Name John Watson Role Film producer | Parents John Watson | |
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Awards Gemini Award for Best Short Dramatic Program Nominations Academy Award for Best Short Film (Live Action) Movies Robin Hood: Prince of, Phantom, Tank Girl, Blown Away, Larger than Life Similar People Pen Densham, Kevin Reynolds, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Todd Robinson, Tedi Sarafian | ||
John Watson, the film producer and son of the Somerset cricketer of the same name, was born in the village of Poyntington in Dorset, in South West England.
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Education
Watson was educated at Sherborne School, an independent school for boys in the town of Sherborne in Dorset, followed by Churchill College at the University of Cambridge.
Life and career
Watson's breakthrough came in 1991, when two films he produced were simultaneous hits: Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (which he also co-wrote), starring Kevin Costner and Morgan Freeman; and Backdraft, starring Kurt Russell and Robert De Niro, directed by Ron Howard.
Watson has since produced a slate of major features: Blown Away (Jeff Bridges, Tommy Lee Jones); Moll Flanders (Robin Wright Penn, Morgan Freeman); Tank Girl (Lori Petty, Naomi Watts); Larger Than Life (Bill Murray, Matthew McConaughey) and The Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys (Jodie Foster). All these projects were developed and produced under Watson's direct supervision.
Branching into television in the mid-1990s, Watson executive-produced over 300 hours of network and cable television; 7 seasons of The Outer Limits (Showtime), 4 seasons of Poltergeist: The Legacy (Showtime), 1 season of Fame LA (Syndication) and 1 season of The Twilight Zone (UPN).
Watson developed the CBS series, The Magnificent Seven, on which he was the sole showrunner for 2 seasons, and co-created and executive-produced the TNT and Bravo series Breaking News. TV movies and mini-series he has executive-produced; Carrie (NBC), Houdini and Buffalo Soldiers (TNT), Brother's Keeper (USA), Peter Benchley's Creature, Taking of Pelham 123 (ABC), and Lifepod (FOX).
Watson is producing (with Julian Adams and Pen Densham) the submarine thriller Phantom from RCR Media Group, Trilogy Entertainment Group and Solar Filmworks. Phantom was written and directed by Todd Robinson, and stars Ed Harris, David Duchovny and William Fichtner.
In 2013, Watson was part of the development team for a new film, with the working title of The Last Full Measure, from Trilogy Entertainment and Newline Cinema, to be written and directed by Todd Robinson.
Watson is a tenured professor at The USC School of Cinematic Arts, and holder of the Cubby Broccoli Endowed Chair.