“Red State” Sundance Premiere

After the screening, Smith delivered a 20-minute harangue about the state of indie film distribution.

“Red State” (2011)

 Michael Parks plays a fundamentalist preacher who consigns homosexuals to hell.

“Red State” Sundance Premiere

Protestors from the Westboro Baptist Church confronted Smith (right) at the Sundance premiere.

Man of the People

Smith addresses fans at last year's Comic-Con convention. Through his View Askew Productions Web site, a Twitter feed followed by 1.7 million fans, appearances on talk shows and lectures to sold-out audiences, Smith has offered his personal take on life and moviemaking, discussing everything from private Hollywood pitch meetings to the sometimes intimate details of his marriage.

‘Clerks’ (1994)

Smith (bottom) on the set with cinematographer David Klein.

Shot on a shoestring budget on location in a New Jersey convenience store, Smith's debut film Clerks was an instant classic after screening at Sundance and established his legend in the indie filmmaking community as well as a long-time relationship with Harvey Weinstein. The film's pop-culture-infused (and often vulgar) dialogue and viewpoint on 20-something characters would become a staple of Smith's later work.

‘Mallrats’ (1995)

Smith and Mewes together again.

Set in a whirlwind of activity at a suburban mall, the script for Smith's second film picked up on Clerk's fearless embrace of R-rated humor — from soothsayers with extra nipples to teenage sex research — and geek culture in the character of Jason Lee's recurring "Askewniverse" character Brodie (who meets his idol Stan Lee). Despite the vulgarity, at it's core the story was about young people working through romantic entanglements.

‘Chasing Amy’ (1997)

Smith on the set with star Ben Affleck.

The story follows two comic-book artists (Smith vets Ben Affleck and Jason Lee) as they deal with Affleck's affection for a lesbian colleague (Joey Lauren Adams, who snagged a Golden Globe nomination). Jay and Silent Bob (Smith again) returned as supporting characters.

‘Dogma’ (1999)

Smith (left) and Jason Mewes in characer.

An exploration of Catholic-infused religious themes, Smith cast Ben Affleck and Matt Damon as mayhem-spreading angels. The film's release was accompanied by controversy, with complaints from the Catholic League, which criticized the film's imagery. Shown out of competition at the 1999 Cannes Film Festival, Smith's script also picked up an Independent Spirit Award nomination.

‘Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back’ (2001)

A manic, road movie-inspired and cameo-filled jaunt following Jay and Silent Bob to Hollywood to try and stop a movie version of their life. Scenes with guest stars Matt Damon and Ben Affleck poked knowing fun at Hollywood's sometimes warped world; in one scene, filmmaker Gus Van Sant  is too busy counting his money to pay attention to shooting his sequel to Good Will Hunting.

The film's poster included the line "Hollywood Had It Coming."

‘Jersey Girl’ (2004)

Smith on the set with stars Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck.

Armed with his biggest budget to that point ($35 million) and a higher profile cast, Smith found the release of his film swamped by the negative tabloid publicity surrounding his stars. The film grossed only $25.3 million.

‘Clerks II’ (2006)

Jeff Anderson (left) and Brian O'Halloran reprise their roles from the original.

The sequel to Smith's debut film begins in the ashes of the first film's convenience store. It received a prolonged standing ovation at the Cannes Film Festival. A classic Smith tale, it mixed gross-out humor — including a bachelor party involving "inter-species erotica" — and lighter elements — a bouncy musical number set to The Jackson Five's "ABC" — with a character (O'Halloran) navigating romantic relationships.

‘Zack and Miri Make a Porno’ (2008)

Seth Rogen and Elizabeth Banks.

Smith hoped his story of a young couple dabbling in adult filmmaking to make ends meet would tap into the trend of raunchy comedy began by Judd Apatow and others, and he snagged Apatow regular  Rogen to star. While some counseled against a movie with "porno" in the title, it fit in with Smith's outrageous sense of humor.

“Zack and Miri Make a Porno” (2008)

In an uneasy embrace, Harvey Weinstein and Smith appeared at the 2008 Grauman’s premiere.

‘Cop Out’ (2010)

Smith, at right, on the set with Bruce Willis.

The buddy-cop film was Smith's first time in the director's chair for a film he did not write, and with an A-list cast topped by Willis. Smith says he took the job in part to learn more about studio marketing, but the fact that the film was not a Smith original did not insulate him from fan criticism upon its release. Days before the film opened, Smith had his infamous run-in with Southwest Airlines.

Personal Life

Smith with wife Jennifer Schwalbach Smith at the 2001 premiere of “Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back.”

All the Smith That’s Fit to Print

 “It’s kinda boring,” Smith admitted of his 2007 book “My Boring-Ass Life,” in which he collected blog posts from SilentBobSpeaks.com. “Wake up,” reads a typical entry. “Take a shit while playing Tetris and update my online diary in my office ’til [wife] Jen gets up.” His fans loved it, though.