Mike Gunther

Mike Gunther is an American film director and stuntman. He is known for being the second unit director on many movies like Transformers: The Last Knight, Star Trek Beyond (2016), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows (2016), Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014), and Bad Boys For Life (2020) Gunther also owns and operates 5150Action Productions, a film production company focusing on a wide slate of original content development.

Career

After a career as a stunt performer and coordinator creating action sequences for films as well as serving as second unit director on Steve Oedekerk's Kung Pow! Enter the Fist in 2002, Gunther developed and sold a slate of MTV shows, including Live Free or Die Hard: Inside the Action (2007), Ghost Rider: Inside the Action (2007), Your Movie Show (2005–2006), and Underworld: Evolution – Inside the Action (2005) before directing the theatrical feature films Beatdown (2010) starring Danny Trejo and Rudy Youngblood and Setup starring Bruce Willis, Ryan Phillippe, and 50 Cent

In 2014, he returned to second unit directing for movies, starting Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014) and continuing with Sabotage (2014), The Purge: Anarchy (2014), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows (2016), Star Trek Beyond (2016), Transformers: The Last Knight (2017), and Bumblebee (2018) as well as becoming a voting member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences by invitation in 2018.

In 2019, Gunther directed and produced the Rogue Warfare trilogy for Netflix.

Gunther was later second unit director and supervising stunt coordinator on Bad Boys For Life in 2020, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings and The Forever Purge in 2021, The Lost City, Me Time, and Ambulance in 2022, Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, Twisters, and Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F in 2024, and Focker-in-Law, set for release in November 2026.

Filmography As Second Unit Director Year Title Director Notes 2002 Kung Pow! Enter the Fist Steve Oedekerk Also stunt double: Steve Oedekerk 2009 Fast & Furious Justin Lin Mexico; uncredited Fighting Dito Montiel uncredited 2010 Zeke and Luther Joe Menendez Television series; Episode: Tall Stack Of Waffles 2014 Sabotage David Ayer Transformers: Age of Extinction Michael Bay The Purge: Anarchy James DeMonaco 2014-2018 Scorpion Various Television series 2015 Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse Christopher Landon 2016 Star Trek Beyond Justin Lin Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows Dave Green 2017 Transformers: The Last Knight Michael Bay 2018 Bumblebee Travis Knight Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan Daniel Sackheim Television series; Episode: Inshallah 2020 Bad Boys For Life Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah 2021 The Forever Purge Everardo Valerio Gout Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings Destin Daniel Cretton 2022 The Lost City Aaron and Adam Nee Ambulance Michael Bay Me Time John Hamburg 2024 Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire Gil Kenan Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F Mark Molloy Twisters Lee Isaac Chung 2026 John Hamburg Post-production

As Director / Writer / Producer

Setup (2011) (Director, Writer) End of Watch (2012) (Associate Producer) Rogue Warfare (2019) (Director, Writer, Producer) Rogue Warfare: The Hunt (2019) (Director, Producer) Rogue Warfare: Death of a Nation (2020) (Director, Producer) A Violent Land (TBA) (Director, Writer, Producer) Stop Frank (TBA) (Director, Writer) Criminal (TBA) (Director, Writer)

Awards

2010 World Stunt Awards – Won, Taurus Award – Best Stunt Coordinator and/or 2nd Unit Director: Feature Film for Fast & Furious 2012 World Stunt Awards – Won, Taurus Award – Best High Work for Fast Five 2012 World Stunt Awards – Won, Taurus Award – Best Stunt Coordinator and/or 2nd Unit Director: Feature for Fast Five 2012 World Stunt Awards – Won, Taurus Award – Best Fight for Fast Five 2020 World Stunt Awards – Nominated Taurus Award – Best Stunt Coordinator and/or 2nd Unit Director for Bad Boys for Life – Columbia Pictures Entertainment 2021 Indiana Film Journalists Association – Nominated, IFJA Award – Best Stunt/Movement Choreography for Ambulance – Universal Pictures 2025 World Stunt Awards – Won, Taurus Award – Best Specialty Stunt for Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F