Michael Apted, director "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader."

Michael Apted, the director of the third “Narnia” film “The Voyage of the Dawn Treader,” is a British filmmaker known for directing dramas and documentaries. He is best known for his series of documentaries on British schoolchildren that began in 1963 with “7 Up” (the seventh film, “49 Up” was released in 2006), the docudrama “Gorillas in the Mist” (1988) starring Sigourney Weaver, and the 1999 James Bond epic “The World is Not Enough.”

He began his career at England’s Granada Television network, directing soap operas. His debut film in America was 1980’s “Coal Miner’s Daughter,” starring Sissy Spacek (who won a Best Actress Oscar) and featuring Tommy Lee Jones. After a few flops, his next major hit was the murder-mystery film “Gorky Park” (1983). This was followed by the failed Richard Pryor vehicle “Critical Condition” (1986), but Apted managed to recover with “Gorillas in the Mist.” In the 1990s, he helmed several character-driven feature films, including “Blink” (1994) and “Extreme Measures” (1996), which led to producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli asking him to direct “The World is Not Enough.”

Most recently, he directed the historical drama “Amazing Grace” (2007) for Walden Media.

Besides his “Up” series of documentaries, Apted has made numerous other documentaries covering several topics. He chronicled the formation of Sting’s rock-jazz band with 1985’s “Bring on the Night” (which won the Grammy for Best Music Video, Long Form). He went to Sioux country and filmed the incisive "Incident at Oglala" (1992). His “Up” films have spawned spin-offs in America (“Age Seven in America,” 1992, CBS; “Age 14 in America,” 1998, Showtime), South Africa, Japan and Germany.

This long list of credentials is undoubtedly why he was chosen to replace Andrew Adamson, who is taking a break from directing, as the director of the third “Narnia” film. How will that turn out? Audiences will find out Christmas 2010.