Gary Barber (born 1957) is a South African-born American film producer. Barber was the chairman and CEO of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.[1] He is also co-founder of Spyglass Entertainment.
Gary Barber
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| Born | 1957 (age 66–67) |
| Nationality | South African |
| Education | B.S. University of the Witwatersrand |
| Occupation | Media executive |
| Known for | CEO of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (2010–2018) Co-founder of Spyglass Entertainment |
| Children | 3 |
Barber was born to a Jewish family[2]inJohannesburg, South Africa.[3][4] He was educated at King David School, Linksfield, in Johannesburg. He then received an accounting degree from the University of the Witwatersrand, also in Johannesburg.[1][5] He later worked as a Chartered Accountant and Certified Public Accountant in South Africa and the United States, both with Price Waterhouse.[1]
In 1982, he won a trip to the Arlington Million horse race in Illinois.[5] In the same year, he moved to the United States, where his brother Cecil had been living since 1979. In the mid-1980s, Barber became a U.S. citizen.[3] In 1998, he and Roger Birnbaum founded Spyglass EntertainmentinLos Angeles.[1] His highest-grossing film as producer was The Tourist (2010), which grossed close to US$280 million at the worldwide box office.[6]
In December 2010, Barber became Chief Executive OfficerofMetro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM).[1] Under his leadership, MGM together with Eon Productions and Sony Pictures financed the successful James Bond film Skyfall, which grossed US$1,1 billion. MGM then also financed The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012), 21 Jump Street (2012) and Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters (2013). MGM then moved forward with remakes of RoboCop and Poltergeist.[7][8] In March 2018, Barber was ousted from MGM, coming five months after the renewal of his contract with the studio to 2022; he received a $260M settlement.[9][10]
Barber has three daughters and lives in Los Angeles.[5]
Barber is also a Thoroughbred racehorse owner. The Deputy, owned in partnership with Team Valor, won the 2000 running of the Grade II Santa Catalina Stakes and the Grade I Santa Anita DerbyatSanta Anita ParkinArcadia, California. In 2006, Becrux, also owned in partnership with Team Valor, won the Grade I Woodbine MileatWoodbine RacetrackinToronto, Canada.[11] In 2014, his filly Lexie Lou won the Queen's Plate and was named the Canadian Horse of the Year.[12] His horse War of Will won the 2019 Preakness Stakes.[13]
Executive Producer
Producer
Special thanks