Peter Segal (born 1962) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and actor. Segal has directed the
comedic films ''
Tommy Boy'' (1995), ''
My Fellow Americans'' (1996), ''
The Nutty Professor II: The Klumps'' (2000), ''
Anger Management
Anger management is a psycho-therapeutic program for anger prevention and control. It has been described as deploying anger successfully.Schwarts, Gil. July 2006. Anger Management', July 2006 The Office Politic. Men's Health magazine. Emmaus, PA ...
'' (2003), ''
50 First Dates'' (2004), ''
The Longest Yard'' (2005), ''
Get Smart
''Get Smart'' is an American comedy television series parodying the secret agent genre that had become widely popular in the first half of the 1960s, with the release of the '' James Bond'' films. It was created by Mel Brooks and Buck Henry, ...
'' (2008), ''
Grudge Match'' (2013), and ''
My Spy'' (2020).
Early life and education
Segal grew up in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...
, where his father was head of publicity at
MGM. In the 1970s, Segal and his family moved to
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...
. Segal attended the
University of Southern California
, mottoeng = "Let whoever earns the palm bear it"
, religious_affiliation = Nonsectarian—historically Methodist
, established =
, accreditation = WSCUC
, type = Private research university
, academic_affiliations =
, endowment = $8. ...
, where he double
majored in
Broadcast Journalism and
English.
Segal graduated from the
USC School of Cinema and Television.
Career
Segal began his career writing and directing television. In 2002, he created the
NBC sitcom
A sitcom, a Portmanteau, portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troup ...
''
Hidden Hills'' (2002–2003). In 1995, he formed his production company,
Callahan Filmworks, along with long-time producing partner
Michael Ewing.
[
Segal made his feature film directorial debut in 1994 with '' Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult'', starring Leslie Nielsen and George Kennedy.]
Segal went on to direct Chris Farley in '' Tommy Boy'' (1995). The film also stars David Spade, and it is considered a "now-iconic cult classic."
Segal directed the comedy film
A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending ( black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the o ...
'' My Fellow Americans'' (1996), starring Jack Lemmon, James Garner
James Garner (born James Scott Bumgarner; April 7, 1928 – July 19, 2014) was an American actor. He played leading roles in more than 50 theatrical films, including '' The Great Escape'' (1963) with Steve McQueen; Paddy Chayefsky's ''The Ameri ...
and Lauren Bacall.[
Segal directed the comedy '' Nutty Professor II: The Klumps'' (2000), starring ]Eddie Murphy
Edward Regan Murphy (born April 3, 1961) is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer, and singer. He rose to fame on the sketch comedy show ''Saturday Night Live'', for which he was a regular cast member from 1980 to 1984. Murphy has als ...
.[
Segal directed Adam Sandler for the first time in '']Anger Management
Anger management is a psycho-therapeutic program for anger prevention and control. It has been described as deploying anger successfully.Schwarts, Gil. July 2006. Anger Management', July 2006 The Office Politic. Men's Health magazine. Emmaus, PA ...
'' (2003), which also starred Jack Nicholson. When asked by the BBC who was the most famous person in his contacts book, Segal replied, "I have to say, it's very obvious now, it's Jack Nicholson. I've kept his number on my speed dial just so I can show it to friends. I could call him up out of the blue, but I'm worried he might say 'Pete who?'"[
Segal collaborated with Sandler again in '' 50 First Dates'' (2004), which also starred Drew Barrymore.]
Segal collaborated with Sandler for the third time in '' The Longest Yard'' (2005), a remake of the 1974 film of the same name.[ The film has become the second highest grossing sports comedy in history.][
After directing three of Sandler's films, Segal's next film became '']Get Smart
''Get Smart'' is an American comedy television series parodying the secret agent genre that had become widely popular in the first half of the 1960s, with the release of the '' James Bond'' films. It was created by Mel Brooks and Buck Henry, ...
'' (2008). It is an adaptation of the '60s television series of the same name that was created by Mel Brooks
Mel Brooks (born Melvin James Kaminsky; June 28, 1926) is an American actor, comedian and filmmaker. With a career spanning over seven decades, he is known as a writer and director of a variety of successful broad farces and parodies. He began ...
and Buck Henry. Segal stated in an interview with AMC that he loved the show so much as a kid. The film starred Steve Carell, Anne Hathaway, Dwayne Johnson
Dwayne Douglas Johnson (born May 2, 1972), also known by his ring name The Rock, is an American actor and former professional wrestler. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, he was integral to the develop ...
, Alan Arkin and Terence Stamp.
Segal also directed '' Grudge Match'' (2013), which starred Robert De Niro
Robert Anthony De Niro Jr. ( , ; born August 17, 1943) is an American actor. Known for his collaborations with Martin Scorsese, he is considered to be one of the best actors of his generation. De Niro is the recipient of various accolades ...
, Sylvester Stallone, Kevin Hart
Kevin Darnell Hart (born July 6, 1979) is an American comedian and actor. Originally known as a stand-up comedian, he has since starred in Hollywood films and on TV. He has also released several well-received comedy albums.
After winning s ...
, Alan Arkin, Kim Basinger and Jon Bernthal.
Personal life
When asked in a September 2014 interview by the BBC if he believes in God
In monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Oxford Companion to Philosophy'', Oxford University Press, 1995. God is typically ...
, Segal replied: "I do. I'm very spiritual and I'm Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
by faith. I'm not a practising Jew, I'm more of a recreational Jew. I celebrate the holidays and I try to inform my kids about their heritage because I think we all at some point have to defend our heritage and if they get picked on I want them to know why."[
]
Filmography
Film
Acting credits
Television
TV movies
TV specials
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Segal, Peter
1962 births
American male film actors
American film directors
American film producers
American male screenwriters
Comedy film directors
Living people
Place of birth missing (living people)