hand, and will not decide until he sees if the script appeals to him or not.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
action movies.
Life and career
Lerner originally worked in movie theaters in Tel AvivTel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
, but soon re-located to South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
, where he produced several films in that country and also owned a chain of movie theaters there until he re-located once again to Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
in the early 1990s. In 1991, he served as President of the independent production/distribution company, Global Pictures.
Lerner founded two production companies, Nu Image and Millennium Films with Trevor Short, Danny Dimbort, and Danny Lerner. The companies have a varied output, though the vast majority are action films. Most of the action films Avi produces are filmed in Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
, where he owns a studio.
Nu Image & Millennium Films bought independent film studio First Look Studios and have restructured the organization to distribute their specialty films.
Nu Image has recently produced the 2010 family film Cool Dog with First Look, as Millennium Films recently produced Drive Angry
Drive Angry
Drive Angry is a 2011 American action film starring Nicolas Cage and directed by Patrick Lussier. It was released on February 25, 2011.- Plot :...
.
Action stars
The bulk of Lerner's films featured action stars who were at their peak in the late 1980s-1990s: Jean-Claude Van DammeJean-Claude Van Damme
Jean-Claude Camille François Van Varenberg , professionally known as Jean-Claude Van Damme, is a Belgian martial artist and actor, best known for his martial arts action films, the most successful of which include Bloodsport , Kickboxer , Double Impact , Universal Soldier , Hard Target , Timecop ,...
, Steven Seagal
Steven Seagal
Steven Frederic Seagal is an American action film star, producer, writer, martial artist, guitarist and reserve deputy sheriff. A 7th-dan black belt in Aikido, Seagal began his adult life as an Aikido instructor in Japan...
, Wesley Snipes
Wesley Snipes
Wesley Trent Snipes is an American actor, film producer, and martial artist, who has starred in numerous action films, thrillers, and dramatic feature films. Snipes is known for playing the Marvel Comics character Blade in the Blade film trilogy, among various other high profile roles...
, Dolph Lundgren
Dolph Lundgren
Dolph Lundgren is a Swedish actor, director, and martial artist. He belongs to a generation of film actors who epitomise the movie action hero stereotype including Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Bruce Willis, Chuck Norris, Steven Seagal and Jean-Claude Van Damme.A graduate in chemical...
, and Chuck Norris
Chuck Norris
Carlos Ray "Chuck" Norris is an American martial artist and actor. After serving in the United States Air Force, he began his rise to fame as a martial artist and has since founded his own school, Chun Kuk Do...
, usually released as direct-to-video
Direct-to-video
Direct-to-video is a term used to describe a film that has been released to the public on home video formats without being released in film theaters or broadcast on television...
. Lerner produced Rambo
Rambo (film)
Rambo is a 2008 German/American Action film starring Sylvester Stallone returning and reprising his famous role as legendary Cold War/Vietnam veteran John Rambo. Stallone also co-wrote and directed the film. It is the fourth and most recent installment in the Rambo franchise, twenty years since...
starring Sylvester Stallone
Sylvester Stallone
Michael Sylvester Gardenzio Stallone , commonly known as Sylvester Stallone, and nicknamed Sly Stallone, is an American actor, filmmaker, screenwriter, film director and occasional painter. Stallone is known for his machismo and Hollywood action roles. Two of the notable characters he has portrayed...
, and Righteous Kill
Righteous Kill
Righteous Kill is a 2008 crime thriller film with elements of a buddy cop film directed by Jon Avnet, and starring Robert De Niro and Al Pacino. Righteous Kill also features John Leguizamo, Carla Gugino, Donnie Wahlberg, Brian Dennehy, and Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson...
starring Robert De Niro
Robert De Niro
Robert De Niro, Jr. is an American actor, director and producer. His first major film roles were in Bang the Drum Slowly and Mean Streets, both in 1973...
and Al Pacino
Al Pacino
Alfredo James "Al" Pacino is an American film and stage actor and director. He is famous for playing mobsters, including Michael Corleone in The Godfather trilogy, Tony Montana in Scarface, Alphonse "Big Boy" Caprice in Dick Tracy and Carlito Brigante in Carlito's Way, though he has also appeared...
for Millennium Films and Emmett Furla Films. He produced The Expendables
The Expendables (2010 film)
The Expendables is a 2010 American ensemble action film written by David Callaham and Sylvester Stallone, and directed by Stallone. Filming began on March 28, 2009, in Rio de Janeiro, New Orleans, and Los Angeles, and the film was released in theaters on August 13, 2010 in North America.The film is...
, directed by Stallone.
Other features Lerner has had a hand in include: End Game
End Game (2006 film)
End Game is a 2006 action/thriller film, written and directed by Andy Cheng. The film stars Cuba Gooding, Jr. as Secret Service agent Alex Thomas, who is shot in the hand, while unsuccessfully trying to protect the President from an assassin's bullet...
, starring Cuba Gooding Jr. and James Woods
James Woods
James Howard Woods is an American film, stage and television actor. Woods is known for starring in critically acclaimed films such as Once Upon a Time in America, Salvador, Nixon, Ghosts of Mississippi, Casino, and in the television legal drama Shark. He has won three Emmy Awards, and has gained...
; Edison
Edison (film)
Edison , is a 2005 American thriller film written and directed by David J. Burke, starring Morgan Freeman, LL Cool J, Justin Timberlake, and Kevin Spacey....
, starring Morgan Freeman
Morgan Freeman
Morgan Freeman is an American actor, film director, aviator and narrator. He is noted for his reserved demeanor and authoritative speaking voice. Freeman has received Academy Award nominations for his performances in Street Smart, Driving Miss Daisy, The Shawshank Redemption and Invictus and won...
, Kevin Spacey
Kevin Spacey
Kevin Spacey, CBE is an American actor, director, screenwriter, producer, and crooner. He grew up in California, and began his career as a stage actor during the 1980s, before being cast in supporting roles in film and television...
, and Justin Timberlake
Justin Timberlake
Justin Randall Timberlake is an American pop musician and actor. He achieved early fame when he appeared as a contestant on Star Search, and went on to star in the Disney Channel television series The New Mickey Mouse Club, where he met future bandmate JC Chasez...
, 16 Blocks
16 Blocks
16 Blocks is a 2006 crime thriller film directed by Richard Donner. It stars Bruce Willis, Mos Def, and David Morse. The movie unfolds in the real time narration method.- Plot :...
, The Black Dahlia
The Black Dahlia (film)
The Black Dahlia is a 2006 neo noir crime film directed by Brian De Palma. It is based on the novel of the same name by James Ellroy, writer of L.A. Confidential and starred Josh Hartnett, Scarlett Johansson, Aaron Eckhart and Hilary Swank. The story is based on the murder of Elizabeth Short...
, The Wicker Man
The Wicker Man (2006 film)
The Wicker Man is a 2006 American remake of the 1973 British film of the same title. It was written and directed by Neil LaBute, based on a screenplay by Anthony Shaffer, and stars Nicolas Cage and Ellen Burstyn....
, and even Werner Herzog's
Werner Herzog
Werner Herzog Stipetić , known as Werner Herzog, is a German film director, producer, screenwriter, actor, and opera director.He is often considered as one of the greatest figures of the New German Cinema, along with Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Margarethe von Trotta, Volker Schlöndorff, Werner...
Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans
Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans
Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans is a 2009 American crime drama film directed by Werner Herzog and starring Nicolas Cage.-Overview:...
, starring Nicolas Cage
Nicolas Cage
Nicolas Cage is an American actor, producer and director, having appeared in over 60 films including Raising Arizona , The Rock , Face/Off , Gone in 60 Seconds , Adaptation , National Treasure , Ghost Rider , Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans , and...
. He is also listed as a producer in the thriller Trespass
Trespass (2011 film)
Trespass is a 2011 American psychological thriller directed by Joel Schumacher. The film stars Nicolas Cage and Nicole Kidman as a married couple taken hostage by extortionists. Shooting on the project began in Shreveport, Louisiana on August 30, 2010. The film premiered at the 2011 Toronto...
.
On August 2011, while asian superstar Donnie Yen
Donnie Yen
Donnie Yen is a Hong Kong actor, martial artist, film director and producer, action choreographer, and world wushu tournament medalist...
was having a vacation with his family in the states, he reportedly received an invitation by Avi Lerner to star in The Expendables 2
The Expendables 2
The Expendables 2 is an upcoming ensemble action film directed by Simon West and written by David Agosto and Ken Kaufman based on a story by Sylvester Stallone...
. It was stated that Donnie Yen is considering the offer, and has many films at hand, and will not decide until he sees if the script appeals to him or not.