Stuart Gillard

Canada's Stuart Gillard first emerged as an actor in Peter Carter's Newfoundland-based independent film "The Rowdyman" in 1972. Over the next few years he continued to hone his craft, and in 1974 he delivered an award-winning performance in the subtle and endearing romantic comedy "Why Rock the Boat?" Although given a Canadian Film Award for best lead actor, Gillard suffered backlash from the film community, who assumed he would suddenly be too expensive to hire. He responded by relocating to Los Angeles, where he landed guest roles on the hit TV shows "Eight is Enough" and "Three's Company" and a small film role in the Sylvester Stallone teamster drama "F.I.S.T.." Around the same time, Gillard started writing for television. As a part of the writing team for "The Sonny and Cher Show," he was nominated for an Emmy in 1976. Gillard also wrote for "Three's Company" and for a young Robin Williams on "Mork and Mindy." In 1982 he made his directorial debut with the "Blue Lagoon" knockoff film, "Paradise," a romantic teen action movie with "Eight is Enough" star Willie Aames and Phoebe Cates in her first film role. Gillard's other well-known films as a director include the kids' adventure "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III" and the Walt Disney sci-fi family comedy "RocketMan." In 2009 he directed eight episodes of "90210," a remake of the popular teen series from the '90s.