Jason Ferus Blum (; born February 20, 1969) is an American producer. He is the founder and CEO of Blumhouse Productions, best known for horror franchises including Paranormal Activity (2007–2021), Insidious (2010–present), The Purge (2013–2021), and Halloween (2018–2022).
Other Blumhouse films include Sinister (2012), Oculus (2013), Whiplash (2014), The Gallows (2015), The Gift (2015), Hush (2016), Split (2016), Ouija: Origin of Evil (2016), Get Out (2017), Happy Death Day (2017), Upgrade (2018), BlacKkKlansman (2018), Us (2019), The Invisible Man (2020), Freaky (2020), The Black Phone (2021), M3GAN (2022), Five Nights at Freddy's (2023), Speak No Evil (2024), and Obsession (2025).
Blum was nominated to receive the Academy Award for Best Picture for Whiplash, Get Out, and BlacKkKlansman. He won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Television Movie for the drama film The Normal Heart (2014) and a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series for the documentary miniseries The Jinx (2015). He also received a nomination for the Tony Award for Best Musical for Death Becomes Her (2024).
Early life Jason Ferus Blum "Jason Ferus Blum was born in Los Angeles in 1969 to Shirley Neilsen, an art professor, and Irving Blum, an art dealer" was born in Los Angeles on February 20, 1969, the son of art professor Shirley Neilsen Blum (née Neilsen) and independent art dealer Irving Blum. His father served as director of the Ferus Gallery. He graduated from New York's Vassar College in 1991. He was a roommate of future filmmaker Noah Baumbach during his time there, and later produced Baumbach's first film Kicking and Screaming (1995).
Career
Blum found work as an executive for Bob and Harvey Weinstein at their production company Miramax, and later as an independent producer for Paramount Pictures. Prior to his tenure at Miramax, he was a producing director at the Malaparte theater company in New York. He is a member of the board of trustees of the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures. He obtained financing for his first film as producer, Kicking and Screaming (1995), after asking family friend Steve Martin to read the script and write a letter endorsing it if he enjoyed it. After Martin obliged, Blum replaced the title page of the script with copies of Martin's letter before he sent the script to Hollywood executives.
In 2000, Blum founded Blumhouse Productions, which is known for producing micro-budget films that give directors full creative control. Bloomberg News praised him for making "blockbusters for pennies", the first example of which came with the horror film Paranormal Activity (2007), which became one of the most profitable films of all time as it grossed nearly $200 million on a $15,000 budget. In addition, Planet Money released a special podcast episode about the company's methods, referring to Blum as the "business genius behind Get Out".Blum also produced Insidious (2010), Sinister (2012), The Purge (2013) and Happy Death Day (2017), as well as their sequels. In 2014, he served as executive producer for the television film The Normal Heart, which went on to win the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Television Movie. In 2015, he won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series for HBO's The Jinx. BlacKkKlansman, Whiplash, and Get Out, all produced by Blum, were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture.
In 2018, Blum said in an interview that the reason no woman had ever directed a Blumhouse horror film was that "there are not a lot of female directors [...] and even less who are inclined to do horror", but said that he hoped to one day achieve this goal. After much criticism on social media, in which lists of such directors were widely circulated, he apologized for what he called his "dumb comments". Sophia Takal co-wrote and directed the Blumhouse horror remake Black Christmas (2019), the studio's first theatrically released film by a female director.
Other ventures Political views In June 2018, Blum told Variety that his upcoming prequel The First Purge would deal with racial tensions in the U.S. and said that all of the films in The Purge franchise have a political slant, giving examples such as the first film primarily being a parable about gun control and the third film addressing class warfare. He said, "[Horror] reaches an audience in which politics may not be front of mind and it makes politics front of mind. The Purge reaches an audience that isn't thinking of gun control every day and might start thinking of gun control. If every time there's a shooting in the United States, the government's answer is put more guns in people's hands, then what The Purge is showing doesn't seem all that crazy. Donald Trump keeps saying 'give teachers guns'. I could see him saying 'let people shoot whoever they want to for 12 hours a year'."
In November 2018, Blum (who is of Jewish heritage) attended the Israel Film Festival in Los Angeles to accept an award for Achievement in Film and Television. In his acceptance speech, he said, "A lot is on the line [in the midterms]. The last two years have been hard for all of us who cherish the freedom as citizens of this country. The great thing about this country is that you can like Trump, but I don't have to, and I can say what I feel about itand I don't like it." He was heavily booed, to which he responded, "As you can see from this auditorium, it's the end of civil discourse. We have a president who calls the press the enemy of the people. Thanks to our president, antisemitism is on the rise." Yossi Dina tried unsuccessfully to pull Blum off the stage. Blum later tweeted the full speech, which said in part, "Nationalism is surging. Dog whistle politics are rampant and antisemitism is on the rise in ways my generation never thought imaginable." He received support from fellow Jews such as Judd Apatow and Jamie Lee Curtis, while festival director Meir Fenigstein stated that the audience "greatly lacked respect" and "turned an evening of celebration and recognition into something else" by booing him.
Business On August 14, 2020, Daily Front Row listed Blum as one of a group of high-profile investors who purchased failing fashion magazine W. After appearing on an episode of Shark Tank, Blum made a deal with American Immersion Theater, the leading immersive theater company in the U.S.
Philanthropy In 2022, Blum donated $10 million to Vassar College, which was noted as the largest gift ever given to the college from a male alumnus. Blum sits on the boards of the Public Theater in New York, the Sundance Institute, Vassar College, and the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures.
Personal life Blum married journalist Lauren A. E. Schuker in Los Angeles on July 14, 2012. The couple has two daughters (born 2015, 2021) and one son (born 2018).Anya Leon, Karen Mizoguchi: Blumhouse CEO and Horror Film Producer Jason Blum Welcomes Third Baby, Daughter Bette Sue. people.com, April 29, 2021. They currently reside in a townhouse in Brooklyn Heights, which he purchased for $9.8 million in 2019.
Filmography
Film Universal Pictures Producer Year Title Director Notes 2013 The Purge James DeMonaco2014 Not Safe for Work Joe Johnston The Purge: Anarchy James DeMonaco Mockingbird Bryan Bertino Mercy Peter Cornwell Stretch Joe Carnahan Ouija Stiles White2015 The Boy Next Door Rob Cohen Visions Kevin Greutert The Visit M. Night Shyamalan Curve Iain Softley Jem and the Holograms Jon M. Chu2016 The Veil Phil Joanou Direct-to-video The Purge: Election Year James DeMonaco Split M. Night Shyamalan Ouija: Origin of Evil Mike Flanagan2017 Get Out Jordan Peele Stephanie Akiva Goldsman The Keeping Hours Karen Moncrieff Happy Death Day Christopher Landon2018 Insidious: The Last Key Adam Robitel Unfriended: Dark Web Stephen Susco Through OTL Releasing Upgrade Leigh Whannell Truth or Dare Jeff Wadlow Delirium Dennis Iliadis Direct-to-video The First Purge Gerard McMurray Halloween David Gordon Green Seven in Heaven Chris Eigeman2019 Glass M. Night Shyamalan Don't Let Go Jacob Aaron Estes Through OTL Releasing Sweetheart J. D. Dillard Happy Death Day 2U Christopher Landon Us Jordan Peele Ma Tate Taylor Black Christmas Sophia Takal2020 The Invisible Man Leigh Whannell The Hunt Craig Zobel You Should Have Left David Koepp Freaky Christopher Landon2021 The Forever Purge Everardo Gout This Is The Night James DeMonaco Halloween Kills David Gordon Green2022 Firestarter Keith Thomas The Black Phone Scott Derrickson Halloween Ends David Gordon Green2023 M3GAN Gerard Johnstone The Exorcist: Believer David Gordon Green Five Nights at Freddy's Emma Tammi2024 Night Swim Bryce McGuire Speak No Evil James Watkins2025 Wolf Man Leigh Whannell The Woman in the Yard Jaume Collet-Serra Drop Christopher Landon M3GAN 2.0 Gerard Johnstone Black Phone 2 Scott Derrickson Five Nights at Freddy's 2 Emma Tammi2026 Soulm8te Kate Dolan The Last Kiss Yoko Okumura 2027 The Exorcist: Martyrs Mike Flanagan Post-production TBA Merrily We Roll Along Richard Linklater Filming, until at least 2040
Executive producer Unfriended (2014) River (2026)
Paramount Pictures
Producer Year Title Director Notes 2007 Paranormal Activity Oren Peli 2010 Paranormal Activity 2 Tod Williams 2011 Paranormal Activity 3 Henry JoostAriel Schulman 2012 Paranormal Activity 4 2014 Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones Christopher Landon 2015 Area 51 Oren Peli Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension Gregory Plotkin 2021 Paranormal Activity: Next of Kin William Eubank Via Paramount+ 2027 Paranormal Activity 8 Ian Tuason
Executive producer A House on the Bayou (2021) American Refugee (2021) Torn Hearts (2022) Unhuman (2022) The Visitor (2022) There's Something Wrong with the Children (2023) Unseen (2023) The Passenger (2023)
Lionsgate Films Year Title Director Notes 2012 Sinister Scott Derrickson The Bay Barry Levinson With Roadside Attractions 2014 Jessabelle Kevin Greutert 2019 The Gallows Act II Chris LofingTravis Cluff 2024 Imaginary Jeff Wadlow
Focus Features Year Title Director Notes 2015 Insidious: Chapter 3 Leigh Whannell With Gramercy Pictures Sinister 2 Ciarán Foy 2016 In a Valley of Violence Ti West 2018 BlacKkKlansman Spike Lee Bathtubs Over Broadway Dava Whisenant Executive producer 2022 Vengeance B. J. Novak 2025 Obsession Curry Barker Executive producer 2026 The Uprising Paul Greengrass Post-production 2027 Anything but Ghosts Curry Barker Post-production
Sony Pictures Releasing Year Title Director Notes 2014 Whiplash Damien Chazelle Through Sony Pictures Classics 2020 Fantasy Island Jeff Wadlow The Craft: Legacy Zoe Lister-Jones 2023 Insidious: The Red Door Patrick Wilson 2024 Afraid Chris Weitz 2026 Insidious: Out of the Further Jacob Chase
Netflix
Producer Year Title Director Notes 2016 Hush Mike Flanagan 2018 Benji Brandon Camp 2022 Our Father Lucie Jourdan Documentary Mr. Harrigan's Phone John Lee Hancock
Executive producer A Secret Love (2020) (Documentary) Pray Away (2020) (Documentary)
Amazon MGM Studios
Executive producer Black Box (2020) Evil Eye (2020) Nocturne (2020) Bingo Hell (2021) Black as Night (2021) Madres (2021) The Manor (2021) Nanny (2022) The Bondsman (2025)
Producer The Lie (2018) Run Sweetheart Run (2020) Totally Killer (2023)
FilmDistrict
Producer Year Title Director Notes 2010 Insidious James Wan 2013 Insidious: Chapter 22016 The Darkness Greg McLean Through High Top Releasing;With BH Tilt Incarnate Brad Peyton
Executive producer The Green Inferno (2013) Sleight (2016) Birth of the Dragon (2016)
The Weinsteins
Producer Year Title Director Notes 2013 Dark Skies Scott StewartThrough Dimension Films andThe Weinstein Company 2016 Viral Henry JoostAriel SchulmanThrough Dimension Films andRADiUS-TWC 2017 Amityville: The Awakening Franck Khalfoun
Executive producer Hamlet (2000) The Adventures of Tom Thumb and Thumbelina (2002) The Reader (2008) Lawless (2012) 13 Sins (2014)
Other