Michael Bay
Encyclopedia
Michael Benjamin Bay is an American film director and producer. He is known for directing high-budget action films characterized by their fast edits, stylistic visuals and substantial practical special effects. His films, which include The Rock
, Armageddon, Pearl Harbor
and the Bad Boys
and Transformers
series, have grossed over three billion dollars world-wide. He is co-founder of commercial production house The Institute, a.k.a. The Institute for the Development of Enhanced Perceptual Awareness. He is co-chair and part-owner of the digital effects
house Digital Domain
. He co-owns Platinum Dunes
, a production house which has remade horror
movies including Friday the 13th
, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
, and A Nightmare on Elm Street
.
. Bay's grandfather was Russian. His cousin, Susan Bay, is the wife of Star Trek
actor Leonard Nimoy
. He attended the exclusive Crossroads School, in Santa Monica
, California. Bay often traces his interest in action films back to an incident during his childhood. As a boy, he attached some firecrackers to a toy train and filmed the ensuing fiery disaster with his mother's 8mm camera. The fire department was called and he was grounded.
when he was fifteen, filing the storyboards for Raiders of the Lost Ark
, which he thought was going to be terrible. His opinion changed after seeing it in the theater and he was so impressed by the experience that he decided to become a film director. He graduated from Wesleyan University
in 1986, majoring in both English and Film. He was a member of the Psi Upsilon
fraternity and a favorite student of film historian Jeanine Basinger
. For his graduate work, he attended Art Center College of Design
in Pasadena
where he also studied film.
Michael Bay began working at Propaganda Films
, directing commercials and music videos, two weeks after finishing his post-graduate degree. His 90-second World War II-inspired Coca-Cola
advertisement was picked up by Capitol Records
. His first national commercial for the Red Cross won a Clio Award
in 1992. He directed Goodby, Silverstein & Partners Got Milk? advertisement campaign for the California Milk Processors Board in 1993.
Bay's success in music videos gained the attention of producers Jerry Bruckheimer
and Don Simpson
, who selected him to direct his first feature-length film, Bad Boys
. The film was shot in Miami in 1994 and starred Will Smith
and Martin Lawrence
. The action film proved to be a break-out role for Smith, who was segueing from television to films at that time. Shooting in Miami was a good experience for Bay who would later own a home in the city and spend a great deal of time there. The film was completed for $19 million dollars and grossed a remarkable $141 million at the box office in the summer of 1995. Bay's success led to a strong partnership and friendship with Jerry Bruckheimer
.
His follow-up film, The Rock
(1996), was an action movie set on Alcatraz Island
, and in the San Francisco Bay area
. It starred Sean Connery
, Nicolas Cage
and Ed Harris
. It was also produced by Jerry Bruckheimer
and Don Simpson
, the latter of whom died five months before the film's release. The film is dedicated to him. Connery and Cage won 'Best On-Screen Duo' at the MTV Movie Awards
in 1997 and the film was nominated for an Academy Award in the Best Achievement in Sound category for the work of Greg P. Russell, Kevin O'Connell
, and Keith A. Wester.
In 1998, Bay collaborated with Jerry Bruckheimer
again, this time as a co-producer, as well as directing the action-adventure film Armageddon. The film, about a group of tough oil drillers who are sent by NASA
to deflect an asteroid
away from a collision course
with Earth
, starred Bruce Willis
, Billy Bob Thornton
, Ben Affleck
and Liv Tyler
. It was nominated for 4 Oscars at the 71st Academy Awards
including Best Sound, Best Visual Effects, Best Sound Editing, and Best Original Song
. The film earned 9.6 million dollars on its opening day and a total of 36.5 million through the first weekend. The production budget, $140 million dollars, was one of the highest of the summer of 1998. Armageddon went on to gross over $553 million dollars worldwide.
In 2001, Bay directed Pearl Harbor
. It starred Ben Affleck
, Josh Hartnett
, Kate Beckinsale
and Cuba Gooding, Jr.
The film was released on Memorial Day
weekend in 2001. Again, Bay produced the film with Jerry Bruckheimer. The film received four Academy Award nominations, including Best Sound, Best Visual Effects, Best Sound Editing and Best Song. Again, Kevin O'Connell received another nomination for Best Sound, but he did not win. Pearl Harbor won in the category for Sound Editing. Michael Bay also directed the music video for nominated track "There You'll Be" by vocal artist Faith Hill
.
Bay reteamed with Will Smith and Martin Lawrence for Bad Boys II
, an event which also marked Bay's fifth collaboration with Jerry Bruckheimer
. The film grossed $138 million domestically, enough to cover the production budget, and $273 million worldwide, almost twice as much as the first movie.
In 2005, Bay directed The Island
, a science-fiction film starring Ewan McGregor
and Scarlett Johansson
. It was the first film Michael Bay made without Jerry Bruckheimer. The Island
cost $126 million to produce. It earned $46 million domestically and $172 million worldwide. Bay stated that he was not comfortable with the domestic marketing campaign as it confused the audience as to the true subject of the film.
In 2007, he directed and teamed up with Steven Spielberg
to produce Transformers, a live action film based on the Transformers franchise
. The film was released in the U.S. and Canada on July 3, 2007, with 8 p.m. preview screenings on July 2. The previews earned $8.8 million, and in its first day of general release it grossed $27.8 million, a record for Tuesday box office attendance. It broke the record held by Spider-Man 2
for the biggest July 4 gross, making $29 million. On its opening weekend, Transformers grossed $70.5 million, amounting to a $155.4 million opening week, giving it the record for the biggest opening week for a non-sequel. As of November 2007, the film has made over $319 million domestically and over $708 million worldwide.
Bay returned as director and executive producer for Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
, which was released on June 24, 2009 and went on to gross over $832 million worldwide. Although it received mostly negative reviews by critics, including aggressively critical reviews by American film critics such as Roger Ebert
, Michael Phillips
and David Denby
(who referred to Bay as "stunningly, almost viciously, untalented"), the film was well-received by its intended audience and was one of the highest-grossing films of 2009. In 2010, it earned seven Golden Raspberry Award nominations and winning three: Worst Picture, Worst Director and Worst Screenplay.
As of 2009, Michael Bay's worldwide box office totals make him the director with the 8th highest domestic US gross of all time (not adjusted for inflation). It was also one of the best selling DVD and Blu-ray Discs of 2009, second only to Twilight in DVD format and the number one of all time in Blu-ray format until it was surpassed by Blu-ray sales of James Cameron's
Avatar in April 2010.
Bay directed Transformers: Dark of the Moon, released on June 28, 2011. He may direct a sequel to the Bad Boys franchise or a "small" film he's been developing for years, tentatively called Pain & Gain. The true crime
story, based on events described in a Miami Herald article written by Pete Collins, concerns a group of bumbling bodybuilders working together to commit a robbery.
Bay produced DreamWorks
' I Am Number Four, based on a series of novels by authors James Frey
and Jobie Hughes
published by HarperCollins
Children's Books. D. J. Caruso
(Eagle Eye
, Disturbia
) directed.
Bay will co-produce One Way Out, a reality series that pits ordinary people against each other as they try to keep their pasts hidden and builds toward a showdown where all those secrets will be revealed.
Gideon's Sword, Douglas Preston
and Lincoln Child's
novel set for release in February 2011, was optioned by Bay Films and will be produced by Michael Bay. The main character, Gideon Crew, avenges the death of his father.
In June of 2011, Bay confirmed that Pain & Gain
was his next project and that it would have a budget of $20 million.
is named after one of Bay's first student films at Wesleyan University
. Brad Fuller also graduated from Wesleyan and worked for Bay as an executive assistant before joining him in this business venture. The company's first film, a remake of the 1974 film The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
, grossed $107 million dollars worldwide. Platinum Dunes produced lucrative remakes of classic horror films and introduced new directors like Sam Bayer and Marcus Nispel
to feature film audiences. Their most recent horror film production, A Nightmare on Elm Street
starring Jackie Earle Haley
as Freddy Krueger
, was released April 2010. The film made 32.9 million dollars in its opening weekend, covering nearly its entire 35 million dollar budget and went on to gross over 100 million dollars worldwide.
Paramount Pictures
signed a first look deal with Platinum Dunes in 2009. As part of this new relationship, Paramount Pictures
and Nickelodeon
have brought the Platinum Dunes
producers on to produce a new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, rebooting the film series launched by New Line in 1990. Bay, Fuller and Form will co-produce with Galen Walker, Scott Mednick and Marina Norman.
investment firm, acquired the digital effects
company Digital Domain
from James Cameron
and Stan Winston
in 1996, infusing the struggling business with a $50 million dollar investment. Digital Domain considered an initial public offering
in 2009 but ultimately withdrew the offer, because of the lack of interest. Currently a work for hire
visual effects production house, Digital Domain plans to expand its efforts in the video gaming industry and become a full-fledged motion picture production house. Headquartered in Venice, Los Angeles
, California, the company is also working to open branches in Vancouver
, Canada and the state of Florida.
, Bay and producer Scott Gardenhour
, also formerly at Propaganda, formed The Institute for the Development of Enhanced Perceptual Awareness (now known as The Institute), to produce commercials and other projects. Through The Institute, Bay has directed and produced spots for Victoria's Secret
, Lexus
, Budweiser
, Reebok
, Mercedes-Benz
, and Nike
. His most recent advertisement for Victoria Secret was the 2009 "A Thousand Fantasies" holiday campaign.
, Best Action Scene for Bad Boys II
, and Best Action Scene for The Rock
. In 1994, Bay was honored by the Directors Guild of America
with an award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Commercials.
Michael Bay received the ShoWest 2009 Vanguard Award for excellence in filmmaking at the confab of theater owners.
, Bonecrusher and Grace, named for characters in Transformers and Armageddon, respectively. He loves animals. As a boy, he donated his Bar Mitzvah money to an animal shelter
and often includes his bullmastiff
dogs in his films.Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
. Mason, his first bullmastiff, was named for John Patrick Mason, played by Sean Connery
in The Rock
. He had another dog, Mason. Mason the dog's last appearance in a film was as Miles' dog in Transformers. He died during production of that film in March 2007.
The Rock (film)
The Rock is a 1996 action film that primarily takes place on Alcatraz Island and in the San Francisco Bay area. It was directed by Michael Bay and stars Sean Connery, Nicolas Cage and Ed Harris. It was produced by Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer and released through Hollywood Pictures. The film...
, Armageddon, Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor (film)
Pearl Harbor is a 2001 American action drama war film directed by Michael Bay and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and Randall Wallace, who wrote the screenplay...
and the Bad Boys
Bad Boys (1995 film)
Bad Boys is a 1995 American action comedy film directed by Michael Bay in his directorial debut, and produced by Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer...
and Transformers
Transformers (film series)
Transformers is an American film franchise directed by Michael Bay, and based on the toys created by Hasbro and Takara Tomy. The first film, Transformers, was released in 2007, the second film, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, in 2009, and the third film, Transformers: Dark of the Moon in 2011...
series, have grossed over three billion dollars world-wide. He is co-founder of commercial production house The Institute, a.k.a. The Institute for the Development of Enhanced Perceptual Awareness. He is co-chair and part-owner of the digital effects
Digital Effects
Digital Effects Inc. was an early and innovative computer animation studio at 321 West 44th street in New York City. It was the first computer graphics house in New York City when it opened in 1978, and operated until 1986. It was founded by Judson Rosebush, Jeff Kleiser, Don Leich, David Cox,...
house Digital Domain
Digital Domain
Digital Domain is a visual effects and animation company founded by film director James Cameron, Stan Winston and Scott Ross. It is based in Venice, Los Angeles, California...
. He co-owns Platinum Dunes
Platinum Dunes
Platinum Dunes is a production company created in 2001 by filmmakers Michael Bay, Brad Fuller, and Andrew Form. The company specializes in horror films, particularly remakes.Their website is part of Bloody Disgusting's site....
, a production house which has remade horror
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
movies including Friday the 13th
Friday the 13th (2009 film)
Friday the 13th is a 2009 American slasher film directed by Marcus Nispel and written by Damian Shannon and Mark Swift. It is a reboot of the Friday the 13th film series, which began in 1980 and the twelfth Friday the 13th film in total...
, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003 film)
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is a 2003 remake of the 1974 horror film of the same name. The 2003 film was directed by Marcus Nispel and produced by Michael Bay...
, and A Nightmare on Elm Street
A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010 film)
A Nightmare on Elm Street is a 2010 American slasher film directed by Samuel Bayer, and written by Wesley Strick and Eric Heisserer. The film stars Jackie Earle Haley, Kyle Gallner, Rooney Mara, Katie Cassidy, Thomas Dekker and Kellan Lutz...
.
Early life
Michael Bay was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. He was raised by his adoptive parents Harriet, a bookstore owner/child psychiatrist, and Jim, a CPACertified Public Accountant
Certified Public Accountant is the statutory title of qualified accountants in the United States who have passed the Uniform Certified Public Accountant Examination and have met additional state education and experience requirements for certification as a CPA...
. Bay's grandfather was Russian. His cousin, Susan Bay, is the wife of Star Trek
Star Trek
Star Trek is an American science fiction entertainment franchise created by Gene Roddenberry. The core of Star Trek is its six television series: The Original Series, The Animated Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise...
actor Leonard Nimoy
Leonard Nimoy
Leonard Simon Nimoy is an American actor, film director, poet, musician and photographer. Nimoy's most famous role is that of Spock in the original Star Trek series , multiple films, television and video game sequels....
. He attended the exclusive Crossroads School, in Santa Monica
Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica is a beachfront city in western Los Angeles County, California, US. Situated on Santa Monica Bay, it is surrounded on three sides by the city of Los Angeles — Pacific Palisades on the northwest, Brentwood on the north, West Los Angeles on the northeast, Mar Vista on the east, and...
, California. Bay often traces his interest in action films back to an incident during his childhood. As a boy, he attached some firecrackers to a toy train and filmed the ensuing fiery disaster with his mother's 8mm camera. The fire department was called and he was grounded.
Career
Bay got his start in the film industry interning with George LucasGeorge Lucas
George Walton Lucas, Jr. is an American film producer, screenwriter, and director, and entrepreneur. He is the founder, chairman and chief executive of Lucasfilm. He is best known as the creator of the space opera franchise Star Wars and the archaeologist-adventurer character Indiana Jones...
when he was fifteen, filing the storyboards for Raiders of the Lost Ark
Raiders of the Lost Ark
Raiders of the Lost Ark is a 1981 American action-adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg, produced by George Lucas, and starring Harrison Ford. It is the first film in the Indiana Jones franchise...
, which he thought was going to be terrible. His opinion changed after seeing it in the theater and he was so impressed by the experience that he decided to become a film director. He graduated from Wesleyan University
Wesleyan University
Wesleyan University is a private liberal arts college founded in 1831 and located in Middletown, Connecticut. According to the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, Wesleyan is the only Baccalaureate College in the nation that emphasizes undergraduate instruction in the arts and...
in 1986, majoring in both English and Film. He was a member of the Psi Upsilon
Psi Upsilon
Psi Upsilon is the fifth oldest college fraternity in the United States, founded at Union College in 1833. It has chapters at colleges and universities throughout North America. For most of its history, Psi Upsilon, like most social fraternities, limited its membership to men only...
fraternity and a favorite student of film historian Jeanine Basinger
Jeanine Basinger
Jeanine Basinger , a film historian, is Corwin-Fuller Professor of Film Studies and Founder and Curator of The Cinema Archives at Wesleyan University, Middletown, Connecticut....
. For his graduate work, he attended Art Center College of Design
Art Center College of Design
Art Center College of Design is a private college located in Pasadena, California, and was cited by BusinessWeek as one of the 60 best design schools in the world. The college’s industrial design program is consistently ranked number one by both DesignIntelligence and U.S...
in Pasadena
Pasadena, California
Pasadena is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Although famous for hosting the annual Rose Bowl football game and Tournament of Roses Parade, Pasadena is the home to many scientific and cultural institutions, including the California Institute of Technology , the Jet...
where he also studied film.
Michael Bay began working at Propaganda Films
Propaganda Films
Propaganda Films was a prolific and successful music video and film production company founded in 1983 by producers Steve Golin and Sigurjón Sighvatsson and directors David Fincher, Nigel Dick, Greg Gold and Dominic Sena...
, directing commercials and music videos, two weeks after finishing his post-graduate degree. His 90-second World War II-inspired Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola is a carbonated soft drink sold in stores, restaurants, and vending machines in more than 200 countries. It is produced by The Coca-Cola Company of Atlanta, Georgia, and is often referred to simply as Coke...
advertisement was picked up by Capitol Records
Capitol Records
Capitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
. His first national commercial for the Red Cross won a Clio Award
Clio Awards
The Clio Awards are annual awards bestowed to reward innovation and creative excellence in advertising, design and communication. The categories include work in nearly all types of media, and the judges are advertising professionals from around the world....
in 1992. He directed Goodby, Silverstein & Partners Got Milk? advertisement campaign for the California Milk Processors Board in 1993.
Bay's success in music videos gained the attention of producers Jerry Bruckheimer
Jerry Bruckheimer
Jerome Leon "Jerry" Bruckheimer is an American film and television producer. He has achieved great success in the genres of action, drama, and science fiction. His best known television series are CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, CSI: Miami, CSI: NY, Eleventh Hour, Without a Trace, Cold Case, The...
and Don Simpson
Don Simpson
Donald Clarence "Don" Simpson was an American film producer, screenwriter, and actor. He is known for producing such hits as Flashdance, Beverly Hills Cop, Top Gun and The Rock...
, who selected him to direct his first feature-length film, Bad Boys
Bad Boys (1995 film)
Bad Boys is a 1995 American action comedy film directed by Michael Bay in his directorial debut, and produced by Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer...
. The film was shot in Miami in 1994 and starred Will Smith
Will Smith
Willard Christopher "Will" Smith, Jr. , also known by his stage name The Fresh Prince, is an American actor, producer, and rapper. He has enjoyed success in television, film and music. In April 2007, Newsweek called him the most powerful actor in Hollywood...
and Martin Lawrence
Martin Lawrence
Martin Fitzgerald Lawrence is an American actor, film director, film producer, screenwriter, and stand up comedian. He came to fame during the 1990s, establishing a Hollywood career as a leading actor, most notably the films Bad Boys, Blue Streak, and Big Momma's House...
. The action film proved to be a break-out role for Smith, who was segueing from television to films at that time. Shooting in Miami was a good experience for Bay who would later own a home in the city and spend a great deal of time there. The film was completed for $19 million dollars and grossed a remarkable $141 million at the box office in the summer of 1995. Bay's success led to a strong partnership and friendship with Jerry Bruckheimer
Jerry Bruckheimer
Jerome Leon "Jerry" Bruckheimer is an American film and television producer. He has achieved great success in the genres of action, drama, and science fiction. His best known television series are CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, CSI: Miami, CSI: NY, Eleventh Hour, Without a Trace, Cold Case, The...
.
His follow-up film, The Rock
The Rock (film)
The Rock is a 1996 action film that primarily takes place on Alcatraz Island and in the San Francisco Bay area. It was directed by Michael Bay and stars Sean Connery, Nicolas Cage and Ed Harris. It was produced by Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer and released through Hollywood Pictures. The film...
(1996), was an action movie set on Alcatraz Island
Alcatraz Island
Alcatraz Island is an island located in the San Francisco Bay, offshore from San Francisco, California, United States. Often referred to as "The Rock" or simply "Traz", the small island was developed with facilities for a lighthouse, a military fortification, a military prison, and a Federal...
, and in the San Francisco Bay area
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...
. It starred Sean Connery
Sean Connery
Sir Thomas Sean Connery , better known as Sean Connery, is a Scottish actor and producer who has won an Academy Award, two BAFTA Awards and three Golden Globes Sir Thomas Sean Connery (born 25 August 1930), better known as Sean Connery, is a Scottish actor and producer who has won an Academy...
, Nicolas Cage
Nicolas Cage
Nicolas Cage is an American actor, producer and director, having appeared in over 60 films including Raising Arizona , The Rock , Face/Off , Gone in 60 Seconds , Adaptation , National Treasure , Ghost Rider , Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans , and...
and Ed Harris
Ed Harris
Edward Allen "Ed" Harris is an American actor, writer, and director, known for his performances in Appaloosa, Radio, The Rock, The Abyss, Apollo 13, A Beautiful Mind, A History of Violence, and The Truman Show. Harris has also narrated commercials for The Home Depot and other companies...
. It was also produced by Jerry Bruckheimer
Jerry Bruckheimer
Jerome Leon "Jerry" Bruckheimer is an American film and television producer. He has achieved great success in the genres of action, drama, and science fiction. His best known television series are CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, CSI: Miami, CSI: NY, Eleventh Hour, Without a Trace, Cold Case, The...
and Don Simpson
Don Simpson
Donald Clarence "Don" Simpson was an American film producer, screenwriter, and actor. He is known for producing such hits as Flashdance, Beverly Hills Cop, Top Gun and The Rock...
, the latter of whom died five months before the film's release. The film is dedicated to him. Connery and Cage won 'Best On-Screen Duo' at the MTV Movie Awards
MTV Movie Awards
The MTV Movie Awards is a film awards show presented annually on MTV . It also contains movie parodies that used official movie footage with hosts and other celebrities and music performances. The nominees are decided by producers and executives at MTV. Winners are decided online by the general...
in 1997 and the film was nominated for an Academy Award in the Best Achievement in Sound category for the work of Greg P. Russell, Kevin O'Connell
Kevin O'Connell (sound re-recording mixer)
Kevin O'Connell is a sound re-recording mixer. He holds the record for most Academy Award nominations without a win at 20, having originally set the record in 2006 with his 18th nomination and loss, making him the "unluckiest nominee in the history of the Academy Awards".-Awards and...
, and Keith A. Wester.
In 1998, Bay collaborated with Jerry Bruckheimer
Jerry Bruckheimer
Jerome Leon "Jerry" Bruckheimer is an American film and television producer. He has achieved great success in the genres of action, drama, and science fiction. His best known television series are CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, CSI: Miami, CSI: NY, Eleventh Hour, Without a Trace, Cold Case, The...
again, this time as a co-producer, as well as directing the action-adventure film Armageddon. The film, about a group of tough oil drillers who are sent by NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
to deflect an asteroid
Asteroid
Asteroids are a class of small Solar System bodies in orbit around the Sun. They have also been called planetoids, especially the larger ones...
away from a collision course
Collision course
A collision course, also known as a kamikaze run, is the deliberate maneuver by the operator of a moving object to collide with another object...
with Earth
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
, starred Bruce Willis
Bruce Willis
Walter Bruce Willis , better known as Bruce Willis, is an American actor, producer, and musician. His career began in television in the 1980s and has continued both in television and film since, including comedic, dramatic, and action roles...
, Billy Bob Thornton
Billy Bob Thornton
Billy Bob Thornton is an American actor, screenwriter, director and musician. Thornton gained early recognition as a cast member on the CBS sitcom Hearts Afire and in several early 1990s films including On Deadly Ground and Tombstone...
, Ben Affleck
Ben Affleck
Benjamin Géza Affleck-Boldt , better known as Ben Affleck, is an American actor, film director, writer, and producer. He became known with his performances in Kevin Smith's films such as Mallrats and Chasing Amy...
and Liv Tyler
Liv Tyler
Liv Rundgren Tyler is an American actress and model. She is the daughter of Aerosmith's lead singer, Steven Tyler, and Bebe Buell, model and singer. Tyler began a career in modeling at the age of 14, but after less than a year she decided to focus on acting. She made her film debut in the 1994...
. It was nominated for 4 Oscars at the 71st Academy Awards
71st Academy Awards
The 71st Academy Awards ceremony, Sunday, March 21, 1999, was the last to take place at Los Angeles County Music Center, and was Whoopi Goldberg's third time hosting the Awards. It was the first time the ceremony took place on a Sunday....
including Best Sound, Best Visual Effects, Best Sound Editing, and Best Original Song
Academy Award for Best Original Song
The Academy Award for Best Original Song is one of the awards given annually to people working in the motion picture industry by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences . It is presented to the songwriters who have composed the best original song written specifically for a film...
. The film earned 9.6 million dollars on its opening day and a total of 36.5 million through the first weekend. The production budget, $140 million dollars, was one of the highest of the summer of 1998. Armageddon went on to gross over $553 million dollars worldwide.
In 2001, Bay directed Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor (film)
Pearl Harbor is a 2001 American action drama war film directed by Michael Bay and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and Randall Wallace, who wrote the screenplay...
. It starred Ben Affleck
Ben Affleck
Benjamin Géza Affleck-Boldt , better known as Ben Affleck, is an American actor, film director, writer, and producer. He became known with his performances in Kevin Smith's films such as Mallrats and Chasing Amy...
, Josh Hartnett
Josh Hartnett
Joshua Daniel "Josh" Hartnett is an American actor and aspiring producer. He first came to audiences' attention in 1997 as "Michael Fitzgerald" in the television series Cracker. He made his feature film debut in 1998, co-starring with Jamie Lee Curtis in Halloween H20: 20 Years Later for Miramax...
, Kate Beckinsale
Kate Beckinsale
Kathryn Bailey "Kate" Beckinsale is an English actress. After some minor television roles, she made her film debut in Much Ado About Nothing while still a student at Oxford University...
and Cuba Gooding, Jr.
Cuba Gooding, Jr.
Cuba M. Gooding, Jr. is an American actor. He is perhaps best known for his Academy Award-winning portrayal of Rod Tidwell in Cameron Crowe's 1996 film Jerry Maguire, and his critically acclaimed performance as Tré Styles in John Singleton's 1991 film Boyz n the Hood.-Early life:Gooding was born...
The film was released on Memorial Day
Memorial Day
Memorial Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the last Monday of May. Formerly known as Decoration Day, it originated after the American Civil War to commemorate the fallen Union soldiers of the Civil War...
weekend in 2001. Again, Bay produced the film with Jerry Bruckheimer. The film received four Academy Award nominations, including Best Sound, Best Visual Effects, Best Sound Editing and Best Song. Again, Kevin O'Connell received another nomination for Best Sound, but he did not win. Pearl Harbor won in the category for Sound Editing. Michael Bay also directed the music video for nominated track "There You'll Be" by vocal artist Faith Hill
Faith Hill
Faith Hill is an American country singer. She is known both for her commercial success and her marriage to fellow country star Tim McGraw. Hill has sold more than 40 million records worldwide and accumulated eight number-one singles and three number-one albums on the U.S...
.
Bay reteamed with Will Smith and Martin Lawrence for Bad Boys II
Bad Boys II
Bad Boys II is a 2003 action/comedy film directed by Michael Bay, produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, and starring Martin Lawrence and Will Smith. It is a sequel to the 1995 film Bad Boys. The film is about two police detectives investigating the flow of ecstasy into Miami...
, an event which also marked Bay's fifth collaboration with Jerry Bruckheimer
Jerry Bruckheimer
Jerome Leon "Jerry" Bruckheimer is an American film and television producer. He has achieved great success in the genres of action, drama, and science fiction. His best known television series are CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, CSI: Miami, CSI: NY, Eleventh Hour, Without a Trace, Cold Case, The...
. The film grossed $138 million domestically, enough to cover the production budget, and $273 million worldwide, almost twice as much as the first movie.
In 2005, Bay directed The Island
The Island (2005 film)
The Island is a 2005 American science fiction/thriller film directed by Michael Bay and starring Ewan McGregor and Scarlett Johansson. It was released on July 22, 2005 in the United States, and was nominated for three awards including the Teen Choice Award....
, a science-fiction film starring Ewan McGregor
Ewan McGregor
Ewan Gordon McGregor is a Scottish actor. He has had success in mainstream, indie, and art house films. McGregor is perhaps best known for his roles as heroin addict Mark Renton in the drama Trainspotting , young Jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi in the Star Wars prequel trilogy , and poet Christian in the...
and Scarlett Johansson
Scarlett Johansson
Scarlett Johansson is an American actress, model and singer.Johansson made her film debut in North and was later nominated for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead for her performance in Manny & Lo . She rose to further prominence with her roles in The Horse Whisperer and Ghost World...
. It was the first film Michael Bay made without Jerry Bruckheimer. The Island
The Island (2005 film)
The Island is a 2005 American science fiction/thriller film directed by Michael Bay and starring Ewan McGregor and Scarlett Johansson. It was released on July 22, 2005 in the United States, and was nominated for three awards including the Teen Choice Award....
cost $126 million to produce. It earned $46 million domestically and $172 million worldwide. Bay stated that he was not comfortable with the domestic marketing campaign as it confused the audience as to the true subject of the film.
Steven Spielberg
Steven Allan Spielberg KBE is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, video game designer, and studio entrepreneur. In a career of more than four decades, Spielberg's films have covered many themes and genres. Spielberg's early science-fiction and adventure films were seen as an...
to produce Transformers, a live action film based on the Transformers franchise
Transformers
A transformer is a device that transfers electrical energy from one circuit to another by magnetic coupling.Transformer may also refer to:* ASUS Eee Pad Transformer, an Android 3.2 Honeycomb tablet computer manufacturer by Asus...
. The film was released in the U.S. and Canada on July 3, 2007, with 8 p.m. preview screenings on July 2. The previews earned $8.8 million, and in its first day of general release it grossed $27.8 million, a record for Tuesday box office attendance. It broke the record held by Spider-Man 2
Spider-Man 2
Spider-Man 2 is a 2004 American superhero film directed by Sam Raimi, written by Alvin Sargent and developed by Alfred Gough, Miles Millar, and Michael Chabon. It is the second film in the Spider-Man film franchise based on the fictional Marvel Comics character Spider-Man...
for the biggest July 4 gross, making $29 million. On its opening weekend, Transformers grossed $70.5 million, amounting to a $155.4 million opening week, giving it the record for the biggest opening week for a non-sequel. As of November 2007, the film has made over $319 million domestically and over $708 million worldwide.
Bay returned as director and executive producer for Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen is a 2009 American science fiction-action film directed by Michael Bay and produced by Steven Spielberg. It is the sequel to the 2007 film Transformers and the second installment in the live-action Transformers series...
, which was released on June 24, 2009 and went on to gross over $832 million worldwide. Although it received mostly negative reviews by critics, including aggressively critical reviews by American film critics such as Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
, Michael Phillips
Michael Phillips (critic)
Michael Phillips is a film critic for the Chicago Tribune newspaper. Previously he was the drama critic of the Tribune; the Los Angeles Times; the St. Paul Pioneer Press; the San Diego Union-Tribune; and the Dallas Times Herald....
and David Denby
David Denby (film critic)
David Denby is an American journalist, best known as a film critic for The New Yorker magazine.-Background and education:Denby grew up in New York City. He received a B.A...
(who referred to Bay as "stunningly, almost viciously, untalented"), the film was well-received by its intended audience and was one of the highest-grossing films of 2009. In 2010, it earned seven Golden Raspberry Award nominations and winning three: Worst Picture, Worst Director and Worst Screenplay.
As of 2009, Michael Bay's worldwide box office totals make him the director with the 8th highest domestic US gross of all time (not adjusted for inflation). It was also one of the best selling DVD and Blu-ray Discs of 2009, second only to Twilight in DVD format and the number one of all time in Blu-ray format until it was surpassed by Blu-ray sales of James Cameron's
James Cameron
James Francis Cameron is a Canadian-American film director, film producer, screenwriter, editor, environmentalist and inventor...
Avatar in April 2010.
Bay directed Transformers: Dark of the Moon, released on June 28, 2011. He may direct a sequel to the Bad Boys franchise or a "small" film he's been developing for years, tentatively called Pain & Gain. The true crime
True crime
True crime is a non-fiction literary and film genre in which the author examines an actual crime and details the actions of real people.The crimes most commonly include murder, but true crime works have also touched on other legal cases. Depending on the writer, true crime can adhere strictly to...
story, based on events described in a Miami Herald article written by Pete Collins, concerns a group of bumbling bodybuilders working together to commit a robbery.
Bay produced DreamWorks
DreamWorks
DreamWorks Pictures, also known as DreamWorks, LLC, DreamWorks SKG, DreamWorks II Distribution Co., LLC, DreamWorks Studios or DW Studios, LLC, is an American film studio which develops, produces, and distributes films, video games and television programming...
' I Am Number Four, based on a series of novels by authors James Frey
James Frey
James Christopher Frey is an American writer. His books A Million Little Pieces and My Friend Leonard , as well as Bright Shiny Morning , were bestsellers...
and Jobie Hughes
Jobie Hughes
Jobie Hughes is an American writer and the #1 New York Times Bestselling author of I Am Number Four and The Power of Six, which were collaborations with writer James Frey. Both of the novels, published by HarperCollins under pseudonym Pittacus Lore, reached #1 on the New York Times Best Sellers...
published by HarperCollins
HarperCollins
HarperCollins is a publishing company owned by News Corporation. It is the combination of the publishers William Collins, Sons and Co Ltd, a British company, and Harper & Row, an American company, itself the result of an earlier merger of Harper & Brothers and Row, Peterson & Company. The worldwide...
Children's Books. D. J. Caruso
D. J. Caruso
Daniel John "D.J." Caruso is an American director and producer. Caruso has directed the films Disturbia, Two for the Money, Taking Lives, The Salton Sea, Eagle Eye and I Am Number Four. He has also directed television episodes for shows such as The Shield, Over There, Smallville, and Dark Angel...
(Eagle Eye
Eagle Eye
Eagle Eye is a 2008 thriller film directed by D. J. Caruso and starring Shia LaBeouf and Michelle Monaghan. The two portray a young man and a single mother who are brought together and coerced by an anonymous caller into carrying out a plan by a possible terrorist organization...
, Disturbia
Disturbia (film)
Disturbia is a 2007 American thriller film directed by D. J. Caruso and executive produced by Ivan Reitman. It is an updated version of Alfred Hitchcock's classic film Rear Window...
) directed.
Bay will co-produce One Way Out, a reality series that pits ordinary people against each other as they try to keep their pasts hidden and builds toward a showdown where all those secrets will be revealed.
Gideon's Sword, Douglas Preston
Douglas Preston
Douglas Preston is an American author who has written seventeen popular techno-thriller and horror novels, four alone and the rest with Lincoln Child...
and Lincoln Child's
Lincoln Child
Lincoln Child is an author of seventeen techno-thriller and horror novels. He often writes with Douglas Preston. Many of their novels have become bestsellers, and one, Relic, was adapted into a feature film...
novel set for release in February 2011, was optioned by Bay Films and will be produced by Michael Bay. The main character, Gideon Crew, avenges the death of his father.
In June of 2011, Bay confirmed that Pain & Gain
Pain & Gain
In 2000 Miami investigative journalist Pete Collins wrotePain & Gain, an upcoming black comedy film adapted by Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely and directed by Michael Bay...
was his next project and that it would have a budget of $20 million.
Platinum Dunes
Bay founded this production house with fellow producers Brad Fuller and Andrew Form in 2001. Platinum DunesPlatinum Dunes
Platinum Dunes is a production company created in 2001 by filmmakers Michael Bay, Brad Fuller, and Andrew Form. The company specializes in horror films, particularly remakes.Their website is part of Bloody Disgusting's site....
is named after one of Bay's first student films at Wesleyan University
Wesleyan University
Wesleyan University is a private liberal arts college founded in 1831 and located in Middletown, Connecticut. According to the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, Wesleyan is the only Baccalaureate College in the nation that emphasizes undergraduate instruction in the arts and...
. Brad Fuller also graduated from Wesleyan and worked for Bay as an executive assistant before joining him in this business venture. The company's first film, a remake of the 1974 film The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is a 1974 American independent horror film directed and produced by Tobe Hooper, who cowrote it with Kim Henkel. It stars Marilyn Burns, Paul A. Partain, Edwin Neal, Jim Siedow, and Gunnar Hansen, who respectively portray Sally Hardesty, Franklin Hardesty, the...
, grossed $107 million dollars worldwide. Platinum Dunes produced lucrative remakes of classic horror films and introduced new directors like Sam Bayer and Marcus Nispel
Marcus Nispel
Marcus Nispel is a German–American feature film director and producer, and formerly a director of television commercials and music videos. Many of his films have been remakes, all of which have met with a negative critical reception....
to feature film audiences. Their most recent horror film production, A Nightmare on Elm Street
A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010 film)
A Nightmare on Elm Street is a 2010 American slasher film directed by Samuel Bayer, and written by Wesley Strick and Eric Heisserer. The film stars Jackie Earle Haley, Kyle Gallner, Rooney Mara, Katie Cassidy, Thomas Dekker and Kellan Lutz...
starring Jackie Earle Haley
Jackie Earle Haley
Jackie Earle Haley is an American film actor. Establishing himself from child actor to adult Academy Award-nominee, he is perhaps best known for his roles as Moocher in Breaking Away, Kelly Leak in The Bad News Bears, pedophile Ronnie McGorvey in Little Children, the vigilante Rorschach in...
as Freddy Krueger
Freddy Krueger
Frederick Charles "Freddy" Krueger is a fictional, horrifying character from the Nightmare on Elm Street series of horror films. He first appears in Wes Craven's A Nightmare on Elm Street as a disfigured dream stalker who uses a glove armed with razors to kill his victims in their dreams,...
, was released April 2010. The film made 32.9 million dollars in its opening weekend, covering nearly its entire 35 million dollar budget and went on to gross over 100 million dollars worldwide.
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
signed a first look deal with Platinum Dunes in 2009. As part of this new relationship, Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
and Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon Movies
Nickelodeon Movies is the motion picture production arm of children's cable channel Nickelodeon, originally launched in 1995. Its first film was Harriet the Spy. It has produced films based on Nickelodeon programs, as well as other adaptations and original projects...
have brought the Platinum Dunes
Platinum Dunes
Platinum Dunes is a production company created in 2001 by filmmakers Michael Bay, Brad Fuller, and Andrew Form. The company specializes in horror films, particularly remakes.Their website is part of Bloody Disgusting's site....
producers on to produce a new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, rebooting the film series launched by New Line in 1990. Bay, Fuller and Form will co-produce with Galen Walker, Scott Mednick and Marina Norman.
Digital Domain
Bay and Wyndcrest Holdings, a Florida-basedFlorida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
investment firm, acquired the digital effects
Digital Effects
Digital Effects Inc. was an early and innovative computer animation studio at 321 West 44th street in New York City. It was the first computer graphics house in New York City when it opened in 1978, and operated until 1986. It was founded by Judson Rosebush, Jeff Kleiser, Don Leich, David Cox,...
company Digital Domain
Digital Domain
Digital Domain is a visual effects and animation company founded by film director James Cameron, Stan Winston and Scott Ross. It is based in Venice, Los Angeles, California...
from James Cameron
James Cameron
James Francis Cameron is a Canadian-American film director, film producer, screenwriter, editor, environmentalist and inventor...
and Stan Winston
Stan Winston
Stanley Winston was an American visual effects supervisor, makeup artist, and film director. He was best known for his work in the Terminator series, the Jurassic Park series, Aliens, the Predator series, Iron Man, Edward Scissorhands, and Avatar...
in 1996, infusing the struggling business with a $50 million dollar investment. Digital Domain considered an initial public offering
Initial public offering
An initial public offering or stock market launch, is the first sale of stock by a private company to the public. It can be used by either small or large companies to raise expansion capital and become publicly traded enterprises...
in 2009 but ultimately withdrew the offer, because of the lack of interest. Currently a work for hire
Work for hire
A work made for hire is an exception to the general rule that the person who actually creates a work is the legally recognized author of that work...
visual effects production house, Digital Domain plans to expand its efforts in the video gaming industry and become a full-fledged motion picture production house. Headquartered in Venice, Los Angeles
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
, California, the company is also working to open branches in Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, Canada and the state of Florida.
The Institute
After leaving Propaganda FilmsPropaganda Films
Propaganda Films was a prolific and successful music video and film production company founded in 1983 by producers Steve Golin and Sigurjón Sighvatsson and directors David Fincher, Nigel Dick, Greg Gold and Dominic Sena...
, Bay and producer Scott Gardenhour
Scott Gardenhour
Scott Gardenhour is an American award-winning film producer for commercials and feature films.After years as an independent Producer, Propaganda Films targeted Gardenhour to collaborate with top directors, including a music video director named Michael Bay, looking to break into the commercial...
, also formerly at Propaganda, formed The Institute for the Development of Enhanced Perceptual Awareness (now known as The Institute), to produce commercials and other projects. Through The Institute, Bay has directed and produced spots for Victoria's Secret
Victoria's Secret
Victoria's Secret is an American retailer of women's wear, lingerie and beauty products. It is the largest segment of publicly-traded Limited Brands with sales of over US$5 billion and an operating income of $1 billion in 2006...
, Lexus
Lexus
is the luxury vehicle division of Japanese automaker Toyota Motor Corporation. First introduced in 1989 in the United States, Lexus is now sold globally and has become Japan's largest-selling make of premium cars. The Lexus marque is marketed in over 70 countries and territories worldwide, and has...
, Budweiser
Budweiser
Budweiser is a German adjective describing something or someone from the city of České Budějovice in Southern Bohemia, Czech Republic.Beer brewing in České Budějovice dates back to the 13th century...
, Reebok
Reebok
Reebok International Limited, a subsidiary of the German sportswear company Adidas since 2005, is a producer of Athletic shoes, apparel, and accessories. The name comes from the Afrikaans spelling of rhebok, a type of African antelope or gazelle...
, Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz is a German manufacturer of automobiles, buses, coaches, and trucks. Mercedes-Benz is a division of its parent company, Daimler AG...
, and Nike
Nike, Inc.
Nike, Inc. is a major publicly traded sportswear and equipment supplier based in the United States. The company is headquartered near Beaverton, Oregon, which is part of the Portland metropolitan area...
. His most recent advertisement for Victoria Secret was the 2009 "A Thousand Fantasies" holiday campaign.
Awards
Bay has received five MTV Movie Awards: Best Movie and Best Summer Movie You Haven't Seen Yet for Transformers, Best Action Scene for Pearl HarborPearl Harbor (film)
Pearl Harbor is a 2001 American action drama war film directed by Michael Bay and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and Randall Wallace, who wrote the screenplay...
, Best Action Scene for Bad Boys II
Bad Boys II
Bad Boys II is a 2003 action/comedy film directed by Michael Bay, produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, and starring Martin Lawrence and Will Smith. It is a sequel to the 1995 film Bad Boys. The film is about two police detectives investigating the flow of ecstasy into Miami...
, and Best Action Scene for The Rock
The Rock (film)
The Rock is a 1996 action film that primarily takes place on Alcatraz Island and in the San Francisco Bay area. It was directed by Michael Bay and stars Sean Connery, Nicolas Cage and Ed Harris. It was produced by Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer and released through Hollywood Pictures. The film...
. In 1994, Bay was honored by the Directors Guild of America
Directors Guild of America
Directors Guild of America is an entertainment labor union which represents the interests of film and television directors in the United States motion picture industry...
with an award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Commercials.
Michael Bay received the ShoWest 2009 Vanguard Award for excellence in filmmaking at the confab of theater owners.
Personal life
Bay lives in Los Angeles and Miami with his two bullmastiffsBullmastiff
The Bullmastiff is a large breed of domestic dog. It has a solid build and a short muzzle. The Bullmastiff shares the characteristics of Molosser dogs, and was originally developed by 19th-century gamekeepers in England to guard estates and immobilize poachers. The breed's bloodlines are drawn from...
, Bonecrusher and Grace, named for characters in Transformers and Armageddon, respectively. He loves animals. As a boy, he donated his Bar Mitzvah money to an animal shelter
Animal shelter
An animal shelter is a facility that houses homeless, lost, or abandoned animals; primarily a large variety of dogs and cats.Parrots, for example, are the third most common pet owned by people...
and often includes his bullmastiff
Bullmastiff
The Bullmastiff is a large breed of domestic dog. It has a solid build and a short muzzle. The Bullmastiff shares the characteristics of Molosser dogs, and was originally developed by 19th-century gamekeepers in England to guard estates and immobilize poachers. The breed's bloodlines are drawn from...
dogs in his films.Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen is a 2009 American science fiction-action film directed by Michael Bay and produced by Steven Spielberg. It is the sequel to the 2007 film Transformers and the second installment in the live-action Transformers series...
. Mason, his first bullmastiff, was named for John Patrick Mason, played by Sean Connery
Sean Connery
Sir Thomas Sean Connery , better known as Sean Connery, is a Scottish actor and producer who has won an Academy Award, two BAFTA Awards and three Golden Globes Sir Thomas Sean Connery (born 25 August 1930), better known as Sean Connery, is a Scottish actor and producer who has won an Academy...
in The Rock
The Rock (film)
The Rock is a 1996 action film that primarily takes place on Alcatraz Island and in the San Francisco Bay area. It was directed by Michael Bay and stars Sean Connery, Nicolas Cage and Ed Harris. It was produced by Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer and released through Hollywood Pictures. The film...
. He had another dog, Mason. Mason the dog's last appearance in a film was as Miles' dog in Transformers. He died during production of that film in March 2007.
Feature films
- Bad BoysBad Boys (1995 film)Bad Boys is a 1995 American action comedy film directed by Michael Bay in his directorial debut, and produced by Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer...
(1995) (director) - The RockThe Rock (film)The Rock is a 1996 action film that primarily takes place on Alcatraz Island and in the San Francisco Bay area. It was directed by Michael Bay and stars Sean Connery, Nicolas Cage and Ed Harris. It was produced by Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer and released through Hollywood Pictures. The film...
(1996) (director) - Armageddon (1998) (director, producer, actor)
- Mystery MenMystery MenMystery Men is a 1999 comedy film based on a Dark Horse comic book series feature in Flaming Carrot Comics by Bob Burden, directed by TV commercial director Kinka Usher. It stars William H. Macy, Ben Stiller, and Hank Azaria as a trio of lesser superheroes with fairly unimpressive superpowers who...
(1999) (actor - Frat Boy) - Coyote UglyCoyote Ugly (film)Coyote Ugly is a 2000 romantic comedy/drama based on the actual Coyote Ugly Saloon, set in New York City. The film stars Piper Perabo and Adam Garcia...
(2000) (actor - Photographer) - Pearl HarborPearl Harbor (film)Pearl Harbor is a 2001 American action drama war film directed by Michael Bay and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and Randall Wallace, who wrote the screenplay...
(2001) (director, producer) - Bad Boys IIBad Boys IIBad Boys II is a 2003 action/comedy film directed by Michael Bay, produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, and starring Martin Lawrence and Will Smith. It is a sequel to the 1995 film Bad Boys. The film is about two police detectives investigating the flow of ecstasy into Miami...
(2003) (director, actor) - The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (film)The Texas Chainsaw MassacreThe Texas Chainsaw Massacre may refer to:* The Texas Chainsaw Massacre , a horror film franchise** The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, 1974 film** The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2, 1986 film...
(2003) (producer) - The Amityville HorrorThe Amityville Horror (2005 film)The Amityville Horror is a 2005 horror film directed by Andrew Douglas. It is a remake of the 1979 film of the same name which itself was based on the 1977 novel of the same name by Jay Anson, which documents the alleged experiences of the Lutz family after they moved into a house in Long Island...
(2005) (producer) - The IslandThe Island (2005 film)The Island is a 2005 American science fiction/thriller film directed by Michael Bay and starring Ewan McGregor and Scarlett Johansson. It was released on July 22, 2005 in the United States, and was nominated for three awards including the Teen Choice Award....
(2005) (director, producer) - The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The BeginningThe Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The BeginningThe Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning, a 2006 American slasher film, functions as a prequel to the 2003 remake of the 1974 film The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. Directed by Jonathan Liebesman and co-produced by Kim Henkel and Tobe Hooper , the film went into release in North America on October 6,...
(2006) (producer) - The HitcherThe Hitcher (2007 film)The Hitcher is a 2007 horror film starring Sean Bean, Sophia Bush, and Zachary Knighton. It is a remake of the 1986 film of the same name starring Rutger Hauer, Jennifer Jason Leigh, and C. Thomas Howell. The Hitcher was directed by Dave Meyers and produced by Michael Bay’s production company...
(2007) (producer) - Transformers (2007) (director, producer, actor)
- The Unborn (2009) (producer)
- Friday the 13thFriday the 13th (2009 film)Friday the 13th is a 2009 American slasher film directed by Marcus Nispel and written by Damian Shannon and Mark Swift. It is a reboot of the Friday the 13th film series, which began in 1980 and the twelfth Friday the 13th film in total...
(2009) (producer) - Transformers: Revenge of the FallenTransformers: Revenge of the FallenTransformers: Revenge of the Fallen is a 2009 American science fiction-action film directed by Michael Bay and produced by Steven Spielberg. It is the sequel to the 2007 film Transformers and the second installment in the live-action Transformers series...
(2009) (director, producer, actor) - A Nightmare on Elm StreetA Nightmare on Elm Street (2010 film)A Nightmare on Elm Street is a 2010 American slasher film directed by Samuel Bayer, and written by Wesley Strick and Eric Heisserer. The film stars Jackie Earle Haley, Kyle Gallner, Rooney Mara, Katie Cassidy, Thomas Dekker and Kellan Lutz...
(2010) (producer) - I Am Number Four (2011) (producer)
- Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011) (director, producer)
- The Hauntrepreneur (2012) (producer)
- Pain & GainPain & GainIn 2000 Miami investigative journalist Pete Collins wrotePain & Gain, an upcoming black comedy film adapted by Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely and directed by Michael Bay...
(announced) (director, producer) - Teenage Mutant Ninja TurtlesTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (film series)Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is a film franchise based on the comic book series of the same name by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird.- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles :...
(announced) (producer)
Television
- Miami Vice (TV series)Miami ViceMiami Vice is an American television series produced by Michael Mann for NBC. The series starred Don Johnson and Philip Michael Thomas as two Metro-Dade Police Department detectives working undercover in Miami. It ran for five seasons on NBC from 1984–1989...
(1986) (actor - Goon #3) - No Way Out (TV series) (announced) (producer)
- Cocaine Cowboys (TV series) (announced) (producer)
Music videos
- "Soldier of Love" by Donny OsmondDonny OsmondDonald Clark "Donny" Osmond is an American singer, musician, actor, dancer, radio personality, and former teen idol. Osmond has also been a talk and game show host, record producer and author. In the mid 1960s, he and four of his elder brothers gained fame as the Osmond Brothers on the long...
(1989) (director) - "AngeliaAngeliaIn Greek mythology, Angelia was a daughter of Hermes, the messenger of the gods. She personified messages, tidings and proclamations.-External links:*...
" by Richard MarxRichard MarxRichard Noel Marx is an American adult contemporary and pop/rock singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. He had a string of hit singles in the late 1980s and 1990s, including "Endless Summer Nights", "Right Here Waiting", "Now and Forever", and "Hazard"...
(1989) (director) - "I'll Be Holding On" by Greg Allman (1989) (director) ... from the film Black Rain
- "I Love You" by Vanilla IceVanilla IceRobert Matthew Van Winkle , best known by his stage name Vanilla Ice, is an American rapper, extreme athlete and home improvement television personality...
(1991) (director) - "I Touch MyselfI Touch Myself"I Touch Myself" is a 1990 single by the Australian rock band Divinyls. The song was written by Divinyls bandmembers Christina Amphlett and Mark McEntee and professional songwriters Tom Kelly and Billy Steinberg for the band's self-titled album...
" by DivinylsDivinylsDivinyls were an Australian rock band formed in Sydney in 1980 and featuring vocalist Christina Amphlett and guitarist Mark McEntee. As the focal point, Amphlett performed on stage wearing a school uniform and fishnet stockings, often using an illuminated neon tube as a prop and displaying...
(1991) (director) - "Love ThingLove Thing"Love Thing" is a single released in 1992 by Grammy Award-winning rock/pop singer, Tina Turner for her 1991 Simply the Best album, on which it was one of four new recordings. The single, which brought Tina back to her rock roots, also included the non-album track "I'm a Lady", written and produced...
" by Tina TurnerTina TurnerTina Turner is an American singer and actress whose career has spanned more than 50 years. She has won numerous awards and her achievements in the rock music genre have led many to call her the "Queen of Rock 'n' Roll".Turner started out her music career with husband Ike Turner as a member of the...
(1992) (director) - "Do It to MeDo It to Me"Do it to Me" is the title of a number-one R&B single by singer Lionel Richie. It was the first single from his album Back to Front and was released in 1992. The hit song spent one week at number-one on the U.S. Billboard R&B chart and number twenty-one on the Hot 100...
" by Lionel Ritchie (1992) (director) - "You Won't See Me Cry" by Wilson PhillipsWilson Phillips-Studio albums:-Compilation albums:-Singles:-Other charted songs:-Awards and nominations:...
(1992) (director) - "I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)I'd Do Anything for Love (but I Won't Do That)"I'd Do Anything for Love " is a song composed and written by Jim Steinman, and recorded by Meat Loaf. The song was released in 1993 as the first single from the album Bat Out of Hell II: Back Into Hell. The title of the song confused some listeners, who were curious to know what "that" is...
" by Meat LoafMeat LoafMichael Lee Aday , better known by his stage name, Meat Loaf, is an American hard rock musician and actor...
(1993) (director) - "Rock and Roll Dreams Come ThroughRock and Roll Dreams Come Through"Rock and Roll Dreams Come Through" is a song composed and written by Jim Steinman. It first featured on Steinman's 1981 solo album Bad for Good, with lead vocals by an uncredited Rory Dodd...
" by Meat LoafMeat LoafMichael Lee Aday , better known by his stage name, Meat Loaf, is an American hard rock musician and actor...
(1994) (director) - "Objects in the Rear View Mirror May Appear Closer Than They AreObjects in the Rear View Mirror May Appear Closer than They Are"Objects in the Rear View Mirror May Appear Closer than They Are" is a song composed and written by Jim Steinman, and recorded by Meat Loaf. The song was released in 1994 as the third single from the album Bat Out of Hell II: Back into Hell and it reached #38 on US's Billboard Hot 100, and #26 in...
" by Meat LoafMeat LoafMichael Lee Aday , better known by his stage name, Meat Loaf, is an American hard rock musician and actor...
(1994) (director) - "Falling in Love (Is Hard on the Knees)Falling in Love (Is Hard on the Knees)"Falling in Love " is a song performed by American hard rock band Aerosmith. It was written by Steven Tyler, Joe Perry and record producer/writer Glen Ballard...
" by AerosmithAerosmithAerosmith is an American rock band, sometimes referred to as "The Bad Boys from Boston" and "America's Greatest Rock and Roll Band". Their style, which is rooted in blues-based hard rock, has come to also incorporate elements of pop, heavy metal, and rhythm and blues, and has inspired many...
(1997) (director) - "There You'll BeThere You'll Be"There You'll Be" is a song by Faith Hill, which became a hit single in 2001. Written by Diane Warren and Alan Menken, known for his Disney film scores such as "The Little Mermaid", "Beauty and the Beast", "Aladdin", "Pocahontas" and "Tangled", it was featured on the Pearl Harbor soundtrack...
" by Faith HillFaith HillFaith Hill is an American country singer. She is known both for her commercial success and her marriage to fellow country star Tim McGraw. Hill has sold more than 40 million records worldwide and accumulated eight number-one singles and three number-one albums on the U.S...
(2001) (director) ... Theme from Pearl HarborPearl Harbor (film)Pearl Harbor is a 2001 American action drama war film directed by Michael Bay and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and Randall Wallace, who wrote the screenplay...