Bad Robot
 | |
 Santa Monica headquarters | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Motion pictures Television |
| Founded | 1998 |
| Headquarters | Santa Monica, California, United States |
Key people | J. J. Abrams Katie McGrath |
| Divisions | Bad Robot Productions Bad Robot Interactive Bad Robot Television Bad Robot Games |
| Website | www |
Bad Robot is an American film and television production company led by J. J. Abrams. Under its Bad Robot Productions division, the company is responsible for the television series Alias, Lost, Fringe, Person of Interest, Revolution and Westworld alongside the feature-length films Cloverfield, Star Trek, Super 8, Star Trek Into Darkness, Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation, Star Wars Episodes VII and IX, 10 Cloverfield Lane, Star Trek Beyond, The Cloverfield Paradox, and Mission: Impossible – Fallout.
History
Bad Robot was originally based at Touchstone Television, but was moved by Abrams to Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros. Television, after his contract with ABC expired in 2006. Bad Robot produced Lost in association with ABC Studios, formerly Touchstone Television. The two companies jointly produced Six Degrees and What About Brian.
Abrams is Chairman and Co-Chief Executive Officer of Bad Robot, and Katie McGrath serves as the Company's Co-Chief Executive Officer. In June 2017, Bad Robot announced that Brian Weinstein would become President and Chief Operating Officer, overseeing daily operations and spearhead the company’s growth strategy in its existing businesses, while developing new areas of expansion across the entire Bad Robot platform and pursuing alternative financing options.[1] In May 2015, Ben Stephenson left the BBC where he had been head of drama to helm Bad Robot Television. Lindsey Weber leads Bad Robot's feature film division.
The production logo has appeared since 2001, featuring a red rectangular headed robot running through a meadow silhouetted until it appears suddenly in front of the camera, followed by voices provided by two of Abrams's children, Henry and Gracie Abrams, saying "Bad robot!"[2] Although some fans believe that the name comes from a line in the animated film The Iron Giant, Abrams told Entertainment Weekly that it simply came to him during a writers' meeting.[citation needed]
In February 2013, it was announced that Bad Robot would be partnering with the Valve Corporation to produce possibly a Half-Life or Portal film in the distant future.[3] In August 2015, Valve released a new beta game mode to Team Fortress 2, PASS Time, which Bad Robot worked on.[4] On July 7, 2016 the PASS Time game mode became official.[5] Bad Robot released a trailer entitled "Stranger" (otherwise known as S.), rumoured to be Abrams' next film or television project, perhaps even a Lost spin-off, but it was finally explained to be promoting S., Abrams and Doug Dorst's new novel, as a new trailer for S. was released.[citation needed] In February 2017, it was announced Julius Avery is attached to direct a Paramount coproduction, the World War II zombie film Overlord, from screenwriter Billy Ray.[6]
Bad Robot Productions is currently based in Santa Monica, California,[7] in a building which is incorrectly labeled on purpose as the home of the fictional "National Typewriter Company" because Abrams "likes typewriters — and misdirection."[8]
In June 2018, the company announced a spin-off venture formed with the Chinese video game publisher Tencent to launch Bad Robot Games for the development of video games on mobile, computer and consoles, with Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment as a minority investor. Bad Robot Games will develop and publish titles related to Abrams' works and other Bad Robot Production contents, with Tencent holding the rights for distribution in China. The division will be helmed by Dave Baronoff, who has worked on the Cloverfield franchise and in developing Spyjinx as a joint project between Bad Robot Productions and Epic Games (also partially owned by Tencent), while Tim Keenan, who helped develop Duskers, will serve as the creative director.[9]
Productions
Films
| Year | Title | Director | Budget | Gross | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Joy Ride | John Dahl | $23 million | $36.6 million | ||
| 2008 | Cloverfield | Matt Reeves | $25 million | $170.8 million | ||
| 2009 | Star Trek | J. J. Abrams | $150 million | $385.7 million | ||
| 2010 | Morning Glory | Roger Michell | $40 million | $60 million | ||
| 2011 | Super 8 | J. J. Abrams | $50 million | $260.1 million | ||
| Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol | Brad Bird | $145 million | $694.7 million | |||
| 2013 | Star Trek Into Darkness | J. J. Abrams | $190 million | $467.4 million | ||
| 2015 | Infinitely Polar Bear | Maya Forbes | $6.7 million | $2.1 million | ||
| Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation | Christopher McQuarrie | $150 million | $682.7 million | |||
| Star Wars: The Force Awakens | J. J. Abrams | $306 million | $2.068 billion | |||
| 2016 | 10 Cloverfield Lane | Dan Trachtenberg | $15 million | $110.2 million | ||
| Star Trek Beyond | Justin Lin | $185 million | $343.5 million | |||
| 2018 | The Cloverfield Paradox | Julius Onah | $45 million | — | ||
| Mission: Impossible – Fallout | Christopher McQuarrie | $178 million | $726.6 million | |||
| Upcoming | ||||||
| 2018 | Overlord | Julius Avery | ||||
| 2019 | Star Wars: Episode IX | J. J. Abrams | ||||
Television series
| Year | Title | Creator(s) | Co-production(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001–06 | Alias | J. J. Abrams | Touchstone Television | |
| 2004–10 | Lost | Jeffrey Lieber J. J. Abrams Damon Lindelof |
Touchstone Television (season 1–3) ABC Studios (season 4–6) |
|
| 2005 | The Catch | Pilot | ||
| 2006–07 | What About Brian | Dana Stevens | Sachs/Judah Productions (season 1) Touchstone Television |
|
| 2006–07 | Six Degrees | Raven Metzner Stuart Zicherman |
Nosebleed Productions Touchstone Television |
|
| 2008–13 | Fringe | J. J. Abrams Alex Kurtzman Roberto Orci |
Warner Bros. Television | |
| 2009 | Anatomy of Hope | Pilot | ||
| 2010 | Undercovers | J. J. Abrams Josh Reims |
Warner Bros. Television Good Butter Productions |
|
| 2011–16 | Person of Interest | Jonathan Nolan | Kilter Films Warner Bros. Television |
|
| 2012 | Alcatraz | Elizabeth Sarnoff Steven Lilien Bryan Wynbrandt |
Warner Bros. Television | |
| 2012 | Shelter | Pilot[10] | ||
| 2012–14 | Revolution | Eric Kripke | Kripke Enterprises Warner Bros. Television |
|
| 2013–14 | Almost Human | J. H. Wyman | Frequency Films Warner Bros. Television |
|
| 2014 | Believe | Alfonso Cuarón Mark Friedman |
Esperanto Filmoj Warner Bros. Television |
|
| 2015 | Dead People | Pilot[11] | ||
| 2016 | 11.22.63 | 11/22/63 by Stephen King Bridget Carpenter |
Carpenter B. Warner Bros. Television |
Miniseries |
| 2016 | Moon Shot | Web series | ||
| 2016 | Roadies | Cameron Crowe | Vinyl Films Warner Bros. Television Showtime Networks |
|
| 2016– | Westworld | Westworld by Michael Crichton Jonathan Nolan Lisa Joy |
HBO Entertainment Kilter Films Jerry Weintraub Productions Warner Bros. Television |
|
| 2018– | Castle Rock | Sam Shaw | Old Curiosity Shop Darkbloom Productions Warner Bros. Television |
|
| TBA | Demimonde | J.J. Abrams | Warner Bros. Television | |
| TBA | Lovecraft Country | Lovecraft Country by Matt Ruff Misha Green |
HBO Entertainment Monkeypaw Productions Warner Bros. Television |
|
| TBA | The Wrong Mans | The Wrong Mans by James Corden Mathew Baynton |
Fulwell 73 Productions BBC Studios Warner Bros. Television |
Shorts
| Year | Title |
|---|---|
| 2013 | KRE-O Star Trek |
Awards and recognition
- Nominations
- 2002 Emmy Award Nomination, Outstanding Writing for A Drama Series (Alias)[12]
- 2005 Emmy Award Nomination, Outstanding Writing for A Drama Series (Lost)[13]
- 2007 Golden Globe Award Nomination, Best Television Series – Drama (Lost)[14]
- Wins
- 2005 Emmy Award Winner, Outstanding Drama Series (Lost)[15]
- 2005 Emmy Award Winner, Outstanding Directing for A Drama Series (Lost)[16]
- 2006 Golden Globe Award Winner, Best Television Series – Drama (Lost)[14]
References
- ^ Kroll, Justin (June 13, 2017). "Bad Robot Names Brian Weinstein President and COO". Variety. Retrieved June 13, 2017.
- ^ Nicholas Fonseca (December 7, 2001). "'Alias': The Story Behind J.J. Abrams' Bad Robot". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved March 22, 2012.
- ^ Variety (February 12, 2013). "Star Trek's JJ Abrams and Valve's Gabe Newell - Full Keynote Speech - D.I.C.E. SUMMIT 2013".
- ^ "Team Fortress 2". www.teamfortress.com. Retrieved August 14, 2016.
- ^ "Team Fortress 2 - Meet Your Match". teamfortress.com. Retrieved August 14, 2016.
- ^ "Bad Robot's D-Day Movie 'Overlord' Finds Director (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. February 2, 2017. Retrieved February 2, 2017.
- ^ Abramian, Alexandria (September 11, 2013). "Source: J. J. Abrams Building 'Star Wars' Post-production Facility in L.A. (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved July 28, 2014.
- ^ Bruni, Frank (May 26, 2011). "Filmmaker J. J. Abrams Is a Crowd Teaser". The New York Times Magazine. The New York Times Company. Retrieved December 22, 2015.
- ^ Shanley, Patrick (June 7, 2018). "J.J. Abrams' Bad Robot Launches Video Game Division". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved June 7, 2018.
- ^ Andreeva, Nellie (May 7, 2012). "NBC Pilots 2012 Analysis: Single-Camera Comedies and J. J. Abrams Among Early Orders". Deadline. Retrieved October 9, 2012.
- ^ Andreeva, Nellie (February 25, 2015). "Andrew J. West to Play the Lead in CW Pilot Dead People from Bad Robot". Deadline. Retrieved February 26, 2015.
- ^ "54th Emmy Awards Nominees and Winners". -Emmys.com. Retrieved January 8, 2016.
- ^ "57th Emmy Awards Nominees and Winners". Emmys.com. Retrieved January 8, 2016.
- ^ a b "Winners & Nominees Best Television Series - Drama". goldenglobes.com. Retrieved January 8, 2016.
- ^ "57th Emmy Awards Nominees and Winners". Emmys.com. Retrieved January 8, 2016.
- ^ "57th Emmy Awards Nominees and Winners". Emmys.com. Retrieved January 8, 2016.
External links
- Official website
- Bad Robot on Twitter
- "Bad Robot Productions Signs Far-Reaching Production Deals With Columbia Pictures, Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros. Television" (Press release). Time Warner. July 15, 2006.
- Andreeva, Nellie; Siegel, Tatiana (July 17, 2006). "Abrams builds his Robot". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on October 14, 2008.
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