James Manning (born 18 December 1975) is a British key second assistant director. He began his journey in the industry in the early 2000s, contributing to projects such as Rosemary & Thyme (2004), Born Equal (2006), Echo Beach (2008), and the popular spy-espionage show Spooks (2009–2010). His work quickly elevated him to larger-scale productions, including serving as second assistant director on Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (2011). Throughout the 2010s, Manning built an impressive filmography, contributing his talents to acclaimed feature films such as The Imitation Game (2014), Woman in Gold (2015), Bridget Jones's Baby, Me Before You, and Criminal (all 2016). He also worked on Kingsman: The Golden Circle (2017) and Paddington 2 that same year. In 2018, he continued his momentum with The Girl in the Spider's Web and Mary Queen of Scots. Manning has taken on major franchises and high-profile television series. His credits include three episodes of HBO's The Nevers (2021), Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (2023), and the multi-billion-dollar fantasy series The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power (2024). He is also credited on Charlie's Angels (2019) and The Fantastic Four: First Steps (2025).
