The Greatest Directors In Movie History
This is a list of the greatest directors in movie history, who are most deserving of Academy Awards and critical recognition. The list includes directors who have already won major awards, those who continue to have the potential to win Oscars, and filmmakers who were overlooked by the Academy during their lifetime.
Often, the greatest of these filmmakers will go unrecognized by the Academy of Motion Pictures, particularly during the most active, vital period of their careers. Alfred Hitchcock famously never took home a statue for best director, despite being perhaps the one of the most iconic film directors, and certainly one of the most significant contributors to contemporary film language and genre. Another one of the best film directors in history, Martin Scorsese, eventually did take home best director for his work on The Departed, but this film came long after the movies for which Scorsese will likely be best remembered - Mean Streets, Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, and so on.
Who is the best film director? Do you think Guillermo del Toro is one of the greatest filmmakers of all time? Some say David Lynch is one of the greatest Hollywood directors of all time. If you don’t agree that they are some of the best movie directors, here's your chance to make your opinion known.
The top 10 people on this list are perhaps the 10 best directors of all time. Vote up those you believe are the best filmmakers of all time. Then check back to see if your favorites topped the list!
- 1New York City, Area code 917, Contiguous United States
- Credits (Film): Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb, Spartacus, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Full Metal Jacket, A Clockwork Orange
Nominated for Best Director Oscar for Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1965), 2001: A Space Odyssey (1969), A Clockwork Orange (1972), and Barry Lyndon (1976)
Nominated for Best Director Golden Globe for Spartacus (1961), Lolita (1963), A Clockwork Orange (1972), and Barry Lyndon (1976)
- 2Queens, New York, USA
- Credits (Film): The Wolf of Wall Street, Hugo, Goodfellas, The Aviator, Gangs of New York
Won for Best Director Oscar for The Departed (2007)
Won for Best Director Golden Globe for Gangs of New York (2003) and Hugo (2012)
Winner of the Cecil B. DeMille Award (2010)
- 3Tennessee, Knoxville, Great Smoky Mountains
- Credits (Film): Django Unchained, Reservoir Dogs, Grindhouse, Inglourious Basterds, Sin City
Nominated for Best Director Oscar for Pulp Fiction (1994), Inglorious Basterds (2009), and Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood (2019)
Nominated for Best Director Golden Globe for Pulp Fiction (1994), Inglorious Basterds (2009), Django Unchained (2012), and Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood (2019)
- 4London, United Kingdom
- Credits (Film): Batman Begins, Memento, The Dark Knight, The Dark Knight, Inception
Nominated for Best Director Oscar for Dunkirk (2017)
Nominated for Best Director Golden Globe for Inception (2010), and Dunkirk (2017)
- 5USA, Denver, Colorado
- Credits (Film): Fight Club, Se7en, The Social Network, House of Cards, Panic Room
Nominated for Best Director Oscar for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008), The Social Network (2010), and Mank (2020)
Nominated for Best Director Golden Globe for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008), Gone Girl (2014), and Mank (2020)
Won for Best Director Golden Globe for The Social Network (2010)
- 6Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America
- Credits (Film): Munich, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, War of the Worlds, The Color Purple, War Horse
Won for Best Director Oscar for Schindler's List (1994) and Saving Private Ryan (1999)
Won for Best Director Golden Globe for Schindler's List (1994) and Saving Private Ryan (1999)
Winner of the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award (1987) and the Cecil B. DeMille Award (2008)
