Director of Ever After

Background:

Andy Tennant began his career as an actor in the motion pictures “Grease” (1978), “Grease 2” (1982), Steven Spielberg's “1941” (1979) and “Midnight Madness” (1980) before trying his hand at writing in the late 1980s. Before long, the former student of John Houseman kicked off his directing career with episodes of TV shows like “Parker Lewis Can't Lose” and “The Wonder Years.” Tennant made his feature directorial debut with the 1995 children's film “It Takes Two,” but it was not until he helmed the well-received Drew Barrymore vehicle “Ever After” (1998, also wrote the screenplay), that he enjoyed major recognition. He has since directed the popular films “Anna and the King” (1999), “Sweet Home Alabama” (2002) and “Hitch” (2005). After the disappointing “Fool's Gold” (2008, also a co-writer), Tennant is set to make a return to the director's seat with the upcoming action comedy “The Bounty” (2010).

Chicago Native

Childhood and Family:

Andy Tennant was born in 1955, in Chicago, Illinois. He grew up in Flossmoor, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. His father, Don Tennant, was a renowned creative advertising talent with the Leo Burnett Agency in Chicago. As a child, Andy often spent his summers at Camp Minocqua in northern Wisconsin and on the Old Mission Peninsula in northern Michigan.

After graduating from Homewood-Flossmoor High School, Andy studied theater under John Houseman at the University of Southern California.

Andy is married to Sharon Johnson-Tennant. The couple has four children, three of whom are triplets.

Hitch

Career:

Andy Tennant entered show business in the late 1970s when he was cast as a dancer in the popular film “Grease” (1978), which starred John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John as Danny Zuko and Sandy Olsson, respectively, and was based on the musical of the same name by Jim Jacob and Warren Casey. The same year, he also danced in Michael Schultz's “Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band,” based on The Beatles' album of the same name. He then received small roles in the Steven Spielberg directed movie “1941” (1979, starred Dan Aykroyd and Ned Beatty), Michael Nankin and David Wechter's “Midnight Madness” (1980) and the less successful installment “Grease 2” (1982), which starred then-unknown actors Maxwell Caulfield and Michelle Pfeiffer.

Tennant made his writing debut in the NBC TV film “Moving Target” (1988), which starred Jason Bateman. He followed it up with a writing gig on the episode “Stand-In Deliver” (1990) of “Ferris Bueller” and the NBC television film “What She Doesn't Know” (1992).

Tennant quickly branched out to directing when he began helming episodes of the television series “The Wonder Years” (2 episodes, 1989-1991), “Ferris Bueller” (1 episode, 1990) and the Corin Nemec sitcom “Parker Lewis Can't Lose” (5 episodes, 1990-1991). He then made his TV movie directing debut with the well received drama “Keep the Change” (1992), adapted from Thomas McGuane's novel and starring William Petersen, Rachel Ticotin and Lolita Davidovich.

After directing the TV drama “Desperate Choices: To Save My Child” (1992), starring Joanna Kerns and Bruce Davison, and the fantasy series “Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure” (1992, unknown episode), Tennant helmed Drew Barrymore in ABC's “The Amy Fisher Story” (1993). The same year, he also directed two episodes of “The Adventures of Brisco County Jr.” and the soon canceled “South of Sunset.”

In 1995, after directed the pilot of “Sliders,” Tennant made his feature film directorial debut with “It Takes Two,” a children's film starring Steve Guttenberg, Kirstie Alley and Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen. His second effort, “Fools Rush In,” (1997) which was co-written by Katherine Reback and Joan Taylor and starred Matthew Perry and Salma Hayek, received ALMA nominations for Outstanding Feature Film and Outstanding Actress in a Feature Film. The romantic comedy grossed over $29 million domestically.

Tennant received a big break the next year with “Ever After” (1998), a movie adaptation of the fairy tale “Cinderella” starring Drew Barrymore, Anjelica Huston and Dougray Scott. Scripted by Tennant, Susannah Grant and Rick Parks, the romance received rave reviews from critics and collected more than $65 million at the domestic box office. He gained further recognition with “Anna and the King” (1999), loosely based on Margaret Landon's 1944 semi-fictionalized biographical novel “Anna and the King of Siam.” Starring Jodie Foster and Chow Yun-Fat, the movie earned Academy Award nominations for Best Art Direction-Set Decoration and Best Costume Design.

In 2002, Tennant became a co-executive producer of the short lived Fox drama series “The American Embassy,” created by James D. Parriott and starring Arija Bareikis, Eric Dane and Reiko Aylesworth. Debuting on March 11, 2002, the show left the airwaves after four episodes aired. Tennant also directed the pilot. Still that year, Tennant directed Reese Witherspoon, Josh Lucas, Patrick Dempsey, Candice Bergen, Mary Kay Place, Fred Ward, Ethan Embry, Melanie Lynskey, Mary Lynn Rajskub and Jean Smart in the romantic comedy “Sweet Home Alabama,” which was released on September 27, 2002, by Touchstone Pictures. The movie received generally negative responses from critics but was a hit with audiences. It collected over $180 million at the worldwide box office with an estimated budget of $38 million.

Three years later, Tennant returned to the director's chair for the romantic comedy “Hitch” (2005), where Will Smith starred as a professional matchmaker who earns a living teaching men how to woo women. The film enjoyed primarily positive reviews and was considered a big box office hit. Distributed by Columbia Pictures, “Hitch” scored over $179 million at the domestic box office, making it the tenth highest grossing movie of the year. It also grossed over $368 million worldwide and set a new record for Sony for best opening weekend for a romantic comedy film. The film also starred Eva Mendes, Kevin James, and Amber Valletta.

In 2006, Tennant wrote, produced and directed “The Wedding Album,” a TV pilot by Fox for the 2006-2007 seasons. Starring Bruno Campos and Tara Summers, the show was picked up as a midseason replacement but they later decided to stop development on it. Tennant next co-wrote the screenplay and directed “Fool's Gold” (2008), an adventure starring Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson. Tennant is also the director of the TV drama “Operating Instructions” and the action film “The Bounty,” starring Gerard Butler and Jennifer Aniston.

Awards:
---