Wes Ball

Wes Ball (born October 28, 1980) is an American filmmaker, visual effects artist and graphic artist. He is best known for directing the Maze Runner film trilogy (2014–2018), based on James Dashner's series of novels of the same name. He is also directing the upcoming film Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes (2024), the fourth installment in the Planet of the Apes reboot series. Education Ball attended Crescent City High School and graduated in 1999. He graduated from the Florida State University College of Motion Picture Arts with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in 2002. In 2003, he won a Student Academy Award for his short animated film A Work in Progress. Career Ball got his start as a Hollywood filmmaker with an animated short named Ruin, which executives at 20th Century Fox saw and offered him the job to direct the adaptation to The Maze Runner. The Maze Runner would be Ball's first feature film. Made on a budget of $34 million, the film pulled in $348 million in box office receipts. Not long after the success of the film, Ball signed a first look deal with 20th Century Fox under his OddBall Entertainment banner. Ball is attached to direct a film adaptation of Fall of Gods, a crowdfunded illustrated novel from Denmark-based Mood Studios.