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John Badham

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For the Canadian football personality, see John Badham (sportscaster).

John Badham
Badham in 2025
Born (1939-08-25) August 25, 1939 (age 86)
Luton, Bedfordshire, England
CitizenshipUnited States (from 1950)
Alma materYale University
Occupations
  • Director
  • producer
  • screenwriter
Years active1971–present
RelativesMary Badham (sister)
Websitejohnbadham.com

John Badham (born August 25, 1939) is an American film and television director, best known for directing the films Saturday Night Fever (1977), Dracula (1979), Blue Thunder (1983), WarGames (1983), Short Circuit (1986), Stakeout (1987), Bird on a Wire (1990), The Hard Way (1991), Point of No Return (1993), Drop Zone (1994), and Nick of Time (1995). He is a two-time Primetime Emmy Award nominee, a two-time Hugo Award nominee, and a Saturn Award winner. He is also a Professor at Chapman University.[1]

Early life

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Badham was born in Luton, Bedfordshire, England, the son of actress Mary Hewitt. When he was five, Badham moved with his mother and stepfather—a U.S. Army brigadier general—to his stepfather's hometown of Birmingham, Alabama, and became a naturalized American citizen in 1950. He attended Yale University, earning a bachelor's degree in philosophy and then Master of Fine Arts in 1966.[2] From 1964 to 1970, Badham served as a medic in the United States Air Force and the California National Guard.[3]

Career

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Badham worked in television for years, on Universal Television series like Cannon and The Bold Ones. He then directed several acclaimed TV movies, including Isn't It Shocking? (1973) and The Law (1974). His first feature film was The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars & Motor Kings in 1976.

His breakthrough came in 1977 when he replaced John G. Avildsen as the director of Saturday Night Fever, a massive worldwide hit starring John Travolta.[4] His choices after that film were wildly eclectic, ranging from the action thriller Blue Thunder (1983) to the comedy-drama Whose Life Is It Anyway? (1981) to the comedy thriller Stakeout (1987) and its sequel Another Stakeout (1993). WarGames (1983), starring Matthew Broderick, is his other signature film, renowned for its take on popular Cold War fears of nuclear terror as well as being one of the first films to deal with the subculture of amateur hacking.[5] Another sizable hit was Short Circuit (1986), a comedy about a robot who comes to life.[6]

In addition to his numerous film credits, Badham has also continued to direct and produce for TV, including credits for Rod Serling's Night Gallery, the A&E television series The Beast, TV movies like HBO's The Jack Bull (1999), and episodes of series including Crossing Jordan and Criminal Minds. He has also contributed commentary to the web series Trailers from Hell.[7]

In 1986, he signed a two-year development deal with production company Universal Pictures, in order to develop various film projects. Badham is a Professor at Chapman University.[8]

Unrealized projects

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Badham has been considered to direct films that ended up being directed by others, such as The Wiz (1978),[9] Brubaker (1980),[10] First Blood (1982),[11] Staying Alive (1983),[12] The Dead Zone (1983),[13] Starman (1984),[14] Project X (1987),[15] Short Circuit 2 (1988),[16] Ghost Dad (1990),[17][18] Patriot Games (1992),[19] The Firm (1993)[20] and Dragonheart (1996).[21]

Personal life

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Badham's sister, Mary Badham, is an actress who was nominated for an Oscar for her role as "Scout" Finch in the film To Kill a Mockingbird.[22]

Filmography

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Film

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Year Title Director Producer Writer Notes
1976 The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars & Motor Kings Yes No No directorial debut
1977 Saturday Night Fever Yes No No
1979 Dracula Yes No No
1981 Whose Life Is It Anyway? Yes No Uncredited
1983 Blue Thunder Yes No No
WarGames Yes No No replaced Martin Brest
1985 American Flyers Yes No No
1986 Short Circuit Yes No No
1987 Stakeout Yes Executive No
1989 Disorganized Crime No Executive No
1990 Bird on a Wire Yes No No
1991 The Hard Way Yes No No
1993 Point of No Return Yes No No
Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story No Executive No
Another Stakeout Yes Executive No
1994 Drop Zone Yes Executive No
1995 Nick of Time Yes Yes No the only film he produced
1997 Incognito Yes No No latest feature film for cinemas
1999 The Jack Bull Yes No No


Television films

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Television series

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References

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  1. ^ "Faculty Profile". chapman.edu. Retrieved September 14, 2023.
  2. ^ Fischer, Dennis (2000). Science Fiction Film Directors, 1895–1998. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland. p. 72. ISBN 978-0-7864-6091-5. Retrieved May 7, 2026.
  3. ^ Kazel, Robert (February 12, 2013). "30 Years After 'WarGames,' Director John Badham Recalls His Nuclear-Brink Blockbuster". Nuclear Age Peace Foundation. Retrieved May 7, 2026.
  4. ^ Sippell, Margeaux (December 8, 2021). "Rocky Director John G Avildsen Almost Directed Saturday Night Fever—Until His Feud With John Travolta". MovieMaker. Retrieved May 21, 2023.
  5. ^ Barsanti, Chris (2014). The Sci-Fi Movie Guide: The Universe of Film from Alien to Zardoz. Canton MI: Visible Ink Press. p. 422. ISBN 9781578595037. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
  6. ^ Bland, Simon (May 31, 2021). "How we made Short Circuit, by Steve Guttenberg and John Badham". The Guardian. Retrieved May 21, 2023.
  7. ^ Marshall, Colin. "John Landis Deconstructs Trailers of Great 20th Century Films: Citizen Kane, Sunset Boulevard, 2001 & More". Open Culture. Retrieved September 30, 2015.
  8. ^ "Badham Inks Two-Year Development Deal with U". Variety. July 2, 1986. p. 17.
  9. ^ Potempa, Philip (September 11, 2008). "Fans ask whatever happened to attention 'The Wiz' deserves?". The Times of Northwest Indiana. Retrieved July 3, 2019.
  10. ^ "Brubaker". catalog.afi.com. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
  11. ^ "First Blood". catalog.afi.com. Retrieved June 11, 2021.
  12. ^ "Staying Alive". catalog.afi.com. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
  13. ^ Lambie, Ryan (February 21, 2015). "Why The Dead Zone Is One of the Best Stephen King Films". Den of Geek. Retrieved July 3, 2019.
  14. ^ "John Carpenter's Starman". catalog.afi.com. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
  15. ^ "Project X". catalog.afi.com. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
  16. ^ "Short Circuit 2". catalog.afi.com. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
  17. ^ Evans, Bradford (October 25, 2012). "The Lost Roles of Steve Martin". Vulture.com. Retrieved July 3, 2019.
  18. ^ Klady, Leonard (February 28, 1988). "Cinefile". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 3, 2019.
  19. ^ "Patriot Games". catalog.afi.com. Retrieved June 9, 2021.
  20. ^ "The Firm". catalog.afi.com. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
  21. ^ Duncan, Jody (1996). The Making of Dragonheart (Boulevard ed.). New York: Boulevard Books. p. 13. ISBN 1572971096. OCLC 34806374.
  22. ^ "John Badham, Director". JohnBadham.com. Archived from the original on December 3, 2013. Retrieved November 28, 2013.

Bibliography

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  • Badham, John (2006). I'll Be in My Trailer. Michael Wiese Productions. ISBN 1932907149.
  • Badham, John (2013). John Badham on Directing. Michael Wiese Productions. ISBN 9781615931385.
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