Michael Jenkins (director)

Michael Jenkins (1946 – 4 March 2024) was an Australian writer, producer and film and television director.

Jenkins was the creator of the crime drama television series Scales of Justice, Blue Murder and Wildside, all of which deal with corruption in the New South Wales police force. He also directed the cult film The Heartbreak Kid, its spin-off series Heartbreak High, and served as a producer for the latter's 2022 reboot of the same name.

Jenkins was one of the most highly regarded Australian directors of the 1990s, known for his distinctive, gritty style, particularly for his use of multiple hand-held cameras and semi-improvised dialogue.

Jenkins garnered controversy in 2007, when he was announced as the director of The Wrong Girl, a film about the Sydney gang rapes in 2000, written with Nicholas Hammond. The film ceased production after criticism from Premier Morris Iemma and Deputy Premier John Watkins.

Jenkins was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2020, and died on 4 March 2024, at the age of 77.