Bad Robot Productions
 | |
| Private | |
| Industry | Motion pictures and television |
| Founded | 1998 |
| Headquarters | Santa Monica, California, United States |
Key people | J. J. Abrams, Bryan Burk |
| Website |
www |
Bad Robot Productions (more commonly known as Bad Robot) is an American film and television production company owned by J. J. Abrams. It 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: The Force Awakens, 10 Cloverfield Lane and Star Trek Beyond.
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/Chief Executive Officer of the company. In April 2015, Bad Robot announced that Tommy Harper would become Chief Operating Officer, overseeing daily operations. Harper, who also serves as Executive Producer on Star Wars: The Force Awakens, has worked with Abrams on numerous past film projects. 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. Bryan Burk serves as Executive Vice President of the company.
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!"[1] 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.
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.[2] In August 2015, Valve released a new beta game mode to Team Fortress 2, PASS TIME, which Bad Robot worked on.[3] On July 7, 2016 the PASS TIME game mode became official.[4] 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.
Bad Robot Productions is currently based in Santa Monica, California,[5] in a building which is incorrectly labeled on purpose as the home of the fictional "National Typewriter Company" because Abrams "likes typewriters — and misdirection."[6]
Productions
Bad Robot Productions produces both films and television series.
Films
| Year | Title | Director | Notes | Budget | Gross |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Joy Ride | John Dahl | Co-production with 20th Century Fox and Regency Enterprises. | $23 million | $36.6 million |
| 2008 | Cloverfield | Matt Reeves | Co-production with Paramount Pictures. | $25 million | $170.8 million |
| 2009 | Star Trek | J. J. Abrams | Co-production with Paramount Pictures and Spyglass Entertainment | $150 million | $385.7 million |
| 2010 | Morning Glory | Roger Michell | Co-production with Paramount Pictures | $40 million | $60 million |
| 2011 | Super 8 | J. J. Abrams | Co-production with Paramount Pictures and Amblin Entertainment | $50 million | $260.1 million |
| Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol | Brad Bird | Co-production with Paramount Pictures, Skydance Productions and Cruise/Wagner Productions | $145 million | $694.7 million | |
| 2013 | Star Trek Into Darkness | J. J. Abrams | Co-production with Paramount Pictures, Skydance Productions and K/O Paper Products | $190 million | $467.4 million |
| 2015 | Infinitely Polar Bear | Maya Forbes | Co-production with Sony Pictures Classics, Paper Street Films and Park Pictures | $6.7 million | $1.8 million |
| Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation | Christopher McQuarrie | Co-production with Paramount Pictures, Skydance Productions, Alibaba Pictures and Cruise/Wagner Productions. | $150 million | $682.3 million | |
| Star Wars: The Force Awakens | J. J. Abrams | Co-production with Lucasfilm Ltd. | $245 million | $2.068 billion | |
| 2016 | 10 Cloverfield Lane | Dan Trachtenberg | Co-production with Paramount Pictures. | $15 million | $108.3 million |
| Star Trek Beyond | Justin Lin | Co-production with Paramount Pictures, Skydance Media, Sneaky Shark and Perfect Storm Entertainment | $185 million | $342.9 million | |
| Upcoming | |||||
| 2017 | God Particle | Julius Onah | Co-production with Paramount Pictures and Worldview Entertainment. | $10 million | |
| Star Wars: Episode VIII | Rian Johnson | Co-production with Lucasfilm Ltd. | |||
Television series
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 2001–06 | Alias | |
| 2004–10 | Lost | |
| 2005 | The Catch | Pilot |
| 2006–07 | What About Brian | |
| 2006–07 | Six Degrees | |
| 2008–13 | Fringe | |
| 2009 | Anatomy of Hope | Pilot |
| 2010 | Undercovers | |
| 2011–16 | Person of Interest | |
| 2012 | Alcatraz | |
| 2012 | Shelter | Pilot[7] |
| 2012–14 | Revolution | |
| 2013–14 | Almost Human | |
| 2014 | Believe | |
| 2015 | Dead People | Pilot[8] |
| 2016 | 11.22.63 | |
| 2016 | Moon Shot | |
| 2016 | Roadies | |
| 2016 | Westworld | |
Shorts
| Year | Title |
|---|---|
| 2013 | KRE-O Star Trek |
Awards and recognition
- Nominations
- 2002 Emmy Award Nomination, Outstanding Writing for A Drama Series (Alias)[9]
- 2005 Emmy Award Nomination, Outstanding Writing for A Drama Series (Lost)[10]
- 2007 Golden Globe Award Nomination, Best Television Series – Drama (Lost)[11]
- Wins
- 2005 Emmy Award Winner, Outstanding Drama Series (Lost)[12]
- 2005 Emmy Award Winner, Outstanding Directing for A Drama Series (Lost)[13]
- 2006 Golden Globe Award Winner, Best Television Series – Drama (Lost)[11]
References
- ↑ 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 2016-08-14.
- ↑ "Team Fortress 2 - Meet Your Match". teamfortress.com. Retrieved 2016-08-14.
- ↑ 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 (26 May 2011). "Filmmaker J. J. Abrams Is a Crowd Teaser". The New York Times Magazine. The New York Times Company. Retrieved 22 December 2015.
- ↑ 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.
- 1 2 "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 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.