Andrew Davis

Born in 1947, Andrew Davis was raised in Chicago, Illinois. His life in Chicago sculpted who he became and the movies he created. Judging by the movies Davis has created, it is clear he has a soft spot for the windy city. Both his father, Nathan Davis, and his brother, Richard Davis, became successful actors. Andrew had a different plan; he went on to become a director.

Andrew, who also goes by Andy, became a very successful director specializing in action movies. Instead of casting different actors for each movie he directs, Davis likes to find a couple of good actors who could work together on multiple movie projects. Two actors he likes to use are Ron Dean and Joseph F. Kosala. Davis usually casts these actors as cops and partners.

Davis’s most recent film is The Guardian (2006) starring Kevin Costner and Ashton Kutcher. Other films he has directed include A Perfect Murder (1998), Collateral Damage (2002), and Holes (2003). His credits do not stop at directing though; Davis is also a successful writer, producer, and cinematographer. His writing credits include the screenplay for Paco (1976), Stony Island (1978), and Steal Big Steal Little (1995).

As a youth, Davis attended Harand Camp of the Theater Arts in Wisconsin. Later, he was accepted into the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. At the time he chose to major in journalism due to his interest in anti-war issues and civil rights. He soon combined his interests in civil rights and film-making. This led him on the path to becoming a director with a cause.

It is very difficult to break into the world of directing without any help from industry insiders. Davis was wise enough to know this and found a mentor in the award winning cinematographer Haskell Wexler. It was his mentor that gave him his first work as a cameraman throughout the 1970s on films such as Medium Cool, The Hit Man, and Cool Breeze. All of these films were forgettable, but they gave Davis plenty of experience in what it takes to produce a film. These were also the times in which Davis paid his dues. In 1978 he directed his first feature film, Stony Island, which he was also the writer of.

Some of his greatest success as a director came with the film The Fugitive in 1993, in which Davis was nominated for a Golden Globe award as Best Director two years in a row for the film. It was at this time the people began to peg him as an action director.  

Although he is best known for his success as an action movie director, Davis does not want to be typecast into the role of an action movie director. This was one of the main reasons he chose to take on the project Holes in 2003, which was based on a popular young adult book. Although the kid friendly film was quite action packed, Davis was successful in showing people some of his capabilities as a diverse director. He also admitted that this was one of the most challenging films to make.

What’s next for Andrew Davis as a director? According to him, he was inspired by his work on Holes and is now interested in expanding his horizons even more and will possibly direct some black comedies or social commentaries. As for potential starring actors, Davis would love to do some work with Denzel Washington or Robin Williams. 

YUDDY