Deon Taylor
Birthdate: January 1, 1970 (56 Years Old)
Birthplace: Chicago, Illinois
Writer-producer-director Deon Taylor has developed a self-taught career with a track record of 14-and-counting independent features, including his 2022 horror film, Fear, with Joseph Sikora, King Beach, Andrew Bachelor, and Anne Ilonzeh, and the first film to be released by the distribution arm (Hidden Empire Releasing) of Taylor’s production company, Hidden Empire Film Group.
Taylor’s debut was Dead Tone (2007), with Brian Hooks and Rutger Hauer. He followed this drama with the comedy, Hustle (2008), with Al Shearer, Tamala Jones, Brigitte Nielsen, and David Alan Grier; Taylor created a horror anthology, with Flavor Flav as narrator for Nite Tales: The Movie (2008), with Tony Todd; Taylor next assembled such actors as Brad Dourif, Nikki Reed, and Keith David for the slasher movie, Chain Letter (2010); for a change of pace, Taylor directed the comedy concert film featuring stand-up performer Tony Roberts, Tony Roberts: I’m Different (2013); and director Taylor earned a spot in the competition at the Los Angeles Film Festival for the true-crime drama, Supremacy (2014), with Danny Glover, Joe Anderson, Derek Luke, and Mahershala Ali.
As writer-producer-director, Taylor combined horror and comedy with star Mike Epps for Meet the Blacks (2016), a spoof of The Purge (2013), with George Lopez and Mike Tyson. Epps rejoined Taylor for the 2018 horror thriller Traffik, starring Paula Patton, Roselyn Sanchez, William Fichtner, and Dawn Olivieri. Taylor’s next thriller, without the horror tinge, was The Intruder (2019), co-starring Michael Ealy, Dennis Quaid, Meagan Good, and Joseph Sikora, earning five times (in grosses) production costs for Sony Pictures Releasing, which released the Screen Gems-produced cop thriller with Taylor as director, Black and Blue (2019), with Naomie Harris, Tyrese Gibson, and Frank Grillo.
Director Taylor partnered with star-producer Hilary Swank for the Lionsgate-released thriller, Fatale (2020), co-starring Ealy, and photographed by the great cinematographer, Dante Spinotti. With co-writer Corey Harrell, Taylor made the Meet the Blacks sequel, The House Next Door: Meet the Blacks 2 (2021), with Epps, Katt Williams, Snoop Dogg, and Rick Ross.
Producer Taylor collaborated with Jamie Foxx (as star/director/co-writer/co-producer) for the NBA-themed comedy-drama, All-Star Weekend (date to be announced), with Jeremy Piven, Eva Longoria, Robert Downey Jr., Ken Jeong, Gerard Butler, Benicio del Toro, and Snoop Dogg. Taylor was the director of the horror movie, Fear (2023), starring Joseph Sikora, Andrew Bachelor, Annie Ilonzeh, and Ruby Modine, earning poor reviews and box returns projected at under $3 million.
Personal life
Chicago-born Deon Taylor was raised in Gary, Indiana. His family moved to Sacramento, California during his senior year at Florin High School, where he excelled in basketball. Taylor attended San Diego State University on a full basketball scholarship. Taylor graduated with a degree in Biology.
Although he failed to make the recruitment cut for the NBA, Taylor played professional basketball for the German pro team, the Kemkatz, based in the city of Kemnitz. During his spare time in Germany, Taylor watched hundreds of movies and decided that he wanted to become a moviemaker. He has been married to producer Roxanne Avent since 2014; the couple has three children.
Facts About Deon Taylor
Hollywood NBA: Deon Taylor is a member of the NBA Entertainment League, involving players who work in the entertainment industry.
COVID Filmmaking: Deon Taylor and his producer-wife Roxanne Avent Taylor organized a 17-day shoot of their feature, Fear, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
