Rob Tapert Explained

Birth Date:14 May 1955
Birth Place:Royal Oak, Michigan, U.S.
Birth Name:Robert Gerard Tapert
Othername:Robert G. Tapert
Alma Mater:Michigan State University
Occupation:Film and television producer, screenwriter, television director
Children:2

Robert Gerard Tapert (;[1] born May 14, 1955) is an American film and television producer, writer and director. He is best known for co-creating the television series .

Career

Film

Tapert first became involved with filmmaking while attending Michigan State University where he was studying economics. Through his friend and roommate Ivan Raimi, Tapert would meet future longstanding filmmaking partners Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell.

Tapert and director Sam Raimi experimented on several short films before endeavoring on their first feature-length picture, a graphic horror film titled The Evil Dead, which Tapert produced, Raimi directed, and Bruce Campbell starred. It was a success with the crowd at the Cannes Film Festival in France, and a glowing review from horror author Stephen King saw the film given a cinematic release in the USA, and later internationally.[2]

Although not a favorite of critics at the time, it gained a cult following and was later critically acclaimed as a horror classic. The film spawned a franchise of five films and a television series, of which Tapert has been involved as a producer in all of them.

Tapert continued on to produce numerous other films, typically involving Raimi and/or Campbell in some capacity, such as Crimewave, Easy Wheels, Darkman, Hard Target, Timecop, The Quick and the Dead, A Simple Plan, and The Gift.

Tapert co-founded film production company Ghost House Pictures in 2002. Their first release, The Grudge, grossed nearly $200 million internationally.[3] They followed up that success with Boogeyman, Rise, The Messengers, 30 Days of Night, Drag Me to Hell which Raimi directed, The Possession,[4] and a remake of Tobe Hooper's seminal film Poltergeist.[5]

In 2013, Tapert and Raimi tapped Uruguayan director Fede Álvarez, after seeing his short, Ataque de pánico!, to reimagine The Evil Dead.[6] Diablo Cody contributed a polish to help Americanize the script.[7]

Tapert would re-collaborate with Álvarez and writer Rodo Sayagues in 2016 on the breakout film Don't Breathe that grossed $157 million worldwide.[8] He returned as producer in its 2021 sequel.

Television

In the 1990s, Tapert produced and/or wrote several television series, including , M.A.N.T.I.S., Spy Game, and American Gothic. Tapert also co-created the prequel series Young Hercules that starred Ryan Gosling.

During Hercules, Tapert created the character of Xena which he later spun off into a separate series, . The franchise has been referred to as ground-breaking and the character as a feminist and lesbian icon.[9] [10] [11] Xena: Warrior Princess has been credited by many, including Buffy the Vampire Slayer creator Joss Whedon, with blazing the trail for a new generation of female action heroes such as Buffy, Max of Dark Angel, Sydney Bristow of Alias, and the Bride in Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill.[12] After serving as Lucy Lawless's stunt double on Xena, stunt woman Zoë E. Bell was recruited to be Uma Thurman's stunt double in Tarantino's Kill Bill. By helping to pave the way for female action heroes in television and film, Xena also strengthened the stunt woman profession.[13]

In 2008, Tapert produced Legend of the Seeker, the television adaptation of the popular Sword of Truth books by Terry Goodkind for ABC Studios.

Tapert followed with the Roman epic Spartacus for Starz in 2010,[14] including , , , and .

Tapert's most recent television project is Ash vs Evil Dead based on the Evil Dead film franchise that premiered on Starz in 2015.[15]

Personal life

Tapert has two sisters, Dorothy and Mary Beth Tapert. He also has a younger brother, Jeff Tapert. He has been married to actress Lucy Lawless since March 28, 1998; the couple have two sons. Lawless played the title character in .

Filmography

Film

Producer

Executive producer

Acting roles

YearTitleRoleNotes
1977The Happy Valley KidN/AShort film
It's Murder!
1980The Blind WaiterThe Deaf ManagerShort film
1981The Evil DeadLocal Yokel (uncredited)
Torro. Torro. Torro!N/AShort film
1982
1984Going BackMan with Glasses in Bar (uncredited)
1985The Sappy SapN/AShort film
1986CrimewaveBar patron in Rialto (uncredited)
1987Evil Dead IIAirport Worker (uncredited)

Other roles

YearTitleRoleNotes
1977It's Murder!Sound utilityUncredited
1978Within the WoodsPresenterShort film

Direct-to-video

Producer

Executive producer

Television

Year(s)TitleDirectorWriterExecutive
Producer
Notes
1992DarkmanTV movie
1994–1995M.A.N.T.I.S.23 episodes
1994–1999Wrote and directed episode "Once a Hero"
1995–1998American Gothic22 episodes
1995–2001Wrote 15 episodes
Directed 4 episodes
1997Spy Game13 episodes
1997Amazon HighTV movie
1998–1999Young HerculesWrote 3 episodes
2000Jack of All Trades22 episodes
2000–2001Cleopatra 2525Wrote episode "Quest for Firepower"
2005Alien ApocalypseTV movie
2008–2010Legend of the Seeker44 episodes
20098 episodes
2010Zombie Roadkill6 episodes
2010–2013Spartacus39 episodes
2015–2018Ash vs Evil Dead30 episodes

Acting roles

YearTitleRoleNotes
1995Crowd Member (uncredited)Episode "Gladiator"
1997HimselfEpisode "The Xena Scrolls"

Video game

!Year!Title!Role
2005Supervising producer

Musical

Tapert produced the stage musical Pleasuredome as a love story to 1980's New York City incorporating songs from the era. The play, which was based on Tapert's personal experiences,[16] successfully premiered in 2017 to critical acclaim and sold-out crowds in Tapert's home of Auckland, New Zealand and stars Lucy Lawless.[17]

57,000 tickets were sold during its first 13-week run.[18]

Further reading

External links

Notes and References

  1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t4tlURFBdj8 Evil Dead Interview (1983)
  2. Web site: Box Office .
  3. Web site: The Grudge (2004) - Box Office Mojo. www.boxofficemojo.com.
  4. Web site: Lionsgate to Open Up Ghost House's Dibbuk Box. August 16, 2012 . DreadCentral.
  5. Web site: MGM Partners With Fox On 'Poltergeist' Reboot. Dave. McNary. June 20, 2013.
  6. Web site: Sam Raimi Helps Filmmaker Fede Alvarez Usher in an Alien Invasion. June 19, 2012 . DreadCentral.
  7. Web site: 'Evil Dead' remake: Diablo Cody polishing script for first-time director. July 13, 2011.
  8. Web site: Don't Breathe (2016) - Box Office Mojo. www.boxofficemojo.com.
  9. Page not found – The Online Scholar. 10.1111/j.0022-3840.1998.00079.x.
  10. Web site: Xena: Warrior Princess, The Lesbian Gaze, And The Construction Of A Feminist Heroine. www.whoosh.org.
  11. Book: Janet K. Boles. Diane Long Hoeveler. Historical Dictionary of Feminism. 2004. Scarecrow Press. 978-0-8108-4946-4.
  12. Web site: Cathy Young: Salon - What We Owe Xena. www.cathyyoung.net.
  13. See the documentary Double Dare (Amanda Micheli, director. 2005) for more information on the role of Xena in fostering the female superhero character and the stunt woman, both of which are traditionally male categories.
  14. STARZ DECLARES - "WE ARE SPARTACUS! http://www.thefutoncritic.com/news.aspx?id=20081027starz01/
  15. Web site: Starz Orders 'Evil Dead' TV Series. The Hollywood Reporter. November 10, 2014 . February 22, 2016.
  16. Web site: The pleasure, pain and 40-year wait behind this Kiwi musical spectacular. Stuff. September 15, 2017 .
  17. Web site: The Ultimate 80's Musical Experience - Pleasuredome The Musical . usurped . https://web.archive.org/web/20180716215841/http://www.pleasuredomethemusical.com/about/ . July 16, 2018 . www.pleasuredomethemusical.com.
  18. Web site: Pleasuredome The Musical. www.facebook.com.