Brett Ratner

Brett Ratner Trivia

Got his start by directing rap and hip-hop videos for his friend 'Russell Simmons'. When the original director of Money Talks (1997) had to be replaced, 'Russell Simmons' recommended him.
His favorite film is Scarface (1932).
After meeting with real life FBI agents, he decided that it would not be authentic to have 'Scott Glenn' reprise the role of Jack Crawford in Red Dragon (2002), his The Silence of the Lambs (1991) prequel. Instead, he cast 'Harvey Keitel', in a role originally created by 'Dennis Farina' in Manhunter (1986). Keitel and Farina had also both played Ray Barbone in the film Get Shorty (1995). Ratner was considered for directing the sequel to Get Shorty, entitled Be Cool (2005), in which Keitel also appears.
Was for some time attached to direct Superman Returns (2006). He left the project because of repeated delays and difficulty in casting a lead actor. The project then went to 'Bryan Singer', while Ratner went on to direct X-Men: The Last Stand (2006), the two previous movies in the saga having been directed by Singer.
His mother, Marsha Presman, was just 16 when she gave birth to her son.

Ratner grew up in Miami Beach, the only child of a famous Jewish socialite mother. He attended Miami Beach Senior High and was President of the Leo Club in 1986. He was also a member of the "fraternity" Royal Palm. He attended NYU film school currently lives in a $3.6 M house in Beverly Hills. Ratner is also a good friend of Def Jam mogul 'Russell Simmons', and has directed music videos for many rap stars.

In an action movie, I don't want to move the camera too much, because the movement should be within the frame. The same goes for comedy. You don't want to push in for a joke; it's plenty in a medium shot. Watch my jokes, they're never in close-up. If the audience feels the camera, it's horrible.
"There are very few perfect films. I think Reservoir Dogs (1992) is close to being a perfect film".
"No matter how successful you are, you are not invincible. The studio is writing the checks. It's all about leverage and who has the power. The goal is to get the biggest deal you can, because you are going to have to give something back to the studios anyway."
"There's no difference between a tacky Jew from Miami and a rap star. They both want the Cadillac and the Rolex with the diamonds."
[Explaining his recasting of the role of "Jack Crawford" with 'Harvey Keitel' in Red Dragon (2002)]: When 'Jonathan Demme' said make your own version, I couldn't see anyone but 'Anthony Hopkins' and I couldn't see anyone but 'Anthony Heald' as "Dr. Chilton". I can't see another acting doing it. But what happened was I went down to the FBI, and discovered they're like tough New York Cops. They weren't like 'Scott Glenn'.