James Bobin
British filmmaker
title: "James Bobin" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["living-people", "british-comedy-film-directors", "british-fantasy-film-directors", "british-film-directors", "british-television-directors", "children's-and-family-emmy-award-winners", "people-educated-at-the-portsmouth-grammar-school", "year-of-birth-missing-(living-people)"] description: "British filmmaker" topic_path: "arts" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Bobin" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::summary British filmmaker ::
::data[format=table title="Infobox person"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| image | James-Bobin Alice Through the Looking Glass premiere.jpg |
| name | James Bobin |
| caption | Bobin in 2016 |
| occupation | Film director, screenwriter, producer |
| years_active | 1998–present |
| spouse | Francesca Beauman |
| children | 3 |
| :: |
| image = James-Bobin Alice Through the Looking Glass premiere.jpg | name = James Bobin | caption = Bobin in 2016 | death_date = | death_place = | occupation = Film director, screenwriter, producer | years_active = 1998–present | spouse = Francesca Beauman | website = | children = 3 James Bobin is a British filmmaker. He worked as a director and writer on Da Ali G Show and helped create the characters of Ali G, Borat and Brüno. With Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement, he co-created Flight of the Conchords. He directed the feature films The Muppets (2011), Muppets Most Wanted (2014), and Alice Through the Looking Glass (2016) from Disney, and Dora and the Lost City of Gold (2019) from Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies.
Career
Bobin worked as a director and writer on The 11 O'Clock Show and Da Ali G Show, and helped create the characters of Ali G, Borat and Brüno. In 2003 and 2004, he directed and co-wrote all of the 12 episodes of Ali G in da USAiii for HBO.
With Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement, he co-created, wrote and directed Flight of the Conchords, also for HBO. Bobin had previously seen Clement and McKenzie perform and signed on to co-create the show. In 2011, he signed a deal with HBO.
His feature film directorial debut, The Muppets, a musical-comedy film written by Jason Segel and Nicholas Stoller, was released in 2011 and became a critical and commercial hit and won an Oscar for Best Original Song. The film earned him his second BAFTA nomination at the 66th British Academy Film Awards. He wrote (with Nicholas Stoller) and directed a follow-up, Muppets Most Wanted, which was released in 2014. Bobin next directed the sequel Alice Through the Looking Glass (2016). In February 2016, it was announced that he would direct a Jump Street–Men in Black crossover film; however, plans for the movie fell through. In 2011, he signed a first-look deal with HBO.
His most recent film, Dora and the Lost City of Gold, is a live-action adaptation of TV series Dora the Explorer with Isabela Moner as the title character. The film was theatrically released in the United States on 9 August 2019, by Paramount Pictures. In 2020, it was announced that Bobin was in talks to direct a remake of Clue. In October 2021, it was announced that Bobin would direct and executive produce an adaptation of Percy Jackson & the Olympians for Disney+.
Awards and nominations
Bobin received his first BAFTA nomination (British Academy of Film and Television Award) for Best Comedy Series in 2000 for his work on The 11 O'Clock Show. He also won an award from the Royal Television Society, as well as a Silver Rose from the Montreux Television Festival. He won a Writers Guild of America Award in 2007.
Bobin was nominated for Outstanding Writing and Directing Emmys for Da Ali G Show in 2003, and again in 2005. In 2008 and 2009, he was nominated for Outstanding Writing, Directing, and Original Music for Flight of the Conchords, and in 2009, also received an Outstanding Comedy Series nomination for his work as executive producer.
In 2011, Bobin's first feature film, The Muppets, won an Oscar for Best Original Song for the song "Man or Muppet" written by Bret McKenzie. Bobin himself was nominated for the BAFTA Award for Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer.
::data[format=table]
| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | BAFTA Awards | Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer | The Muppets | ||
| 2020 | Imagen Awards | Best Director – Feature Film | Dora and the Lost City of Gold | ||
| 2024 | Directors Guild of America Awards | Outstanding Directing – Children's Programs | Percy Jackson and the Olympians (for "I Accidentally Vaporize My Pre-Algebra Teacher") | ||
| 2025 | Children's and Family Emmy Awards | Outstanding Directing for a Single Camera Live Action Series | |||
| :: |
Reality TV
Bobin appeared as himself in one episode of a British documentary series Modern Times. He was one part of a household in search of a flatmate.
Filmography
Short film
- Spyz (2003)
Feature film
- The Muppets (2011)
- Muppets Most Wanted (2014) (Also writer)
- Alice Through the Looking Glass (2016)
- Dora and the Lost City of Gold (2019)
Television ::data[format=table]
| Year | Title | Director | Writer | Producer |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | The 11 O'Clock Show | |||
| 2000 (UK) | ||||
| 2003–2004 (US) | Da Ali G Show | |||
| 2004 | Comedy Lab | |||
| 2007–2009 | Flight of the Conchords | |||
| 2011 | Enlightened | |||
| 2021 | The Mysterious Benedict Society | |||
| 2023 | Percy Jackson and the Olympians | |||
| :: |
Personal life
In 2005, Bobin married Francesca Beauman, with whom he has three children. They live in Bath, Somerset.
Notes
References
References
- "Flight of the Conchords". HBO.
- "Marc Allan – Fasten Your Seat Belts for Flight of the Conchords".
- Weisman, Jon. (2011-09-08). "Bobin inks first-look deal with HBO".
- Brodesser-Akner, Claude. (1 March 2012). "New Muppets Movie Going Ahead, But Without Jason Segel As a Writer". Vulture.
- (4 March 2016). "The 23 Jump Street Men in Black Crossover is Happening".
- (12 January 2019). "'21 Jump Street' and 'Men in Black' Crossover is Dead". /Film.
- Weisman, Jon. (2011-09-08). "Bobin inks first-look deal with HBO".
- Hipes, Patrick. (10 February 2020). "James Bobin in Talks To Direct 'Clue' Movie at 20th Century". [[Deadline Hollywood]].
- (2021-10-24). "Back from LA and into the Deep! {{!}} Rick Riordan".
- (10 February 2013). "Bafta Film Awards 2013: The winners". BBC.
- Lewis, Hilary. (24 September 2020). "Dora and the Lost City of Gold' Tops Imagen Awards". The Hollywood Reporter.
- Verhoeven, Beatrice. (9 January 2024). "''Succession'' Leads Directors Guild TV Nominations". [[The Hollywood Reporter]].
- Lewis, Hilary. (March 15, 2025). "Children's and Family Emmy Awards: 'Percy Jackson,' 'Sesame Street' Universe, 'Orion and the Dark' Among Top Winners".
- "Modern Times – 'flatmates'".
- Slater, Lydia. (18 August 2007). "How to be a Modern Woman". [[The Times]].
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