Scott Rudin, born in New York, New York, learned how to make instant sink-or-swim decisions while a casting director on Broadway. As a theater producer, Rudin won a Tony award for his staging of Passion.

He entered films in the early '80s, working his way up to the vice presidency and then the presidency of 20th Century Fox (1986). He left that studio when he was 29 in favor of independent production.

Among Scott Rudin's most lucrative productions have been Sister Act and The Addams Family; he has also managed to parlay "small" films like Little Man Tate (1989) into audience favorites, a gift that he hoped to utilize for his announced filmization of A Confederacy of Dunces.

Rudin, openly-gay, thanked his life partner, John Barlow, when accepting a Golden Globe award for Best Drama for his film, The Hours (2002). Rudin was ranked #18 in Premiere's 2003 annual Power 100 List. He had ranked #26 in 2002.