David Elliot Hoberman (born September 19, 1952) is an American film and television producer, best known as the co-creator and executive producer of the USA Network television series Monk, and the founder and co-owner of Mandeville Films. He has produced over 40 films in his career, including the 2010 drama film The Fighter, for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture.

Early life

Hoberman was born on September 19, 1952, the son of radio executive Ben Hoberman (1922–2014) and his wife Jacklyn (née Kanter; 1922–2013). Hoberman has an older brother, Thomas (Tom), an entertainment lawyer, and a younger sister, Joan (Joanie). He is from a Jewish family.

Career

Beginnings

Hoberman began his showbiz career with a mailroom job at the American Broadcasting Company, and later joined Norman Lear's Tandem Productions. In 1985, he joined the Walt Disney Studios as a film executive, and before that, he served as a talent agent at the International Creative Management. He was president of the Motion Picture Group at Disney, and was responsible for production of all feature films under Walt Disney, Touchstone, and Hollywood Pictures.

Mandeville Films

Hoberman founded Mandeville Films, an independent production company, in 1995. In 1999, he was made partner of film production and financing company Hyde Park Entertainment, only to leave three years later. In 2002, along with business partner Todd Lieberman (a former Mandeville employee), Hoberman re-formed Mandeville Films and Television at Disney, after spending three years at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Since 2002, Mandeville has produced a number of films with Disney, such as Bringing Down the House, Raising Helen, The Last Shot, The Shaggy Dog, Eight Below, Beverly Hills Chihuahua, and The Muppets.

He was the producer of Disney's live-action picture Honey, I Shrunk the Kids and the first ever stop-motion animated full-length feature, The Nightmare Before Christmas, which was produced by Tim Burton.

Monk

Hoberman, along with Andy Breckman, was the co-creator of the American comedy-drama detective mystery television series, Monk, and the protagonist of the series, Adrian Monk.

Monk was originally envisioned as a "more goofy and physical" Inspector Clouseau type of character. However, Hoberman came up with the idea of a detective with obsessive-compulsive disorder. This was inspired by his own bout with self-diagnosed obsessive-compulsive disorder; in a Pittsburgh Post-Gazette interview, he stated: "Like Monk, I couldn't walk on cracks and had to touch poles. I have no idea why – but if I didn't do these things, something terrible would happen."

Personal life

Hoberman was previously married to Tia Hoberman (née Yousse), with whom he has 3 children. He is a board member of the Starlight Starbright Children's Foundation and recently joined the Anxiety Disorder Association of America. He has been a visiting assistant professor with UCLA, and was a former board member of the Los Angeles Free Clinic. On October 4, 2011, David Hoberman was selected to be one of the Board of Trustees for Suffolk University in Boston, Massachusetts.

Filmography

He was a producer in all films unless otherwise noted.

Film

YearFilmCreditNotes
1977American RaspberryAssociate producer
1996Mr. WrongExecutive producer
1997The 6th Man
George of the Jungle
1998Senseless
The Negotiator
I'll Be Home for Christmas
1999The Other SisterExecutive producer
2001AntitrustExecutive producer
What's the Worst That Could Happen?
Original SinExecutive producer
Bandits
2002Moonlight MileExecutive producer
2003Bringing Down the House
George of the Jungle 2Executive producerDirect-to-video
2004Walking Tall
Raising Helen
The Last Shot
2005Beauty Shop
2006Eight Below
The Shaggy Dog
Five FingersExecutive producer
2008Traitor
Beverly Hills Chihuahua
The Lazarus Project
2009The Proposal
Surrogates
2010The Fighter
2011Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2Direct-to-video
The Muppets
2012Beverly Hills Chihuahua 3: Viva la Fiesta!Direct-to-video
2013Warm Bodies
21 & Over
2014Muppets Most Wanted
2015The Divergent Series: InsurgentExecutive producer
Broken HorsesExecutive producer
2016The Divergent Series: AllegiantExecutive producer
The Duel
2017Beauty and the Beast
Stronger
Wonder
2018Extinction
2019The Aeronauts
2022Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers
Shotgun Wedding
2024White Bird
2027Voltron
TBARabbids

Production manager

YearFilmRoleNotes
1986Ruthless PeopleExecutive in charge of production: Walt Disney StudiosUncredited
1987Stakeout
1989Dead Poets Society
Honey, I Shrunk the Kids
1990Pretty Woman
1991What About Bob?
The Doctor
Father of the Bride
1992Sister Act
1994When a Man Loves a Woman

As an actor

YearFilmRoleNotes
2003George of the Jungle 2Airline PassengerDirect-to-video

Miscellaneous crew

YearFilmRole
1978Blue CollarProduction executive: T.A.T. Communications Company

Television

YearTitleCreditNotes
1997ToothlessExecutive producerTelevision film
1998Brink!Executive producerTelevision film
1999Ryan Caulfield: Year OneExecutive producer
2006A.K.A.Executive producerTelevision film
2007The Kill PointExecutive producer
2002−09MonkExecutive producer
2010−11Detroit 1-8-7Executive producer
2011Geek CharmingExecutive producerTelevision film
2013King JohnExecutive producerTelevision film
2014WarriorsExecutive producerTelevision film
Sea of FireExecutive producerTelevision film
2015Wicked CityExecutive producer
2016The FamilyExecutive producer
Sing It!Executive producer
2018The MissionExecutive producerTelevision film
StepsExecutive producerTelevision film
2019The FixExecutive producer
2020Harlem's KitchenExecutive producerTelevision pilot
2021Hit & RunExecutive producer
—N/aThe Hypnotist's Love StoryExecutive producerTelevision pilot

As director

YearTitle
2009Monk

Awards and nominations

YearAwardCategoryWorkResult
2008Black Reel AwardsBest FilmTraitor (shared with Don Cheadle, Jeffrey Silver and Todd Lieberman)Nominated
2010Academy AwardsBest PictureThe Fighter (shared with Todd Lieberman and Mark Wahlberg)Nominated
Awards Circuit Community AwardsACCA – Best Motion PictureNominated
2011AFI AwardsMovie of the YearThe Fighter (shared with Todd Lieberman and Mark Wahlberg)Won
PGA AwardsBest Theatrical Motion PictureNominated
2012Christopher AwardsFeature FilmThe Muppets (shared with James Bobin, Martin G. Baker, Bill Barretta, Todd Lieberman, John G. Scotti, Jason Segel, Nicholas Stoller)Won
BAFTA AwardsBAFTA Children's Award for Best Feature FilmThe Muppets (shared with Todd Lieberman and James Bobin)Nominated
2014BAFTA Kids' Vote – Feature FilmMuppets Most Wanted (shared with James Bobin, Todd Lieberman and Nicholas Stoller)Nominated

External links