David Yates (born 30 November 1963) is an English director of film and television, best known for directing the final four films in the Harry Potter franchise.

His first two Potter films (Order of the Phoenix and Half-Blood Prince) became the highest-grossing entries in the series after the first instalment, which was later surpassed by Yates’ Deathly Hallows, making him the most commercially successful British director in recent years. He is the only director in the series to be honoured with a Best Director accolade for his work on Harry Potter. He achieved international attention for his award-winning short films early in his career, which led to him becoming a prolific television director with credits including the BBC costume drama The Way We Live Now, the acclaimed political thriller State of Play and the BAFTA-lauded two-part drama Sex Traffic. Due to the success of these dramas and subsequent projects, Yates is considered as one of Britain’s most celebrated directors of film and television.

Throughout his works, Yates uses hand-held cameras to visually provoke the subject matter; the technique is noted as one of his directorial trademarks. Yates is married to Yvonne Walcott, who is the aunt of Arsenal football player Theo Walcott.