Judd Apatow is is an American producer, writer, director, actor, and comedian. Judd’s comedic talent is what has made his films famous and 2015 saw him triumph again with Trainwreck – starring Amy Shumer, the new queen of American comedy.  Nominated for 2 Golden Globe Awards, including a nomination for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy, the film was also nominated for 3 Critics’ Choice Movie Awards, including Best Comedy.

Apatow is sometimes called the master filmmaker of the ‘Bromantic Comedy’ genre, he brings humour and a sense of the ridiculous to the conundrums between men and women in modern relationships as well as highlighting the camraderie and hilarious behaviour of men in their friendships in many of his film projects.

A true comedian who began stand-up aged seventeen, Apatow loves the creative process of collaboration, frequently working with the same cast and crew in his projects. Seth Rogen has been involved with eight of Apatow’s projects, as an actor, writer, and/or producer. Apatow’s wife Leslie Mann has starred in five, Will Ferrell has starred in five, Paul Rudd has starred in nine, Jonah Hill has starred in seven, and Jason Segel has starred in four (as well as written two). Apatow has produced four projects written by Adam McKay and Will Ferrell and Kristen Wiig has appeared in five Apatow movies. Once he discovers a comedic chemistry that works Judd loves to return to those relationships and mine them for further gems.

To name just a few of the comic hits he has worked on: The Cable Guy, Anchorman, The 40 Year Old Virgin, Knocked Up, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Bridesmaids, Pineapple Express, Funny People, This Is 40… And 2016 sees him working on a new Pee Wee Herman film destined to delight comedy audiences once again. Judd is the founder of Apatow Productions and also developed the cult television series Freaks and Geeks, Undeclared and Girls.

BACKGROUND

Judd Apatow was born December 6, 1967 in Flushing, Queens, and raised in Syosset, New York. His mother, Tamara “Tami” (née Shad), worked primarily managing record labels founded by her father, music producer Bob Shad. Judd’s film Begin Again is one of the most wonderful, heartwarming and subtle films about music and the music industry ever made, clearly showing Judd’s family connection with the music industry. His father, Maury Apatow, was a real estate developer. Apatow has an older brother, Robert, and a younger sister, Mia.

When Apatow was twelve years old, his parents divorced. Apatow lived mainly with his father but when Apatow’s mother spent a summer working at a comedy club Judd was first exposed to live stand-up comedy which became a life long obsession. Apatow got his comic start washing dishes at the Long Island East Side Comedy Club, and while attending Syosset High School, he hosted a program called Comedy Club on the school’s 10-watt radio station WKWZ which he created as a way to meet and learn from the comedians he looked up to. He cold-called comedians he admired during this time, managing to interview Steve Allen, Howard Stern, Harold Ramis and John Candy, along with emerging comedians such as Jerry Seinfeld, Steven Wright and Garry Shandling.

After graduating from high school Judd moved to Los Angeles and enrolled in the screenwriting program at University of Southern California where he organized and hosted a number of on-campus “Comedy Night” events. Apatow introduced the acts at these events with short stand-up routines of his own. He also began volunteering at (and later producing) benefit concerts for HBO’s Comic Relief and performing and seeing stand-up at the Improv in Hollywood. Apatow dropped out of college during his sophomore year and later moved into an apartment with comedian Adam Sandler, whom he met at the Improv. He competed in the Johnnie Walker Comedy Search in 1989, was picked up by a manager and went on to write for and produce many high quality television comedy shows including The Ben Stiller Show and The Larry Sanders Show.

Apatow met actress Leslie Mann on the set of the 1996 comedy film, The Cable Guy, which he produced.  They were married the year after and have two daughters, Maude and Iris. Mann has appeared in The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Knocked Up, Drillbit Taylor, Funny People, and This is 40. Both daughters appeared in Knocked Up, Funny People, and This Is 40, as Leslie Mann’s character’s daughters, and Maude was nominated at the 34th Young Artist Awards for Best Performance in a Feature Film – Supporting Young Actress for This is 40. Judd’s maternal grandmother also appeared in This Is 40. He and his family live in Pacific Palisades, a suburb of Los Angeles, California.

FILM CAREER

Apatow has had a long and illustrious career in comedic television but co-wrote his first feature film – Heavyweights – in 1995. He also re-wrote the script for the movie The Cable Guy, which was released in 1996, and undertook uncredited re-writes on two other Jim Carrey films: Liar, Liar and Bruce Almighty.

In 2004, Apatow produced the feature film comedy Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, starring Will Ferrell and directed by Adam McKay. The film was his first major box office success.

He made his feature directorial debut in 2005 with the hit The 40-Year-Old Virgin, which he also co-wrote with the film’s star, Steve Carell, for Universal. The film opened at No. 1 and grossed more than $175 million globally. The comedy also garnered numerous awards and nominations, including being named one of AFI’s Top Movies of the Year, as well as taking home Best Comedy Movie at the 11th annual Critics’ Choice Awards. The 40-Year-Old Virgin also earned Apatow a nomination for Best Original Screenplay from the Writers Guild of America and received four MTV Movie Award nominations, including a win for Carell for Best Comedic Performance.

Judd has gone on to a string of hit TV shows and feature film successes as producer, director and writer.

FILMOGRAPHY

PRODUCER CREDITS

2016 Conner4Real (producer) (post-production)
2016 Pee-wee’s Big Holiday (TV Movie) (producer) (post-production)
2012-2016 Girls (TV Series) (executive producer – 52 episodes)
2016 Love (TV Series) (executive producer – 2015-)
2015 Trainwreck (producer)
2013 Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues (producer)
2013/II Begin Again (producer)
2012 This Is 40 (producer)
2012 The Five-Year Engagement (producer)
2012 Wanderlust (producer)
2011/I Bridesmaids (producer)
2011 Aziz Ansari: Looking for Work (Short) (producer)
2010 I Am Harry Potter (Short) (producer)
2010 Get Him to the Greek (producer)
2010 Funny or Die Presents… (TV Series) (executive producer – 2009)
2009 Raaaaaaaandy! (TV Series short) (executive producer – 3 episodes)
2009 Funny People: HBO Behind the Comedy (TV Movie) (executive producer)
2009 Funny People (producer)
2009 Year One (producer)
2009 Acting with James Franco (Video short) (producer)
2008 Pineapple Express (producer)
2008 Step Brothers (producer)
2008 Drillbit Taylor (producer)
2008 Forgetting Sarah Marshall (producer)
2007 Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story (producer)
2007 The Hills with James Franco and Mila Kunis (Video short) (producer)
2007 Superbad (producer)
2007 Knocked Up (producer)
2006 Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (producer)
2006 The TV Set (executive producer)
2006 American Storage (Short) (executive producer)
2005 The 40-Year-Old Virgin (producer)
2005 Kicking & Screaming (executive producer)
2004 Wake Up, Ron Burgundy: The Lost Movie (Video) (producer)
2004 Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (producer)
2004 2004 MTV Movie Awards (TV Special) (segment producer)
2003 Life on Parole (TV Movie) (executive producer)
2003 Sick in the Head (TV Movie) (executive producer)
2001-2003 Undeclared (TV Series) (executive producer – 17 episodes)
2001 North Hollywood (TV Movie) (executive producer)
1999-2000 Freaks and Geeks (TV Series) (executive producer – 18 episodes)
1993 – 1998 The Larry Sanders Show (TV Series) (consulting producer – 68 episodes) (co-executive producer – 8 episodes)
1996 The Cable Guy (producer)
1996 Celtic Pride (executive producer)
1995 Heavy Weights (executive producer)
1994 The Critic (TV Series) (consulting producer – 13 episodes)
1992-1993 The Ben Stiller Show (TV Series) (executive producer – 13 episodes)
1993 Tom Arnold: The Naked Truth 3 (TV Movie) (co-producer)
1992 The Road Warriors (TV Movie) (co-producer)
1992 Crossing the Bridge (associate producer)
1992 Roseanne Arnold (TV Movie) (co-producer)
1992 Tom Arnold: The Naked Truth 2 (TV Movie) (co-producer)
1991 Jim Carrey: Unnatural Act (TV Movie documentary) (co-producer)

WRITING CREDITS

Love (TV Series) (created by – 10 episodes, 2016) (written by – 1 episode, 2016)
2012-2015 Girls (TV Series) (written by – 7 episodes)
2015 The Simpsons (TV Series) (written by – 1 episode)
2012 This Is 40 (based on characters created by) / (written by)
2010 I Am Harry Potter (Short)
2010 Funny or Die Presents… (TV Series) (creator)
2010 Aziz Ansari: Intimate Moments for a Sensual Evening (TV Special documentary) (characters – uncredited)
2009 Funny People (written by)
2009 Raaaaaaaandy! (TV Series short) (characters)
2008 Pineapple Express (story)
2008 You Don’t Mess with the Zohan (written by)
2007 Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story (written by)
2007 The Hills with James Franco and Mila Kunis (Video short)
2007 Knocked Up (written by)
2005 Fun with Dick and Jane (screenplay) / (story)
2005 The 40-Year-Old Virgin (written by)
2003 Life on Parole (TV Movie)
2003 Sick in the Head (TV Movie)
Undeclared (TV Series) (created by – 17 episodes, 2001 – 2003) (written by – 5 episodes, 2001 – 2002) (writer – 2 episodes, 2002) (story – 1 episode, 2002)
2001 North Hollywood (TV Movie)
Freaks and Geeks (TV Series) (written by – 3 episodes, 1999 – 2000) (story – 2 episodes, 2000) (writer – 1 episode, 2000)
The Larry Sanders Show (TV Series) (teleplay by – 5 episodes, 1994 – 1998) (story by – 4 episodes, 1994 – 1998) (written by – 2 episodes, 1993)
1996 AFI Life Achievement Award: A Tribute to Clint Eastwood (TV Special documentary) (special material: Jim Carrey)
1996 Celtic Pride (screenplay) / (story)
1995 The TV Wheel (TV Movie)
The Critic (TV Series) (story – 1 episode, 1995) (written by – 1 episode, 1994)
1995 Heavy Weights (written by)
1993 Comic Relief: Baseball Relief ’93 (TV Movie)
1992-1993 The Ben Stiller Show (TV Series) (13 episodes)
1993 Tom Arnold: The Naked Truth 3 (TV Movie)
1992 The Road Warriors (TV Movie) (writer)
1992 Tom Arnold: The Naked Truth 2 (TV Movie)
1991 Tom Arnold: The Naked Truth (TV Movie)

DIRECTOR CREDITS

2015 Trainwreck
2013 Vanity Fair: Decades (TV Mini-Series short) (1 episode)
2012 This Is 40
2011 Judd Apatow Presents… (Video short)
2010 I Am Harry Potter (Short)
2009 Funny People
2008 Night of Too Many Stars: An Overbooked Concert for Autism Education (TV Movie) (segment director)
2007 The Hills with James Franco and Mila Kunis (Video short)
2007 Knocked Up
2005 The 40-Year-Old Virgin
2001-2002 Undeclared (TV Series) (2 episodes)
2001 North Hollywood (TV Movie)
1999-2000 Freaks and Geeks (TV Series) (3 episodes)
1998 The Larry Sanders Show (TV Series) (1 episode)