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Early life
Born in Jackson, Tennessee, Wallace began writing stories at the age of seven. Wallace graduated from E.C. Glass High School in Lynchburg, Virginia where he was a member of Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity. He attended Duke University, where he studied Russian, religion, and literature. He put himself through a graduate year of seminary by teaching martial arts. Wallace holds a black belt in karate.
[edit]Career
After managing an animal show at Nashville’s Opryland, Wallace moved to Hollywood to pursue a career in singing and songwriting. He soon began writing short stories, novels and scripts for movies. Wallace was taken under the wing of leading television producer Stephen J. Cannell and spent several years writing for television in the late '80s and early '90s.
He gained recognition and commercial success by penning the screenplay for Braveheart (1995), which was inspired by a trip to Scotland to better get to know his roots as a Scottish American. It was there he learned about the true legend of medieval Scottish patriot William Wallace. Braveheart became Wallace’s first produced screenplay when it drew the interest of director and star Mel Gibson, and ended up as the film success story of 1995, earning the Academy Award for Best Picture and Best Director and garnering Oscar and Golden Globe nominations as well as the Writers Guild Award for Best Screenplay for Wallace.
Wallace made his directorial debut with his own screenplay in The Man in the Iron Mask, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, John Malkovich, Gabriel Byrne, Jeremy Irons and Gérard Depardieu. Shortly after, he wrote the screenplay for the Jerry Bruckheimer blockbuster, Pearl Harbor (2001), directed by Michael Bay and starring Ben Affleck, Josh Hartnett and Kate Beckinsale.
This was followed by Wallace’s second film as director We Were Soldiers. Moved by its starkly honest account of a singular battle in the Vietnam War, Wallace re-teamed with Mel Gibson to star in the film. Wallace trained with career soldiers at U.S. Army Ranger School in order to understand the motivation of his characters.
In 2010, Wallace directed Disney’s Secretariat, the true story of the racehorse that won the Triple Crown in 1973. The film chronicled the struggles and courage of owner Penny Chenery-Tweedy, portrayed by Academy Award-nominated actress Diane Lane. Wallace also wrote the end title song, It’s Who You Are, which was released with the Secretariat soundtrack.
[edit]Other work
Wallace is also the New York Times bestselling author of seven novels and the lyricist of the acclaimed hymn "Mansions of the Lord", performed as the closing music for President Ronald Reagan’s national funeral. In 2008, Wallace wrote several songs with singer/songwriter Richard Marx. One of those songs, "Flame In Your Fire", appears on Marx's album Emotional Remains. In interviews he has acknowledged a deep commitment to Christianity, which he credits as an influence on his approach to filmmaking.
He appeared in the seventh season of HBO’s hit comedy series Entourage as himself.
In addition to his work as a filmmaker, Wallace is the founder of Hollywood for Habitat for Humanity and the father of two sons. In 1999, he formed his own company, Wheelhouse Entertainment, which is focused on creating entertainment for worldwide audiences based on the classic values of love, courage and honor.
[edit]Filmography
Braveheart (1995) – writer
The Man in the Iron Mask (1998) – writer, director and producer
Pearl Harbor (2001) – writer and executive producer
We Were Soldiers (2002) – writer, director and producer
Fight or Die (2008) – executive producer, narrator
Secretariat (2010) – director