Stella Meghie

{{Infobox person

| name = Stella Meghie

| image = Stella Meghie in 2020.png

| alt = Photograph of director Stella Meghie sitting at an event in 2020.

| caption = Meghie in 2020

| birth_place = Toronto, Ontario, Canada

| alma_mater = {{hlist|University of Waterloo|University of Westminster}}

| occupation = Director, writer, producer

| years_active = 2012–present

| known_for = Jean of the Joneses, The Weekend, The Photograph

}}

Stella Meghie is a Canadian film director and screenwriter. She is known for her feature films Jean of the Joneses (2016), Everything, Everything (2017), The Weekend (2018), and The Photograph (2020).[http://www.ctvnews.ca/entertainment/canadian-director-stella-meghie-on-how-her-indie-film-led-her-to-hollywood-1.3069643 "Canadian director Stella Meghie on how her indie film led her to Hollywood"]. CTV News, September 13, 2016. Meghie has also directed episodes for television series including Grown-ish, Insecure, and First Wives Club.

For her debut feature, Meghie was nominated for Best First Screenplay at the Independent Spirit Awards.{{Cite web |last=Dry |first=Jude |date=2017-02-25 |title=Robert Eggers Wins Independent Spirit Best First Screenplay Award For 'The Witch' |url=https://www.indiewire.com/2017/02/robert-eggers-independent-spirit-best-first-screenplay-award-witch-1201787020/ |website=IndieWire |access-date=2021-02-23 }} She has also received nominations from the Canadian Screen Awards and NAACP Image Awards.{{Cite web |title=CBC Films - Jean of the Joneses |url=https://www.cbc.ca/films/more/jean-of-the-joneses#:~:text=The%20film%20received%20two%20nominations,-of-age%20tale.%22 |access-date=2021-02-23 |website=www.cbc.ca }}{{Cite news |title=Ava DuVernay named Entertainer of the Year at the 49th NAACP Image Awards - The Los Angeles Times |url=https://envelope.latimes.com/awards/naacp-image/2018/ |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |access-date=2022-02-13 }}

Early life

Meghie was born in Toronto, Ontario to Jamaican immigrant parents.[http://www.ebony.com/entertainment-culture/stella-meghie-jean-joneses#axzz4W60812L9 "‘Jean of the Joneses’ Director Stella Meghie Is One to Watch"]. Ebony, October 21, 2016. She pursued a degree in writing at the University of Waterloo, before beginning a career as a public relations agent in New York City's fashion industry.{{Cite web|last=Parris|first=Amanda|date=May 19, 2017|title=In the 2010s, Stella Meghie proved that Canadian women of colour can take over Hollywood|url=https://www.cbc.ca/artsprojects/the2010s/stella-meghie-proved-that-black-canadian-women-can-take-over-hollywood}} In 2007, she quit her job to return to school and received a degree in screenwriting from the University of Westminster.[http://www.cbc.ca/radio/q/schedule-for-wednesday-november-16-2016-1.3851406/stella-meghie-makes-her-directorial-debut-with-jean-of-the-joneses-1.3851800 "Stella Meghie makes her directorial debut with Jean of the Joneses"]. Q, November 16, 2016.

Career

In 2016, Meghie made her feature film debut with the indie comedy-drama Jean of the Joneses which premiered at the SXSW Film Festival.{{cite web|last1=Boykin|first1=Eboni|title=SXSW 2016 Women Directors: Meet Stella Meghie – 'Jean of the Joneses'|url=http://www.indiewire.com/2016/03/sxsw-2016-women-directors-meet-stella-meghie-jean-of-the-joneses-240583/|date=March 11, 2016|access-date=July 20, 2016}} The film received a nomination for Best First Screenplay at the Independent Spirit Awards and two Canadian Screen Award nominations at the 5th Canadian Screen Awards in 2017. Meghie was also nominated in the Best Original Screenplay category.[https://nowtoronto.com/movies/features/canadian-screen-awards-nominations-are-out/ "The Canadian Screen Awards nominations are out!"]. Now, January 17, 2017.

After her first picture, Meghie began work on studio features. She directed the romance film Everything, Everything (2017), an adaptation of the New York Times best selling novel Everything, Everything.{{cite web |last1=Kit |first1=Boris |last2=Ford |first2=Rebecca |title=Amandla Stenberg, Nick Robinson to Star in 'Everything Everything' (Exclusive) |website=The Hollywood Reporter |url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/amandla-stenberg-nick-robinson-star-912150 |date=July 20, 2016|access-date=July 20, 2016}} The film starred Amandla Stenberg and Nick Robinson and was a commercial success, grossing $61 million worldwide on a production budget of $10 million.{{Cite web |title=Everything, Everything |url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/release/rl2181137921/ |website=Box Office Mojo |access-date=2021-02-23 }}

Marking her return to indie features, Meghie's film The Weekend premiered at the 2018 Toronto International Film Festival.{{cite news |last1=ANDERSON |first1=TRE'VELL |title=Stella Meghie and Sasheer Zamata bring the black rom-com to Toronto with 'The Weekend' |url=http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-stella-meghie-sasheer-zamata-the-weekend-20180911-story.html |access-date=12 September 2018 }} The indie film was shot in just under two weeks from a script Meghie had written years prior.{{Cite magazine|last=Desta|first=Yohana |title=The Weekend: Stella Meghie's Chamber Comedy Is Catnip for Autumn Enthusiasts |url=https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2019/09/stella-meghie-the-weekend-movie-interview |magazine=Vanity Fair |access-date=2021-02-23}}

In 2020, Meghie directed her fourth feature film, The Photograph. The film was inspired by Meghie's own grandmother who reconnected with a daughter she had not seen in almost thirty years.{{Cite web |date=December 6, 2020 |author=SYDNEY SCOTT |title='The Photograph' Writer Reveals Film Is Based On Her Grandmother Who Had A Daughter She Hadn't Seen In 30 Years |url=https://www.essence.com/entertainment/only-essence/the-photograph-stella-meghie-grandmother/ |website=Essence |access-date=2021-02-23 }} Starring Issa Rae and Lakeith Stanfield, the film received generally favourable reviews and grossed $20 million.{{Cite web|title=The Photograph |url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/release/rl1655931393/?ref_=bo_hm_rs|access-date=2021-02-23|website=Box Office Mojo}}{{Citation|title=The Photograph (2020)|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_photograph_2020 |access-date=2021-02-23 }}

Meghie was slated to direct a Whitney Houston biopic for Sony Pictures titled Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody from a screenplay written by Anthony McCarten{{Cite web |date=2020-08-04 |title=Sony Picks Up Whitney Houston Biopic 'I Wanna Dance With Somebody'|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/sony-picks-up-whitney-houston-biopic-i-wanna-dance-somebody-1305861 |website=The Hollywood Reporter |access-date=2021-02-23 }} and with Naomi Ackie set to star as Houston.{{Cite web |date=2020-12-15 |title=Whitney Houston Biopic Finds Its Star in Naomi Ackie (Exclusive) |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/whitney-houston-biopic-finds-its-star-in-naomi-ackie-exclusive |website=The Hollywood Reporter |access-date=2021-02-23 }} Kasi Lemmons ultimately took over directing duties though Meghie remained an executive producer.

Meghie is also set to executive-produce The Princess and the Frog spin-off series Tiana.{{Cite web |last=Otterson |first=Joe |date=2023-10-09 |title='Tiana' Disney+ Animated Series Sets Joyce Sherri as Lead Writer, Director (EXCLUSIVE) |url=https://variety.com/2023/tv/news/tiana-disney-plus-animated-series-joyce-sherri-lead-writer-director-1235749236/ |access-date=2023-10-09 |website=Variety |language=en-US}} She was also originally hired as writer and director,{{Cite web|title=#Tiana FIRST LOOK Concept Art: The new long-form musical series, directed and written by Stella Meghie (@stellamink), comes to #DisneyPlus in 2023. The series follows newly crowned Princess of Maldonia on a new adventure, but her New Orleans past isn't far behind 👑#DisneyPlusDay|url=https://twitter.com/disneyplus/status/1459195624591560704 |website=Twitter |access-date=2021-11-12}} but was replaced in those capacities by Joyce Sherri by October 2023.

On February 22, 2023, it was announced that Meghie would direct multiple episodes of the Disney+ series Wonder Man, set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.{{Cite web |last=Kroll |first=Justin |date=February 22, 2023 |title=Stella Meghie To Direct Episodes Of Marvel Studios' 'Wonder Man' Starring Yahya Abdul-Mateen II |url=https://deadline.com/2023/02/stella-meghie-marvel-studios-wonder-man-yahya-abdul-mateen-ii-1235267228/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230222191911/https://deadline.com/2023/02/stella-meghie-marvel-studios-wonder-man-yahya-abdul-mateen-ii-1235267228/ |archive-date=February 22, 2023 |access-date=February 22, 2023 |website=Deadline Hollywood}}

Filmography

= Feature films =

class="wikitable sortable"
rowspan="2" \| Year ! rowspan="2" \| Film ! colspan="4" \| Credited as ! rowspan="2" \| Notes
width="65" \| Director ! width="65" \| Writer ! width="65" \| Producer ! width="65" \| Other
2016 \|Jean of the Joneses \| {{Yes}} \| {{Yes}} \| {{Yes}} \| {{No}} \|
2017 \|Everything, Everything \| {{Yes}} \| {{No}} \| {{No}} \| {{No}} \|
2018 \|The Weekend \| {{Yes}} \| {{Yes}} \| {{Yes}} \| {{No}} \|
2020 \|The Photograph \| {{Yes}} \| {{Yes}} \| {{No}} \| {{No}} \|
2021 \|Encanto \| {{No}} \| {{No}} \| {{No}} \| {{Yes}} \| Creative leadership
2022 \|Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody \| {{No}} \| {{No}} \| {{Partial\|Executive}} \| {{No}} \|

class="wikitable sortable"

rowspan="2" | Year

! rowspan="2" | Film

! colspan="4" | Credited as

! rowspan="2" | Notes

width="65" | Director

! width="65" | Writer

! width="65" | Producer

! width="65" | Other

2016

|Jean of the Joneses

| {{Yes}}

| {{No}}

2017

|Everything, Everything

| {{Yes}}

| {{No}}

2018

|The Weekend

| {{Yes}}

| {{No}}

2020

|The Photograph

| {{Yes}}

| {{No}}

2021

|Encanto

| {{No}}

| {{Yes}}

| Creative leadership

2022

|Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody

| {{No}}

| {{Partial|Executive}}

| {{No}}

= Television =

class="wikitable"
rowspan="2" \| Year ! rowspan="2" \| Title ! colspan="2" \| Credited as ! rowspan="2" \| Episode(s)
width="65" \| Director ! width="65" \| Producer
2018-2019 \| Grown-ish \| {{Yes}} \| {{No}} \| "Bitch, Don't Kill My Vibe", "Fake Love"
2017 \|Insecure \| {{Yes}} \| {{No}} \| "Fresh-Like", "Lowkey Movin' On"
2018 \| First Wives Club \| {{Yes}} \| {{No}} \| "The Glow Up"
2025 \| Wonder Man \| {{Yes}} \| {{No}} \| Post-production
TBA \| Tiana \| {{No}} \| {{Yes\|Executive}} \|

class="wikitable"

rowspan="2" | Year

! rowspan="2" | Title

! colspan="2" | Credited as

! rowspan="2" | Episode(s)

width="65" | Director

! width="65" | Producer

2018-2019

| Grown-ish

| {{Yes}}

| {{No}}

| "Bitch, Don't Kill My Vibe", "Fake Love"