Mike Gunther
Mike Gunther | |
|---|---|
| Born | United States |
| Occupations | |
| Years active | 2002-present |
| Notable work | |
Mike Gunther is an American film director and stuntman. He is known for being the second unit director on many movies like Transformers: The Last Knight (2017), Star Trek Beyond (2016), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows (2016), Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014), and Bad Boys For Life (2020)[1][2] Gunther also owns and operates 5150Action Productions, a film production company focusing on a wide slate of original content development.[3]
Career
[edit]After a career as a stunt performer and coordinator creating action sequences for films as well as serving as second unit director on Steve Oedekerk's Kung Pow! Enter the Fist in 2002, Gunther developed and sold a slate of MTV shows, including Live Free or Die Hard: Inside the Action (2007), Ghost Rider: Inside the Action (2007), Your Movie Show (2005–2006), and Underworld: Evolution – Inside the Action (2005) before directing the theatrical feature films Beatdown (2010) starring Danny Trejo and Rudy Youngblood and Setup starring Bruce Willis, Ryan Phillippe, and 50 Cent[4]
In 2014, he returned to second unit directing for movies, starting Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014)[5] and continuing with Sabotage (2014), The Purge: Anarchy (2014), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows (2016), Star Trek Beyond (2016), Transformers: The Last Knight (2017), and Bumblebee (2018) as well as becoming a voting member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences by invitation in 2018.[6]
In 2019, Gunther directed and produced the Rogue Warfare trilogy for Netflix.
Gunther was later second unit director and supervising stunt coordinator on Bad Boys For Life in 2020, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings and The Forever Purge in 2021, The Lost City, Me Time, and Ambulance in 2022, Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, Twisters, and Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F in 2024, and Focker-in-Law, set for release in November 2026.
Filmography
[edit]As Second Unit Director
As Director / Writer / Producer
- Setup (2011) (Director, Writer)
- End of Watch (2012) (Associate Producer)
- Rogue Warfare (2019) (Director, Writer, Producer)
- Rogue Warfare: The Hunt (2019) (Director, Producer)
- Rogue Warfare: Death of a Nation (2020) (Director, Producer)
- A Violent Land (TBA) (Director, Writer, Producer)
- Stop Frank (TBA) (Director, Writer)
- Criminal (TBA) (Director, Writer)
Awards
[edit]- 2010 World Stunt Awards – Won, Taurus Award – Best Stunt Coordinator and/or 2nd Unit Director: Feature Film for Fast & Furious[7]
- 2012 World Stunt Awards – Won, Taurus Award – Best High Work for Fast Five[citation needed]
- 2012 World Stunt Awards – Won, Taurus Award – Best Stunt Coordinator and/or 2nd Unit Director: Feature for Fast Five[citation needed]
- 2012 World Stunt Awards – Won, Taurus Award – Best Fight for Fast Five[citation needed]
- 2020 World Stunt Awards – Nominated Taurus Award – Best Stunt Coordinator and/or 2nd Unit Director for Bad Boys for Life – Columbia Pictures Entertainment[citation needed]
- 2021 Indiana Film Journalists Association – Nominated, IFJA Award – Best Stunt/Movement Choreography for Ambulance – Universal Pictures[citation needed]
- 2025 World Stunt Awards – Won, Taurus Award – Best Specialty Stunt for Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F[8]
References
[edit]- ↑ Floorwalker, Mike (2020-08-03). "A Sneaky Good Action Movie Has Been Dominating Netflix". Looper.com. Retrieved 2021-06-10.
- ↑ "Director Mike Gunther". BFI.Org. 2020-12-21. Archived from the original on May 28, 2016.
- ↑ viapiuser (2018-04-19). "Mike Gunther". Variety. Retrieved 2024-05-13.
- ↑ "Director Mike Gunther talks about filming 'Setup' in Grand Rapids with 50 Cent, Bruce Willis". mlive. 2010-12-21. Retrieved 2021-06-10.
- ↑ "Transformers: Age of Extinction Interview: Mike Gunther". Collider. 2014-06-24. Retrieved 2021-06-10.
- ↑ "Academy Invites Record 928 New Members". The Hollywood Reporter. 25 June 2018.
- ↑ "Winners & Nominees". Taurus World Stunt Awards. Retrieved 2021-06-10.
- ↑ "Winners & Nominees". Taurus World Stunt Awards.
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