Bad Robot Productions is an American film and television production company founded on May 27, 1999, and led by J. J. Abrams as CEO. The company is responsible for the television series Alias, Lost, Fringe, Person of Interest, Revolution, and Westworld alongside producing notable film franchises, including Cloverfield, the Star Trek reboot trilogy, Mission: Impossible, and the Star Wars sequel trilogy.
History
Bad Robot was originally based at Touchstone Television, but was moved by J. J. Abrams to Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros. Television, after his contract with ABC expired in 2006. Bad Robot produced Lost in association with ABC Studios, formerly Touchstone Television. The two companies jointly produced Six Degrees and What About Brian. The deal was first recommended and presented in 1999 as part of a presentation deal, with J.J. Abrams being contracted to Disney. In 2004, Thom Sherman joined Bad Robot Television as president of the studio. The company had developed presentation pitches for ABC and The WB, with none of them going to series.
Abrams is CEO of Bad Robot. In May 2015, Ben Stephenson left the BBC where he had been head of drama to lead Bad Robot Television. Lindsey Weber once led Bad Robot's feature film division.
The production logo has appeared since 2001, featuring a red rectangular headed robot running through a meadow silhouetted until it appears suddenly in front of the camera, followed by voices provided by two of Abrams's children, Henry and Gracie, saying "Bad robot!"
In February 2013, it was announced that Bad Robot would be partnering with the Valve Corporation to produce possibly a Half-Life or Portal film in the distant future. In August 2015, Valve released a new beta game mode to Team Fortress 2, PASS Time, which Bad Robot worked on. On July 7, 2016, the PASS Time game mode became official. In August 2013, Bad Robot released a trailer on YouTube entitled "Stranger", rumoured to be Abrams' next film or television project, perhaps even a Lost spin-off, but it was finally explained to be promoting S., Abrams and Doug Dorst's new novel, as a new trailer for S. was released in the following month. In February 2017, it was announced Julius Avery is attached to direct a Paramount coproduction, the World War II zombie film Overlord, from screenwriter Billy Ray.
Bad Robot held a base in Santa Monica, California, in a building which is incorrectly labeled on purpose as the home of the fictional "National Typewriter Company" because Abrams "likes typewriters — and misdirection."
In June 2018, the company announced a spin-off venture formed with the Chinese video game publisher Tencent to launch Bad Robot Games for the development of video games on mobile, computer and consoles, with Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment as a minority investor. Bad Robot Games will develop and publish new and existing IPs including titles related to Abrams' works and other Bad Robot Production content, with Tencent holding the rights for distribution in China.
The division was originally led by Dave Baronoff, who previously worked on the Cloverfield franchise and was developing Spyjinx as a joint project between Bad Robot Productions and Epic Games (also partially owned by Tencent), while Tim Keenan, who helped develop Duskers, served as the creative director.
In 2020, Anna Sweet was brought on as the CEO of Bad Robot Games. Mike Booth also joined in December 2020, managing the company's newly created in-house development studio. By February 2022, he had taken on the role of chief creative officer.
In 2006, Bad Robot teamed up with Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros. Television for a $60 million development deal that lasted through 2018.
In late 2018, it was announced that Bad Robot was leaving Paramount and seeking a new overall deal. In January 2019, it was announced that Universal, Disney, and Warner Bros. were the top three studios battling it out for what could be a record breaking overall deal including theme parks, music labels, TV, merchandising, and streaming services as Bad Robot plans on ramping up production significantly in the coming years. It was also announced that Bad Robot would be co-producing a remake of the British series The Wrong Mans for American network Showtime along with BBC Studios, but Showtime later cancelled the project.
Bad Robot launched a subsidiary record label called Loud Robot in late 2018, in partnership with Capitol Music Group. Loud Robot is headed by co-general managers McKee Floyd and Nicky Berger along with Charles Scott, who currently heads Bad Robot's music division and has been the leading music supervisor for the company's films. Artists signed to the label include Cleveland-born rapper Nnena, neo soul singer/songwriter UMI, Nashville, Tennessee-based alternative rock artist Chaz Cardigan, and London-based rhythm and blues artist DWY.
On September 12, 2019, Bad Robot officially announced a new five-year overall deal with WarnerMedia. According to The Hollywood Reporter, WarnerMedia agreed to pay Bad Robot at least $250 million (plus various financial incentives) to produce feature films, television shows, video games, and digital content.
On May 25, 2021, Abrams announced that a Portal film adaptation, which has been in development since 2013, was still in production and a script has been written for the film. In November 2021, the company launched its podcast division with a multi-year first-look deal at Spotify.
On April 25, 2022, it was announced that Bad Robot will team up with Mattel Films and Warner Bros. Pictures to produce a live-action Hot Wheels film based on the toy line of the same name. Most recently, in December 2024, the company had extended its deal with Warner Bros. Pictures.
In November 2025, it was reported that Abrams sold the Santa Monica property housing the Bad Robot headquarters for to Black Bear Pictures. He began scaling back the production house's operations in April 2026, closing its office in Los Angeles and moving it to New York.
Filmography Films Year Title Director Co-production with Budget Gross 2001 Joy Ride John Dahl 20th Century FoxRegency EnterprisesLivePlanet $23 million $36.6 million 2008 Cloverfield Matt Reeves Paramount Pictures $25 million $170.8 million 2009 Star Trek J. J. Abrams Paramount PicturesSpyglass Entertainment $150 million $385.7 million 2010 Morning Glory Roger Michell Paramount Pictures $40 million $60 million 2011 Super 8 J. J. Abrams Paramount PicturesAmblin Entertainment $50 million $260.1 million Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol Brad Bird Paramount PicturesTC ProductionsSkydance Productions $145 million $694.7 million 2013 Star Trek Into Darkness J. J. Abrams Paramount PicturesSkydance ProductionsK/O Paper Products $190 million $467.4 million 2014 Infinitely Polar Bear Maya Forbes Sony Pictures Classics $6.7 million $2.1 million2015 Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation Christopher McQuarrie Paramount PicturesSkydance ProductionsChina Movie ChannelAlibaba Pictures $150 million $682.7 million Star Wars: The Force Awakens J. J. Abrams Lucasfilm Ltd.Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures $447 million $2.068 billion 2016 10 Cloverfield Lane Dan Trachtenberg Paramount Pictures $15 million $110.2 million Star Trek Beyond Justin Lin Paramount PicturesSkydance MediaAlibaba PicturesHuahua MediaSneaky Shark ProductionsPerfect Storm Entertainment $185 million $343.5 million 2018 The Cloverfield Paradox Julius Onah NetflixParamount Pictures $45 million N/A Mission: Impossible – Fallout Christopher McQuarrie Paramount PicturesTC ProductionsSkydance MediaAlibaba Pictures $178 million $791 million Overlord Julius Avery Paramount Pictures $38 million $41.7 million 2019 Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker J. J. Abrams Lucasfilm Ltd.Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures $416 million $1.074 billion 2022 Lou Anna Foerster Netflix $36 million N/A 2024 The Blue Angels Paul Crowder Amazon MGM StudiosZipper Bros. FilmsSutter Road Picture CompanyDiamond DocsBarnstorm ProductionsIMAX EntertainmentDolphin Films N/A $2.6 million Elizabeth Taylor: The Lost Tapes Nanette Burstein HBO Documentary FilmsZipper BrosGerber PicturesSutter Road Picture CompanyHouse of Taylor N/A 2026 The End of Oak Street David Robert Mitchell Warner Bros. PicturesJackson Pictures
Upcoming films Year Title Director Co-production with 2027 Skeletons JT Mollner Sony Pictures ReleasingColumbia PicturesInfrared PicturesAssemble Media The Great Beyond J. J. Abrams Warner Bros. Pictures 2028 Oh, the Places You'll Go! Jon M. ChuJill Culton Warner Bros. PicturesWarner Bros. Pictures AnimationDr. Seuss Enterprises
TV series Year Title Creator(s) / Developer(s) Co-production with Notes Network 2001–2006 Alias J. J. Abrams Touchstone Television ABC 2004–2010 Lost Jeffrey LieberJ. J. AbramsDamon Lindelof 2006–2007 What About Brian Dana Stevens Sachs/Judah Productions Touchstone Television Six Degrees Raven MetznerStuart Zicherman Nosebleed ProductionsTouchstone Television 2008–2013 Fringe J. J. AbramsAlex KurtzmanRoberto Orci Warner Bros. Television Fox 2009 Anatomy of Hope Pilot HBO 2010 Undercovers J. J. AbramsJosh Reims Warner Bros. TelevisionGood Butter Productions NBC 2011–2016 Person of Interest Jonathan Nolan Kilter FilmsWarner Bros. Television CBS 2012 Alcatraz Elizabeth SarnoffSteven LilienBryan Wynbrandt Warner Bros. Television Fox Shelter Pilot The CW 2012–2014 Revolution Eric KripkeJon Favreau Kripke EnterprisesWarner Bros. Television NBC 2013–2014 Almost Human J. H. Wyman Frequency FilmsWarner Bros. Television Fox 2014 Believe Alfonso CuarónMark Friedman Esperanto FilmojWarner Bros. Television NBC 2015 Dead People Pilot The CW 2016 11.22.63 Bridget Carpenter Carpenter B.Warner Bros. Television Hulu Moon Shot Web series Roadies Cameron Crowe Vinyl FilmsWarner Bros. TelevisionShowtime Networks Showtime 2016–2022 Westworld Jonathan NolanLisa Joy HBO EntertainmentKilter FilmsJerry Weintraub Productions Warner Bros. Television HBO 2018–2019 Castle Rock Sam Shaw Old Curiosity ShopDarkbloom ProductionsWarner Bros. Television Hulu 2020 Little Voice Jessie Nelson Dear Hope ProductionsWarner Bros. Television Studios Apple TV+ Lovecraft Country Misha Green AfemmeMonkeypaw ProductionsWarner Bros. Television Studios HBO Challenger: The Final Flight Glen ZipperSteven Leckart Zipper Bros FilmsSutter Road Picture Company Docuseries Netflix 2021 Lisey's Story Stephen King 40/60 ProductionsWarner Bros. Television Studios Apple TV+ UFO Glen Zipper Zipper Bros FilmsSutter Road Picture Company Docuseries Showtime 2024–present Presumed Innocent David E. Kelley David E. Kelley ProductionsOld Curiosity Shop ProductionsNine Stories ProductionsWarner Bros. Television Studios Apple TV+ 2024 Charlie Hustle & the Matter of Pete Rose Mark Monroe Live Star EntertainmentHBO Entertainment Docuseries HBO 2024–present Batman: Caped Crusader Bruce Timm 6th & Idaho Motion Picture CompanyDC EntertainmentWarner Bros. AnimationAmazon MGM Studios Amazon Prime Video 2024 Beyond: UFOs and the Unknown Sutter Road PicturesZipper Bros Films DocuseriesBeyond: UFOs and the Unknown Unveiled by MGM+ MGM+ 2025 Duster J. J. AbramsLaToya Morgan TinkerToy ProductionsWarner Bros. Television Studios Max
Shorts Year Title Co-production with 2022 The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse Apple StudiosBBCNoneMore Productions
Video games Year Title Platform 2011 Action Movie FX iOS 2022Weird West PlayStation 4/5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PCMoonbreakerPC 2023Silent Hill: Ascension Web browser, Android, iOS TBA4:Loop PlayStation 5, PC
Awards and recognition Nominations 2002 Emmy Award Nomination, Outstanding Writing for A Drama Series (Alias) 2005 Emmy Award Nomination, Outstanding Writing for A Drama Series (Lost) 2007 Golden Globe Award Nomination, Best Television Series – Drama (Lost)
Wins 2005 Emmy Award Winner, Outstanding Drama Series (Lost) 2005 Emmy Award Winner, Outstanding Directing for A Drama Series (Lost)