Gareth Wigan
Gareth Wigan was a British agent, producer and studio executive known for working on such films as George Lucas's Star Wars. His early recognition of the power of the global entertainment market allowed his employer, Sony Pictures Entertainment, to take advantage of films such as Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.
Life and career
Gareth Wigan was born in London on 2 December 1931. After graduating from Oxford in 1952 with a B.A. Honours degree in English literature, he began his career as a literary agent in the London office of MCA. He eventually founded an agency with Richard Gregson, Gregson & Wigan. Among his clients was the British playwright Giles Cooper whose story, "Unman, Wittering and Zigo" originally written for radio, was the first film Wigan produced, directed by John Mackenzie and starring David Hemmings. Gregson and Wigan was sold to EMI in 1970 and Gareth Wigan subsequently moved to Los Angeles.Over the course of a 40-year career, Wigan rose from talent agent, to producer to studio head. Film credits include Star Wars, Alien, The [Turning Point (1977 film)|The Turning Point], Chariots of Fire, The [Right Stuff (film)|The Right Stuff], Bram Stoker's Dracula, Kick-Ass and others.
He held numerous positions including Production Executive at 20th Century Fox, co-Vice Chairman at Sony Pictures [Motion Picture Group|Columbia TriStar] Motion Picture Group, a co-founder at The Ladd Company, production consultant at Columbia and more.