Transporter 2

Background:

A French-born movie director glorified for his work in the genres of fantasy, action and science-fiction, Louis Leterrier first attracted attention as the artistic director of the successful action-laden piece “The Transporter” (2002), which starred Jason Statham and written and produced by friend Luc Besson. Initiating as an assistant director on such movies as Besson's “The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc” (1999) and Alain Chabat's “Asterix and Obelix: Mission Cleopatra” (2002), the 6' 4” filmmaker eventually made his directorial debut in the well-earned action/thriller “Unleashed” (2005), starring Jet Lee and Morgan Freeman, and gained praise with his sophomore effort, the sequel “Transporter 2” (also 2005). Leterrier is the director of the new “The Incredible Hulk” (2008).

Leterrier has also directed commercials and music videos. As a teenager, the graduate of NYU's Tisch School of the Arts collected a number of awards for his short movies.

Tisch School

Childhood and Family:

Louis Leterrier was born on June 17, 1973, in Paris, France. He developed a passion for film at an early age and won several honors for short movies before his 18th birthday. He moved to New York to chase film studies at the New York University's esteemed Tisch School of the Arts.

The Incredible Hulk

Career:

A long-time movie lover, Louis Leterrier collected a number of awards for his short films during his formative years and later left his native France to pursue his interest in New York. Starting out as an on-set production assistant on the 1997 science-fiction/thriller film “Alien: Resurrection,” directed by fellow compatriot Jean-Pierre Jeunet, he moved on to become a second assistant director in “Restons groupés” (1998), a comedy by Jean-Paul Salomé. The following year, he served as a production assistant on the Luc Besson historical epic “The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc,” starring Milla Jovovich.

In 2002, Leterrier took on the duty of first assistant director to Alain Chabat for the big-budget “Asterix and Obelix: Mission Cleopatra,” based on the comics by René Goscinny and Albert Uderzo. There, he also had a small role as Ouhécharlis. Still in that same year, Leterrier also became an second assistant director on “The Idol,” a French drama starring Leelee Sobieski and helmed by Samantha Lang. However, Leterrier did not get his first huge breakthrough until he was recruited to be an artistic director on the Luc Besson-produced action/thriller “The Transporter” (2002), helmed by Corey Yuen. The film starred Jason Statham as Frank Martin, an underground courier who delivers packages without asking any questions. Ramifications evolve when he breaks those rules.

Three years later, Leterrier reunited with Besson for the martial arts film “Unleashed” (2005), with Besson serving as producer and writer and Leterrier sitting on the director's chair for the first time. Starring the martial arts master Jet Lee, Morgan Freeman and Bob Hoskins, “Unleashed,” also known in Hong Kong as “Danny the Dog,” was well-received by action/thriller fans and won a Golden Trailer nomination for Best Action. Later that same year, Leterrier directed Jason Statham and Amber Valletta for the original installment “Transporter 2,” which again produced and penned by Besson. The film was considered by critics as one of his most awesome accomplishment.

In addition to his work in the world of cinema, Leterrier has made such music videos as Knoc Turn 'Al's “Muzik,” Enhancer's “Cinglés” and Ophélie Winter's “Sache” and assisted Besson on a commercial for L'Oreal cosmetics. Thanks to his work on “The Transporter 2,” he was tapped to direct “The Incredible Hulk” (2008), which is now in post-production. The based-on-comic action/fantasy starring Edward Norton as physicist Bruce Banner is the sequel to Ang Lee's “The Hulk” (2003). The upcoming film also stars Liv Tyler as Betty Ross, Tim Roth as Emil Blonsky, William Hurt as Gen. Thaddeus 'Thunderbolt' Ross, Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark and Tim Blake Nelson as Samuel Sterns, among others.

“(We released the trailer quite late because) no shots are finished yet. That’s why we took so long to release the teaser, because unlike the other movies coming out this summer, our main character relies on so much calculation and technique. None of the shots in this trailer are finished shots, but I think it’s decent enough and it shows the audience what we’re going for. There’s a different version of the teaser that will only be shown in movie theaters where you see a close-up of the Hulk’s face as he comes out of the darkness and cries to (Betty). A full close-up, like full-screen. And until we had that shot right I didn’t want to release it.” Louis Leterrier

Awards:
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