Bridget Johnson Biography

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BRIDGET JOHNSON (Producer) is an independent feature film producer who developed and produced the hit comedy “As Good as It Gets,” starring Jack Nicholson, Helen Hunt and Greg Kinnear. The film garnered seven Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture, as well as three Golden Globe Awards for Best Picture, Lead Actor and Actress in a musical or comedy. She recently produced John Dahl's “Joy Ride,” a stylish psychological thriller starring Steve Zahn, Paul Walker and Leelee Sobieski that opened to critical acclaim in the Fall of 2001.

She also served as an executive producer on “Riding in Cars with Boys,” starring Drew Barrymore and directed by Penny Marshall. Her other current projects include “Smart People,” which will be directed by Gary Winnick and will star Robert Redford for Universal Focus, and she is working with the choreographer Wade Robson and playwright Eyde Faye to develop a musical for Robson to direct at Walt Disney Pictures. She is also packaging “Meet John Trow,” a comedy by Mark Andrus and Rob Siegel, and prepping “An American Love Story,” an original film Mary Harron will direct for HBO.

Johnson honed her skills during her years as a production executive. Prior to launching her own company in mid-1999, she served as President of Production for New Regency Productions, where she oversaw such films as “A Midsummer Night's Dream,” “Entrapment” and “Fight Club.” As president of James L. Brooks' Gracie Films from 1995-1998, Johnson oversaw Wes Anderson's critically acclaimed debut feature “Bottlerocket” and worked as the executive in charge of production at Cameron Crowe's “Jerry Maguire,” starring Tom Cruise.

She began her film career as a story analyst for Tri-Star Pictures, where her passion for commercial yet off-center material helped her rise to Vice President of Production in just two years. Among the films that Johnson ushered from conception through release were Amy Heckerling's surprise comedy hit, “Look Who's Talking” starring John Travolta, “Blind Date” starring Bruce Willis and the cult thriller, “The Seventh Sign,” which was Demi Moore's first starring role.

In 1989, Johnson moved to the Walt Disney Studios, where she served as senior vice president of production, supervising the development and production of the hugely popular “Father of the Bride” films, as well as “Green Card,” “When a Man Loves a Woman,” “Mad Love” and “Cool Runnings.” While at Disney, Johnson was a member of the core team that developed the Writer's Fellowship program, an outreach program for writers that grants yearly scholarships and on-the-job training for beginning screenwriters. A graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Johnson started out in L.A.'s contemporary art scene, working as a writer and editor of publications at The Museum of Contemporary Art. She lives in Santa Monica, California, and Santa Fe, New Mexico, with her husband Douglas Wheeler, the California Light and Space artist.