Quick Facts
Biography
Jack Gilardi Jr. (born 10 February 1970) is an American film producer known for producing Detention (2003,) Machete (2010,) and Bernie (2011.)
Early life
Jack Gilardi Jr. was born on February 10, 1970, in Burbank, California, to celebrated actress and singer Annette Funicello and casting director Jack Gilardi. He has an elder sister, actress Gina Portman, and a younger brother, rock drummer for the band New Science, Jason Giraldi.
He was portrayed by actor Austin Basile in A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes: The Annette Funicello Story (1995).
Career
Gilardi made his debut in the show business as an actor in 1991, playing a minor role of a karate student in Double Impact (directed by Sheldon Lettich.) In 1995, he was seen as himself in the TV movie based on her mother's life, A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes: The Annette Funicello Story.
He launched his film production career in 1998 with Christopher Lambert and Charlton Heston-starrer romance/comedy Gideon. The following year, he was a co-producer for Australian film director Russell Mulcahy's crime/drama Resurrection.
After producing Detention (2003,) The Russian Specialist (2005,) and Wicked Little Things (2006,) he co-produced hit documentary feature film Running the Sahara (2007.) The film chronicles the attempt by three marathon runners to run across the entire Sahara Desert –– Canadian long-distance runner Ray Zahab, American long-distance runner Charlie Engle, and Taiwanese long-distance runner Kevin Lin. The film was directed by James Moll and narrated by Matt Damon.
In 2010, Gilardi was the co-executive-producer of Danny Trejo and Robert De Niro-starrer hit film Machete. Most recently, he produced All for Nikki. The film, with Gia Mantegna and Andrew Bowen in the lead roles, is currently in post-production with the release date yet to be announced.