Joel Schumacher, Batman director, dies at 80
Joel Schumacher, the director known for Batman Forever and Batman & Robin, died on June 22 at his home in New York after a battle with cancer. Born in 1939 in New York City, he began as a costume designer and debuted in 1981 with The Incredible Shrinking Woman. His breakthrough came with legal thrillers The Client (1994), A Time to Kill (1996), and Falling Down (1993), which premiered at Cannes. Schumacher replaced Tim Burton for the Batman franchise: Batman Forever (1995) with Val Kilmer earned three Oscar nominations, but Batman & Robin (1997) with George Clooney was critically panned, leading Warner Bros to pause Batman films until Christopher Nolan's 2005 reboot. Later works included Phone Booth (2002), The Phantom of the Opera (2004), The Number 23 (2007), and Trespass (2011), which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival.
Key facts
- Joel Schumacher died on June 22, 2020, at his home in New York after a battle with cancer.
- He was born in 1939 in New York City.
- He began his career as a costume designer.
- His directorial debut was The Incredible Shrinking Woman (1981), inspired by the sci-fi novel Three Millimeters a Day.
- His breakthrough films include The Client (1994), A Time to Kill (1996), and Falling Down (1993), which competed at the 46th Cannes Film Festival.
- He directed Batman Forever (1995) with Val Kilmer, which received three Oscar nominations.
- Batman & Robin (1997) with George Clooney was a critical and commercial failure, causing Warner Bros to halt Batman films until 2005.
- Later notable films include Phone Booth (2002), The Phantom of the Opera (2004), and Trespass (2011), which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival.
Entities
Artists
- Joel Schumacher
- Lily Tomlin
- Charles Grodin
- Sandra Bullock
- Matthew McConaughey
- Samuel L. Jackson
- Kevin Spacey
- Val Kilmer
- George Clooney
- Colin Farrell
- Jim Carrey
- Nicolas Cage
- Nicole Kidman
- Tim Burton
- Christopher Nolan
- Andrew Lloyd Webber
Institutions
- Warner Bros
- Toronto International Film Festival
- Artribune
Locations
- New York City
- New York
- United States
- Cannes
- France