Michael Bay

American film director and producer Michael Bay has almost single-handedly defined the new action genre with his fast-paced and highly kinetic style. Despite some critics who claim this style lacks substance, blockbuster hits such as Armageddon, The Rock, and Transformers helped secure his place in cinema history.

Michael Benjamin Bay was born February 17, 1965 in Los Angeles, California. Along with his adoptive parents, Bay was raised in the heart of Los Angeles. Always interested in film, Bay attempted to join a prestigious film program such as that offered at USC, but he was rejected at every turn. He finally had to pursue his education at Art Center College of Design located in Pasadena. He later graduated from Wesleyan University of Connecticut.

His first professional gig was working on various music videos. His distinctive style quickly drew the likes of Meat Loaf, Donny Osmond, Tina Turner, Lionel Richie, and Richard Marx. Continuing in short, glitzy mediums, he also directed a multitude of television commercials. Finding enormous success, Bay was even responsible for the prolific “Got Milk?” campaign that swept the nation.

His break into film directing came in 1995 with the action comedy Bad Boys starring Martin Lawrence, Will Smith, Tea Leoni, Joe Pantoliano, and Marg Helgenberger. He followed with the highly received 1996 thriller The Rock with stars Sean Connery, Nicolas Cage, and Ed Harris.

1998 marked his first double duty as director and producer for the surprisingly heartfelt Armageddon. With enough credibility to draw some of the biggest names in Hollywood, it was no surprise when Bruce Willis, Billy Bob Thornton, Ben Affleck, Liv Tyler, and Steve Buscemi signed on.

Taking a brief hiatus, fans waited anxiously for his next film. It came in 2001 as the box office flop Pearl Harbor. Despite a hot young cast including Affleck, Josh Hartnett, Kate Beckinsale, and Cuba Gooding Jr as well as seasoned actors such as Jon Voigt, Alec Baldwin, and Tom Sizemore, the film fell flat with critics and audiences alike.

He tried to revive his reputation in 2003 with the sequel Bad Boys II, but it only served to put him further in the hole. Diehard fans of the genre were pleased, but others remained unimpressed.

Bay received a much needed hit with his next work, The Island. His knock out cast, which included Ewan McGregor and Scarlett Johansson, helped win over the movie-going audiences as well as the critics.

Things only continued to look up for Bay when 2007 brought the box office powerhouse, Transformers. Bay and the film’s stars, Shia LaBeouf, Megan Fox, Josh Duhamel, and Tyrese Gibson, teamed up to create a film that would ultimately bring in $153 million in it’s first seven days at the box office. This set a world record for a non-sequel film, beating out the previous record holder, Spider-Man.

His career as a producer has also been successful, lending his skill to The Amityville Horror, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The Hitcher, and others.

Bay has never been married, although he was briefly linked to Playboy playmate Jaime Bergman.