Douglas Reed Ellin (born April 6, 1968) is an American podcaster, screenwriter and
film and
TV director
A television director is in charge of the activities involved in making a television program or section of a program. They are generally responsible for decisions about the editorial content and creative style of a program, and ensuring the prod ...
, known best for creating the
HBO television series ''
Entourage
An entourage () is an informal group or band of people who are closely associated with a (usually) famous, notorious, or otherwise notable individual. The word can also refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* L'entourage, French hip hop / rap collecti ...
''. Ellin also served as
executive producer, director,
head writer and
supporting actor for the series, and wrote, directed and produced its 2015
film adaptation. He attended
Tulane University
Tulane University, officially the Tulane University of Louisiana, is a private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by seven young medical doctors, it turned into a comprehensive pub ...
.
Life and career
Ellin was born in
Brooklyn
Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...
,
New York, the son of June and Marvin Ellin.
[ He grew up in ]Merrick, New York
Merrick is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in the Town of Hempstead in Nassau County, on the South Shore of Long Island, in New York, United States. , the population was 20,130.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bu ...
and graduated from John F. Kennedy High School (Bellmore, New York).
Ellin is of Jewish descent.
Before producing and writing for ''Entourage
An entourage () is an informal group or band of people who are closely associated with a (usually) famous, notorious, or otherwise notable individual. The word can also refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* L'entourage, French hip hop / rap collecti ...
'', Ellin served as a staff writer for ''Life with Bonnie
''Life with Bonnie'' is an ABC television sitcom that originally aired from September 17, 2002 to April 9, 2004. The show outlined the life of character Bonnie Malloy, who juggled her personal life and her job as a daytime TV talk show host. The ...
'', which starred Bonnie Hunt
Bonnie Lynn Hunt (born September 22, 1961) is an American actress, comedian, director, producer, writer and television host. Her film roles include ''Rain Man'', ''Beethoven'', '' Beethoven's 2nd'', ''Jumanji'', ''Jerry Maguire'', '' The Green ...
. The series ran from 2003-2004. Ellin has also written screenplays for two films, ''Kissing a Fool
''Kissing a Fool'' is a 1998 American romantic comedy film directed by Doug Ellin. It primarily stars David Schwimmer, Jason Lee, Mili Avital, Kari Wührer, and Vanessa Angel. Schwimmer was one of the executive producers.
Plot
Max (David Schwi ...
'' and '' Phat Beach''. He moved to Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
in the early 1990s to be a stand-up comedian and soon got a job in the mail room at New Line Cinema
New Line Cinema is an American film production studio owned by Warner Bros. Discovery and is a film label of Warner Bros. It was founded in 1967 by Robert Shaye as an independent film distribution company; later becoming a film studio after ...
. It was there where he befriended film producer Mike DeLuca who funded Ellin's first short film ''The Pitch'', starring then unknown actor David Schwimmer
David Lawrence Schwimmer (born November 2, 1966) is an American actor, director and producer. He gained worldwide recognition for portraying Ross Geller in the sitcom ''Friends'', for which he received a Screen Actors Guild Award and a Primeti ...
. That short film got Ellin accepted to the American Film Institute, where he graduated from in 1994. In 1996, he directed the independent comedy film '' Phat Beach''. The film was made on a very low budget, and Ellin has called it "Probably the worst movie ever made". Two years later, Ellin made another independent comedy film ''Kissing a Fool
''Kissing a Fool'' is a 1998 American romantic comedy film directed by Doug Ellin. It primarily stars David Schwimmer, Jason Lee, Mili Avital, Kari Wührer, and Vanessa Angel. Schwimmer was one of the executive producers.
Plot
Max (David Schwi ...
'', starring David Schwimmer
David Lawrence Schwimmer (born November 2, 1966) is an American actor, director and producer. He gained worldwide recognition for portraying Ross Geller in the sitcom ''Friends'', for which he received a Screen Actors Guild Award and a Primeti ...
, who was now known due to his role on '' Friends'' which was in its fourth season.
''Kissing a Fool
''Kissing a Fool'' is a 1998 American romantic comedy film directed by Doug Ellin. It primarily stars David Schwimmer, Jason Lee, Mili Avital, Kari Wührer, and Vanessa Angel. Schwimmer was one of the executive producers.
Plot
Max (David Schwi ...
'' was sold for distribution and Ellin subsequently sold a few screenplays to Miramax. One, ''The Pledge'' was never produced although Ellin was paid seven figures for the script and was set to direct. He sold another unproduced screenplay for mid-six figures.
Ellin's real success came in 2004 with ''Entourage
An entourage () is an informal group or band of people who are closely associated with a (usually) famous, notorious, or otherwise notable individual. The word can also refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* L'entourage, French hip hop / rap collecti ...
''. The HBO show ran for eight seasons and Ellin made an eight-figure pact with HBO to continue producing television.
Additionally, Ellin serves on the board of the Greenwich International Film Festival
The Greenwich International Film Festival (or GIFF) is a non-profit organization that celebrates the visual arts in Greenwich, CT, with an annual film festival in June and supporting events throughout the year. The Festival, located in downtown Gr ...
.
Ellin wrote and directed the 2015 film adaptation of ''Entourage''.
Ellin is currently one of the co-hosts to the “Victory!” podcast, which was created and produced by Action Park media.
Awards and nominations
Ellin has been nominated for three Emmy Awards, four Writers Guild of America Awards, three PGA Awards and a BAFTA, and has won a BAFTA and a PGA award.
Personal life
Ellin graduated from Tulane University in the liberal arts. Ellin married Melissa Dana Hecht in 1996 and together have two children. The two divorced in 2009. Ellin has said the character of Ari Gold's wife in ''Entourage'' was based on Hecht.
Ellin dated Maddie Diehl and proposed to her in 2014, but the couple broke up in March 2016.
Ellin married Andrea Adler in September 2017 and filed for divorce shortly thereafter in April 2018.
In November 2022, Ellin and his girlfriend Sara Sanderson welcomed their daughter Isabella June.
Filmography
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ellin, Doug
1968 births
AFI Conservatory alumni
American male screenwriters
Television producers from New York City
American television writers
BAFTA winners (people)
Living people
Tulane University alumni
Showrunners
Writers from Brooklyn
People from Merrick, New York
American male television writers
Screenwriters from New York (state)
John F. Kennedy High School (Bellmore, New York) alumni