Haute 100 Los Angeles Update: Michael Bay

Our Haute 100 list details the accomplishments of the most influential people in each of our markets—Miami, New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. These people continue to make moves, so rather than waiting for the next Haute 100 issue to come out, we thought we’d provide you with regular updates on those Haute 100 members who are making headlines. Sometimes, we want rumors to be true; Michael Bay is baring his humanitarian side by reportedly offering $50,000 to anyone who can provide information leading to the arrest and prosecution of a young woman who was filmed performing a heinous act of animal cruelty.

Michael Bay

Category: Originators

Company: Bay Films/Digital Domain/Platinum Dunes

Industry: Film

What Made Him Haute: He is one of Hollywood’s most bankable directors, producing action flicks that put him in the limelight and in the black, with global ticket sales surpassing the $3 billion mark. Bad Boys, Pearl Harbor, and Transformers are among his list of credits, and each film is loaded with his special brand of over-the-top effects.

What Makes Him Haute Now: Life is about more than cars, explosions, knife fights and Victoria’s Secret commercials for Michael Bay. A sickening video of a blonde woman throwing puppies into a river wasn’t the only thing to go viral in recent days. Yesterday, the Transformers director took to his official website to offer a $50,000 reward for “information leading to the arrest and successful prosecution of the woman in the red sweatshirt and the person who shot this act of cruelty.” The post was taken down shortly thereafter, but hopes are that Bay is taking action off-screen as he teams up with the public in an effort to punish acts of animal cruelty. Bay is currently filming Transformers 3, which is expected to hit theaters in summer 2011.