Stephen Sommers Biography
Stephen Sommers is an American film director and screenwriter. He is best known for his appearances in high-budget movies, such as The Mummy (1999), its sequel, The Mummy Returns (2001), Van Helsing (2004), and G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra (2005). (2009). Stephen is also known for directing the live-action adaptation of Disney’s The Jungle Book, which was written by Rudyard Kipling (1994).
Stephen Sommers Age
He was born on March 20, 1962, in Indianapolis, IN. He is 61 years old.
Stephen Sommers Family | Parents
Stephen was raised in St. Cloud, Minnesota, despite the fact that he was born in Indianapolis. He has provided no information whatsoever on his family, including his parents and siblings. He graduated from the Apollo High School in St. Cloud. In 1980, he received his degrees from Saint John’s University, which is located in Collegeville, Minnesota, and the University of Seville, which is located in Seville, Spain.
After graduating from college, he worked for the next four years as an actor in various theatrical companies and as a manager for rock bands while traveling throughout Europe. after some time, moved back to the United States and settled in the city of Los Angeles. There, he spent three years studying at the USC School of Cinematic Arts, eventually getting a master’s degree and directing and writing the short film Perfect Alibi, which went on to win multiple awards.
Stephen Sommers Wife
Jana Sommers is Stephen’s wife, and they have two children. This happy couple is the proud parents of two beautiful girls named Samantha Sommers (born in 1996) and Ashley Sommers (born 1999). At the moment, he and his family may be found residing in Pacific Palisades, California.
Stephen Sommers The Mummy
He wrote and directed Universal Studios’ big-budget remake of The Mummy in 1999. The film was a smash hit, and Stephen received two Saturn Award nominations for Best Director and Best Writer in 2000 by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films. A successful sequel, The Mummy Returns, followed two years later, and he also co-wrote and produced 2002’s The Scorpion King, a prequel/spin-off of The Mummy Returns.
Stephen Sommers Director
Stephen was able to create and direct his first feature picture, the teen racing film Catch Me If You Can, with the assistance of Perfect Alibi, which assisted Stephen in acquiring independent finance. It cost $800,000 to film on location in his hometown of St. Cloud, where it took place. The picture made its premiere on home video in the United States after being sold at the Cannes Film Festival for a price of seven million dollars.
After almost four years, Stephen found himself in a financial bind and was in danger of losing his home to foreclosure. During that time, he worked as a writer and director on an adaptation of the classic novel The Adventures of Huck Finn by Mark Twain for Walt Disney Pictures, as well as an adaptation of Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book.
Later on, he worked on the scripts for the movies “Gunmen” and “Tom and Huck.” In addition, he served in the capacity of executive producer for Disney on the television adaptation of Oliver Twist, which premiered in 1997 and starred Richard Dreyfuss and Elijah Wood. At Hollywood Pictures, Stephen worked as a member of the writing crew. During that time, Stephen worked on the screenplay for a movie called Tentacle, which he would go on to direct in 1998 under the title Deep Rising.
In 1999, he penned the screenplay and directed the big-budget version of The Mummy that was produced by Universal Studios. Because the movie was such a huge success, the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror Films presented Stephen with nominations for the Saturn Award in the categories of Best Director and Best Writer in the year 2000. Two years later, a successful sequel called The Mummy Returns was released, and he also co-wrote and produced the film The Scorpion King in 2002, which was a prequel to The Mummy Returns and a spin-off of the first film.
In 2004, Stephen founded his own company, The Sommers Company, in partnership with editor and producer Bob Ducsay. In the same year, he returned to the big screen with the film Van Helsing, which pitted the legendary vampire hunter Gabriel Van Helsing against the triumvirate of Universal movie monsters: Count Dracula, The Wolf Man, and Frankenstein’s monster.
Even before the first episode of Van Helsing was broadcast, Sommers and Ducsay had already begun work on a spin-off television series for NBC to be titled Transylvania. Despite the fact that none of the characters from the movie appear in the series, it was about a young cowboy from Texas who moves to Transylvania and works as a sheriff there. He has a number of weird adventures and comes across a number of strange monsters throughout his time there. Stephen was slated to write the screenplays for the show’s pilot and the first several episodes, as well as serve as an executive producer with Sommers and Ducsay; however, NBC ultimately decided against producing the project.
Since the completion of Van Helsing, Stephen has been linked to a variety of different projects. However, he ultimately decided not to take on the role of director for Night in the Museum because of creative differences. Additionally, he was involved in the production of a remake of the film When Worlds Collide (to be executive-produced by Steven Spielberg).
A new big-screen adaptation of the classic adventure narrative “Flash Gordon,” a swashbuckling film called “Airborn” based on the novel of the same name, a romantic/adventure story called “Big Love,” and a remake of the French film “Les Victimes.” Instead of becoming one of the film’s producers, Stephen decided to forego the opportunity to direct the third Mummy movie, which was named The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor.
Stephen not only worked as a producer but also directed the live-action adaption of G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra that was released by Paramount Pictures in the summer of 2009. During this time period, he was working on a version of Tarzan for Warner Bros., but he eventually departed the project. His most recent film, Odd Thomas, which had been held up from distribution for an unknown amount of time as a result of lawsuits filed against the production firm, is now viewable on the streaming service offered by Netflix.
Stephen Sommers Movies
2013 – Odd Thomas
2009 – G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra
2004 – Van Helsing
2002 – The Scorpion King
2001 – The Mummy Returns
1999 – The Mummy
1998 – Deep Rising
1995 – Tom and Huck
1994 – The Jungle Book
1994 – Gunmen
1993 – The Adventures of Huck Finn
1989 – Catch Me If You Can
1988 – Perfect Alibi
Stephen Sommers Movies As Producer
2018 – Scorpion King: Book of Souls
2015 – The Scorpion King 4: Quest for Power
2013 – G.I. Joe: Retaliation
2012 – The Scorpion King 3: Battle for Redemption
2008 – The Scorpion King 2: Rise of a Warrior
2008 – The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor
2004 -Van Helsing: The London Assignment
2001–2003 – The Mummy
1997 – Oliver Twist
Stephen Sommers Awards
2010 Golden Raspberry Award
2000 Saturn Award
1999 Eyegore Award
Stephen Sommers Net Worth
He has an estimated net worth of $20 million which he has earned through his successful career as a film director and screenwriter.
