{"id":512628,"date":"2026-06-01T07:15:11","date_gmt":"2026-06-01T07:15:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/512628\/"},"modified":"2026-06-01T07:15:11","modified_gmt":"2026-06-01T07:15:11","slug":"steven-spielberg-79-said-his-wife-gave-him-one-rule-before-he-started-dreamworks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/512628\/","title":{"rendered":"Steven Spielberg, 79, said his wife gave him one rule before he started DreamWorks"},"content":{"rendered":"<ul class=\"mb-4\">\n<li class=\"ml-4 list-disc\">\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Steven Spielberg, 79, said his wife made one request before he started DreamWorks.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"ml-4 list-disc\">\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The job had to function like a 9-to-5 role, with Spielberg home in time for dinner with his kids.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"ml-4 list-disc\">\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;It&#8217;s going to be a real time drain for me, and I need to be with my family,&#8221; Spielberg said.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\"><a class=\"link \" href=\"https:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/steven-spielberg-movies-ranked-from-worst-to-best?utm_medium=syndication&amp;utm_source=yahoo&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_source=yahoocom\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"elm:link;elmt:article_link;slk:Steven Spielberg;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;Steven Spielberg&quot;}\">Steven Spielberg<\/a>, 79, said he only agreed to <a class=\"link \" href=\"https:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/dreamworks-cofounder-ai-is-amazing-resource-for-hollywood-2024-12?utm_medium=syndication&amp;utm_source=yahoo&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_source=yahoocom\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"elm:link;elmt:article_link;slk:start DreamWorks;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;start DreamWorks&quot;}\">start DreamWorks<\/a> if it would be a <a class=\"link \" href=\"https:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/gen-z-workers-shocked-by-nine-to-five-work-schedule-2023-11?utm_medium=syndication&amp;utm_source=yahoo&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_source=yahoocom\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"elm:link;elmt:article_link;slk:9-to-5 job;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;9-to-5 job&quot;}\">9-to-5 job<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Speaking to Michelle Obama and Craig Robinson on the latest episode of the <a class=\"link \" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=Orr-EnuJf4o\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"elm:link;elmt:article_link;slk:&quot;IMO&quot; podcast;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;&amp;quot&quot;}\">&#8220;IMO&#8221; podcast<\/a>, Spielberg said that balancing family life with filmmaking was difficult.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;One of the biggest challenges is just running out of excuses why I can&#8217;t get home for dinner. Because it&#8217;s my loss. It&#8217;s their loss, but it&#8217;s also my loss,&#8221; Spielberg said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The filmmaker married the actor, Kate Capshaw, in 1991. Together, they raised seven kids, including four children they had together, Spielberg&#8217;s son from a previous marriage, and Capshaw&#8217;s two older children.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">That family-first mindset even influenced one of the biggest business decisions of Spielberg&#8217;s career.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">When Spielberg was considering joining David Geffen and Jeffrey Katzenberg to launch DreamWorks, his wife wanted to ensure the new venture wouldn&#8217;t keep Spielberg away from their children.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;When we formed DreamWorks, Kate said, the only way I&#8217;m really going to say this is OK with me is if you get home every night by 6 \u2014 5:45 is better \u2014 and have dinner with the family,&#8221; Spielberg said. &#8220;Don&#8217;t go to work at 6 or 7. Unless you&#8217;re shooting, you can get up at 5:30, which we usually do. When you&#8217;re not, when you&#8217;re running a studio, you&#8217;ve got to have a 9-to-5 job.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The filmmaker said he made that &#8220;a condition&#8221; of his involvement with DreamWorks.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;It&#8217;s going to be a real time drain for me, and I need to be with my family,&#8221; Spielberg said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">It&#8217;s not the first time Spielberg has discussed the role parenting plays in shaping his career decisions.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">In a <a class=\"link \" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ceEZhOOsxdI\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"elm:link;elmt:article_link;slk:2023 interview;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;2023 interview&quot;}\">2023 interview<\/a> with Indian filmmaker S.S. Rajamouli, Spielberg said he &#8220;chose to turn down the first &#8216;Harry Potter'&#8221; in order to spend time with his kids.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;So I sacrificed a great franchise, which today, looking back, I&#8217;m very happy to have done, to be with my family,&#8221; he said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">At the 2026 SXSW Conference and Festival in March, Spielberg said his children had become a bigger priority than his career.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;Directing, actually, has, in the last 20 years, taken second position to my parenting and to all their needs,&#8221; he said, <a class=\"link \" href=\"https:\/\/people.com\/steven-spielberg-says-wife-kate-capshaw-has-made-such-a-life-for-me-11927569\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"elm:link;elmt:article_link;slk:per People;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;per People&quot;}\">per People<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The filmmaker isn&#8217;t the only prominent figure to draw firm boundaries between work and family life.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Fashion designer <a class=\"link \" href=\"https:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/tory-burch-motherhood-career-work-life-balance-social-sacrifice-sleep-2026-4?utm_medium=syndication&amp;utm_source=yahoo&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_source=yahoocom\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"elm:link;elmt:article_link;slk:Tory Burch;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;Tory Burch&quot;}\">Tory Burch<\/a> has said she would &#8220;never trade off&#8221; being a good mom for her career. &#8220;I guess the only thing that was sacrificed is my sleep,&#8221; she said during an April episode of the &#8220;Aspire with Emma Grede&#8221; podcast.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Netflix cofounder <a class=\"link \" href=\"https:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/netflix-marc-randolph-advice-on-starting-a-subscription-business-2021-11?utm_medium=syndication&amp;utm_source=yahoo&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_source=yahoocom\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"elm:link;elmt:article_link;slk:Marc Randolph;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;Marc Randolph&quot;}\">Marc Randolph<\/a> has also spoken about the importance of protecting time outside of work. In a 2024 <a class=\"link \" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/marcrandolph\/status\/1795468885245976631?s=20\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"elm:link;elmt:article_link;slk:post on X;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;post on X&quot;}\">post on X<\/a>, he said weekly Tuesday night dates with his wife remained nonnegotiable throughout his career.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;For over 30 years, I had a hard cut-off on Tuesdays,&#8221; he wrote. &#8220;Rain or shine, I left at exactly 5 p.m. and spent the evening with my best friend.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">If you enjoyed this story, be sure to follow <a href=\"https:\/\/profiles.yahoo.com\/brands\/business-insider\/\" data-ylk=\"elm:link;elmt:article_link;slk:Business Insider;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;Business Insider&quot;}\" class=\"link \" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Business Insider<\/a> on Yahoo.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Steven Spielberg, 79, said his wife made one request before he started DreamWorks. The job had to function&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":512629,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[268],"tags":[434,75512,18,117,19,17,71565,30889,609],"class_list":["post-512628","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-celebrities","tag-celebrities","tag-dreamworks","tag-eire","tag-entertainment","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-kate-capshaw","tag-michelle-obama","tag-steven-spielberg"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ie\/116673624764935024","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/512628","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=512628"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/512628\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/512629"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=512628"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=512628"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=512628"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}