Biografia

High-tech, action-packed entertainment

Often includes a subplot about a box with mysterious contents

[Cold opening] A suspenseful sequence before the opening credits used to pull the audience directly into the story (Mission: Impossible III (2006), Star Trek (2009)).

Often uses music by Michael Giacchino

Often makes references to elements of Star Trek (1966)

He says he got the job directing Mission: Impossible III (2006) after Tom Cruise watched early episodes of Alias (2001) on DVD and loved them. The two started hanging out together and Cruise offered him the job.

Is the first director to have directed both a Star Trek film and a Star Wars film.

Is a huge fan of Ai confini della realtà (1959), with his favorite episode being Walking Distance (1959).

His debut film Mission: Impossible III (2006) was the most expensive film ever made by a first-time director until Tron: Legacy (2010), directed by Joseph Kosinski, which cost nearly $20 million more than MI3.

Frequently uses the name Kelvin in his movies, which was the name of his grandfather. Examples: the character Kelvin Inman from Lost (2004); the postcard addressed to H. Kelvin from Mission: Impossible III (2006); the USS Kelvin from Star Trek (2009) and Into Darkness - Star Trek (2013), Kelvin Gasoline from Super 8 (2011) and a location named "Kelvin Ridge" from Star Wars - Il risveglio della Forza (2015).

Guerre stellari (1977) is probably the most influential film of my generation. It's the personification of good and evil and the way it opened up the world to space adventure, the way westerns had to our parents' generations, left an indelible imprint. So, in a way, everything that any of us does is somehow directly or indirectly affected by the experience of seeing those first three films.

I feel like in telling stories, there are the things the audience thinks are important, and then there are the things that are actually important.

Directing's the best part. Whenever I've directed something, there's this feeling of demand and focus that I like. And secondly, it means that you've gotten through all the writing stuff, and the producing stuff, and casting, and prep, and all those stages that are seemingly endless. So directing is sort of the reward for all the work you put in before. And then there's the editing, which is another amazing stage of the process. It's incredible the moments you can create.

I'm an impatient guy and tend not to like to stay with one thing for a long time. I'll never be able to write as many scripts as I did for Felicity (1998) or Alias (2001) ever again. I'm just too impatient these days. I want to get on to the next project.

I've always liked working on stories that combine people who are relatable with something insane. The most exciting thing for me is crossing that bridge between something we know is real and something that is extraordinary. The thing for me has always been how you cross that bridge.