Community hub
0 subscribers7 pages, 0 posts
Recent from talks
All channels
Be the first to start a discussion here.
Be the first to start a discussion here.
Be the first to start a discussion here.
Be the first to start a discussion here.
Contribute something
Welcome to the community hub built to collect knowledge and have discussions related to John Luessenhop.
Nothing was collected or created yet.
John Luessenhop
View on Wikipediafrom Wikipedia
John Luessenhop is an American film director and screenwriter. He graduated from University of Virginia, Georgetown University Law Center, and film schools at UCLA and NYU.[1]
Career
[edit]He debuted with the short film Tick, Tick, Tick in 1994. Six years later, he would direct the drama film Lockdown (2000). The film's prison scenes were shot on location at the then-closed down New Mexico State Penitentiary."[2] It closed out the 2001 Hollywood Black Film Festival.[3] Tom Long of The Detroit News wrote of the film, "Despite a low budget and predictable story line, Lockdown has undeniable power to it, fired by some fine performances and a terrifying portrayal of prison life that rings disturbingly true."[4] And Steve Murray of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, wrote, "though over-the-top and simplistic, the film has a punchy B-movie grit and gusto."[5]
He then directed the crime thriller Takers (2010),[6] starring Matt Dillon, Paul Walker, Idris Elba, Jay Hernandez, Michael Ealy, T.I., Chris Brown and Hayden Christensen. Author Stephen King, in his end of the year Entertainment Weekly column, listed it at #5 of his best films of 2010. He says that, "the climax does strain credulity, but the characters feel real & the armored-car heist is the best action sequence in 2010" (EW 12/3/10 page 26).
In 2013, he helmed the reboot of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre franchise with Texas Chainsaw 3D. Back in 2011, Lions Gate announced that it would be partnering with Nu Image to produce the film, which Luessenhop would direct. Carl Mazzocone acted as producer, with production having been set to begin in June 2011. Mazzocone also announced that the story would pick up where Tobe Hooper's original film ends.[7] Adam Marcus and Debra Sullivan were brought in to write the script; Kirsten Elms and Luessenhop worked on rewrites and script polishing.[8] Neither Twisted Pictures nor Nu Image had a credit on the finished film, which had to be re-cut before release, as it received an NC-17 rating due to excessive gore during its initial submission to the MPAA.[9] Texas Chainsaw 3D was a commercial success, making $47.2 million from a $20 million budget.
Filmography
[edit]Short film
[edit]| Year | Title | Director | Writer | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Tick, Tick, Tick | Yes | Yes | Credited as A. John Luessenhop |
Special thanks
- Santa's Little Helper (1999)
- Please God Someone Normal (2009)
- No Way Out (2011)
Feature film
[edit]Director
- Lockdown (2000)
- Takers (2010)
- Texas Chainsaw 3D (2013)
Writer
- Speed Kills (2018)
Assistant director
- Dirty Money (1994)
Executive producer
- Leatherface (2017)
References
[edit]- ^ "John Luessenhop". Filmbug. January 4, 2003. Retrieved December 10, 2012.
- ^ "Lockdown". September 22, 2000.
- ^ Basham, David. MASTER P, SILKK, C-MURDER CAST IN PRISON FILM," MTV.com. (Feb. 5, 2001).
- ^ Long, Tom. Lockdown review. The Detroit News (Feb. 14, 2000). [dead link]
- ^ Murray, Steve. Lockdown review, Archived 2006-02-12 at the Wayback Machine The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Feb. 13, 2003).
- ^ Kehr, Dave (May 2, 2010). "SUMMER MOVIES; August Release Schedule". The New York Times. p. 12. Retrieved July 21, 2010.
- ^ "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 3D Revs Up". ComingSoon.net. CraveOnline Media. May 9, 2011. Archived from the original on March 31, 2013. Retrieved May 10, 2011.
- ^ Kit, Borys (July 19, 2011). "Singer Trey Songz Joins Cast of 'Texas Chainsaw Massacre 3D' (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved July 22, 2011.
- ^ "'Texas Chainsaw 3D' Carries Footage From Hooper's Classic, Originally Rated NC-17!". Bloody Disgusting. October 8, 2012. Retrieved January 4, 2013.
External links
[edit]John Luessenhop
View on Grokipediafrom Grokipedia
Early life and education
Early life
John Luessenhop was born in the United States circa 1960.[1] He is the son of Dr. Alfred J. Luessenhop, a pioneering neurosurgeon and former chief of neurosurgery at Georgetown University Medical Center, and Elizabeth "Betsy" McCrea Luessenhop, an author who co-wrote Risky Business: An Insider's Account of the Disaster at Lloyd's of London.[9][10] Luessenhop was raised in McLean, Virginia, where his family provided a suburban upbringing amid his parents' professional accomplishments in medicine and writing.[3] His early interest in filmmaking emerged during high school, sparked by viewing Orson Welles' Citizen Kane, which left a lasting impression and fueled his creative aspirations.[1]Education
Luessenhop completed his undergraduate studies at the University of Virginia, where he majored in drama.[1] He also studied film during summer programs at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts and the University of California, Los Angeles School of Theater, Film and Television.[1][2] Following graduation, he pursued a legal career by attending Georgetown University Law Center, from which he earned a Juris Doctor degree.[5]Career
Early career in television
Following his summer studies in film at New York University and the University of California, Los Angeles, John Luessenhop transitioned into professional directing by helming episodes of the Fox true-crime series America's Most Wanted.[1] Between 1997 and 2001, Luessenhop directed more than 20 episodes of the program, two of which centered on stories that earned their featured law enforcement officers national "cop-of-the-year" awards.[11] This role immersed him in true-crime storytelling, where he focused on crafting compelling narratives drawn from real cases to engage viewers and aid investigations.[11] Luessenhop's work on the series emphasized precise pacing suited to the episodic television format, ensuring each segment built suspense within limited airtime while balancing informational content with dramatic tension.[11] He frequently handled reenactments of criminal events, including scenes filmed in actual prison settings, which sharpened his techniques for achieving realism and intensity under production constraints typical of the show's documentary-style approach.[12] These experiences on America's Most Wanted provided Luessenhop with essential hands-on training in directing, bridging his academic background to larger-scale projects and preparing him for the demands of feature filmmaking.[1]Feature film directing
Luessenhop made his feature film directing debut with Lockdown (2000), a prison thriller shot on location at the decommissioned New Mexico State Penitentiary to capture authentic grit. The low-budget independent production drew on his prior experience filming recreations for America's Most Wanted, lending realism to its depiction of incarceration.[12] Critics praised it as a solid entry in the prison drama genre, highlighting its memorable authenticity despite an uninspired script, with a 58% Tomatometer score on Rotten Tomatoes.[13][14] His breakthrough came with Takers (2010), a high-stakes heist thriller featuring an ensemble cast including Idris Elba, Paul Walker, and Matt Dillon, exploring themes of crime, loyalty, and ensemble dynamics among professional robbers.[15] Produced on a $32 million budget, the film grossed approximately $70.6 million worldwide, marking a commercial step up from his debut.[16] Author Stephen King lauded it in his Entertainment Weekly column, ranking Takers as his fifth-best film of 2010 for its satisfying complexity and standout armored-car heist sequence.[17] Luessenhop ventured into horror with Texas Chainsaw 3D (2013), directing the seventh installment in the franchise as a direct sequel to the 1974 original.[18] Made on a $20 million budget, it earned $47.2 million worldwide, achieving commercial success despite mixed reviews and a 20% Rotten Tomatoes score.[19][20] The film initially received an NC-17 rating for its graphic violence, necessitating re-cuts to secure an R rating before release.[21] Throughout his feature directing career, Luessenhop evolved from action-thrillers to horror, often infusing narratives with legal and moral dilemmas informed by his Georgetown Law School background and early work in securities litigation.[5] This progression reflects a stylistic shift toward tense, ethically complex genre storytelling, building on his television roots in procedural realism.[1]Writing and producing roles
Luessenhop entered screenwriting with a co-writing credit on the 2010 heist thriller Takers, collaborating with Peter Allen, Gabriel Casseus, and David A. Freedman to craft the story of a crew of bank robbers facing internal conflicts and law enforcement pursuit.[22] His subsequent writing effort was on Speed Kills (2018), a crime drama adapted from Arthur J. Harris's book of the same name, where he co-wrote the screenplay with David Aaron Cohen and contributed to the story alongside Cohen and Paul Castro.[23] The film depicted the double life of speedboat racer Don Aronow, entangled in drug trafficking and organized crime, and featured a cast including John Travolta as Aronow, Kelsey Grammer as Meyer Lansky, and Jennifer Esposito as Kathy Aronow.[24] After facing production delays, it received a limited theatrical run and wide video-on-demand release through Saban Films.[24] In producing roles, Luessenhop began as an assistant director on the 1994 crime film Dirty Money, a low-budget project that marked an early step in his transition from television to feature films.[25] He later took on executive producer duties for Leatherface (2017), a prequel exploring the origins of the iconic horror character, produced under Twisted Pictures in collaboration with directors Julien Maury and Alexandre Bustillo.[26] Luessenhop also optioned and planned to produce the independent action comedy Blazin' Four in 2013, enlisting talents like Mike Epps and Katt Williams for a Western-themed story of outlaws and bandits, though the project remains in development.[27] These writing and producing endeavors allowed Luessenhop to delve into real-life crime narratives, drawing from his background as a former Wall Street attorney with a J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center and a bachelor's from the University of Virginia.[4] His legal expertise informed script development in genres involving moral ambiguity and high-stakes pursuits, as seen in unproduced or optioned works like the screenplay Midnight's Door, acquired for $12,700 with production contingent on financing.[4] Post-2018, Luessenhop diversified beyond Hollywood by serving as chief financial officer at Catalyst Cannabis Co. from 2020 to 2023, while maintaining ties to independent film through his role as president of American Picture House Corp.[4] In this capacity, he financed projects such as Devil's Half-Acre, a historical drama written and directed by his son Dashiell Luessenhop, with the company committing up to $3 million and holding rights through an affiliated LLC.[4] This involvement underscores his ongoing networking in the industry, bridging creative production with business ventures.Filmography
Short films
John Luessenhop's directorial debut was the 1994 short film Tick, Tick, Tick, a 33-minute thriller that he also wrote.[28][5] The story centers on two strangers kidnapped by thugs and bound together with a bomb strapped between them, emphasizing themes of urgency, survival, and strained human connection under extreme pressure.[29] Described as a "hard-edged" and "dynamite" work, it showcases Luessenhop's early command of suspense and tension-building in a low-budget independent production likely developed during his studies at film schools including UCLA and NYU.[5][30] Premiering at the Sundance Film Festival in 1994, Tick, Tick, Tick served as a proof-of-concept for Luessenhop's gritty style, attracting industry attention that nearly secured a studio development deal and paved the way for his initial television directing opportunities.[1][2] The film featured actors including Timothy Patrick Cavanaugh, Michael Harris, James Karen, and Harold Sylvester, earning a 6.4/10 rating from limited viewer assessments.[28] It was also screened as part of the "Close Encounters" shorts program at the 1994 Hamptons International Film Festival on October 21.[29]Feature films
Luessenhop's feature film contributions include the following:- Lockdown (2000) – Director; Crime drama; Starring Richard T. Jones, Gabriel Casseus, De'aundre Bonds, Master P, Melissa De Sousa; Domestic gross $449,482.[31][32]
- Takers (2010) – Director; Action crime thriller; Starring Idris Elba, Matt Dillon, Michael Ealy, Jay Hernandez, Paul Walker; Budget $32 million, worldwide gross $80,205,382.[15][16]
- Texas Chainsaw 3D (2013) – Director; Horror; Starring Alexandra Daddario, Dan Yeager, Scott Eastwood, Tania Raymonde, Tremaine Howard; Budget $20 million, worldwide gross $47,340,586.[18][19]
- Leatherface (2017) – Executive producer; Horror; Starring Stephen Dorff, Lili Taylor, Vanessa Grasse, Sam Strike, James Bloor; Worldwide gross $1,476,843.[26][33]
- Speed Kills (2018) – Writer; Crime drama; Starring John Travolta, Katheryn Winnick, Jennifer Esposito, Matthew Modine, Sam Medina; VOD release with limited theatrical run and lesser commercial impact.[34][35][36]