Christian Gudegast

Producer, Screenwriter, Director

Birthdate: February 9, 1970 (56 Years Old)

Birthplace: Los Angeles, California, USA

Christian Gudegast has been a director, screenwriter, and producer since the start of the 21^st century when he debuted as screenwriter of the Canadian-made caper movie, Rip It Off (2001), with Jennifer Esposito, Alyson Hannibal, and Steve Harris, and produced by American World Pictures and Big Pictures Entertainment. Gudegast was also a screenwriter (with co-writer Paul Scheuring) of the action thriller, A Man Apart (2003), starring Vin Diesel, Lorenz Tate, Timothy Olyphant, and Steve Eastin under F Gary Gray’s direction, and released by New Line Cinema. Gudegast had his first collaboration with Gerard Butler as co-screenwriter (with credited co-writers Creighton Rothenberger, Katrin Benedikt, and Chad St. John) of the political action thriller sequel, London Has Fallen (2016), the second in the Has Fallen series starring Butler, with Aaron Eckhart, Morgan Freeman, Angela Bassett, Robert Forster, Jackie Earle Haley, Melissa Leo, and Radha Mitchell, under Batak Najafi’s direction, and grossing a solid $206 million worldwide for Focus Features/Gramercy Pictures. Gudegast then made his breakthrough as director/writer (with co-story writer and regular writing partner Paul Scheuring) as well as an executive producer of another Butler-starring series with the launching feature, Den of Thieves (2018), co-starring Pablo Schreiber, Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson, O’Shea Jackson Jr., Dawn Olivieri, and Mo McRae, grossing $80.5 million for distributor STXFilms. Christian Gudegast returned as director/writer of the sequel, Den of Thieves 2: Pantera (2025), once again starring Gerard Butler, with returning cast member O’Shea Jackson and new castmates Evin Ahmad, Salvatore Esposito, and Meadow Williams, and released wide by Lionsgate. Gudegast has also served as a producer or executive producer only on the post-Civil War drama The Man Who Came Back (2008), Brazilian filmmaker Jorge W. Atalia’s documentary Sequestro (2009), and Jean-Francois Richet's thriller, Plane (2023), starring Butler.

Personal Life
Movies
Facts
FAQs

Personal life

Christian Gudegast was born and raised in Los Angeles by parents Dale Russell and Eric Braeden (actor). Gudegast is married to ex-married Natasha Gudegast and has three children. Gudegast graduated from UCLA Magna Cum Laude, majoring in cinema at UCLA’s School of Film and Television.

Known For

Den of Thieves: Pantera

Director (2025)

Den of Thieves

Director (2018)

Christian Gudegast Movies

Director

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Previous (1)

2018 |
Den of Thieves
Den of Thieves
2018
Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
An elite unit of the LA County Sheriff's Dept. and the state's most successful bank robbery crew clash as the outlaws plan a seemingly impossible heist on the Federal Reserve Bank.
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Writer

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Previous (3)

2025 |
Den of Thieves: Pantera
Den of Thieves: Pantera
2025
Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Big Nick is back on the hunt in Europe and closing in on Donnie, who is embroiled in the treacherous world of diamond thieves and the infamous Panther mafia, as they plot a massive heist of the world's largest diamond exchange.
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2018 |
Den of Thieves
Den of Thieves
2018
Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
An elite unit of the LA County Sheriff's Dept. and the state's most successful bank robbery crew clash as the outlaws plan a seemingly impossible heist on the Federal Reserve Bank.
More Info
2016 |
London Has Fallen
London Has Fallen
2016
Action, Thriller
In London for the Prime Minister's funeral, Mike Banning is caught up in a plot to assassinate all the attending world leaders.
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Facts About Christian Gudegast

Martial Artist: Christian Gudegast has a Black Belt in Brazilian Jiujitsu, and has trained in Muay Thai fighting. Prize-Winner: Gudegast’s thesis film at UCLA, Shadow Box (1992), won prizes for best student film. Career Starter: Christian Gudegast started his movie career a year after graduating from UCLA by selling his script, Black Ocean (co-written with Paul Scheuring), to Oliver Stone.