Paul Feig
Feig in August 2024
Born	(1962-09-17)September 17, 1962 (age 62) Royal Oak, Michigan, U.S.
Occupations	Film director producer screenwriter actor
Years active	1986–present

Paul Feig (/fiːɡ/;^[1] born September 17, 1962) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter and actor. He is best known for directing films such asBridesmaids (2011),The Heat (2013),Spy (2015),Ghostbusters (2016),A Simple Favor (2018), andLast Christmas (2019). He often collaborates with actressMelissa McCarthy.

Feig created the comedy seriesFreaks and Geeks (1999–2000) andOther Space (2015). He has also directed several episodes ofArrested Development,Nurse Jackie,Mad Men,The Office,Parks and Recreation,30 Rock, andWeeds. He received nominations for twoPrimetime Emmy Awards for writing onFreaks and Geeks, and two for producing and directing onThe Office. His most notable acting roles were as Bobby Wynn in the sitcomThe Jackie Thomas Show (1992–1993), Tim the Camp Counselor in the comedy filmHeavyweights (1995), and Mr. Eugene Pool on the sitcomSabrina the Teenage Witch (1996–1997).

Feig was born inRoyal Oak, Michigan, on September 17, 1962,^[2] the son of telephone operator Elaine Elizabeth (née Artingstall) andGratiot Avenue store owner Sanford William Feig.^[3][4][5] He grew up in aChristian Scientist home inMount Clemens, Michigan.^[6][7] Sanford was born into aJewish family, but converted to Christian Science to marry Elaine, whom he had met at a church social.^[3][8][9]

After a year atWayne State University, Feig moved to Los Angeles and transferred to theUniversity of Southern California. He also worked as a tour guide atUniversal Studios Hollywood, embarked on astand-up comedy act, and landed minor roles on various television shows.^[10] Feig also appeared in a number of films, such asSki Patrol,^[11] and in a role alongsideBen Stiller in the 1995 filmHeavyweights, in which he played camp counselor Tim. On the first season ofSabrina, the Teenage Witch, Feig portrayed Mr. Eugene Pool,Sabrina's science teacher.

WithHeavyweights co-scripterJudd Apatow, Feig created the short-lived comedy seriesFreaks and Geeks, inspired by his experiences atChippewa Valley High School inClinton Township,Michigan. The show aired onNBC during the 1999–2000 television season. Eighteen episodes were completed, but the series was canceled after only twelve had aired. Despite the short run,Freaks and Geeks has since maintained a devoted cult following. The show was named inTime magazine's 100 Greatest Shows of All Time,^[12] and in summer 2008,Entertainment Weekly rankedFreaks and Geeks as the 13th best show of the past 25 years.^[13] Feig was nominated for two Emmys for writing the show's pilot and the season finale.

Feig made his directorial debut with the drama filmI Am David, which premiered at the 2003Cannes Film Festival. He later directed the Christmas comedy filmUnaccompanied Minors (2006).

In 2011, Feig was consulted to direct the Apatow-produced comedy filmBridesmaids. Written byAnnie Mumolo andKristen Wiig, the plot centers on Annie (Wiig), who suffers a series of misfortunes after being asked to serve asmaid of honor for her best friend, Lillian, played byMaya Rudolph.^[14] Budgeted at $32.5 million,Bridesmaids was both critically and commercially successful, eventually grossing over $288 million worldwide, and served as a touchstone for discussion about women in comedy.^[15][16] The film was nominated for aGolden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy and received multiple other accolades, includingAcademy Award nominations in theBest Supporting Actress forMelissa McCarthy andBest Original Screenplay for Wiig and Mumolo.^[17]

In 2013, Feig reunited with McCarthy onbuddy cop action comedy filmThe Heat, also starringSandra Bullock. Directed by Feig and written byKatie Dippold, it centers on a mismatched police pairing who must overcome their differences in order to take down a mobster. The film received generally positive reviews from critics, who praised the chemistry, and performances of Bullock and McCarthy,^[18] and was a success at the box office, grossing $229 million worldwide against a $43 million budget.^[19]

In 2015, Feig wrote, directed, and produced the spy comedy movieSpy for20th Century Fox, again starring Melissa McCarthy.^[20] It follows the life of a secret agent, Susan Cooper, trying to expose the black-market. The film received acclaim from critics and became another box office success at an international gross of $235.7 million.^[21] It was nominated for twoGolden Globe Awards:Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy andBest Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy for McCarthy.^[22] Also in 2015, Feig produced the animated featureThe Peanuts Movie forBlue Sky Studios, based on thePeanuts comic strip and characters created byCharles M. Schulz.^[21] That same year, it was announced that Feig will direct a film adaptation ofPlay-Dohs forHasbro Studios, 20th Century Fox, andChernin Entertainment.^[23]

During 2015, Feig also created the science fiction comedy seriesOther Space forYahoo!'svideo on demand serviceYahoo! Screen and wrote the show's first episode. The series starsTrace Beaulieu,Neil Casey,Eugene Cordero,Joel Hodgson,Conor Leslie,Bess Rous,Karan Soni, andMilana Vayntrub as the dysfunctional crew of an exploratory spaceship who become trapped in an unknown universe.Other Space received positive reviews,^[24][25] but was not renewed for a second season due to Yahoo! Screen being shut down in 2016. Feig later created aTumblr to provide direct links to each episode after he reobtained the rights to the series.^[26] In 2020, the series was picked up by streaming service DUST.^[27]

In 2016, Feig directed and co-wrote thefemale driven reboot of theGhostbusters franchise, starring McCarthy,Kristen Wiig,Kate McKinnon, andLeslie Jones as four women who begin aghost-catching business in New York City.^[28] The announcement of the female-led cast in 2015 drew a polarized response from the public and internet backlash,^[29] leading to the film'sIMDb page and associatedYouTube videos receiving low ratings prior to the film's release.^[30][31] The film grossed $229 million worldwide against a production budget of $144 million, becoming the highest-grossing live-action comedy domestically of 2016.^[32] However, due to its high production and marketing budget, it is considered abox-office bomb.^[33]

In 2017, Feig producedJonathan Levine's comedy filmSnatched, starringAmy Schumer andGoldie Hawn as a mother-daughter couple who are abducted while on vacation in South America.^[34] The same year, he began production on the comedy thrillerA Simple Favor. Based on the 2017novel of the same name by Darcey Bell, it starsAnna Kendrick,Blake Lively, andHenry Golding, and follows a small town blogger who tries to solve the disappearance of her mysterious and rich best friend. Released in September 2018, the film received generally favorable reviews from critics, with praise for the plot twists and performances of Kendrick and Lively.^[35]

In 2018, Feig directed an advertisement forDiet Coke starringHayley Magnus, which was shown during theSuper Bowl.^[36] In 2019, he directed the romantic comedyLast Christmas, re-teaming withHenry Golding, who starred in the film alongsideEmilia Clarke. The film received mixed reviews and was a box office success, earning over $120 million.^[37]

In March 2019, following 20th Century Fox's acquisition byThe Walt Disney Company, Feig announced he would be moving his Feigco production studio toUniversal Pictures.^[38][39]

• Feig, Paul (September 24, 2002).Kick Me: Adventures in Adolescence. Crown.ISBN 978-0-6098-0943-3.
• Feig, Paul (June 28, 2005).Superstud: Or How I Became a 24-Year-Old Virgin. Crown.ISBN 978-1-4000-5175-5.
• Feig, Paul (September 1, 2008).Ignatius MacFarland: Frequenaut!. Little, Brown Books for Young Reacers.ISBN 978-0-3160-3993-2.
• Feig, Paul (July 1, 2010).Ignatius MacFarland: Frequency Freakout!. Little, Brown Books for Young Readers.ISBN 978-0-3160-8882-4.

• Paul Feig atIMDb
• Paul Feig onTwitter

• 21st-century American comedians
• 21st-century American male writers
• 21st-century American screenwriters
• American male film actors
• American male screenwriters
• American male television actors
• American male television writers
• American people of Jewish descent
• American stand-up comedians
• American television directors
• American television writers
• Comedians from Michigan
• American comedy film directors
• Directors Guild of America Award winners
• English-language film directors
• Film directors from Michigan
• Living people
• Male actors from Michigan
• People from Mount Clemens, Michigan
• People from Royal Oak, Michigan
• Screenwriters from Michigan
• Shorty Award winners
• Television producers from Michigan
• University of Southern California alumni
• Wayne State University alumni
• 1962 births

• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Wikipedia pending changes protected pages
• Use American English from November 2019
• All Wikipedia articles written in American English
• Use mdy dates from November 2019
• Articles with hCards