{{short description|American film producer (born 1950)}} {{BLP sources|date=December 2010}} {{Use American English|date=June 2021}} {{Use mdy dates|date=June 2021}}
{{Infobox person | name = <!-- use common name/article title --> | image = <!-- filename only, no "File:" or "Image:" prefix, and no enclosing brackets --> | alt = <!-- descriptive text for use by speech synthesis (text-to-speech) software --> | caption = | birth_name = <!-- only use if different from name --> | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1950|08|12}} | birth_place = Los Angeles, California, U.S. | death_date = <!-- {{Death date and age|YYYY|MM|DD|YYYY|MM|DD}} (DEATH date then BIRTH date) --> | death_place = | nationality = | other_names = | alma_mater = University of California, Los Angeles | occupation = Film producer | years_active = | known_for = | notable_works = }}
'''David Valdes''' (born August 12, 1950, in Los Angeles) is an American film producer known for producing 17 films with Clint Eastwood, 4 films with Francis Ford Coppola, a couple with Kevin Costner and a few special titles he proudly calls classics: ''The Green Mile'' and ''Unforgiven''.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Team Deakins: DAVID VALDES - Producer |url=https://teamdeakins.libsyn.com/david-valdes-producer |access-date=2026-01-14 |website=teamdeakins.libsyn.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=David Valdés – Karnavati Literature & Film Festival |url=https://klff.in/speaker/david-valdes/ |access-date=2026-01-14 |language=en-US}}</ref>
== Career == David Valdes earned a Bachelor of Theater Arts degree from UCLA and began his film career as an assistant director alongside such directors as Martin Scorsese, Wim Wenders, Clint Eastwood and Francis Ford Coppola. Some of those early films include ''Raging Bull'', ''Hammett'', ''Any which way you can'', ''Firefox'', ''The Outsiders'', and ''Rumble Fish''. David segued into producing as an associate producer on Eastwood’s ''Pale Rider'' in 1984.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-06-13 |title='Can you make him white?' And more absurd lessons in pitching Latino stories to Hollywood |url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/story/2021-06-13/latino-gap-hollywood-producer-david-valdes-representation-struggle |access-date=2026-01-14 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VlTcL31nwlI |title=Producer David Valdes on "Point Break" |date=2016-04-04 |last=Made in Hollywood Teen |access-date=2026-01-14 |via=YouTube}}</ref>
Valdes has had several films nominated in various Oscar categories over the years. He was nominated himself for Best Picture for ''The Green Mile'' along with the film's director-producer-screenwriter Frank Darabont.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://thegreenmile.warnerbros.com/cmp/filmmakers-fr.html |title=Archived copy |access-date=2010-10-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101204233302/http://thegreenmile.warnerbros.com/cmp/filmmakers-fr.html |archive-date=2010-12-04 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2015-04-22 |title=The 72nd Academy Awards {{!}} 2000 |url=https://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/2000 |access-date=2026-01-14 |website=www.oscars.org |language=en}}</ref>
Valdes served as Executive Producer on the sequels to ''Avatar: The Way of Water'' and ''Avatar: Fire and Ash.''
== Filmography ==
=== Producer ===
* ''Point Break (2015)'' * ''Transcendence (2014)'' * ''Beautiful Creatures (2013)'' * ''The Magic of Belle Isle (2012)'' * ''The Book of Eli (2010)'' * ''The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007)'' * ''Open Range (2003)'' * ''The Time Machine (2002)'' * ''The Green Mile (1999)'' * ''Turbulence (1997)'' * ''The Stars Fell on Henrietta (1995)'' * ''A Perfect World (1993)'' * ''The Rookie (1990)'' * ''Pink Cadillac (1989)'' * ''The Dead Pool (1988)'' * ''Like Father Like Son (1987)''
=== Executive Producer ===
* ''Avatar: Fire and Ash (2025)''
* ''Avatar: The Way of Water (2022)'' * ''Alita: Battle Angel (2019)'' * ''I Am Number Four (2011)'' * ''Babylon A.D. (2008)'' * ''In the Line of Fire (1993)'' * ''Unforgiven (1992)'' * ''White Hunter Black Heart (1990)'' * ''Bird (1988)''
=== Co-Executive Producer ===
* ''Gardens of Stone (1987)''
=== Associate Producer ===
* ''Ratboy (1986)''
* ''Pale Rider (1985)''
== References == {{Reflist}}
== External links == *{{IMDb name|883603}} *https://teamdeakins.libsyn.com/david-valdes-producer
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Valdes, David}} Category:1950 births Category:Living people Category:20th-century American businesspeople Category:21st-century American businesspeople Category:American people of Portuguese descent
Category:Producers Category:Film producers from Los Angeles Category:Film producers from California Category:University of California, Los Angeles alumni Category:American people of Mexican descent
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