Justin Martin (director)
{{short description|Australian theatre director}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2024}}
{{Use British English|date=March 2024}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Justin Martin
| image =
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| occupation = Director
| years_active = 2000–present
| known for = The Jungle
Prima Facie
Stranger Things: First Shadow
| spouse =
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| awards = Full list
}}
Justin Martin is an Australian director of theatre, film, and television who has worked mainly in England. He is known for his solo direction of the National Theatre production of Suzie Miller's play Prima Facie in 2021, as well as for his collaborations with director Stephen Daldry. One such collaboration is Stranger Things: The First Shadow, still running in the West End {{as of|June 2025|lc=yes}} after beginning its run in December 2023. His plays have also had Broadway runs. has received a BAFTA TV Award as well as nominations for two Laurence Olivier Awards and a Drama Desk Award.
Early life and education
He moved to London to be with a partner, and found that he enjoyed working there.
Career
=Theatre=
Martin has had a long collaboration with theatre director Stephen Daldry. He was working as "resident director" on the Australian production of Billy Elliot when he met Daldry. He started working with him, first as assistant and then associate director, to co-director.
In 2013, he worked as assistant director with John Tiffany on the National Theatre of Scotland production of Jack Thorne's stage adaptation of the Swedish novel Let the Right One In at the Royal Court and then Apollo Theatre in London.{{cite book | title=Let the Right One In, By Jack Thorne: Background Pack.|chapter= 5. Interview with the Assistant Director, Justin Martin | publisher= Royal Court Theatre| url=https://d19lfjg8hluhfw.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/25191802/Let-the-Right-One-In-Resource-Pack.pdf | access-date=19 June 2025 }}{{cite news|url= https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2014/apr/08/let-right-one-in-review-apollo-theatre|title= Let the Right One In five-star review – 'Exquisitely beautiful staging'|website= The Guardian|date= 8 April 2014|accessdate= March 12, 2024|last1= Gardner|first1= Lyn}}{{cite web|url=http://www.bestoftheatre.co.uk/blog/post/let-the-right-one-in-review |title=Let the right One in Review |publisher=Best of Theatre |access-date=2014-05-06}}
Martin worked as an associate director for Daldry's award-winning stage productions of the David Hare play Skylight, starring Bill Nighy and Carey Mulligan (2014); The Audience, starring Helen Mirren (2013); and The Inheritance (2018–9), all of which played on the West End and Broadway.{{cite web|url= https://www.playbill.com/production/skylight-john-golden-theatre-vault-0000014082|title= Skylight (Broadway, 2015)|website= Playbill|accessdate= March 12, 2024}}{{cite web|url= https://www.playbill.com/production/the-audience-gerald-schoenfeld-theatre-vault-0000014076|title= The Audience (Broadway, 2015)|website= Playbill|accessdate= March 12, 2024}}{{cite web|url= https://www.playbill.com/production/the-inheritanceethel-barrymore-theatre-2019-2020|title= The Inheritance (Broadway, 2019)|website= Playbill|accessdate= March 12, 2024}}
He worked as co-director with Daldry The Jungle (2017–2019), Kyoto (2024–5), and Stranger Things. As co-directors, the pair "divide up the show and then come back together to look at what the other has done". Martin co-directed The Jungle at The Young Vic (2017), in the West End, London (2018), and at St. Ann's Warehouse in New York (2018).{{cite web|url= https://www.youngvic.org/whats-on/the-jungle-west-end|title= The Jungle West End|website= The Young Vic|date= 16 June 2018|accessdate= March 12, 2024}}{{cite web|url= https://playbill.com/article/read-reviews-for-the-jungle-at-st-anns-warehouse|title= Read Reviews for The Jungle at St. Ann's Warehouse|website= Playbill|accessdate= March 12, 2024}} The work was nominated for the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Direction of a Play.{{cite web|url= https://playbill.com/article/tootsie-hadestown-and-the-ferryman-lead-2019-drama-desk-award-winners|title= Tootsie, Hadestown, and The Ferryman Lead 2019 Drama Desk Award Winners|website= Playbill|accessdate= March 12, 2024}}
In 2021 he directed (solo) the West End production of Suzie Miller's play Prima Facie starring Jodie Comer, for which he was nominated for the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Director.{{cite news|url= https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-64795792|title= Olivier Awards 2023: Jodie Comer and Paul Mescal nominated for theatre prizes|website= BBC|date= 28 February 2023|accessdate= March 12, 2024}} The production transferred to Broadway at the Golden Theatre, with Comer reprising her role.{{cite web|url= https://playbill.com/article/killing-eve-star-jodie-comer-to-bring-prima-facie-to-broadway#:~:text=Jodie%20Comer%20will%20bring%20Suzie,Shubert%20theatre%20to%20be%20announced.|title= Killing Eve Star Jodie Comer to Bring Prima Facie to Broadway|website= Playbill|accessdate= March 12, 2024}}
In December 2023{{cite news |title=Ambassador Theatre Group announces 'Stranger Things' performance dates |url=https://www.atgtickets.com/shows/stranger-things-the-first-shadow/phoenix-theatre/ |website=ATG Tickets |date=March 21, 2023 |publisher=ATG |access-date=March 21, 2023 |archive-date=March 21, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230321163551/https://www.atgtickets.com/shows/stranger-things-the-first-shadow/phoenix-theatre/ |url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2023/theater/news/stranger-things-play-the-first-shadow-cast-west-end-1235789075/|title='Stranger Things: The First Shadow' Cast Tease West End Play: 'It's Like Being in a F—ing Action Film'|date=November 17, 2023 |publisher=Variety|access-date=December 15, 2023|archive-date=November 25, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231125225749/https://variety.com/2023/theater/news/stranger-things-play-the-first-shadow-cast-west-end-1235789075/|url-status=live}} Martin began co-directing (with Daldry) the play Stranger Things: The First Shadow, a prequel to the Netflix streaming series at the Phoenix Theatre in the West End. Together they received a nomination for the Olivier Award for Best Director.{{cite news|url= https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2024/mar/12/olivier-awards-2024-complete-list-of-nominations|title= Olivier awards 2024: complete list of nominations|website= The Guardian|date= 12 March 2024|accessdate= March 12, 2024}} {{as of|June 2025}} the play is still running at the Phoenix.
In 2024 Martin directed (solo) a play written by Lindsey Ferrentino and starring American actor Adrien Brody, based on the 2015 documentary film The Fear of 13. It opened in October 2024 at the Donmar Warehouse in London. The story is based on the true story of Nick Yarris, who was wrongly convicted of murder in the US in 1982, and spent 22 years on death row before being exonerated.{{cite web | last=Fisher | first=Mark | title=Adrien Brody to make London stage debut as man who spent 22 years on death row | website=The Guardian | date=25 June 2024 | url=https://www.theguardian.com/stage/article/2024/jun/25/adrien-brody-london-stage-debut-the-fear-of-13-donmar-warehouse-celia-imrie-tamsin-greig-samira-wiley | access-date=18 June 2025}}
In July 2025, Martin directs Rosamund Pike in the West End debut of another National Theatre production of a Suzie Miller play, called Inter Alia. The play opens on 10 July at the Lyttelton Theatre.{{cite web | title=Inter Alia | website=National Theatre | url=https://www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/productions/inter-alia/ | access-date=18 June 2025}} He said in mid-2025 that the pair had another collaboration planned, finishing a trilogy of legal dramas.
In 2026, he will once again direct Jodie Comer in a UK and Ireland tour of Prima Facie.
=Screen=
Martin's screen credits include work on the first two seasons of the award-winning Netflix period drama series The Crown{{cite web|url= https://www.curtisbrown.co.uk/client/justin-martin|title= Justin Martin|website= Curtis Brown|accessdate= March 12, 2024}} as well as overseeing successful and record-breaking NT Live performances of Skylight (2014),{{cite web|url= https://www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/whats-on/skylight/|title= NT Live: Skylight|website= National Theatre|accessdate= March 12, 2024}} The Audience (2015),{{cite web|url= https://www.tvguide.com/movies/national-theatre-live-the-audience/2030199604/|title= The Audience|website= TV Guide|accessdate= March 12, 2024}} and Prima Facie (2022), which hit number one at the UK cinema box office twice.
In 2021 Justin co-directed the BAFTA award-winning film Together with Stephen Daldry starring James McAvoy and Sharon Horgan, which won the British Academy Television Award for Best Single Drama.{{cite web|url= https://bleeckerstreetmedia.com/together|title= Together|website= Bleeker Street|accessdate= March 12, 2024}}{{cite web|url= https://www.bafta.org/television/awards/tv-2022|title= BAFTA 2022 TV winners|website= BAFTA.org|date= 29 March 2022|accessdate= March 12, 2024}}{{cite web | last=Reed | first=Christopher Llewellyn | title=Film Review: Though at First a Repellant Jumble, "Together" Eventually Connects | website=Film Festival Today | date=26 August 2021 | url=https://filmfestivaltoday.com/film-reviews/film-review-though-at-first-a-repellant-jumble-together-eventually-connects | access-date=19 June 2025}}{{cite web | last=Misko | first=Jenn | title=Together finally brings us a lockdown relationship dramedy worth our time | website=The SunBreak | date=28 August 2021 | url=https://thesunbreak.com/2021/08/27/together/ | access-date=19 June 2025}}
Activism
{{as of |June 2025}} Martin is an associate artist with Good Chance Theatre - a company dedicated to making work with and about refugees.{{cite web|url= https://www.goodchance.org.uk/team|title= Our Team - Good Chance|website= Goodchange.org|accessdate= 18 June 2025 }} He has directed a number of works for them, including working on a number of promos for "The Walk" - a theatre festival spanning 8000 km from The Syrian border to Manchester.{{cite web|url= https://www.justinjmartin.com/biography-1|title= Biography - Justin Martin|website= Justin Martin|accessdate= March 12, 2024}}
Awards and nominations
Credits
= Theatre =
= Television =
| class="wikitable" | ||||
| Year
! Title ! Credit ! Notes ! Ref. | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | The Audience | Associate director | National Theatre Live | |
| 2014 | Skylight | Associate director | National Theatre Live | |
| 2016–2017 | The Crown | Second unit director | Netflix series; 12 episodes | |
| 2021 | Together | Co-director | BBC Television film | |
| 2022 | Prima Facie | Director | National Theatre Live | |
| 2023 | The Lovers | Director | Sky Atlantic series; 6 episodes |
References
{{Reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Martin, Justin}}
Category:Laurence Olivier Award winners
Category:Drama Desk Award winners