Robert Shaye

Robert Kenneth Shaye (born March 4, 1939) is an American businessman, film producer, actor, director, and writer. Shaye is the founder of New Line Cinema, a film production studio that was most successful for distributing The Lord of the Rings film series, based on the classic fantasy novel of the same name by English author J. R. R. Tolkien and directed by New Zealand filmmaker Peter Jackson. He stepped down from New Line in 2008 after the studio merged with Warner Bros. Pictures.

Early life
Shaye was born to a Jewish family in Detroit, Michigan, the son of Dorothy and Max Mendle Shaye, a supermarket owner and artist. His mother was an immigrant from Russia. He is the brother of actress Lin Shaye.

Shaye graduated from Detroit's Mumford High School. He earned a bachelor's degree in business administration from the University of Michigan and a J.D. degree from Columbia Law School. He also graduated from the University of Stockholm as a Fulbright scholar. Shaye is a member of the New York State Bar Association, and he has served on the board of trustees for the Neurosciences Institute, the Legal Aid Society, the American Film Institute, and the Will Rogers Motion Picture Pioneers Foundation.

New Line Cinema
In 1967, Shaye formed New Line Cinema. The company started with a package of feature films and shorts rented to colleges. From there, New Line expanded to re-releases such as Reefer Madness and first-run domestic distribution of foreign films such as Get Out Your Handkerchiefs. New Line released blockbuster films in the 1980s such as A Nightmare on Elm Street and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. In 1994, New Line was acquired by the Turner Broadcasting System for $500 million, with Shaye earning more than $100 million. Later, in 1996, Turner Broadcasting System became part of Time Warner (which is currently known as Warner Bros. Discovery), a merger between Time Inc. and Warner Communications. When Shaye retired from New Line in 2008, the studio was merged with Warner Bros. Pictures.

In 1998, when New Zealand director Peter Jackson brought his 36-minute pitch reel for a big screen adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's fantasy classic The Lord of the Rings to New Line, hoping to turn the three volumes into two films, Shaye suggested Jackson make three films instead. He subsequently greenlit a simultaneous production for all three installments. The Lord of the Rings was nominated a total of thirty Academy Awards, winning 17, including 11 awards for The Return of the King. At the box office, all three films are among New Line's highest-grossing and most popular films, earning a combined total of nearly $3 billion worldwide.

Investing career
Independently and through his family office Lemoko Management Company he is an active investor in companies like Brat TV.

Unique Features
In June 2008, Shaye and company co-chairman Michael Lynne departed New Line and formed an independent film company, Unique Features. The company's recent projects include The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones (Sony/Constantin), the TV series Shadowhunters (Freeform Television), When the Bough Breaks (Screen Gems), and Ambition, directed by Shaye.

Filmography
He was a producer in all films unless otherwise noted.

Film

 * As an actor


 * As director


 * As writer


 * As cinematographer


 * Second unit director or assistant director


 * Thanks

Television

 * As an actor


 * Production manager