Raised in Canarsie, De Luca was exposed to motion pictures by his father, who would sneak the youngster into movie theaters. Although he has been characterized as "neither athletic nor academic," he was bright enough to skip the eighth grade and enrolled at NYU in film studies at age 17. An internship with the independent producer-distributor New Line led to an offer of full-time work, so just a few credits shy of graduation De Luca abandoned academia for a career in showbiz in 1986. Originally tapped to work as a story editor, he rose fairly quickly through the ranks, thanks in part to his mentor, chair and founder Robert Shaye. In 1988, De Luca made his debut as an associate producer on "Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III".