Ang Lee almost retired after the Hulk. His father persuaded him not to. He won the Best Director Oscar the next year!
Ang Lee is a Taiwanese-born American film director. He’s directed Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Sense and Sensibility, and Hulk. Lee has spent much time filming Asian genres. In 2003, he returned to direct Hulk. It was his first big-budget film. The movie received mixed reviews, but was ultimately moderately successful. Lee thought about retiring due to the setback, but his father encouraged him to stick with making movies.
Lee then took on a low-profile and independent film based on a Pulitzer Prize finalist short story by Annie Proulx. The film, Brokeback Mountain, showcased Lee’s ability to probe the depths of the human heart. The film caught the public’s attention and became a cultural phenomenon and a major box-office hit. It was critically acclaimed at numerous international film festivals and he received numerous Best Director and Best Picture awards worldwide. He was the first Asian to ever win the Best Director award at the Oscars.
