Warren Lee Tamahori is a famous New Zealand film director. His breakthrough came with his directorial debut, Once Upon a Time (1994), which was a critical and commercial success and is widely regarded as one of New Zealand’s greatest films of all time.
Following his critically acclaimed debut, Tamahori went on to direct a diverse range of productions in his native New Zealand and in Hollywood.
These include the survival drama “The Edge” (1997) and the Alex Cross thriller “Here Comes the Spider” (2001).
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- Full name: Warren Lee Tamahori
- Stage name: Lee Tamahori
- Date of birth: June 17, 1950
- Age: 74 years old
- Birthplace: Wellington, New Zealand
- Nationality: New Zealand
- Occupation: New Zealand film director
- Height: unknown
- Parents: Philip and Patricia Tamahori
- Siblings: Renaye Tamahori and Glenn Tamahori
- Spouse: Kuniko Usui, Morag
- Partner: Sasha Turjak
- Children: 2
- Relationship: Single
- Net worth: unknown
early life and education
Warren Lee Tamahori was born on June 17, 1950 in Wellington, New Zealand. His parents are Phillip Tamahori and Patricia Tamahori.
Tamahori has two siblings: Raynaye Tamahori and Glen Tamahori. He grew up in Tawa, a northern suburb of Wellington, and attended Tawa School and Tawa College. Tamahori is of Maori descent, but his religious beliefs are unknown.
Profession
Lee Tamahori’s filmmaking journey began in the late 1970s, when he began working in various entry-level positions. He started out doing odd jobs and later transitioned to working as a boom operator for Television New Zealand. He later made several feature films, including “Shallows,” “Bye Bye Pork Pie,” “Bad Blood” and “Yankee Zephyr Race.”
Tamahori’s career took a major turn in the early 1980s, when “Pork Pie” director Jeff Murphy promoted him to assistant director on the film “Utu.” Tamahori subsequently served as first assistant director on several other projects, including “The Silent Man,” “Murphy’s Quiet Earth,” “Hot Friday” and “Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence.”
In 1986, Tamahori co-founded Flying Fish, a production company specializing in advertising. This move proved to be a major stepping stone in his career, as he gained recognition for his work in a series of high-profile television commercials, one of which was even awarded “Commercial of the Decade.”
Tamahori made her breakthrough in the feature film industry in 1994 with the release of Once Upon a Time, a realistic depiction of a violent Maori family. The film faced financial challenges but ultimately broke New Zealand box office records and received rave reviews from prestigious publications including The Age, The Village Voice and The Melbourne Age, with several naming it a top ten best One of the movies this year.
Following the success of Once Upon a Time, Tamahori continued to work on various projects, including XXX: State of the Union (2005), a sequel to XXX (2002), the sci-fi action film Next (2007) 2011) and the play The Devil’s Double (2011).
In recent years, Tamahori has also directed the 2015 rural drama Mahana (also known as The Patriarch) and the 2022 historical drama The Convert, further cementing his reputation as a versatile and critically acclaimed actor. Filmmaker status.
social media
- Instagram account: @lee_tamahori
personal life
Famous New Zealand film director Lee Tamahori has been married twice. His first wife was Morag, with whom he had a son, although the name of his first child has not been publicly disclosed.
Tamabori’s second marriage was to Kuniko Usui, whom she met on the set of the movie “Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence.” In addition to Tamahori’s first child from a previous marriage, they have a son.
Lee Tamahori is currently dating Sasha Turjak. The director has two sons from his two marriages, but his children’s names have not been revealed.
film chronology
Movie
- Thunder Box(1989)
- Once Upon a Time (1994)
- Mulholland Drive(1996)
- Edge(1997)
- Here Comes the Spider (2001)
- Die Another Day(2002)
- XXX: State of the Union Address (2005)
- Next (2007)
- Devil’s Stand(2011)
- Mahana(2016)
- Emperor(2017)
- The Convert(2023)
television
- Ray Bradbury Theater (1990-92)
- Billions(2020)
net worth
Lee Tamahori is an acclaimed New Zealand director whose exact net worth is unknown. Although some sources estimate his net worth to be approximately $1.72 billion as of 2024, this figure has not been publicly confirmed.
Tamahori has had a successful career in New Zealand and Hollywood, contributing significantly to his wealth through various high-profile projects and collaborations. However, his net worth and financial details have not been publicly disclosed.
