Irwin Winkler’s films have been nominated for 52 Oscars including five for Best Picture. They have won 12, and more importantly proved the test of time with enduring status as classics including his Best Picture Oscar winner Rocky, GoodFellas, Raging Bull, The Right Stuff, They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? There are also the films that he directed including DeLovely, Guilty By Suspicion and Life as a House.
Currently, Winkler has been hitting the circuit on behalf of Creed III, the third entry in the extension of the Rocky franchise and the first to be directed by its star, Michael B. Jordan. Don’t expect it to be the last, and for Winkler who at 92 shows no signs of slowing down, you can bet there is much more to come.
Winkler joins me for this episode of my Deadline video series Behind the Lens to talk about a remarkable and ongoing career as a filmmaker beginning in 1966 with an Elvis Presley musical, Double Trouble, and continuing with a long list of notable films that also includes The Irishman, New York, New York, Point Blank, The Gambler (and its remake), and way too many others to list — we talk about many of them, even starting with one classic he was supposed to do but had to give up.
Winkler has also written an autobiography, appropriately titled A Life In Movies: Stories From 50 Years In Hollywood (except now it is actually 60).
To hear our conversation and just a few of those choice stories that go “behind the lens” with Irwin Winkler, click on the video above.
Join me every Friday during Oscar season for another edition of Behind The Lens.