Gil Kenan Biography: Wife, Age, Net Worth, Parents, Movies & TV Shows, Siblings, Career

Gil Kenan is a renowned British-American filmmaker, screenwriter, producer, and director best known for directing Monster House, City of Ember, Poltergeist, A Boy Called Christmas, and Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire.

He also co-wrote Ghostbusters: Afterlife and Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire with Jason Reitman. His work on Monster House earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Animated Feature.

Gil Kenan
Wiki Facts & About Data
Name:	Gil Kenan
Born:	October 16, 1976 (age 49 years old)
Place of Birth:	London, England, United Kingdom
Nationality:	British-American
Ethnicity:	Jewish
Religion:	Judaism
Parents:	Mr. and Mrs. Kenan
Siblings:	One brother
Spouse:	Eliza Chaikin (married 2005–present)
Relationship:	Married
Occupation:	Film Director, Screenwriter, Producer
Net Worth:	$1 million–$5 million

Early life and education

Gil Kenan was born on October 16, 1976, in London, England, to a Jewish family. His parents moved with him to Tel Aviv, Israel, when he was three years old. He has one brother. At the age of eight, Kenan and his family moved again, settling in Reseda, Los Angeles, California. His ethnicity is Jewish.

Gil Kenan developed an interest in cinema while growing up and eventually pursued filmmaking rather than continuing his early interest in theatre acting. He attended the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) School of Theater, Film and Television, where he earned a Master of Fine Arts degree in animation in 2002. His graduate thesis was The Lark, a 10-minute short combining live action and stop-motion animation.

Career

Gil Kenan began his professional filmmaking career with The Lark. The short film helped attract industry attention and led to his opportunity to direct his first feature film, Monster House, produced by Robert Zemeckis and Steven Spielberg. Released in 2006, the animated horror comedy became his breakthrough as a feature filmmaker.

1 Ken Loach Director 2 Mark Gatiss Actor 3 Charlotte Regan Director 4 Kari Corbett Actress

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Monster House earned Kenan an Academy Award nomination for Best Animated Feature and an Annie Award nomination for Directing in an Animated Feature Production. He also received a Chicago Film Critics Association nomination for Most Promising Director. The film established him as a filmmaker capable of combining animation, horror, comedy, and family-oriented storytelling.

Gil Kenan followed Monster House with City of Ember in 2008, an adventure science-fiction film starring Saoirse Ronan, Harry Treadaway, Bill Murray, and Tim Robbins. He later directed the 2015 horror film Poltergeist, a remake of the 1982 supernatural classic.

Awards and nominations

• Academy Award — Best Animated Feature: Monster House — Nominated, 2007
• Annie Award — Directing in an Animated Feature Production: Monster House — Nominated, 2007
• Chicago Film Critics Association Award — Most Promising Director: Monster House — Nominated, 2006
• St. Louis Film Critics Association Award — Best Original Screenplay: Saturday Night — Won, 2024
• Denver Film Festival — Astor Piazzola Award for Best Screenplay: Saturday Night — Won, 2024
• Georgia Film Critics Association — Oglethorpe Award for Excellence in Georgia Cinema: Saturday Night — Nominated, 2025

Personal life

Gil Kenan, 49 years old, has been married to Eliza Chaikin since 2005. Chaikin worked as an art director on City of Ember. The couple has maintained a relatively private family life. Details about their children are unknown.

Gil Kenan‘s major creative interests include animation, horror, fantasy, science fiction, and visual storytelling. His filmmaking influences include directors and artists such as David Lynch, Richard Elfman, Lotte Reiniger, Zbigniew Rybczyński, Alfred Hitchcock, Terry Gilliam, and Steven Spielberg.

Net worth

Gil Kenan‘s net worth is $1 million–$5 million USD. His income comes primarily from directing, screenwriting, producing, and other filmmaking activities. His work on Monster House, City of Ember, Poltergeist, A Boy Called Christmas, Ghostbusters: Afterlife, Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, and Saturday Night has contributed to his professional earnings.

Filmography

• Monster House
• City of Ember
• Poltergeist
• A Boy Called Christmas
• Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire

Upcoming

• SNL 1975 — Screenwriter and producer

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