David Yates (born 30 November 1963) is an English director and producer of film and television, best known for directing the final four films in the Harry Potter franchise.
His first two Potter films (Order of the Phoenix and Half-Blood Prince) became the highest-grossing entries in the series since the first instalment, which was later surpassed by Yates' Deathly Hallows - Part 2, making him the most commercially successful British director in recent years. He achieved international attention for his award-winning short films early in his career, which led to him becoming a prolific television director with credits including the BBC costume drama The Way We Live Now, the acclaimed political thriller State of Play and the BAFTA-lauded two-part drama Sex Traffic. Due to the success of these dramas and subsequent projects, Yates is considered as one of Britain's most celebrated directors of film and television.
His work on the Harry Potter series brought him critical and commercial success along with accolades, such as the British Academy Britannia Award for Excellence in Directing. Yates won the Directors Guild of Great Britain Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement for the six-part political thriller State of Play (2003).
Throughout his works, Yates uses hand-held cameras to visually provoke the subject matter; the technique is noted as one of his directorial trademarks. Yates is married to Yvonne Walcott, who is the aunt of Arsenal football player Theo Walcott.
