Spike Lee

Spike Lee Movies and TV Shows

Spike Lee was born Shelton Lee in 1957, in Atlanta, Georgia. At a very young age, he moved from pre-civil rights Georgia, to Brooklyn, New York. Lee came from a proud and intelligent background. His father was a jazz musician, and his mother, a school teacher. His mother dubbed him Spike, due to his tough nature. He attended school in Morehouse College in Atlanta and developed his film making skills at Clark Atlanta University. After graduating, he went to the Tisch School of Arts graduate film program. He made a controversial short, The Answer (1980), a reworking of D.W. Griffith's The Birth of a Nation (1915) -- a ten-minute film. Lee went on to produce a 45-minute film Joe's Bed-Stuy Barbershop: We Cut Heads (1983), which won a student academy award. Lee's next film, "The Messenger," in 1984, was somewhat biographical. In 1986, Spike Lee made the film, She's Gotta Have It (1986), a comedy about sexual relationships. The movie was made for 175,000 dollars, and made seven million. Since then, Lee has become a well-known, intelligent, and talented film maker. His next movie was School Daze (1988), which was set in a historically black school and focused mostly on the conflict between the school and the Fraternities, of which he was a strong critic, portraying them as materialistic, irresponsible, and uncaring. Lee went on to do his landmark film, Do the Right Thing (1989), a movie specifically about his own town in Brooklyn, New York. The movie portrayed a neighborhood on a very hot day, and the racial tensions that emerge. The movie garnered an Oscar nomination, for Danny Aiello, for supporting actor. It also sparked a debate on racial relations. Lee went on to produce the jazz biopic Mo' Better Blues (1990) which showed his talent for directing and acting, and was the first of many Spike Lee films to feature Denzel Washington. His next film, Jungle Fever (1991), was about interracial dating. Lee's handling of the subject proved yet again highly controversial. Lee's next film was the self-titled biography of Malcolm X (1992), which had Denzel Washington portraying the civil rights leader. The movie was a success, and resulted in an Oscar nomination for Washington. His next films were the comparatively light, Crooklyn (1994), and the intense crime drama, Clockers (1995). In 1996, Lee directed two movies: the badly received comedy, Girl 6 (1996), and the politically pointed, Get on the Bus (1996), about a group of men going to the Million Man March. His next film, He Got Game (1998), proved to be another excursion into the collegiate world as he shows the darker side of recruiting college athletes. The movie, in limited release, yet again featured Denzel Washington. In 2000 came Bamboozled which made a mockery out of television and the way African-Americans are perceived by white America and the way African-Americans perceive themselves. The movie, however, was a resounding critical success. Lee also has produced films like New Jersey Drive (1995), Tales from the Hood (1995), and Drop Squad (1994). He also has produced and or directed movies about Huey P. Newton, Jim Brown, and has commented in many documentaries about varied subjects. With pointed political messages, insightful, different and intelligent films, Spike Lee has become a well known political presence. He looks likely to have further success in the film business. Lee is an obsessive New York Knicks fan. He and his wife, Tonya Lewis Lee, have two children.

Personal info

  • Gender: Male
  • Date of birth: 3/20/1957 (67 years old)
  • Place of birth: Atlanta, Georgia, USA
  • nationality: American
  • height: 1.68 m
  • Net worth: $50,000,000
  • twitter: SpikeLee
  • instagram: officialspikelee
Year
Genre
IMDB
TMDB
Available on the following streaming services in the United States
Son of the South
IMDB 6.2
TMDB 69%
role:
Executive Producer
2021

Drama

History

6.2
69%
2021

Comedy

Documentary

8.0
75%
Tales from the Hood 3
IMDB 4.9
TMDB 55%
role:
Executive Producer
2020

Drama

Horror

4.9
55%
David Byrne's American Utopia
IMDB 8.2
TMDB 79%
role:
Executive Producer & 1 more
2020

Documentary

Music

8.2
79%
Da 5 Bloods
IMDB 6.5
TMDB 66%
role:
Writer & 2 more
2020

Drama

War & Politics

6.5
66%
2019

Action

Adventure

Crime

Drama

Sci-Fi & Fantasy

5.3
56%
Amazing Grace
IMDB 7.5
TMDB 73%
role:
Producer
2018

Documentary

Music

7.5
73%
2018

Documentary

8.0
77%
BlacKkKlansman
IMDB 7.5
TMDB 75%
role:
Producer & 2 more
2018

Comedy

Crime

Drama

History

7.5
75%
Tales from the Hood 2
IMDB 4.4
TMDB 48%
role:
Executive Producer
2018

Horror

4.4
48%
Nigerian Prince
IMDB 5.9
TMDB 54%
role:
Executive Producer
2018

Drama

Thriller

5.9
54%
Pass Over
IMDB 6.1
TMDB 65%
role:
Director
2018

Drama

6.1
65%
She's Gotta Have It
IMDB 6.9
TMDB 65%
role:
Director & 1 more
2017

Comedy

6.9
65%
Rodney King
IMDB 6.2
TMDB 52%
role:
Producer
2017

Crime

Documentary

Drama

6.2
52%
Touched with Fire
IMDB 6.2
TMDB 63%
role:
Executive Producer
2016

Drama

Romance

6.2
63%
2016

Documentary

Music

7.4
71%
Chi-Raq
IMDB 5.9
TMDB 58%
role:
Writer & 2 more
2015

Comedy

Crime

Drama

5.9
58%
Champs
IMDB 7.2
TMDB 70%
role:
Himself
2015

Documentary

7.2
70%
The Girl Is in Trouble
IMDB 5.0
TMDB 51%
role:
Executive Producer
2015

Crime

5.0
51%
Da Sweet Blood of Jesus
IMDB 4.5
TMDB 50%
role:
Producer & 2 more
2014

Drama

Horror

Romance

4.5
50%
Evolution of a Criminal
IMDB 6.9
TMDB 78%
role:
Executive Producer
2014

Documentary

6.9
78%
Mike Tyson: Undisputed Truth
IMDB 7.3
TMDB 71%
role:
Executive Producer & 1 more
2013

Comedy

7.3
71%
Oldboy
IMDB 5.8
TMDB 59%
role:
Producer & 1 more
2013

Action

Drama

Mystery

Thriller

5.8
59%
Attack on Titan
IMDB 9.1
TMDB 87%
role:
Director & 1 more
2013

Crime

Drama

9.1
87%
Bad 25
IMDB 7.9
TMDB 74%
role:
Director & 1 more
2012

Documentary

Music

7.9
74%
Red Hook Summer
IMDB 5.3
TMDB 59%
role:
Director & 2 more
2012

Drama

5.3
59%
Una Noche
IMDB 6.7
TMDB 55%
role:
Presenter
2012

Drama

6.7
55%
Pariah
IMDB 7.2
TMDB 69%
role:
Executive Producer
2011

Drama

7.2
69%
Saint John of Las Vegas
IMDB 5.6
TMDB 58%
role:
Executive Producer
2010

Comedy

5.6
58%
Passing Strange
IMDB 7.3
TMDB 59%
role:
Director
2009

Documentary

Music

7.3
59%
PoliWood
IMDB 6.1
TMDB 67%
role:
Self
2009

Documentary

6.1
67%
Kobe Doin' Work
IMDB 6.6
TMDB 64%
role:
Producer & 2 more
Not available
2009

Documentary

6.6
64%
Not available
Miracle at St. Anna
IMDB 6.1
TMDB 61%
role:
Producer & 1 more
2008

Drama

War & Politics

6.1
61%
2006

Documentary

8.5
77%
Inside Man
IMDB 7.6
TMDB 74%
role:
Director
2006

Crime

Drama

Thriller

7.6
74%
Hellsing Ultimate
IMDB 8.2
TMDB 85%
role:
Jimmy & 2 more
2006

Action

Adventure

Animation

Drama

8.2
85%
2005

Comedy

Drama

War & Politics

6.4
56%
She Hate Me
IMDB 5.3
TMDB 51%
role:
Producer & 2 more
2004

Comedy

Drama

5.3
51%
Bamboozled
IMDB 6.7
TMDB 63%
role:
Producer & 2 more
2000

Comedy

Drama

6.7
63%
2000

Action

Comedy

Drama

Romance

7.2
75%
The Best Man
IMDB 6.7
TMDB 66%
role:
Producer
1999

Comedy

Drama

6.7
66%
Summer of Sam
IMDB 6.7
TMDB 65%
role:
Producer & 3 more
1999

Crime

Drama

Romance

Thriller

6.7
65%
He Got Game
IMDB 6.9
TMDB 68%
role:
Producer & 2 more
1998

Drama

6.9
68%
1996

Documentary

7.9
77%
Clockers
IMDB 6.9
TMDB 69%
role:
Producer & 3 more
1995

Crime

Drama

Mystery

6.9
69%
Tales from the Hood
IMDB 6.5
TMDB 61%
role:
Executive Producer
1995

Crime

Horror

Thriller

6.5
61%
Hoop Dreams
IMDB 8.3
TMDB 77%
role:
Himself
1994

Documentary

8.3
77%
Crooklyn
IMDB 7.0
TMDB 69%
role:
Producer & 3 more
1994

Comedy

Drama

7.0
69%
Malcolm X
IMDB 7.7
TMDB 75%
role:
Producer & 3 more
1992

Drama

History

7.7
75%
Jungle Fever
IMDB 6.6
TMDB 64%
role:
Writer & 3 more
1991

Drama

Romance

6.6
64%
Mo' Better Blues
IMDB 6.7
TMDB 65%
role:
Writer & 3 more
1990

Comedy

Drama

Music

Romance

6.7
65%
Do the Right Thing
IMDB 7.9
TMDB 78%
role:
Producer & 3 more
1989

Drama

7.9
78%
School Daze
IMDB 6.1
TMDB 60%
role:
Writer & 3 more
1988

Comedy

Drama

Music

6.1
60%
She's Gotta Have It
IMDB 6.8
TMDB 67%
role:
Writer & 4 more
1986

Comedy

Romance

6.8
67%

FAQs

Some movies or TV shows available in the United States starring or involving Spike Lee are, for example, Son of the South, Tales from the Hood 3 and David Byrne's American Utopia.
The streaming services with the largest selection are Prime Video, iTunes and Amazon.
The best StreamFat ratings are Hellsing Ultimate (8.4), David Byrne's American Utopia (8.1) and Hoop Dreams (8.0).