John Hayward Williams (born June 17, 1953) is an American film producer known for his work in both live-action and animation. He is the founder and owner of his company, Vanguard Films.
Shrek[]
John H. Williams had gotten a hold of the book Shrek! from his children, who had reenacted scenes during their second reading. According to Williams, Shrek was "a great movie character in search of a movie." After bringing the story to DreamWorks, Jeffery Katzenberg greenlit the project and bought the rights to the book. Development would begin in 1995, with Williams as one of the producers along with Katzenberg. Despite a troubled production, resulting in the film releasing later in 2001, Shrek would become one of the highest grossing films of the year and earn critical acclaim.
With the success of the film, Williams would return as producer along with Aron Warner (who joined later in Shrek's production) for the sequel, Shrek 2. Prior its 2004 release, Williams had founded an animation division for his company, Vanguard Films. Because of his commitment to the animated features Valiant, Happily N'Ever After, Space Chimps, and the unfinished Citizen Siege, he was only an executive producer for the last two Shrek films. He would however serve as co-producer for Puss in Boots, which was his last Shrek credit to date.
After Shrek[]
As of 2023, John H. Williams still produces animated films under the Vanguard Animation banner. He has produced Gnome Alone (directed by Nut Job director Peter Lepeniotis), Charming (completed in 2017 but not released until 2021), and Fearless (directed by Hoodwinked! director Cory Edwards).