The Truth About Hairdresser Turned Movie Mogul Jon Peters
He rose to fame as Barbra Streisand's boyfriend back in the '70s and '80s. He then parlayed his Hollywood connections into a hugely successful career, overseeing blockbuster movie franchises like "Batman" before his partnership with Peter Guber cost Sony more than $3 billion, according to "Hit & Run: How Jon Peters and Peter Guber Took Sony for a Ride in Hollywood." He is known for the art of self promotion, making deals happen, and making his share of adversaries along the way.
The Hollywood Reporter described Peters' relationship with Streisand as the springboard for it all: "He was her hairdresser, then her lover and producer on such films as 1976's 'A Star Is Born,' then one of the most powerful, fearsome men in Hollywood."
His life has been about shining a spotlight on the stories of others, but he's also made headlines for his own life story. Peters' journey is full of enough intrigue, drama, and plot twists to satiate any avid moviegoer. But none of this was scripted. This is the truth about the real Jon Peters.
Jon Peters dropped out of junior high
Just before the release of "A Star Is Born," Barbara Walters asked Jon Peters how he feels about people who dismiss him as just a hairdresser or call him a "hustler." He replied, "I've hustled my whole life to get what I want to do for my life." And hustle he has.
Peters admitted to Walters that he got into trouble as a kid, even spending some time in juvenile hall. Per "Hit & Run: How Jon Peters and Peter Guber Took Sony for a Ride in Hollywood," he dropped out of school when he was in junior high and then enrolled in beauty school. "There were lots of beautiful women there," told Walters with a smile. It was a fateful decision, to say the least.
After working at a family-owned salon on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills, Peters eventually opened his own salon, per Vanity Fair. He also amassed a sizable celebrity clientele, all the while learning the secrets of his rich and famous customers and inserting himself into the lives of Hollywood's most influential people. In 1973, he was offered an opportunity to design a wig for Barbra Streisand's movie "For Pete's Sake" and soon he was hitching his wagon to that movie's star.
He and Barbra Streisand were a power couple
"He's very strong but he's also sensitive and creative," Barbra Streisand told People in 1983 about Jon Peters, who was married to Lesley Ann Warren when they met. "And he has a great zest for life. He loves to build things, and so do I." They built a legacy together, with him producing Streisand's album "Butterfly" and the film "A Star Is Born."
The impressive success of the film at the box office, combined with Grammy and Academy Awards, gave Peters the producing credit he needed to take his silver screen dreams to the next level. Peters, who has been divorced four times, told The Hollywood Reporter in 2017 that Streisand was "probably the love of my life." However, things began to flame out about eight years into the relationship, the "Evergreen" singer told People. "I was passionately involved in 'Yentl,' and neglecting him," she said.
The "Funny Girl" star continued, "We had also been too dependent on each other. And you come to resent dependency." Both parties agreed there was no bad blood there and they have remained friends. "She was the most captivating, interesting, creative person I have ever met," Peters shared with THR. "I owe her. I will always owe her for giving me the life that I've had."
Jon Peters made millions with Peter Guber
In 1980, Jon Peters joined forces with former Filmworks executive Peter Guber to establish their own production company called Boardwalk, which was responsible for a string of hit movies including "Flashdance, "Rain Man" and "The Witches of Eastwick," per The Hollywood Reporter. Then, they were offered a major producing deal with Warner Brothers, where they produced "Batman." The forerunner of all other superhero franchises to come, "Batman" changed everything.
In 1989, Sony named Peters and Guber co-chairmen and paid Warner Brothers $500 million to release them from their contracts. Never mind the fact that neither of them had any experience running a studio. In "Hit & Run" (via EW), Nancy Griffin and Kim Masters wrote that one source contended that handing the reins over to the duo was "the most public screwing in the history of the business."
According to THR, the reign of Peters and Guber at Sony "was marked by wild spending (Heidi Fleiss ['madam of Hollywood'] was a billable service) and mild box-office returns." In a 1994 interview with Vanity Fair, Floss described Peters as "a huge client. ... He was the guy everyone went to when they wanted a girl."
The bitter end for Jon Peters and Peter Guber
While Jon Peters was at Sony, he pulled an expensive stunt or two, like when he used the company jet for a personal errand. At the time, the New York Post (via "Hit & Run") reported Bruce Willis was originally supposed to have access to the aircraft to get to a gig, but Peters apparently jumped ahead of him the queue to send a jet "laden with flowers to the East Coast to court a lady." As EW put it, "his antics became too much of a liability" for the company, and Peter Guber fired Peters in 1991 — effectively dashing the dynamic duo. Guber would get the chop just years later.
Guber wouldn't give THR a comment about the dissolution of their partnership, but Peters indicated that they hand a strong bond when they worked together. He told the outlet that they attended therapy together "to talk about our differences" and, according to "Hit & Run" (via EW), would occasionally hold hands during the sessions. "We loved each other...he was my everything, and I was the same to him," he said to The Hollywood Reporter. "Peter... cheated me out of a lot of money and turned into someone different than I knew for 15 years."
When word got out in 2009 that Peters planned to put out a memoir that would include stories about his former business partner, Guber was dismissive. He told Deadline, "I find it surprising that any publisher would be interested in his work of fiction." Eesh.
Jon Peters has been accused of sexual harassment
In the book "Hit & Run: How Jon Peters and Peter Guber Took Sony for a Ride in Hollywood" (via EW), various sources told writers Nancy Griffin and Kim Masters that being on set with Jon Peters meant being subjected to yelling and threats of physical violence. What's more, he's been accused of at least five different incidents of sexual harassment. According to The Hollywood Reporter, in 2005, his former personal assistant Shelly Morita accused Peters of exposing himself to her and her child during the filming of "Superman Returns."
Based on reports about the lawsuit, Morita did her best to tolerate some unwelcome behavior from Peters for about a year that began in early 2005. "I was a single parent, I was nervous to quit," she told Jezebel. "I think I would have gone away and never done anything, but he crossed the line with my daughter." As Jezebel pointed out, Morita's case is the only one that was not "dismissed before they could go to trial."
In the courtroom, Morita claimed Peters crawled into her bed uninvited and fondled her. She also testified that he used his clout in Hollywood to prevent her from getting another job after she quit, per THR. According to Reuters, Peters denied all allegations. In 2011, the jury sided with Morita and ordered Peters to pay her $3.3 million for lost wages and punitive damages.
What Bradley Cooper has to say about Jon Peters
In the 2021 film "Licorice Pizza,” Bradley Cooper plays "a monster version of Jon Peters," director Paul Thomas Anderson said in Variety. The filmmaker went on to explain how he created the character: "I took everything I'd heard about any Hollywood producer of that time that had a reputation for a lot of bravado and aggro energy, and placed it there."
This was not the first time Cooper and Peters' paths crossed. The hairstylist turned movie mogul was a producer on Cooper's 2018 remake of "A Star Is Born" — a collaboration that came under fire when sexual harassment allegations against Peters surfaced just before the release of the flick. Cooper, who was a producer, director, star, and writer on the movie, told NPR in September of that year that he had not been aware of the accusations and Peters was only included because of his involvement in one of the earlier versions. "If I had known all those things, I would have done it differently," he said. "I wanted to make the movie, I knew I had to get consent from him, otherwise there's no film."
In the end, "The Hangover" star got everything he wanted. In the wake of the sexual harassment lawsuits, the Producers Guild of America stepped in and decided Peters would not be recognized as a producer on the film. per The Hollywood Reporter. "On the set, you have to create an environment where everybody feels safe," Cooper said to NPR. "Luckily, Jon wasn't there."
Did Jon Peters marry Pamela Anderson?
On January 20, 2020, Pamela Anderson and Jon Peters tied the knot in a private ceremony in Malibu. Peters said it was actually rekindling an old flame that began when the two met over three decades earlier at the Playboy mansion. Peters told The Hollywood Reporter, "There are beautiful girls everywhere. I could have my pick, but — for 35 years — I've only wanted Pamela."
After the news broke of their split just 12 days later, the "Baywatch" alum announced their split in a statement to E!: "We would be very grateful for your support as we take some time apart to re-evaluate what we want from life and from one another." Fast forward to January 2021, the Playboy cover girl revealed that she secretly married her bodyguard, Dan Hayhurst.
As for the Jon Peters debacle? "We were never married," she told the Daily Mail. "He is a movie maker and... I guess he just needed a little attention?" A source familiar with the actor told The Hollywood Reporter the marriage certificate was never filed. Of course, Peters wasn't taking this lying down. He fired back to Page Six that he was the one who ended it. "I dropped everything for Pam," he said. 'She had almost $200,000 in bills and no way to pay it so I paid it and this is the thanks I get. There's no fool like an old fool."
Jon Peters' fourth wife's super-sized lawsuit
Jon Peters has said "I do" to five different women and fathered five children. Before Pamela Anderson, there was Henrietta Zampitella, actor Lesley Ann Warren, and producer Christine Forsyth-Peters, per Us Weekly. But it was a lawsuit from fourth wife Mindy Peters that came back to bite him.
In 2016, Mindy sued her ex for $500,000 for her share of the profits from "Man of Steel." Mindy claimed Jon "made a voluntary gift to her in writing...that transfers a 10 percent share of his stake in the franchise" and that he lied to her about profits he received from the movie, per The Hollywood Reporter.
One might wonder why someone like Jon Peters would sign that "voluntary gift" in the first place. (Did Mindy discover his secret kryptonite or something?) However, as THR reported, Jon evidently once wrote, "Dear Mindy I love you with all my heart and have for 14 years... Therefore, I want you to have 10% of my take of Superman 2-3-4.... Love JP."
The lawsuit was settled a few months later and no details were disclosed, per MyNewsLA. Considering the fact that Jon collected $85 million through backend deals for "Superman" and "Man of Steel," per The Hollywood Reporter, we doubt that Mindy will ever be needing the services of a caped crusader to save her from anything.
Jon Peters wants to leave a legacy
After the media frenzy surrounding his marriage to Pamela Anderson, the producer reached out to Us Weekly in 2020 to share the parting text message he sent to his former wife. "It made me realize that at 74 I need a simple quiet life and not an international love affair," he wrote. Just a few weeks after the split, Peters announced his plans to walk down the aisle a sixth time with actor Julia Bernheim.
He may be able to lead a relatively quiet life, but there's nothing simple about his fortune: The guy who proudly called himself the "Trump of Hollywood" in a 2017 The Hollywood Reporter profile is worth approximately $300 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth. He's spent that money on real estate, including a sprawling ranch in Santa Barbara and a pricy Wilshire Corridor condo. (Per Dirt, he put the latter up on the market in 2019 for over $4 million.) "Everybody's reclusive when you make a certain amount of money," he told THR. "Especially if you've had a tough life, you try to fortify yourself with your friends and kind of keep the world out."
As much success as Peters has achieved, he believes he's been shortchanged to some degree. "I never got credit for producing 100 movies, for running Sony, for coming from the street, becoming the chairman," he added. "It was always negative. 'Hairdresser Jon.'"