Stephen Hopkins (director)

Stephen Hopkins is a Jamaican-born British-Australian director and producer of film and television. He directed Predator 2, A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child, Blown Away, The Life and Death of Peter Sellers, and the Jesse Owens biopic Race. He also produced and directed several episodes of the first season of 24.

Life and career

In Australia he made Dangerous Game (1987). This helped him get the job directing A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child. Hopkins later said, "I went at it like a dog, and had a wild, fun time. But when I look back, I think I'm the luckiest guy in the world because I don't understand how it all happened."[1]

He went on to make Predator 2, of which he said, "I'm pretty immature, really, so it was kind of a laugh".[1] He followed it with Judgment Night ("a real, absolute, total bomb" according to Hopkins[1]), Blown Away ("made a lot of mistakes"[1]) and The Ghost and the Darkness ("It was a mess. I haven't been able to watch it."[1]).

Hopkins said that after Predator 2 he "looked around for a good film for a long time, and I couldn't get anything I wanted to do... I didn't realise the Hollywood trick. In American action movies, people get shot to death and their arms are blown off, and they get up and they're fine. These films are supposed to be fun things that people can laugh at. I always thought, 'That's wrong, that's not what violence is like.' I took these films too seriously and tried to add profound depths, and that's not what's wanted. You either do that film or you do the other one, but I kept mixing the two up, and probably unsuccessfully.'"[1]

In 2004, Hopkins directed the controversial biographical film The Life and Death of Peter Sellers which provoked the ire of the actor's son Michael Sellers and won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Miniseries, Movie or a Dramatic Special.[2]

Hopkins was a co-executive producer for the first season of the Fox action drama 24, and also directed half of the season's episodes, including the first and last episodes. He is also co-executive producer on 24: Legacy, and director of the show's pilot episode.

Hopkins has directed a number of episodes of Showtime's series House of Lies starring Don Cheadle which premiered on 8 January 2012 and has been renewed for a third season. He is also a producer on the series.

Hopkins directed Race, a biopic about athlete Jesse Owens for Focus Features.[3][4] Stephan James plays Jesse Owens, opposite Jason Sudeikis and Jeremy Irons. The film was released in February 2016.

Hopkins is directing and executive producing the new Amazon / MRC pilot of The Dark Tower in Croatia.

Filmography

Film
Year Title Notes
1986 Highlander Second Unit Director
1987 Dangerous Game Director / co-writer
1989 A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child Nominated for:
1990 Predator 2 Nominated for:
1993 Judgment Night
1994 Blown Away
1996 The Ghost and the Darkness
1998 Lost in Space Producer / Director
1999 Tube Tales Producer and director/ writer 1 segment
2000 Under Suspicion Producer / Director
2007 The Reaping Producer / Director
2016 Race Producer / Director

Television
Year Title Notes
1991-94 Tales from the Crypt 3 episodes
2001-02 24 Director / co- executive producer

Pilot and 12 episodes Nominated:

2004 Traffic Miniseries - executive producer / director

3 episodes

Nominated:

  • Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Miniseries or Movie
The Life and Death of Peter Sellers Television film

Won:

Nominated:

2007-13 Californication Executive producer / director

Pilot and 2 episodes

2009 The Unusuals Executive producer / director

Pilot episode

In Plain Sight 1 episode
2010 Thorne Executive producer / director

4 hour mini series Won:

2011 Shameless 1 episode
2012-14 House of Lies Executive producer / director

Pilot and 23 episodes

2016 Houdini & Doyle Executive producer / director

Miniseries Pilot and 1 episodes

2016-17 24: Legacy Executive producer / director

Pilot and 2 episodes

2019 The Dark Tower Executive producer / director

Pilot

References
  1. Logan, Brian (29 July 1998). "Arts: Some of Stephen Hopkins's films are so bad he can't bear to watch them... But Lost In Space is different. Brian Logan meets the man who won the hearts of Heather Graham and Hollywood". The Guardian. p. 014.
  2. The Guardian UK Biopic's many strange faces of Peter Sellers incense the actor's son Fiachra Gibbons in Cannes Tuesday 19 May 2003 The Guardian
  3. "Focus Features in Negotiations to Board Jesse Owens Biopic 'Race'". thewrap.com.
  4. "Focus Features First To Start Line On Crowded Field Of Jesse Owens Biopics". deadline.com.
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