John Lee Hancock is the director of films like The Rookie, The Blind Side, and Saving Mr. Banks, films that pleased both audiences and critics. One of his early hits came from writing A Perfect World, which was directed by Clint Eastwood.  His upcoming film The Founder stars Michael Keaton as Ray Kroc, the business man who turned McDonald’s into a world-wide brand. Recently, the Weinstein company pushed the release of the film from August to the middle of award season, suggesting that they feel good about the film’s prospects.

John came on the podcast to talk about the film and some of his past projects.

It’s not about getting them to say yes. It’s about making it impossible for them to say no.“ – John Lee Hancock

Some of the topics we discuss include

• Working with actors to trim down dialogue
• The research that goes into portraying historical figures on screen
• How to stay true to the essence of real people while portraying them in a dramatic way
• How John convinced Nick Saban and other SEC football coaches to be in The Blind Side
• The legacy of Walt Disney, and John’s experiences working with the company
• Handling feedback and failure on a big studio project

Listen to the Episode