A Look Back at the Life and Career of Mace Neufeld
Producer Mace Neufeld has died at the age of 93. He reportedly died in his sleep. Here’s a look back at his life and career.
Mace Neufeld believed the ‘big stars’ were gone
During a 2014 interview with Los Angeles Times, Neufeld discussed his career and the entertainment industry. He commented on how he believed big movie stars were a thing of the past. He felt the age of the big Hollywood movie star ended with the classic actors who were still alive at that time.
“The big, big stars of the old line are gone,” he said. “I remember watching Titanic at a friend’s house. Kirk Douglas was there, Greg Peck, and Jack Lemmon, and Walter Matthau. I looked around the room and thought to myself, ‘You know, when these guys are gone that’s the last of the studio-made stars.’”
One actor Neufeld admired was Clint Eastwood. He was amazed by how he only had to do one or two takes to do a scene perfectly.
Neufeld dreamed of winning an Academy Award. He told the Los Angeles Times that if he lived long enough, he believed it would eventually happen. “You go out and find good material and you stick with it and don’t give up on it,” he told the publication. “I’m still looking for an Academy Award. If I stay around long enough it might happen.”
Mace Neufeld’s movies
Neufeld became known for producing many box-office hits and successful TV shows. One of his first production projects was the 1975 TV movie The Owl and the Pussycat. The following year, he was an executive producer for The Omen. In 1978, Neufeld co-executive produced the TV series Quark for eight episodes. In 1981, he was the executive producer for the TV mini-series East of Eden, for which he was nominated for an Emmy Award in the Outstanding Limited Series category.
In 1985, Neufeld produced The Aviator, starring the late Christopher Reeve. Then, in 1987, he produced the film No Way Out, starring Kevin Costner. Some of Neufeld’s other projects include The Frisco Kid, The Punisher, The Hunt for Red October, Patriot Games, The Equalizer, and Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan.
Mace Neufeld’s thoughts on ‘Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit’
“The casting of Chris Pine really rekindled the making of this Jack Ryan film,” said Neufeld during an interview with Screen Slam. “I say rekindled because [his inclusion] did not greenlight [the film], but it gave it new life. I think Chris is a fantastic Jack Ryan. I’d seen him do two plays onstage. He looks great in this film, he’s a wonderful actor. The combination of Keira and Chris really works together.”
What Mace Neufeld planned before his death
According to Deadline, a family friend told the publication Neufeld planned to work on a third Equalizer movie. He also had plans to work on an additional Tom Clancy television series for Amazon Prime Video.
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