Ellis had made a name for himself in the action genre as a second unit director on large scale movies, shooting action scenes for the likes of the Wachowskis and Peter Weir and we all know him as the director of the cult phenomenon that was Snakes On A Plane.
He made his mark as a director to look out for with his amazing sequel Final Destination 2 and the under appreciated Cellular but with the box office failure of the viral phenomenon Snakes On A Plane his career stalled somewhat, and his latest film Shark Night 3D failed to make a mark on the public. He continued to work as a second unit director as well and this year sees the release of three films he contributed to, 47 Ronin, R.I.P.D and Winter's Tale.