The Best Movies Directed by Actors

Denzel Washington’s third directorial feature adapts a Pulitzer Prize-winning play by August Wilson, who also penned the script. Set in the 1950s, it centers around the struggles of an embittered working-class father (Washington). Co-star Viola Davis won an Academy Award for her supporting performance as family matriarch Rose Maxson.

Angelina Jolie continues to explore sociopolitical issues with this historical biopic about the life of former Cambodian child soldier Loung Ung. It culls from Ung’s own memoir and chronicles her experiences under the rule of a brutal communist regime. “A sincere attempt to paint a portrait of a country gone mad,” wrote critic Rafer Guzman for Newsday.

The directorial feature debut from Tom Hanks follows a small town band as they ride out the success of a hit single. Hanks himself plays their manager, who helps them navigate a pre-Beatles pop landscape. Fountains of Wayne bassist Adam Schlesinger composed the title track, which reached #41 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Once a major film star, Emilio Estevez refashioned himself as a working director for the latter part of his career. He enlisted real-life father Martin Sheen for this heartfelt dramedy, in which a man (Sheen) attempts the pilgrimage that claimed the life of his son (Estevez). It was a role specifically written with Sheen in mind.

Tommy Lee Jones puts his unique spin on the neo-Western genre with this border-crossing adventure drama. He directs and stars as rancher Pete Perkins, who embarks on a perilous journey to bury his dead friend in Mexico. It won for Best Actor and Best Screenplay at the 2005 Cannes Film Festival.

This gripping drama follows a Pentecostal preacher as he flees from a horrific act and sets up a new life in small-town Louisiana. Duvall wrote, directed, and starred, with help from a top-notch cast of supporting talent. He financed the film out of his own pocket after struggling for years to get it made.

This acclaimed biopic explores the founding of Wiley College’s first debate team in the mid-1930s. Overcoming various odds, four African-American debaters make it all the way to the national championship. Director Denzel Washington plays team coach Melvin B. Tolson.

Tim Robbins’ directorial feature debut finds him playing fictional folk singer turned politician Bob Roberts. It takes the form of a mockumentary and follows Roberts on the campaign trail as he vies for U.S. Senate. “This nose-thumbing mock documentary is so prescient, so astonishingly up-to-the-minute, it creates the eerie effect of having been ripped from tomorrow’s headlines,” wrote Entertainment Weekly critic Owen Gleiberman.

One in a string of Albert Brooks classics, this road trip comedy centers on two married Los Angeles yuppies (Brooks and Julie Hagerty). Upon selling everything they own, the couple purchases a winnebago and embarks on a cross-country adventure. But as they soon discover, American freedom isn’t as liberating as it sounds.

Warren Beatty directed, produced, co-wrote, and stars as radical journalist John Reed in this sprawling historical drama. Clocking in at over three hours, it depicts Reed’s attempts to bring Russian-style communism onto American soil. It won three Academy Awards, including Best Director.

The directorial feature debut from Bradley Cooper is the fourth film version of this timeless story about the price of fame. He plays veteran musician Jackson Maine, who takes a young protégé (Lady Gaga) under his wing. It made over $436 million at the worldwide box office and won the Oscar for Best Original Song.

Actor Richard Powell appeared in various hit musicals and iconic film noirs before sliding into the director’s chair. He adapted this WWII drama from a novel of the same name, with Robert Mitchum playing a newly appointed warship captain. The action takes place in the high seas and pits Mitchum’s character against a formidable German adversary.

One of Kenneth Branagh’s many Shakespeare adaptations, this romantic farce is brought to life by a talented ensemble cast. Kate Beckinsale and Robert Sean Leonard play engaged lovers, who enact a matchmaking scheme a week before their wedding. Denzel Washington, Keanu Reeves, Emma Thompson, and Branagh himself also star.

Mel Gibson plays Scottish knight Sir William Wallace in this historical epic, his second directorial feature. When the love of his life is executed, Wallace takes up arms against a brutal British tyranny. It won five Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director.

This biographical dramedy chronicles the making of “The Room,” a cult hit that became known as one of history’s worst movies. Director and star James Franco tackles the role of filmmaker Tommy Wiseau, who fumbles his way into the cult cinema canon. Wiseau himself makes a brief cameo as a character named Henry during a post-credits scene.

Director George Clooney followed the erratic “Confessions of a Dangerous Mind” with this minimalist historical drama. Presented in black and white, it goes behind the scenes at CBS News as they grapple with Senator Joseph McCarthy and the Red Scare. Empire Magazine critic Simon Crook called it “provocative, principled and richly detailed.”

This Albert Brooks comedy sends a recently deceased man (Brooks) into a bureaucratic purgatory, where he’s asked to defend his life choices. With the introduction of a love interest (Meryl Streep) comes an unexpected romance and more choices to make. “I think the most interesting thing about the movie is what it says about Earth,” Brooks once said in a 1991 interview with the Chicago Tribune.

While Mel Brooks is best known as a director, he’s also no stranger to acting. He stays behind the camera for this Oscar-winning comedy, about two Broadway producers (Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder) who set out to make history’s biggest flop. It was later adapted as a stage musical, which inspired a second film version.

Kevin Costner was at the height of his fame when he delivered this sweeping historical epic, his directorial feature debut. It famously beat out Scorsese’s “Goodfellas” at the Academy Awards, winning Best Picture along with six other Oscars. The story takes place during the Civil War and chronicles the relationship between a Union Army officer (Costner) and Native American tribe.

Orson Welles is another talent who’s acting career was arguably outshined by his status as an iconic director. He often appeared in his own films, including this noirish thriller about the hunt for an elusive Nazi (Welles). Slant Magazine critic Fernando F. Croce called it “as distinctively Wellesian as “Citizen Kane.””

Greta Gerwig was an established indie darling by the time she directed this coming-of-age dramedy with personal undertones. The story follows an eccentric teenager (Saoirse Ronan) through her eventful senior year at a Catholic high school. It broke a record on Rotten Tomatoes by having the highest number of consecutive Fresh reviews.

Ben Affleck’s follow-up to the taut thriller “Gone Baby Gone” is another crime story set in the rougher parts of Boston. When a bank robber (Affleck) falls in love with one of his latest victims (Rebecca Hall), it creates a rift between himself and his fellow thieves.

Richard Benjamin honed a versatile acting career before making this directorial feature debut. It stars Peter O’Toole as a former matinee idol, whose stage fright and alcoholism threaten to upend a variety show.

“The Office” alum John Krasinski proved himself a blockbuster director with this surprise horror smash. Alien invaders with powerful hearing have wreaked havoc across the planet, and a small family must keep absolutely quiet if they want to stay alive. He returned to direct a similarly successful sequel.

A bestselling non-fiction novel by Jon Krakauer laid the groundwork for this acclaimed drama, written and directed by Sean Penn. It tells the true story of Christopher McCandless (played by Emile Hirsch), who gives away all his possessions and heads into the Alaskan wilderness. On IMDb’s list of the Top 250 Movies, it currently holds the #221 position.

Robert Redford won his first and only Academy Award for directing this superlative domestic drama. It takes place in the wake of a terrible tragedy and depicts an upper-class family in a state of disrepair. Mary Tyler Moore cultivates unexpected gravitas as a narcissistic mother who can’t move past the death of her son.

Tim Robbins adapted this heralded drama from a 1993 non-fiction book, casting then-partner Susan Sarandon in the lead role. She plays Sister Helen Prejean, a nun whose empathy extends to both a convicted killer (Sean Penn) and the victim’s family. Her performance took home the film’s sole Academy Award.

Ben Affleck took pretty much everyone by surprise with this self-assured directorial feature debut. It takes place in a rough Boston neighborhood and follows two private detectives (Casey Affleck and Michelle Monaghan) through a twisty kidnapping investigation. Morgan Freeman, Ed Harris, and Amy Ryan co-star.

Director Mel Brooks skewers both the Hollywood Western and the American West in this blockbuster parody. Unsparing in its mockery of racism, the story puts a Black sheriff (Cleavon Little) in charge of a small town circa 1874. When adjusted for inflation, it’s one of the highest-grossing original films ever made.

This WWII drama sends a pacifist soldier (Andrew Garfield) into battle and features ironic levels of shocking violence. It culls from a true story and goes to show that someone can still be a war hero without firing a shot. Director Mel Gibson once again highlights noble characters who aren’t afraid to sacrifice their life for the greater good.

This historical drama revisits the infamous “Twenty One” quiz show scandal from 1958. Ralph Fiennes plays contestant Charles Van Doren, who’s exposed for receiving answers in advance. Director Robert Redford bolsters the story with taut pacing and sociopolitical context.

Clint Eastwood’s fifth directorial effort takes cues from the violent revisionist Westerns in which he previously starred. After his family is brutally murdered, Josey Wales (Eastwood) enacts revenge and then goes into hiding. Filmmaker Philip Kaufman co-wrote the screenplay.

While not the first film adaptation of Shakespeare’s “Hamlet,” Kenneth Branagh’s 1996 version is the only one to present the source material in its entirety. He plays the title character, who must avenge his father’s death over the course of a four-hour runtime. “A work of tremendous personal ambition equipped with a budget nearly equal in magnitude,” wrote Slant critic Rob Humanick.

Clint Eastwood was in the midst of a directorial comeback when he helmed this harrowing sports drama. Hilary Swank delivers a breakout performance as boxer Maggie Fitzgerald, who rises in the ranks with help from an aging trainer (Eastwood). It made over $216 million at the worldwide box office and won four Academy Awards, three of which were in major categories.

Ben Affleck pivoted away from Boston for his third directorial feature, which recounts the Iran Hostage Crisis. Proving that truth is stranger than fiction, the CIA finances a fake film production as part of an elaborate rescue plan. It won three Academy Awards, including Best Picture.

Greta Gerwig’s take on Louisa May Alcott’s timeless novel is the last in a long line of popular film adaptations. It tells the story of the four March sisters, who experience romance, tragedy, and triumph against a post-Civil War backdrop.

More director than actor, Woody Allen nevertheless stars in a number of his own films (as well as the films of others). This black-and-white dramedy rips plotlines straight from his own life and follows a divorced TV writer (Allen) through existential crises and romantic misadventures. Legendary cinematographer Gordon Willis brings the film’s iconic visual palette to life.

A veteran of stage and screen, British-American actor Charles Laughton has just one feature directing credit to his name. It centers on a ruthless con artist (Robert Mitchum), who sets his sights on a gullible widow and $10,000 in stolen loot. Once a box office flop, it’s now considered a masterful benchmark of the noir subgenre.

This black-and-white classic presents the tale of Frankenstein as only Mel Brooks can deliver it. Gene Wilder plays the mad scientist’s grandson, who reanimates the dead to hilarious results. Director Quentin Tarantino recently named it as one of history’s seven ‘perfect’ movies.

Woody Allen capped off a run of screwball comedies with this comic interpretation of classic Russian literature and film. In the midst of the Napoleonic Wars, a simple-minded soldier (Allen) and his cousin (Diane Keaton) concoct a hairbrained assassination scheme.

This thrilling and complex noir opened to middling reviews but slowly took on the reputation of a masterpiece. It takes place in a Mexican border town, where the investigation of a car bomb explosion uncovers local police corruption. Edited down before theatrical release, it was later restored and then presented in accordance with Orson Welles’ original vision.

Robert De Niro was no stranger to crime drama by the time he helmed this period gangster piece, set in 1960s Bronx. It’s based on a play by Chazz Palminteri, who stars as neighborhood mob boss Sonny. After falling under Sonny’s wing, a local teen (Lillo Brancato) must choose between two different worlds as he comes of age.

Struggling to break out in Hollywood, Billy Bob Thornton took his career by the reins with this humane drama. He wrote, directed, and starred as Karl Childers, a mentally disabled man who tried to move beyond his dark and tragic past. It was based on Thornton’s own previous one-act play, hence the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay.

Woody Allen kicked off a new chapter of his career and helped usher in the modern romantic comedy with this Oscar-winning masterpiece. Using various stylistic devices, it depicts the quirky relationship between comedian Alvy Singer (Allen) and the title character (Diane Keaton).

Eastwood’s late-stage return to the Western genre is both a continuation of and reflection upon his once-ruthless and violent persona. He directs and stars as retired gunslinger William Munny, who hops back in the saddle for one final job. The film won four Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director.

A masterclass in style and storytelling, this seminal drama follows newspaper magnate Charles Foster Kane (Welles) as he goes from youthful idealism to complex megalomania. It was partly inspired by the exploits of media baron William Randolph Hearst, who refused to cover it in his papers. Formerly a box office disappointment, it’s now hailed as one of the greatest films ever made.