James Francis Gunn Jr. has created some of the most iconic superhero movies of all time. The filmmaker and DC Studios executive was born on August 5, 1966 in St. Louis, Missouri. He has five siblings, and his younger brother, Sean, has often appeared in James’ Marvel and DC projects like the Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy and The Suicide Squad.

Growing up, Gunn was influenced by low-budget horror films like Night of the Living Dead and Friday the 13th. At 12 years old, he made 8-millimeter zombie films with his brothers in the woods near their home.

In 1989, Gunn founded a new wave rock band called The Icons, serving as lead vocalist. Though they disbanded in the mid-90s, their songs “Sunday” and “Walking Naked” were featured in the 1996 film Tromeo and Juliet. Gunn has continued to work in music, composing songs for his Scooby-Doo movies and Movie 43.

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Before becoming a director, Gunn began his film career as a screenwriter. He didn’t begin directing until 2006 with the horror-comedy film Slither. Four years later, he transitioned to the superhero genre with 2010’s Super, followed by the first Guardians of the Galaxy movie in 2014. Last year, Warner Bros. Discovery hired Gunn to become co-chairman and co-CEO of DC Studios after being with Marvel for nearly a decade.

Take a look below at our top 5 picks of his best works in film and television.

• 5. Scooby Doo

  One of Gunn’s earliest theatrical works was this delightful live-action children’s movie. Watching this in 2002 as a kid was a big event, from the cartoon series and movies that we all know and love from the late 60s.

• 4. Avengers: Endgame

  The marking of an end of an era with some of our most beloved Avengers was Gunn’s 2019 Endgame. Of all the Avengers movies, this was the one that had the whole theater in tears when Robert Downey Jr.’s Tony Stark died.

• 3. The Suicide Squad

  Not to be confused with the flop that was David Ayer’s Suicide Squad, Gunn’s 2021 version explored new characters in a story separate from the first film’s narrative, though some cast members returned.

• 2. Peacemaker

  After being introduced to John Cena’s Peacemaker in The Suicide Squad, his character got his own television series on Max. It follows the events after the film, and explores why he became such a hated character due to his father (played by Robert Patrick).

• 1. Guardians of the Galaxy

  Gunn’s Marvel debut gave us this beautifully chaotic band of misfits, along with a stellar soundtrack. Guardians of the Galaxy has become a favorite re-watch for its screenplay, humor, and acting, and its various awards and nominations are a reflection of that.

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