Chris Williams (born December 19, 1968) is an American-Canadian animation film director, screenwriter and voice actor who is best known for directing the films Bolt (2008) and Big Hero 6 (2014) and co-directing the film Moana (2016) for Walt Disney Animation Studios, and for directing the film The Sea Beast (2022) for Netflix Animation.
Early life
Williams was born on December 19, 1968, in Missouri and spent the first 25 years of his life in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada, where his father was the director of Counselling Services at the University of Waterloo. Williams graduated from the University of Waterloo with a degree in Fine Arts and then enrolled in the animation program at Sheridan College, Oakville, Ontario. Upon graduation from Sheridan, he was recruited by Disney and moved to Los Angeles.
Career
Williams previously worked in the story department for Mulan (1998), The Emperor's New Groove (2000) and Frozen (2013), in which he also voiced the character Oaken. In February 2007, it was announced he would direct American Dog, which was re-titled Bolt (2008) and was later joined by Byron Howard, both of them replaced Chris Sanders who was the original director.
In July 2010, it was reported by various sources that Williams would direct King of the Elves based on the story by Philip K. Dick. However, in 2012, it was revealed that Williams had joined another Walt Disney Animation film, Big Hero 6, as a co-director inspired by the Marvel Comics of the same name.
In November 2018, it was reported that Williams had left Disney and he would write and direct The Sea Beast for Netflix. The Sea Beast was released on Netflix on July 8, 2022.