David Brown (producer) debut, for a motion picture. Thereafter, the pair were credited as producers or executive producers of more than a dozen films, including the courtroom drama "The Verdict" (1982), directed by Sidney Lumet and starring Paul Newman; the science-fiction "Cocoon" (1985), directed by Ron Howard; and the comedy-drama "Driving Miss Daisy" (1989), directed by Bruce Beresford and starring Jessica Tandy and Morgan Freeman. "Driving Miss Daisy" won four Academy Awards, including the Best Picture award. Without Zanuck, Brown went on to produce films including the drama "Angela's Ashes" (1999) and the romance "Chocolat" (2000). He and partner Zanuck were jointly awarded
Driving Miss Daisy was given a limited release on December 15, 1989, earning $73,745 in three theaters. The film was given a wide release on January 26, 1990, earning $5,705,721 over its opening weekend in 895 theaters, becoming the number one film in the US. It remained at number 1 the following week but was knocked off the top spot in its third weekend of wide release by "Hard to Kill". It returned to number one the next weekend and remained there for a fourth week. The film ultimately grossed $106,593,296 in North America, and $39,200,000 in other territories, for a worldwide total