Michael Bay

Profession: Film Director

Nationality:

Biography: Michael Bay is an American film director and producer best known for his action films characterized by special effects and explosions. His notable works include Bad Boys (1995), The Rock (1996), Armageddon (1998), Pearl Harbor (2001), and the Transformers series.

Raised in Los Angeles by adoptive parents, Bay's passion for film started early. At age 15, he interned with George Lucas on Raiders of the Lost Ark. He later graduated from Wesleyan University and studied at the Art Center College of Design.

Bay began his career directing commercials and music videos for Propaganda Films. He earned a Clio Award in 1992 and directed the famous "Got Milk?" Aaron Burr commercial in 1993.

His feature film debut was Bad Boys (1995), which was a commercial success. He followed that with The Rock (1996) and the commercially successful Armageddon (1998), which garnered four Oscar nominations. Pearl Harbor (2001) won an Oscar for Sound Editing.

His directorial work on Transformers (2007) marked the start of a successful franchise, with Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011) grossing over $1 billion worldwide. Bay directed the smaller-scale film Pain & Gain (2013) and continued with the Transformers series.

Recent works include Transformers: The Last Knight (2017), 6 Underground (2019) for Netflix, and Ambulance (2022). In February 2023, he was hired by A&E Studios and Amazon Studios to direct an action drama series.

Bay co-founded Platinum Dunes and acquired Digital Domain. He also started The Institute for commercial production and co-founded 451 Media Group for augmented reality content. He is a strategic advisor and stakeholder in The Rogue Initiative.

His personal life includes residence in Miami with his English mastiffs. He is known for philanthropy, especially towards animal shelters, and as of 2016, has an estimated net worth of $500 million.

Born: February 17, 1965
Birthplace: Los Angeles, California, USA
Age: 59 years old

Generation: Generation X
Chinese Zodiac: Snake
Star Sign: Aquarius