New Zealand cinema can refer to films made by New Zealand-based production companies in New Zealand. However, it may also refer to films made about New Zealand by filmmakers from other countries. Due to the comparatively small size of its film industry, New Zealand produces many films that are co-financed by overseas companies.
Andrew James Clutterbuck, better known by his stage name Andrew Lincoln, is an English actor. His first major role was as the character Egg in the BBC drama This Life (1996–1997). Lincoln later portrayed Simon Casey in the Channel 4 sitcom Teachers (2001–2003), Mark in the Christmas-themed romantic comedy film Love Actually (2003) and Dr. Robert Bridge in the ITV television series Afterlife (2005–2006).
James William Napier Robertson is a New Zealand writer, film director, actor and producer, who wrote and directed 2009 film I'm Not Harry Jenson, and 2014 film The Dark Horse, for which he won Best Director, Best Screenplay and Best Film at the 2014 New Zealand Film Awards, and which was declared by New Zealand critics "One of the greatest New Zealand films ever made".
Jemaine Atea Mahana Clement is a New Zealand actor, comedian, musician, and filmmaker. He has released several albums with Bret McKenzie as the musical comedy duo Flight of the Conchords, and created a comedy series of the same name for both the BBC and HBO, for which he received six Primetime Emmy nominations.
George Winiata Henare is a New Zealand actor with a career spanning over 50 years.
Avatar: The Way of Water is a 2022 American epic science fiction film directed and co-produced by James Cameron, who co-wrote the screenplay with Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver from a story the trio wrote with Josh Friedman and Shane Salerno. Distributed by 20th Century Studios, it is the sequel to Avatar (2009) and the second installment in the Avatar film series. It features Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, Joel David Moore, CCH Pounder, Stephen Lang, Giovanni Ribisi, Dileep Rao and Matt Gerald reprising their roles from the first film, with Sigourney Weaver returning in an additional role and Kate Winslet, Cliff Curtis, Trinity Bliss, Jamie Flatters, Britain Dalton, and Jack Champion joining the cast. It follows a blue-skinned humanoid Na'vi named Jake Sully (Worthington) as he and his family, under renewed human threat, seek refuge with the aquatic Metkayina clan of Pandora, a habitable exomoon on which they live.
Boy is a 2010 New Zealand comedy-drama film, written and directed by Taika Waititi. The film stars James Rolleston, Te Aho Aho Eketone-Whitu, and Waititi. It is produced by Cliff Curtis, Ainsley Gardiner and Emanuel Michael and financed by the New Zealand Film Commission. In New Zealand, the film eclipsed previous records for a first week's box office takings for local production. Boy went on to become the highest-grossing New Zealand film at the local box office. The soundtrack to Boy features New Zealand artists such as The Phoenix Foundation, who previously provided music for Waititi's film Eagle vs Shark.
Avatar 3 is an upcoming American epic science fiction film directed, written, co-produced, and co-edited by James Cameron. Distributed by 20th Century Studios, it is the third film in Cameron's Avatar franchise, and a sequel to Avatar: The Way of Water (2022). Cameron is producing the film with Jon Landau. Cameron, Rick Jaffa, Amanda Silver, Josh Friedman, and Shane Salerno were involved in the writing process. Cast members Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang, Joel David Moore, CCH Pounder, Giovanni Ribisi, Dileep Rao, Matt Gerald, Kate Winslet, Cliff Curtis, Edie Falco, Brendan Cowell, Jemaine Clement, Britain Dalton, Trinity Jo-Li Bliss, Jack Champion, Bailey Bass, and Filip Geljo reprise their roles from previous films, with Michelle Yeoh, David Thewlis, and Oona Chaplin portraying new characters. In 2018, several titles for the Avatar sequels reportedly leaked, which included the accurate title The Way of Water. Landau says not to expect Avatar 5, or any of the rest, to line up: "We have decided on titles, but I would not go by those other three titles that were out there. You know, if you roll the dice one in six times, you'll pick the right number."
The Walking Dead is an American post-apocalyptic horror drama television series developed by Frank Darabont, based on the comic book series by Robert Kirkman, Tony Moore, and Charlie Adlard. Together, the show and the comic book series form the core of The Walking Dead franchise. The series features a large ensemble cast as survivors of a zombie apocalypse trying to stay alive under near-constant threat of attacks from zombies known as "walkers". With the collapse of modern civilization, these survivors must confront other human survivors who have formed groups and communities with their own sets of laws and morals, sometimes leading to open conflict between them. The series is the first television series within The Walking Dead franchise.
The Walking Dead is an American zombie apocalypse media franchise centered on a number of television series based on the comic book of the same name. Set in one fictional shared universe, the franchise has developed into seven live-action television series, with one additional series in development. The franchise also includes eight web series that tie into the first two television series. The series all air on AMC and AMC+.
Rachel Jessica Te Ao Maarama House is a New Zealand actress and director. She has received numerous accolades including an Arts Laureate, NZ Order of Merit, 'Mana Wahine' from WIFT NZ and Te Waipuna a Rangi for her contributions as an actor and director.
James Rolleston is a New Zealand actor known for the films Boy and The Dark Horse. The latter was released in October 2014 and had its world premiere at the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival on 4 September.
The Dark Horse is a 2014 New Zealand drama film written and directed by James Napier Robertson and starring Cliff Curtis and James Rolleston. It won Best Picture, Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor and Best Score at the 2014 New Zealand Film Awards, Best Film at the 2015 Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF), 2015 San Francisco International Film Festival (SFIFF) and 2015 Rotterdam International Film Festival (IFFR), was New York Times Critics' Pick and Time Magazine Critics' Pick, and was labeled by leading New Zealand critics as "One of the greatest New Zealand films ever made". It premiered at the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), and was created by production company Four Knights Film. The film was released theatrically in the U.S. by Broad Green Pictures on 1 April 2016.
Alycia Jasmin Debnam-Carey is an Australian actress. She made her film debut in 2003 in Rachel Ward's Australian short drama Martha's New Coat, and her feature film debut in the American disaster film Into the Storm (2014). From 2014 to 2016, she portrayed Lexa on the dystopian science fiction series The 100. She co-starred as Alicia Clark on the horror drama series Fear the Walking Dead (2015–2023), and made her directorial debut with the seventh season episode "Ofelia". In 2023, Debnam-Carey co-starred as Alice Hart in the Australian drama Amazon miniseries The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart, for which she received an AACTA Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama.
Fear the Walking Dead is an American post-apocalyptic horror drama television series created by Robert Kirkman and Dave Erickson for AMC. It is a spin-off to The Walking Dead, which is based on the comic book series of the same name by Kirkman, Tony Moore, and Charlie Adlard. It is also the second television series within The Walking Dead franchise. The first three seasons serve as a prequel, focusing on a blended family who experience the start of the zombie apocalypse. Subsequent seasons run concurrently to the original show, with Morgan Jones from The Walking Dead crossing over into the series.
Julian Dennison is a New Zealand actor. He debuted in the 2013 film Shopping, for which he won the English Film and Television Award for Best Supporting Actor. He is known for his roles as Ricky Baker in Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016), the highest-grossing New Zealand film in history, as Russell "Firefist" Collins in Deadpool 2 (2018), and as Belsnickel in The Christmas Chronicles 2. In 2021, Dennison starred as Josh Valentine in Godzilla vs. Kong. and in 2023 he played the lead role in Uproar as Josh Waaka.
Genesis Wayne Potini was a New Zealand speed chess player.
The first season of Fear the Walking Dead, an American horror-drama television series on AMC, premiered on August 23, 2015, and concluded on October 4, 2015, consisting of six episodes. The series is a companion series and prequel to The Walking Dead, which is based on the comic book series of the same name by Robert Kirkman, Tony Moore, and Charlie Adlard. It was executive produced by Kirkman, David Alpert, Greg Nicotero, Gale Anne Hurd, and Dave Erickson, with Erickson assuming the role of showrunner. On March 9, 2015, AMC announced it had ordered Fear the Walking Dead to series, with a two-season commitment. The second season, comprising 15 episodes, premiered on April 10, 2016.
Avatar 4 is an upcoming American epic science fiction film co-written, co-edited, co-produced and directed by James Cameron. Distributed by 20th Century Studios, it will be the sequel to the upcoming 2025 Avatar 3, and the fourth installment in the Avatar franchise. It will star Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldaña, among others from the original cast, reprising their roles. The screenplay is written by James Cameron and Josh Friedman. Cameron stated that Avatar: The Tulkun Rider is being considered as a possible title for the film.
Ainsley Amohaere Gardiner is a film producer from New Zealand.
