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Dan Trachtenberg
American filmmaker and podcast host (born 1981)
American filmmaker and podcast host (born 1981)
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | Dan Trachtenberg |
| image | Dan Trachtenberg by Gage Skidmore.jpg |
| caption | Trachtenberg in 2025 |
| birth_date | |
| birth_place | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| occupation | Director, writer, producer, podcast host |
| yearsactive | 1998–present |
| spouse | |
| alma_mater | Temple University |
| children | 1 |
| website |
Dan Trachtenberg (born May 11, 1981) is an American director, writer, producer, and podcast host. He made his feature film debut with 10 Cloverfield Lane (2016), earning him a Directors Guild of America Award nomination for Outstanding Directing – First-Time Feature Film. He went on to direct and provide the story for the Predator franchise films Prey (2022), Predator: Killer of Killers (2025), and Predator: Badlands (2025). For television, he directed the pilot episodes of The Boys (2019) and The Lost Symbol (2021), as well as episodes of Black Mirror (2016).
Trachtenberg was one of three hosts of The Totally Rad Show podcast and a former co-host of the Geekdrome podcast. He also directed episodes for the Ctrl+Alt+Chicken podcast. All three programs were hosted at Revision3.
Early life and education
Trachtenberg grew up in the Willow Grove/Upper Moreland area of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He is Jewish. He has an older brother who is a film editor.
Trachtenberg's parents instilled in him a love of movies and fostered their son's artistic ambitions. When he was three years old, his mother helped him make a Star Wars video using action figures, toys, and kitchen utensils. Unable to see PG or R-rated movies as a child, Trachtenberg would imagine the films in his mind. He would also read novelizations of films and buy film soundtracks. His parents also hired an art student to teach him how to draw comics.
He attended Cheltenham High School. One teacher would host movie nights which was influential in making Trachtenberg a film buff. During his high school years, he worked a video store at the Willow Grove Park Mall and took screenwriting and directing classes on weekends at the University of the Arts.
Trachtenberg majored in film, graduated from Temple University in 2003.
Career
Trachtenberg has directed commercials for Lexus, Nike, and Coca-Cola. In 2003, he directed the short film Kickin. In April 2008, he joined Tight Films, for which he collaborated with Matt Wolf on an alternate reality game for Hellboy II: The Golden Army.
He directed the internet show, Ctrl+Alt+Chicken.
In March 2011, Trachtenberg released a short film for BlackBoxTV titled More Than You Can Chew, starring J. Kristopher, Skye Marshall and Ian Hamrick. Trachtenberg co-wrote the story with Mark D. Walker.
On August 23, 2011, Trachtenberg released the short film Portal: No Escape, based on the video game Portal, which has since garnered more than twenty-eight million views on YouTube.
On October 13, 2011, /Film announced that Trachtenberg would be directing a science fiction action heist film for Universal Pictures with writer Chris Morgan.
In January 2013, iFanboy broke the news that Trachtenberg would direct the film adaptation of Y: The Last Man. However, on September 25, 2014, /Film announced that the film had been cancelled.
On April 3, 2014, Ain't It Cool News announced that Trachtenberg would direct a film for Bad Robot titled Valencia, which was later revealed to be a code name for 10 Cloverfield Lane.
On April 30, 2018, it was announced that Dan Trachtenberg would direct the first episode of the Amazon series The Boys, replacing Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg who dropped out due to scheduling conflicts.
On January 14, 2019, Trachtenberg was announced to be directing a live action film adaptation of the video game series Uncharted. However on August 22, 2019, it was announced he had exited the film.
On November 20, 2020, it was announced that Trachtenberg had been engaged by 20th Century Studios to direct the fifth installment in the Predator film series, titled Prey. For his work on the film, Trachtenberg received two nominations at the 75th Primetime Emmy Awards.{{cite news |last=Sherman |first=Rachel
On June 28, 2023, it was announced that Trachtenberg would direct at least one episode in the final season of the Netflix series Stranger Things. However, conflicts due to the production Predator: Badlands and the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike meant that another director took his place. Stranger Things creators the Duffer Brothers cameo in Predator: Badlands.
Personal life
He married Priscilla Hernandez in 2011. He has a daughter, born in 2016.
Filmography
Short film
| Year | Title | Director | Writer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | ''Kickin''' | ||
| 2011 | Portal – No Escape | ||
| 2019 | Warframe |
Feature film
| Year | Title | Director | Story | Producer |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 10 Cloverfield Lane | |||
| 2022 | Prey | |||
| 2025 | Predator: Killer of Killers | |||
| Predator: Badlands |
Television
| Year | Title | Director | Executive | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Producer | Episode | |||
| 2011 | BlackBoxTV Presents | "More Than You Can Chew" (Also story writer) | ||
| 2016 | Black Mirror | "Playtest" | ||
| 2019 | The Boys | "The Name of the Game" | ||
| 2021 | The Lost Symbol | "As Above, So Below" |
Awards and nominations
| Year | Award | Category | Title | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Directors Guild of America Awards | Outstanding Directorial Achievement in First-Time Feature Film | 10 Cloverfield Lane | |||
| Hawaii Film Critics Society Awards | Best New Filmmaker | ||||
| Online Film & Television Association Awards | Best Feature Debut | ||||
| Primetime Emmy Awards | Outstanding Directing for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie | Prey | |||
| Outstanding Writing for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie |
References
References
- Rea, Steven. (2016-03-12). "Meet the young director of '10 Cloverfield Lane,' out of Cheltenham High and Temple".
- Kurland, Rachel. (2016-03-14). "Scare Tactics Pay off for Cheltenham's Dan Trachtenberg - Jewish Exponent". Jewish Exponent.
- Elkin, Michael. (2016-03-17). "Willow Grove native Dan Trachtenberg makes directorial debut with '10 Cloverfield Lane'".
- (2024-01-24). "Temple stars shine bright at film and television awards". Temple University.
- "Danny T, Russell Make tight Connection". SHOOTonline.com.
- "Dan Trachtenberg on Twitter". Twitter.
- (10 January 2013). "''Portal: No Escape'' Director Snags ''Y: The Last Man'' Movie".
- (13 October 2011). "''Portal: No Escape'' Helmer Dan Trachtenberg To Direct Sci-fi Heist Movie 'Crime of the Century' For Universal". [[/Film]].
- (January 9, 2013). "Breaking: Dan Trachtenberg To Direct ''Y: The Last Man''". iFanboy.
- (September 25, 2014). "The ''Y: The Last Man'' Movie Is Dead Again; Dan Trachtenberg Talks About the Adaptation". [[/Film]].
- (April 3, 2014). "Dan Trachtenberg will no longer be making his debut with ''Y:The Last Man'' and will instead direct ''Valencia'' for Bad Robot!". [[Ain't It Cool News]].
- Chitwood, Adam. (January 14, 2016). "''10 Cloverfield Lane'' Is the Title of J.J. Abrams' Secret Bad Robot Movie". Collider.com.
- Sciretta, Peter. (January 14, 2016). "Bad Robot's ''10 Cloverfield Lane'' Trailer: Is This ''Cloverfield 2''?". [[/Film]].
- (April 30, 2018). "'The Boys': Dan Trachtenberg To Direct First Episode Of Superhero Drama Series For Amazon".
- (January 14, 2019). "'10 Cloverfield Lane' Director Boards 'Uncharted' Movie (EXCLUSIVE)!". [[Variety (magazine).
- (August 22, 2019). "PlayStation Boards Sony Pic 'Uncharted' With Tom Holland; Studio Closing In On Director After Dan Trachtenberg Exits". [[Deadline Hollywood.
- Fleming, Mike. (November 20, 2020). "'Predator' Returning With '10 Cloverfield Lane' Helmer Dan Trachtenberg At 20th Century Studios".
- Kroll, Justin. (February 9, 2024). "Dan Trachtenberg To Direct New Standalone 'Predator' Movie 'Badlands' As 20th Century Expands On Universe".
- Hamman, Cody. (August 27, 2024). "Predator: Badlands details revealed by casting call".
- Kit, Borys. (2024-10-24). "A Secret 'Predator' Movie, An 'Alien' Sequel and 'Speed 3' on the Table: A Chat with 20th Century Studios Boss Steve Asbell".
- (2025-06-09). "'Predator' Director Hints at Arnold Schwarzenegger Return".
- "Dan Trachtenberg Is Headed to the Upside Down".
- Hamman, Cody. (2025-11-05). "Predator: Badlands kept Dan Trachtenberg from directing Stranger Things episode".
- Gearan, Hannah. (2025-11-06). "Predator: Badlands' Perfect Stranger Things Cameo Explained: "They Were Freaking Out"".
- Chen, David. (2011-11-01). "Dan and Priscilla's Wedding".
- Trachtenberg, Dan. (2016-10-03). "One week ago our daughter LUNA was born. She's doing awesome and mom is still recovering.".
- (January 12, 2017). "69th DGA Awards". [[Directors Guild of America Awards]].
- (January 13, 2017). "The Hawaii Film Critics Society 2016 List". Hawaii Film Critics Society.
- "21st Annual Film Awards (2016)". Online Film & Television Association.
- (July 12, 2023). "Dan Trachtenberg". [[Academy of Television Arts & Sciences]].
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