James Gunn (filmmaker)
| James Gunn | |
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 James Gunn in 2012 |
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| Born | August 5, 1970 St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. |
| Occupation | Screenwriter Director Film producer Novelist Actor Musician |
| Nationality | American |
| Spouse(s) | Jenna Fischer (2000–2008; divorced) |
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[[1] www.jamesgunn.com/%20www.jamesgunn.com]] |
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James Gunn (born August 5, 1970) is an American writer, filmmaker, actor, musician and cartoonist.
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Career [edit]
Gunn began his career in filmmaking with Troma Entertainment, for whom he wrote the independent film Tromeo and Juliet. After contributing to several other Troma films, Gunn wrote, produced and performed in his own superhero comedy, The Specials, directed by Craig Mazin and featuring Rob Lowe, Thomas Haden Church, Paget Brewster, Judy Greer and Jamie Kennedy.
Gunn's first major Hollywood screenplay was Scooby-Doo in 2002. In 2004, he wrote the initial screenplay for the remake of George A. Romero's Dawn of the Dead, but left the project early to work on Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed. That same year he also executive produced, and appeared in the mockumentary LolliLove, directed by and starring his then-wife Jenna Fischer. His directorial film debut was the 2006 horror-comedy Slither.
Gunn's next projects included the comedy short film Humanzee! which was originally intended exclusively for the Xbox Live's Horror Meets Comedy series of short comedy films by horror directors, it was replaced with Sparky and Mikaela which debuted on Xbox Live on December 31, 2008.[1][2][3] In an April 2009 interview on The Jace Hall Show, Gunn described Sparky and Mikaela as being "about a human racoon crime fighting team and they fight crime in both the forest world, among the furry animals, and in the human world".[4] Gunn also has a short form web series for Spike.com titled James Gunn's PG Porn[5] which made EW's The Must List.[6]
In 2008, James Gunn was one of the judges on the VH1 reality television show Scream Queens where 10 unknown actresses compete for a role in the film Saw VI, where he directed contestants during acting challenges.[7]
In 2009, Gunn announced he was going to write and direct Pets, a comedy about a man who is abducted by aliens who want to turn him into a household pet with Ben Stiller, Stuart Cornfeld and Jeremy Kramer producing.[8] However, by March 2009, Gunn announced, "PETS, unfortunately, is done. I'm gone. I left the project for various reasons. I hope it sees the light of day somehow, but it won't be with me attached as director."[9]
In 2010, Gunn released the film Super, a dark comedy and superhero satire starring Rainn Wilson and Ellen Page.
Outside of filmmaking and television, Gunn also penned a novel in 2000, The Toy Collector, and with Troma's President Lloyd Kaufman co-wrote All I Need to Know about Filmmaking I Learned from the Toxic Avenger, about his experiences with Kaufman while working at Troma. As a musician, Gunn released one album with his band, The Icons, Mom, We Like It Here on Earth. He has written music for the films The Low Life, as well as for Scooby-Doo and Scooby-Doo 2.
He also wrote the story for Grasshopper Manufacture's video game Lollipop Chainsaw.[10]
Gunn is set to direct and write the Marvel Studios adaptation of Guardians of the Galaxy.[11]
Personal life [edit]
James Gunn was born in St. Louis, Missouri. He has four brothers, actor Sean Gunn, actor and political writer Matt Gunn, producer Patrick Gunn (formerly with Mosaic Media Group) and writer Brian Gunn, as well as one sister. Though the surname Gunn is usually Scottish, Gunn's name is from the Irish name MacGilGunn meaning "Sons to the Servants of the God of the Dead".[12]
Gunn graduated from Saint Louis University in 1992 where he earned his B.S. in Psychology.[13] He continued his graduate studies at Columbia University, where he earned his MFA in Writing Fiction.[14]
He married Emmy-award nominated actress Jenna Fischer on October 7, 2000, but after seven years of marriage Gunn and Fischer announced their separation in a joint statement on September 5, 2007.[15] Fischer and Gunn divorced less than a year later.[16] Gunn has since been romantically involved with Kayo Dot violinist Mia Matsumiya [17] and model Melissa Stetten.[18]
Filmography [edit]
| Year | Film | Functioned as | Notes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Director | Writer | Producer | Actor | Role | |||
| 1996 | Tromeo and Juliet | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Found a peanut father | uncredited as director |
| 2000 | The Specials | Yes | Yes | Yes | Minute Man | ||
| 2000 | Citizen Toxie: The Toxic Avenger IV | Yes | Doctor Flem Hocking | ||||
| 2002 | Scooby-Doo | Yes | Yes | ||||
| 2003 | The Ghouls | Yes | |||||
| 2003 | Doggie Tails, Vol. 1: Lucky's First Sleep-Over | Yes | Riley | Direct-to-video | |||
| 2004 | Dawn of the Dead | Yes | |||||
| 2004 | Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed | Yes | Yes | ||||
| 2004 | LolliLove | Yes | Yes | James | uncredited as writer | ||
| 2006 | Slither | Yes | Yes | Yes | Hank | uncredited as actor | |
| 2008–2009 | James Gunn's PG Porn | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Various Roles | Executive Producer Web Series |
| 2010 | Super | Yes | Yes | Yes | Demonswill | ||
| 2012 | Lollipop Chainsaw | Yes | Video Game | ||||
| 2013 | Movie 43 | Yes | Yes | Segment: "Beezel" | |||
| 2014 | Guardians of the Galaxy | Yes | Yes | ||||
Bibliography [edit]
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | All I Need to Know about Filmmaking I Learned from the Toxic Avenger | with Lloyd Kaufman |
| 2000 | The Toy Collector | |
| 2003 | Make Your Own Damn Movie: Secrets of a Renegade Director | Introduction only |
Awards and nominations [edit]
| Year | Award | Category | Title | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Bram Stoker Award | Best Screenplay | Dawn of the Dead | Nominated |
| 2006 | Chainsaw Award | Highest Body Count | Slither | Won |
| 2007 | Saturn Award | The Filmmakers Showcase Award | Slither | Won |
References [edit]
- ^ Mark Hefflinger (2008-07-23). "Comedy Shorts from Horror Directors". Digital Media Wire. Retrieved 2009-01-03.[dead link]
- ^ "Xbox Live Show Sparky and Mikela". Celebrifi. 2008-10-27. Retrieved 2009-01-03.
- ^ "Xbox Live Marketplace - Horror Meets Comedy". Xbox Live Marketplace. 2008-12-31. Retrieved 2009-01-03.[dead link]
- ^ "James Gunn & Brutal Legend". The Jace Hall Show. Season 2. Episode 5. 20089-04-16.
- ^ "Spike.com likes its 'Porn' PG". The Hollywood Reporter. 2008-09-19. Retrieved 2009-01-03.[dead link]
- ^ "The Must List: What's Hot for the Week of Oct. 5, 2008". Entertainment Weekly. 2008-10-05. Retrieved 2009-01-03.
- ^ "A Search For Authenticity on the Set of 'Scream Queens' Season 2". BloodyDisgusting.
- ^ Michael Fleming (2007-09-20). "New Regency adopts 'Pets' pitch - James Gunn to write and direct comedy". Variety. Retrieved 2009-01-03.
- ^ James Gunn (March 31, 2009). "Re: A Few Things..". Retrieved 2010-08-05.
- ^ Johnny Cullen (2011-08-01). "Warner to publish Grasshopper’s Lollipop Chainsaw". vg247. Retrieved 2011-08-01.
- ^ Lesnick, Silas (September 18, 2012). "James Gunn Confirmed to Direct and Rewrite Guardians of the Galaxy". Superherohype.com. Archived from the original on September 18, 2012. Retrieved September 18, 2012.
- ^ April 4, 2012. Interview. The 404 Podcast Ep. 1047
- ^ James Gunn (2010-09-01). "Facebook Page". Facebook.
- ^ James Gunn (2010-09-01). "Formspring Questions". Formspring. Retrieved 2010-09-01.
- ^ Reuters (2007-09-12). "'Office' actress Fischer, husband separate". Reuters. Retrieved 2009-01-03.
- ^ "Jenna Fisher Finds Love One Year After Divorce". Contact Music. 2008-09-24. Retrieved 2009-01-03.
- ^ Jeremy Taylor (2010-04-21). "Mia Matsumiya -- Rock Violinist, Contortionist, Legal Dwarf". Asylum.
- ^ Aug 22, 2012. Interview. Decently Funny Podcast: Stetten and Gunn Are a Lot of Fun
External links [edit]
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