Peter Jackson

Director Peter Jackson, once known for low-budget cult comedies and horror films made in his native New Zealand, became an internationally recognized auteur with the release of the Lord of the Rings film series from 2001-2003. He has since directed a reimagining of the 1933 classic King Kong.

Fast Facts:

1. Born: October 31, 1961 in Pukerua Bay, North Island, New Zealand
2. Academy Awards: 3
3. Spouse: Co-writer and producer Fran Walsh

Early Career

A fan of filmmaking since childhood, Jackson made his first feature, Bad Taste, about aliens who come to Earth to harvest humans for food, over the course of four years with the help of friends. He had no formal training.

Jackson followed Bad Taste with the The Muppet Show parody Meet the Feebles in 1989, then the zombie comedy Braindead (sometimes called Dead Alive) in 1992. These were his first collaborations with screenwriter Fran Walsh, who would become his creative and romantic partner. The couple now has two children together.

Heavenly Creatures and Hollywood

In 1994, Jackson directed Heavenly Creatures, based on a true story of a murder carried out by two teenaged girls that shocked New Zealand in the 1950s. The film was an international success and netted Walsh and Jackson an Oscar nomination for Best Original Screenplay.

Jackson was then invited, partly because of support from director Robert Zemeckis, to direct the big-budget Hollywood comedy The Frighteners in 1996, starring Michael J. Fox. The complex post-production work required for Frighteners allowed Jackson to greatly expand his WETA special effects house in New Zealand.

Lord of the Rings and Beyond

Jackson won the rights to film the Lord of the Rings, based on a series of novels by J.R.R. Tolkein, in 1997. Originally conceived as one or two films, he eventually cut a deal with New Line Cinemas to film the books as a trilogy. Jackson shot all three films at the same time, from from October 11, 1999 to December 22, 2000. The final film in the series, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, won 3 Oscars in 2004 - Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Director for Jackson and Best Picture of the Year.

In 2005, Jackson followed up this success with his epic-scale, 3-hour remake of King Kong. He will produce a prequel to Lord of the Rings, based on Tolkein's book The Hobbit, to be directed by Guillermo del Toro.

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