Spike Lee
Directing

Spike Lee

March 20, 1957 (68 years old) Atlanta, Georgia, USA

Also known as: Спайк Ли, سبايك لي, 스파이크 리, スパイク・リー, สไปค์ ลี

Biography

Shelton Jackson “Spike” Lee (born March 20, 1957) is an American filmmaker and actor. His work has continually explored race relations, issues within the black community, the role of media in contemporary life, urban crime and poverty, and other political issues. Lee received numerous accolades for his work, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, two Primetime Emmy Awards, and two Peabody Awards as well as nominations for three Golden Globe Awards and a Grammy Award.

Lee studied filmmaking at both Morehouse College and the New York University Tisch School of the Arts, where he directed his student film Joe’s Bed-Stuy Barbershop: We Cut Heads (1983), which won a Student Academy Award. He later founded the production company  40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks, where he has produced more than 35 films. He made his directorial debut with the comedy She’s Gotta Have It (1986). He received widespread critical acclaim for the drama Do the Right Thing (1989), for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. He directed the historical epic Malcolm X (1992), earning the Golden Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival. With the biographical crime dramedy BlacKkKlansman (2018), he won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay and the Cannes Film Festival Grand Prix Award.

He has also written and directed films such as School Daze (1988), Mo’ Better Blues (1990), Jungle Fever (1991), Crooklyn (1994), Clockers (1995), Bamboozled (2000), 25th Hour (2002), Inside Man (2006), Chi-Raq (2015), Da 5 Bloods (2020), and Highest 2 Lowest (2025). Lee has also acted in eleven of his feature films. He is also known for directing numerous documentary projects, including 4 Little Girls (1997), which was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature Film. He directed the HBO series When the Levees Broke (2006), which won two Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Directing for a Documentary/Nonfiction Program and Exceptional Merit in Documentary Filmmaking. He also directed the HBO documentary If God Is Willing and da Creek Don’t Rise (2010) and the David Byrne concert film American Utopia (2020).

Lee has received several honours, including the Honorary BAFTA Award in 2002, an Honorary César in 2003, the Academy Honorary Award in 2015, and the National Medal of Arts in 2023. Five of his films have been selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Film Registry for being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”. He has received a Gala Tribute from the Film Society of Lincoln Center as well as the Dorothy and Lillian Gish Prize. His films have featured breakthrough performances from actors such as Denzel Washington, Laurence Fishburne, Samuel L. Jackson, Giancarlo Esposito, Rosie Perez, Delroy Lindo, John Turturro, and John David Washington.

Description above from the Wikipedia article Spike Lee, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Known For

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon

2014 • TV

The Daily Show

The Daily Show

1996 • TV

Late Night with Seth Meyers

Late Night with Seth Meyers

2014 • TV

The Late Show with Stephen Colbert

The Late Show with Stephen Colbert

2015 • TV

Malcolm X

Malcolm X

1992 • Movie

Summer of Sam

Summer of Sam

1999 • Movie

Movie Credits (209)

Acting

1992

Malcolm X

as Shorty

1999

Summer of Sam

as John Jeffries

2012

Red Hook Summer

as Mr. Mookie

1989

Making 'Do the Right Thing'

as Self

2012

Brooklyn Boheme

as Self

2022

Denzel Washington: A Model American

as Self

1989

Do the Right Thing

as Mookie

2012

Bad 25

as Self

2002

New York at the Movies

as Self

1994

Crooklyn

as Snuffy

1991

Jungle Fever

as Cyrus

1996

Girl 6

as Jimmy

2011

Guest

as Self

2001

3 A.M.

as Filmmaker

2022

Sidney

as Self

2024

Be A Part of It

as Self

1996

When We Were Kings

as Self

1990

Mo' Better Blues

as Giant

2017

Be Truly Free

as Narrator (voice)

1995

Clockers

as Chucky

Crew

2006

Inside Man

Director

2017

Be Truly Free

Director

2002

25th Hour

Producer

2002

25th Hour

Director

1999

Summer of Sam

Director

1991

Jungle Fever

Producer

1991

Jungle Fever

Director

1992

Malcolm X

Director

1989

Do the Right Thing

Producer

Boner

Director

TV Credits (50)

Acting

2014

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon

as Self

3 episodes

1996

The Daily Show

as Self

4 episodes

2014

Late Night with Seth Meyers

as Self - Guest

1 episodes

2015

The Late Show with Stephen Colbert

as Self

1 episodes

1975

Saturday Night Live

as Mars Blackmon

1 episodes

1975

Saturday Night Live

as Self (uncredited)

1 episodes

2003

Real Time with Bill Maher

as Self

2 episodes

1997

The View

as Self

3 episodes

1971

Great Performances

as Self

1 episodes

2003

Jimmy Kimmel Live!

as Self - Guest

1 episodes

2003

The Ellen DeGeneres Show

as Self

1 episodes

1953

The Oscars

as Self

1 episodes

2015

Close Up with The Hollywood Reporter

as Self

1 episodes

2019

Desus & Mero

as Self - Illustrious Guest

1 episodes

2019

Tamron Hall

as Self - Guest

1 episodes

1990

In Living Color

1 episodes

2018

Basketball: A Love Story

as Self (archive footage)

1 episodes

2020

Dear...

as Self

1 episodes

2010

Who Do You Think You Are?

as Self

1 episodes

1997

The Chris Rock Show

as Self

1 episodes

Crew

2006

Shark

Director

2006

When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts

Producer

2005

Miracle's Boys

Director

2006

When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts

Director

2010

If God Is Willing and da Creek Don't Rise

Director

2017

She's Gotta Have It

Creator

2017

She's Gotta Have It

Director

2010

If God Is Willing and da Creek Don't Rise

Producer

2021

NYC Epicenters 9/11➔2021½

Producer

2021

NYC Epicenters 9/11➔2021½

Director

Personal Info

Known For
Directing
Gender
Male
Birthday
March 20, 1957 (68 years old)
Place of Birth
Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Popularity
1.2

Career Stats

209
Movies
50
TV Shows