James Foley

• Name — James Foley • Born — 28 December 1953 • Birthplace — New York City, U.S. • Died — 6 May 2025 • Place of death — Los Angeles, California, U.S. • Occupation — Director, screenwriter • Years Active — 1984–2018 • Other Names — Peter Percher

Foley was born in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, New York, on December 28, 1953, but grew up in Staten Island, New York, the son of a lawyer. He graduated from the State University of New York at Buffalo, a flagship school of the SUNY system, in 1974, with a degree in psychology. While he initially planned to become a doctor, he decided to pursue filmmaking instead, and went on to earn an MFA in film study and production from the University of Southern California in 1979. During his final year there, director Hal Ashby noticed his student film when it was projected on the wall during a film-school projection party and urged him to write something for Ashby's newly formed production company. The company went broke before Foley finished writing, but the stamp of approval was enough to get his career started with his first directing gig on the low budget 1984 teen drama Reckless. In his own assessment, Foley said: “Because Hal Ashby had hired me, I became viable in that weird calculus of Hollywood just because someone else who was respected thought that I was viable”.

In 1984, Foley made his directorial debut with Reckless, which starred Aidan Quinn and Daryl Hannah. His 1986 film At Close Range was entered into the 36th Berlin International Film Festival. In 1990, he wrote and directed After Dark, My Sweet, an adaptation of the Jim Thompson novel of the same name. Film critic Roger Ebert included the film as part of his Great Movies list saying, "After Dark, My Sweet is the movie that eluded audiences; it grossed less than $3 million, has been almost forgotten, and remains one of the purest and most uncompromising of modern film noir. It captures above all the lonely, exhausted lives of its characters." He directed Glengarry Glen Ross, based on the play of the same name by David Mamet, in 1992. The Chamber was based on the novel of the same name by author John Grisham. The Corruptor, his action film starring Chow Yun-Fat and Mark Wahlberg, was released in 1999. His 2003 film, Confidence, starred Edward Burns. He directed Perfect Stranger, a thriller film starring Halle Berry, in 2007. His last films were the two sequels to Fifty Shades of Grey: Fifty Shades Darker (2017) and Fifty Shades Freed (2018). Foley also directed for television, including 12 episodes of the Netflix series House of Cards. He often collaborated with cinematographer Juan Ruiz Anchía, having made five films with him, as well as Madonna's "Live to Tell" music video.

Foley died from brain cancer at his home in Los Angeles, on May 6, 2025, at the age of 71.

Film • Reckless (1984) • At Close Range (1986) • Who's That Girl (1987) • After Dark, My Sweet (1990) (Also writer) • Glengarry Glen Ross (1992) • Two Bits (1995) • Fear (1996) • The Chamber (1996) • The Corruptor (1999) • Confidence (2003) • Perfect Stranger (2007) • Fifty Shades Darker (2017) • Fifty Shades Freed (2018) Television • Year — Title — Notes • 1991 — Twin Peaks — Episode "Wounds and Scars" • 1997 — Gun — Episode "The Shot" • 2004 — Hollywood Division — TV movie • 2013 — Hannibal — Episode "Sorbet" • 2013–2015 — House of Cards — 12 episodes • 2014 — Red Zone — TV movie • 2015 — Wayward Pines — Episode "The Truth" • 2016 — Billions — Episodes "Short Squeeze" and "The Deal"

Besides the film Who's That Girl (1987), Foley directed the following music videos for Madonna (under the pseudonym "Peter Percher"). • "Live to Tell" (1986) • "Papa Don't Preach" (1986) • "True Blue" (1986) Foley was also the best man at Madonna's wedding to Sean Penn, although as of 2025, they were not on speaking terms.