2000s The Top Directors of the 2000s  

Ranker Film
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List of the top directors of the 2000s. From 2000 to 2009, the best directors of all time were able to push out some of their greatest endeavors yet. Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings movies set high standards for the 21st century filmmakers, but other directors of the 2000s rose to the occasion. Look no further than the two Andersons, Paul Thomas Anderson and Wes Anderson, whose indie films turned into box office hits during the decade.
Ron Howard, another actor-turned-director, impressed critics with A Beautiful Mind and Cinderella Man, while Jason Reitman hit a three-for-three with movies like Thank You For Smoking, Juno, and Up in the Air. Two female directors were also incredibly important in the 2000s, not only with Sofia Coppola's Lost in Translation, but also with Kathryn Bigelow changing the landscape forever with her 2009 Best Director Academy Award for The Hurt Locker.
list ordered by

1
26 12
Ang Lee is listed (or ranked) 1 on the list The Top Directors of the 2000s
Ang Lee age 63 Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon (2000)
Chosen (2001)
Hulk (2003)
Brokeback Mountain (2005)
Lust, Caution (2007)
Taking Woodstock (2009)

2
16 4
Paul Thomas Anderson is listed (or ranked) 2 on the list The Top Directors of the 2000s
Paul Thomas Anderson age 47 Punch-Drunk Love (2002)
There Will Be Blood (2007)

3
9 1
Danny Boyle is listed (or ranked) 3 on the list The Top Directors of the 2000s
Danny Boyle age 61 The Beach (2000)
Strumpet (2001)
28 Days Later (2002)
Millions (2004)
Sunshine (2007)
28 Weeks Later (2007)
Slumdog Millionaire (2008)

4
10 4
David Fincher is listed (or ranked) 4 on the list The Top Directors of the 2000s
David Fincher age 55 Panic Room (2002)
Zodiac (2007)
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008)

5
11 5
Steven Soderbergh is listed (or ranked) 5 on the list The Top Directors of the 2000s
Steven Soderbergh age 54 Erin Brokovich (2000)
Traffic (2000)
Ocean's Eleven (2001)
Full Frontal (2002)
Solaris (2002)
Eros (2005)
Ocean's Twelve
Bubble (2006)
The Good German (2006)
Ocean's Thirteen (2007)
Che (2009)
The Girlfriend Experience (2009)
The Informant! (2009)

6
13 7
Peter Jackson is listed (or ranked) 6 on the list The Top Directors of the 2000s
Peter Jackson age 57 The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
King Kong (2005)
The Lovely Bones (2009)

7
7 3
Werner Herzog is listed (or ranked) 7 on the list The Top Directors of the 2000s
Mollevangsvagen added Werner Herzog age 76

Invincible (2001)
Wheel of Time (2003)
The White Diamond (2004)
The Wild Blue Yonder (2005)
Grizzly Man (2005)
Rescue Dawn (2006)
Encounters at the End of the World (2007)
Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans (2009)
My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done? (2009)

8
5 1
Abel Ferrara is listed (or ranked) 8 on the list The Top Directors of the 2000s
Mollevangsvagen added Abel Ferrara age 67

'R Xman (2001)
Mary (2005)
Go Go Tales (2007)
Chelsea on the Rocks (2008)
Napoli, Napoli, Napoli (2009)
Go Get Some Rosemary (2009)

9
5 1
Andrei Kravchuk is listed (or ranked) 9 on the list The Top Directors of the 2000s
Mollevangsvagen added Andrei Kravchuk age 55

The Christmas Miracle (2000)
The Italian (2005)
Admiral (2008)

10
5 1
Paolo Sorrentino is listed (or ranked) 10 on the list The Top Directors of the 2000s
Mollevangsvagen added Paolo Sorrentino age 47

One Man Up (2001)
The Consequences of Love (2004)
The Family Friend (2006)
Il Divo (2008)

11
8 5
Ron Howard is listed (or ranked) 11 on the list The Top Directors of the 2000s
Ron Howard age 63 How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000)
A Beautiful Mind (2001)
The Missing (2003)
Cinderella Man (2005)
The Da Vinci Code (2006)
Frost/Nixon (2008)
Angels & Demons (2009)

12
6 3
Yoav Shamir is listed (or ranked) 12 on the list The Top Directors of the 2000s
Mollevangsvagen added Yoav Shamir age 47

Machssomim (Checkpoint, 2003)
5 Days (2005)
Flipping Out (2008)
Hashmatsa (Defamation, 2009)

The Best Directors of the 2000s

13
5 2
Vladimir Bortko is listed (or ranked) 13 on the list The Top Directors of the 2000s
Mollevangsvagen added Vladimir Bortko age 72

Taras Bulba (2009)

14
5 2
Philipp Stölzl is listed (or ranked) 14 on the list The Top Directors of the 2000s
Mollevangsvagen added Philipp Stölzl age 50

Baby (2002)
North Face (2008)

15
5 2
Ruben Östlund is listed (or ranked) 15 on the list The Top Directors of the 2000s
Mollevangsvagen added Ruben Östlund age 43

Låt dom andra sköta kärleken (2000)
Family Again (2002)
The Guitar Mongoloid (2004)
Involuntary (2008)

16
5 2
Alexander Sokurov is listed (or ranked) 16 on the list The Top Directors of the 2000s
Mollevangsvagen added Alexander Sokurov age 66

Taurus (2001)
Elegy of a Voyage (2001)
Russian Ark (2002)
Father and Son (2003)
The St. Petersburg Diary: Mozart. Requiem (2004)
The Sun (2005)
Elegy of a life: Rostropovich, Vishnevskaya (2006)
Alexandra (2007)

17
5 2
Andrzej Wajda is listed (or ranked) 17 on the list The Top Directors of the 2000s
Mollevangsvagen added Andrzej Wajda age 91

The Condemnation of Franciszek Klos (2000)
The Revenge (2002)
Katyń (2007)
Sweet Rush (Tatarak, 2009)

The Best Netflix Original Drama Movies

18
5 2
Matteo Garrone is listed (or ranked) 18 on the list The Top Directors of the 2000s
Mollevangsvagen added Matteo Garrone age 49

Roman Summer (2000)
The Embalmer (2002)
First Love (2003)
Gomorroah (2008)

19
5 3
Sofia Coppola is listed (or ranked) 19 on the list The Top Directors of the 2000s
Sofia Coppola age 46 Lost in Translation (2003)
Marie Antoinette (2006)

20
13 12
Quentin Tarantino is listed (or ranked) 20 on the list The Top Directors of the 2000s
Quentin Tarantino age 54 Kill Bill Volume 1 (2003)
Kill Bill Volume 2 (2004)
Death Proof (2007)

21
7 6
Wes Anderson is listed (or ranked) 21 on the list The Top Directors of the 2000s
Wes Anderson age 48 The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004)
The Darjeeling Limited (2007)
Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)

22
7 7
Jason Reitman is listed (or ranked) 22 on the list The Top Directors of the 2000s
Jason Reitman age 40 Thank You for Smoking (2005)
Juno (2007)
Up in the Air (2009)

23
3 4
Kathryn Bigelow is listed (or ranked) 23 on the list The Top Directors of the 2000s
Kathryn Bigelow age 66 The Weight of Water (2000)
K-19: The Widowmaker (2002)
The Hurt Locker (2008)

24
7 9
Spike Jonze is listed (or ranked) 24 on the list The Top Directors of the 2000s
Spike Jonze age 48 Adaptation. (2002)
Where The Wild Things Are (2009)

25
4 9
Alexander Payne is listed (or ranked) 25 on the list The Top Directors of the 2000s
Alexander Payne age 56 About Schmidt (2002)
Sideways (2004)

26
2 7
Paul Haggis is listed (or ranked) 26 on the list The Top Directors of the 2000s
Paul Haggis age 64 Crash (2004)
In the Valley of the Elah (2007)