Charles Evans Jr.

Charles Evans Jr. (born 1962) is an American film producer and documentary film director.

He produced Johnny Depp's first directorial effort, The Brave.

Evans was born in Manhattan, New York, 1963 to Charles Evans Sr. and his first wife, Frances (a documentary filmmaker).

His uncle is studio executive and actor Robert Evans.

Charles had two sisters: Melissa (born in 1965) and Elizabeth (born in 1966).

His parents divorced in 1967.

Charles attended the Allen-Stevenson School, a private elementary school for boys.

In 1975, Charles and his family were caught in a deadly fire in their triplex apartment on East 80th Street in New York City.

His mother and two sisters were asphyxiated by toxic fumes during the fire.

The fire was caused by ashes falling out of their fireplace.

Charles Jr., sleeping in another room, was rescued by firefighters and uninjured.

In the aftermath of the deadly fire, 12-year-old Charles Jr. "put on an overcoat and went to live with my father," in his words.

He also began taking illegal narcotics.

He developed a serious addiction.

Charles Jr. attended the Williston Northampton School, University of California, Berkeley and then the USC School of Cinematic Arts.

His father was ambivalent about the decision.

"I certainly didn't give him any encouragement. I think it's a stinking business. But he's wanted to do it since he was in grade school. He wanted to either write, direct or produce."

His first professional credit came on the 1988 horror film on Monkey Shines, which was financially backed by his father.

He served as an assistant director on the picture.

His first producer's credit came with the 1990 film The Brave, which was also Johnny Depp's directorial debut.

Evans formed his own production company, Acappella Pictures, in 1993.

According to Evans, he began researching the life of Hughes in 1993.

In 1996, Evans optioned the book Howard Hughes: The Untold Story, by Pat H. Broeske and Peter Harry Brown.

Evans hired several writers, who produced five or six drafts of a script, but the screenplay was still not in an acceptable form.

These included several drafts of a script by Broeske and Brown, and at least one version by Dean Ollins.

Evans then met with actor Kevin Spacey, who was interested in directing the film.

Spacey helped Evans find financing, and New Regency Productions agreed to put up the money.

Screenwriter Jack Fincher was brought aboard to do another script draft.

In 1998, Evans said he had purchased a script by Frederic Raphael which adapted the 1905 Edith Wharton novel, The House of Mirth, for the big screen.

But financing and cast did not fall into placed in time, and producer Olivia Stewart's competing project made it into production first.

Evans convinced Leonardo DiCaprio to play the lead in 1998.

But DiCaprio insisted that he be allowed to pick the director.

Evans removed Spacey as the director, DiCaprio joined the production, and in December 1998 DiCaprio chose Michael Mann as the director.

(It was released in 2000.)

He was one of four producers on the 2004 Howard Hughes biopic The Aviator, although his production credit was controversial.

Evans is the nephew of former motion picture studio executive Robert Evans, and the son of fashion industry executive and motion picture producer Charles Evans.

Evans also served a producer of the 2004 Howard Hughes biopic, The Aviator.

His involvement with the film proved controversial.

Evans was also the producer and director of the 2012 documentary film Addiction Incorporated.

The documentary reports on the ways in which research scientists, corporate whistleblowers, the news media, and attorneys for smokers exposed the tobacco industry's attempts to conceal the ways in which cigarettes were made more addictive.