Justin Martin

Justin Martin is a multi-award winning director working in theatre, film and television. 

Most recently he co-directed the critically acclaimed Stranger Things: The First Shadow with Stephen Daldry currently playing at the Phoenix Theatre in the West End. 

In 2023 Justin’s award winning, West End production of Suzie Miller’s play Prima Facie starring Jodie Comer transferred to Broadway breaking box-office records at the Golden Theatre and earning 23 awards on both sides of the Atlantic including the Olivier Award for Best Play and Tony and Olivier Awards for Jodie Comer.

The NT Live/Empire Street film of Prima Facie smashed box-office records becoming the highest-grossing event cinema release of all time.

Justin’s television series The Lovers for Sky, AMC and Sundance, and written by award winning writer David Ireland, premiered to five star reviews and was named in the top shows of the year by the Daily Telegraph and the BFI. The series stars Johnny Flynn, Roisin Gallagher and Conleth Hill.

In 2023 Justin’s award winning production of The Jungle (Young Vic/National Theatre) returned to New York and toured to Washington DC. It sold out in 25 minutes. The production previously played in San Francisco (2019), following sellout seasons at St Ann’s Warehouse in New York (2018), in the West End (2018) and at the Young Vic (2017). The show garnered awards including an Obie, a Southbank Sky Arts Award and a Broadway World Award for Best Direction.

In 2021 Justin co-directed the BAFTA award winning film Together with Stephen Daldry for Sonia Friedman Productions, BBC Films, and Shoebox Films (starring James McAvoy and Sharon Horgan). 

His critically acclaimed production of Low Level Panic sold out twice at the Galway Theatre Festival before touring throughout Ireland and to a sell-out season in Australia. 

Other theatre credits include: Kyoto (RSC); Last Chance: A Plea For the Unaccompanied Children of Calais (Young Vic) starring Carey Mulligan, Juliet Stevenson, Joely Richardson, Vanessa Redgrave and Samuel West; The Nether (Seymour Centre, Sydney); Far Away (fortyfivedownstairs, Melbourne); Fifty Two (Leicester Square Theatre); Good Chance/No Chance (as part of the Southbank Centre's Festival of Love); Harvey and Frieda (Arcola Theatre); Street (Mick Laly Theatre - Galway Theatre Festival), The Kitchen (HM Theatre, Victoria) and Skintight (fortyfivedownstairs, Melbourne).

Justin has a long collaboration with director Stephen Daldry. He was the associate director for Daldry’s award-winning production of The Inheritance (Young Vic/West End/Broadway) for which Daldry gave him the Olivier for Best Direction. He was the associate director for both Skylight and The Audience in the West End and on Broadway. He also worked with John Tiffany and Steven Hoggett on the National Theatre of Scotland’s production of Let The Right One In (Dundee Rep/Royal Court/West End/St Ann’s, NY/US Tour). He was an associate director on Billy Elliot The Musical working on Broadway, throughout North America, South Korea, Amsterdam and Australia. 

Other screen credits include: the first two seasons of the award-winning Netflix series The Crown, the Netflix film The Beautiful Game, as well as overseeing hugely successful and record breaking NT Live performances of Prima Facie, Skylight and The Audience. 

Justin is an associate artist with Good Chance Theatre - a company dedicated to making work with and about refugees. He has directed a number of works for them, including most recently working on a number of promos for The Walk - a theatre festival spanning 8000km from the Syrian border to Manchester. 

He has won numerous awards including being the inaugural recipient of the Roger Leach Award, multiple Broadway World and Southbank Arts Awards, a BAFTA and an Obie and has been nominated twice for an Olivier Award for Best Direction (Prima Facie and Stranger Things) and for a Drama Desk Award (The Jungle).