Martin Campbell facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Martin Campbell
Campbell at CES 2012
Born	(1943-10-24) 24 October 1943 (age 81) Hastings, New Zealand
Nationality	New Zealand
Occupation	Director, producer
Years active	1973–present
Spouse(s)	Valarie Trapp ​ ​ (m. 2002; div. 2006)​ Sol E. Romero ​ (m. 2006)​
Awards	BAFTA Best Director Edge of Darkness (1985)

Martin Campbell (born 24 October 1943) is a talented film and television director and producer from New Zealand. He is famous for directing exciting action and thriller movies. Some of his most well-known films include two James Bond adventures, GoldenEye (1995) and Casino Royale (2006). He also directed The Mask of Zorro (1998) and its follow-up The Legend of Zorro (2005), along with Vertical Limit (2000) and The Foreigner (2017).

Earlier in his career, Martin Campbell directed a highly praised BBC TV show called Edge of Darkness (1985). This show won him a special award called the British Academy Television Award for Best Drama Series. He later directed a movie version of Edge of Darkness in 2010.

Life and Career Highlights

Martin Campbell was born in Hastings, New Zealand. In 1966, he moved to London to start his career in filmmaking. He began directing films in 1973.

Directing James Bond Films

Campbell directed two very popular James Bond movies. The first was GoldenEye in 1995, which starred Pierce Brosnan as James Bond. The second was Casino Royale in 2006, introducing Daniel Craig as the new Bond. When he directed Casino Royale, Campbell was 62 years old, making him the oldest director in the history of the James Bond film series at that time.

He once shared that he was offered to direct more James Bond films after GoldenEye. However, he felt the stories were a bit too similar. He was only interested in directing another Bond film if it featured a brand new actor playing James Bond, which is exactly what happened with Daniel Craig in Casino Royale.

Other Famous Movies

Martin Campbell also directed two exciting Zorro movies: The Mask of Zorro (1998) and The Legend of Zorro (2005). Both films starred Antonio Banderas as Zorro and Catherine Zeta-Jones.

In 2011, Campbell directed Green Lantern, a movie based on the DC Comics superhero. He also directed The Foreigner (2017), which starred the famous action actor Jackie Chan. His film Cleaner was released in 2025.

Television Work

On television, Campbell directed the TV movie Cast a Deadly Spell. He also directed some action-packed episodes of the TV series The Professionals (1977–1983).

His most famous TV work is the 1985 BBC Television drama series Edge of Darkness. For this series, he won the British Academy Television Award for Best Director in 1986. Campbell later directed a 2010 movie remake of Edge of Darkness, starring Mel Gibson. He also directed the first episode of the American TV series Last Resort.

Personal Life

Martin Campbell has been married to Sol E. Romero since 2006. Before that, he was married to Valarie Trapp from 2002 to 2006.

Filmography

Films Directed

Television Shows Directed

See also

In Spanish: Martin Campbell para niños

• List of New Zealand film makers