Academy Award for Best Director

Template:Short description Template:Featured list Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox award The Academy Award for Best Director (officially known as the Academy Award of Merit for Directing) is an award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given in honor of a film director who has exhibited outstanding directing while working in the film industry.

The 1st Academy Awards ceremony was held in 1929 with the award being split into "Dramatic" and "Comedy" categories; Frank Borzage and Lewis Milestone won for 7th Heaven and Two Arabian Knights, respectively.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> However, these categories were merged for all subsequent ceremonies.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Nominees are determined by single transferable vote within the directors branch of AMPAS; winners are selected by a plurality vote from the entire eligible voting members of the academy.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="TheEnvelope"> Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

For the first eleven years of the Academy Awards, directors were allowed to be nominated for multiple films in the same year. However, after the nomination of Michael Curtiz for two films, Angels with Dirty Faces and Four Daughters, at the 11th Academy Awards, the rules were revised so that an individual could only be nominated for one film at each ceremony.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> That rule has since been amended, although the only director who has received multiple nominations in the same year was Steven Soderbergh for Erin Brockovich and Traffic in 2000, winning the award for the latter.

The Academy Awards for Best Director and Best Picture have been very closely linked throughout their history. Of the 91 films that won Best Picture and were also nominated for Best Director, 70 won the award.<ref name="awardsdatabase.oscars.org">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The award has been criticised in recent years for failing to recognise female directors.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Of the 257 individual directors nominated in the history of the award, only 9 have been women;<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and only 3 of the 76 winners have been women.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Since its inception, the award has been given to 74 different directors or directing teams. As of the 97th Academy Awards ceremony, American filmmaker Sean Baker is the most recent winner in this category for his work on Anora.

Winners and nominees

In the following table, the years are listed as per Academy convention, and generally correspond to the year of film release in Los Angeles County, California; the ceremonies are always held the following year.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> For the first five ceremonies, the eligibility period spanned twelve months from August 1 to July 31.<ref name="Oscar eligibility">Levy 2003, page 52</ref> For the 6th ceremony held in 1934, the eligibility period lasted from August 1, 1932, to December 31, 1933.<ref name="Oscar eligibility" /> Since the 7th ceremony held in 1935, the period of eligibility became the full previous calendar year from January 1 to December 31.<ref name="Oscar eligibility" />

File:Frank Borzage 001 (re-cropped).JPG

Frank Borzage won twice: "Dramatic director" at the first ceremony, for 7th Heaven (1927); & later, Bad Girl (1931).

File:Milestone1 (cropped).jpg

Lewis Milestone won twice: "Comedy director" at the first ceremony, for Two Arabian Knights (1927); & later, All Quiet on the Western Front (1930).

File:Frank Lloyd, Boxoffice Barometer, 1939 (cropped).jpg

Frank Lloyd won twice, for The Divine Lady (1929) & Cavalcade (1933).

File:Frank Capra (cropped).jpg

Frank Capra won thrice, for It Happened One Night (1934), Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936), & You Can't Take It with You (1938).

File:John Ford 1946 (zoom).jpg

John Ford won a record four times, for: The Informer (1935), The Grapes of Wrath (1940), How Green Was My Valley (1941), & The Quiet Man (1952).

File:Leo McCarey 1930s portrait photo (cropped).jpg

Leo McCarey won twice, for The Awful Truth (1937) & Going My Way (1944).

File:Victor Fleming, Boxoffice Barometer, 1939 (cropped).jpg

Victor Fleming won for Gone with the Wind (1939).

File:William Wyler portrait (cropped).jpg

William Wyler, with a record twelve nominations, won thrice, for: Mrs. Miniver (1942), The Best Years of Our Lives (1946), & Ben-Hur (1959).

File:Curtiz 1928 portrait (cropped).jpg

Michael Curtiz won for Casablanca (1942).

File:Gloria Swanson & Billy Wilder - Sunset Blvd (zoom).JPG

Billy Wilder (right, with Gloria Swanson) won twice, for The Lost Weekend (1945) & The Apartment (1960).

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Elia Kazan won twice, for Gentleman's Agreement (1947) & On the Waterfront (1954).

File:John Huston - publicity (cropped).JPG

John Huston won for The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948).

File:Joseph L. Mankiewicz (1950) (cropped).jpg

Joseph L. Mankiewicz won twice consecutively, for A Letter to Three Wives (1949) & All About Eve (1950).

File:George Stevens with Oscar for Giant (cropped).jpg

George Stevens won twice, for A Place in the Sun (1951) & Giant (1956).

File:Fred Zinnemann 1940s (cropped).jpg

Fred Zinnemann won twice, for From Here to Eternity (1953) & A Man for All Seasons (1966).

File:Lean-in-Joensuu-1965 CROPPED.jpg

David Lean won twice, for The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) & Lawrence of Arabia (1962).

File:Vincent Minelli - 1950s.jpg

Vincente Minnelli won for Gigi (1958).

File:Robert wise 1990 (cropped).jpg

Robert Wise won twice: jointly with Jerome Robbins (an Oscars first) for West Side Story (1961) & solo for The Sound of Music (1965).

File:George Cukor - 1946 (cropped).jpg

George Cukor won for My Fair Lady (1964).

File:Mike Nichols (cropped).png

Mike Nichols won for The Graduate (1967).

File:Fillmregisseur Carol Reed (van de film The Third Man) in Amsterdam, Bestanddeelnr 903-7970 (cropped).png

Carol Reed won for Oliver! (1968).

File:Franklin J. Schaffner (cropped).jpg

Franklin J. Schaffner won for Patton (1970).

File:William Friedkin making The Exorcist in the streets of Georgetown (cropped).jpg

William Friedkin won for The French Connection (1971).

File:Bob Fosse 1963 (trimmed).jpg

Bob Fosse won for Cabaret (1972).

File:Francis Ford Coppola -1976 (cropped).jpg

Francis Ford Coppola won for The Godfather Part II (1974).

File:Milos Forman.jpg

Miloš Forman won twice, for One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975) & Amadeus (1984).

File:Woody Allen - Kup (cropped).JPG

Woody Allen won for Annie Hall (1977).

File:Tell Them Willie Boy Is Here – Robert Redford photo (cropped).jpg

Robert Redford won for Ordinary People (1980).

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Warren Beatty won for Reds (1981).

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Richard Attenborough won for Gandhi (1982).

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James L. Brooks won for Terms of Endearment (1983).

File:Sydney Pollack (cropped).jpg

Sydney Pollack won for Out of Africa (1985).

File:Oliver Stone by Gage Skidmore (cropped).jpg

Oliver Stone won twice, for Platoon (1986) & Born on the Fourth of July (1989).

File:Bernardo Bertolucci (trimz).jpg

Bernardo Bertolucci won for The Last Emperor (1987).

File:Barry Levinson Shankbone 2009 Tribeca (cropped) (cropped).jpg

Barry Levinson won for Rain Man (1988).

File:Kevin Costner DF-SD-05-08959trim).jpg

Kevin Costner won for Dances With Wolves (1990).

File:Jonathan Demme May 2015.jpg

Jonathan Demme won for The Silence of the Lambs (1991).

File:ClintEastwoodCannesMay08 (cropped).jpg

Clint Eastwood won twice, for Unforgiven (1992) & Million Dollar Baby (2004)—latter, at 74, rendered him the oldest winner.

File:Steven Spielberg (36057844341) (cropped) (cropped).jpg

Steven Spielberg won twice, for Schindler's List (1993) & Saving Private Ryan (1998).

File:Robert Zemeckis by David Shankbone (cropped).jpg

Robert Zemeckis won for Forrest Gump (1994).

File:Mel Gibson 1990 (re-cropped).jpg

Mel Gibson won for Braveheart (1995).

File:James Cameron October 2012 (trim).jpg

James Cameron won for Titanic (1997).

File:Sam Mendes, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, 2013 (cropped) (cropped).jpg

Sam Mendes won for American Beauty (1999).

File:Steven Soderbergh zoom-in.jpg

Steven Soderbergh won for Traffic (2000).

File:Ron Howard (cropped).jpg

Ron Howard won for A Beautiful Mind (2001).

File:Roman Polanski Cannes 2013 (cropped).jpg

Roman Polanski won for The Pianist (2002).

File:Peter Jackson SDCC 2014 (cropped).jpg

Peter Jackson won for The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003).

File:Ang Lee - Festival (trim crop).jpg

Ang Lee won twice, for Brokeback Mountain (2005) & Life of Pi (2012); first Asian winner.

File:Martin Scorsese Berlinale (trim).jpg

Martin Scorsese won for The Departed (2006).

File:COEN Brothers (cannesPH).jpg

The Coen brothers won for No Country for Old Men (2007).

File:Danny Boyle May 2019 (cropped).jpg

Danny Boyle won for Slumdog Millionaire (2008).

File:Kathryn Bigelow via David Shankbone.jpg

Kathryn Bigelow won for The Hurt Locker (2009); first woman to win.

File:TomHopper10TIFF.jpg

Tom Hooper won for The King's Speech (2010).

File:Michel Hazanavicius Cannes 2015.jpg

Michel Hazanavicius won for The Artist (2011).

File:Alfonso Cuarón (2013) trim.jpg

Alfonso Cuarón won twice, for Gravity (2013) & Roma (2018); first Mexican winner.

File:Alejandro González Iñárritu with a camera in production cropped.jpg

Alejandro G. Iñárritu won twice consecutively, for Birdman (2014) & The Revenant (2015).

File:Damien Chazelle (cropped) (cropped).jpg

Damien Chazelle won for La La Land (2016); youngest winner, at age 32.

File:Guillermo del Toro in 2017 (cropped).jpg

Guillermo del Toro won for The Shape of Water (2017).

File:Bong Joon-ho 2017 (cropped).jpg

Bong Joon-ho won for Parasite (2019); first to direct a foreign-language (Korean) winner for Best Picture.

File:Chloezhao (cropped).jpg

Chloé Zhao won for Nomadland (2020); first woman of color to win.

File:Jane Campion (croopped).jpg

Jane Campion won for The Power of the Dog (2021); first woman to be nominated twice.

File:Swiss Army Man Interview with Daniel Scheinert and Daniel Kwan (cropped).jpg

Daniels won for Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022).

File:Christopher Nolan Cannes 2018.jpg

Christopher Nolan won for Oppenheimer (2023).

Table key

Template:Legend

1920s

Year	Director(s)	Film	Template:Abbr
1927/28 Template:Small	Template:SortTemplate:Small	7th Heaven	<ref name="Oscars1">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:SortTemplate:Small	Sorrell and Son
	Template:SortTemplate:Small	Template:Sort
	Template:SortTemplate:Small	Two Arabian Knights
	Template:SortTemplate:Small	Speedy
	Template:SortTemplate:Small	The CircusTemplate:Efn	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
1928/29 Template:Small Template:Efn	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars2">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Madame X
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	In Old Arizona
	Template:Sort	Drag
		Weary River
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort

1930s

Year	Director(s)	Film	Template:Abbr
1929/30 Template:Small	Template:Sort	All Quiet on the Western Front	<ref name="Oscars3">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:SortTemplate:Efn	Anna Christie
		Romance
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Hallelujah!
1930/31 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Skippy	<ref name="Oscars4">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Cimarron
	Template:Sort	Morocco
1931/32 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Bad Girl	<ref name="Oscars5">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Shanghai Express
1932/33 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Cavalcade	<ref name="Oscars6">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Lady for a Day
	Template:Sort	Little Women
1934 Template:Small	Template:Sort	It Happened One Night	<ref name="Oscars7">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	One Night of Love
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
1935 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars8">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="capblood">Template:Cite magazine</ref>
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Mutiny on the Bounty
	Template:Sort (Write-in)Template:Efn	Captain Blood
1936 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Mr. Deeds Goes to Town	<ref name="Oscars9">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	My Man Godfrey
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	San Francisco
	Template:Sort	Dodsworth
1937 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars10">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Stage Door
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
1938 Template:Small	Template:Sort	You Can't Take It with You	<ref name="Oscars11">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Angels with Dirty Faces
		Four Daughters
	Template:Sort	Boys Town
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
1939 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Gone with the Wind	<ref name="Oscars12">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
	Template:Sort	Stagecoach
	Template:Sort	Goodbye, Mr. Chips
	Template:Sort	Wuthering Heights

1940s

Year	Director(s)	Film	Template:Abbr
1940 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars13">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Rebecca
	Template:Sort	Kitty Foyle
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
1941 Template:Small	Template:Sort	How Green Was My Valley	<ref name="Oscars14">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Here Comes Mr. Jordan
	Template:Sort	Sergeant York
	Template:Sort	Citizen Kane
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
1942 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Mrs. Miniver	<ref name="Oscars15">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Yankee Doodle Dandy
	Template:Sort	Wake Island
	Template:Sort	Random Harvest
	Template:Sort	Kings Row
1943 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Casablanca	<ref name="Oscars16">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Heaven Can Wait
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
1944 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Going My Way	<ref name="Oscars17">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Lifeboat
	Template:Sort	Wilson
	Template:Sort	Laura
	Template:Sort	Double Indemnity
1945 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars18">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	National Velvet
	Template:Sort	Spellbound
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
1946 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars19">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	It's a Wonderful Life
	Template:Sort	Brief Encounter
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
1947 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Gentleman's Agreement	<ref name="Oscars20">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Crossfire
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Great Expectations
1948 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars21">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Johnny Belinda
	Template:Sort	Hamlet
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
1949 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars22">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	All the King's Men
	Template:Sort	Battleground
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort

1950s

Year	Director(s)	Film	Template:Abbr
1950 Template:Small	Template:Sort	All About Eve	<ref name="Oscars23">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Born Yesterday
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Sunset Boulevard
1951 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars24">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Detective Story
1952 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars25">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Moulin Rouge
	Template:Sort	5 Fingers
	Template:Sort	High Noon
1953 Template:Small	Template:Sort	From Here to Eternity	<ref name="Oscars26">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Shane
	Template:Sort	Lili
	Template:Sort	Stalag 17
	Template:Sort	Roman Holiday
1954 Template:Small	Template:Sort	On the Waterfront	<ref name="Oscars27">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Rear Window
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Sabrina
1955 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Marty	<ref name="Oscars28">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	East of Eden
	Template:Sort	Summertime
	Template:Sort	Picnic
	Template:Sort	Bad Day at Black Rock
1956 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Giant	<ref name="Oscars29">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Around the World in 80 Days
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	War and Peace
	Template:Sort	Friendly Persuasion
1957 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars30">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Sayonara
	Template:Sort	12 Angry Men
	Template:Sort	Peyton Place
	Template:Sort	Witness for the Prosecution
1958 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Gigi	<ref name="Oscars31">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	I Want to Live!
1959 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Ben-Hur	<ref name="Oscars32">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Room at the Top
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Some Like It Hot
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort

1960s

Year	Director(s)	Film	Template:Abbr
1960 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars33">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Sons and Lovers
	Template:Sort	Never on Sunday
	Template:Sort	Psycho
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
1961 Template:Small	Template:Sort & Template:Sort	West Side Story	<ref name="Oscars34">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	La Dolce Vita
	Template:Sort	Judgment at Nuremberg
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
1962 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Lawrence of Arabia	<ref name="Oscars35">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Divorce Italian Style
	Template:Sort	To Kill a Mockingbird
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	David and Lisa
1963 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Tom Jones	<ref name="Oscars36">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	8½
	Template:Sort	America America
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Hud
1964 Template:Small	Template:Sort	My Fair Lady	<ref name="Oscars37">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Zorba the Greek
	Template:Sort	Becket
	Template:Sort	Dr. Strangelove
	Template:Sort	Mary Poppins
1965 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars38">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Doctor Zhivago
	Template:Sort	Darling
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
1966 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars39">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Blowup
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
1967 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars40">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	In Cold Blood
	Template:Sort	In the Heat of the Night
	Template:Sort	Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
	Template:Sort	Bonnie and Clyde
1968 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Oliver!	<ref name="Oscars41">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	2001: A Space Odyssey
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Romeo and Juliet
1969 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Midnight Cowboy	<ref name="Oscars42">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Z
	Template:Sort	Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
	Template:Sort	Alice's Restaurant
	Template:Sort	They Shoot Horses, Don't They?

1970s

Year	Director(s)	Film	Template:Abbr
1970 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Patton	<ref name="Oscars43">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	M*A*S*H
	Template:Sort	Fellini Satyricon
	Template:Sort	Love Story
	Template:Sort	Women in Love
1971 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars44">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Fiddler on the Roof
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Sunday Bloody Sunday
1972 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Cabaret	<ref name="Oscars45">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Deliverance
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Sleuth
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
1973 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars46">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Cries and Whispers
	Template:Sort	Last Tango in Paris
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	American Graffiti
1974 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars47">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Lenny
	Template:Sort	Chinatown
	Template:Sort	Day for Night
1975 Template:Small	Template:Sort	One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest	<ref name="Oscars48">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Nashville
	Template:Sort	Amarcord
	Template:Sort	Barry Lyndon
	Template:Sort	Dog Day Afternoon
1976 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Rocky	<ref name="Oscars49">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Face to Face
	Template:Sort	Network
	Template:Sort	All the President's Men
	Template:Sort	Seven Beauties
1977 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Annie Hall	<ref name="Oscars50">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Star Wars
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Close Encounters of the Third Kind
	Template:Sort	Julia
1978 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars51">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Interiors
	Template:Sort	Coming Home
	Template:Sort & Template:Sort	Heaven Can Wait
	Template:Sort	Midnight Express
1979 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Kramer vs. Kramer	<ref name="Oscars52">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Apocalypse Now
	Template:Sort	All That Jazz
	Template:Sort	La Cage aux Folles
	Template:Sort	Breaking Away

1980s

Year	Director(s)	Film	Template:Abbr
1980 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Ordinary People	<ref name="Oscars53">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Tess
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Raging Bull
1981 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Reds	<ref name="Oscars54">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Chariots of Fire
	Template:Sort	Atlantic City
	Template:Sort	On Golden Pond
	Template:Sort	Raiders of the Lost Ark
1982 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Gandhi	<ref name="Oscars55">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Das Boot
	Template:Sort	Tootsie
	Template:Sort	E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
1983 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Terms of Endearment	<ref name="Oscars56">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Tender Mercies
	Template:Sort	Fanny and Alexander
	Template:Sort	Silkwood
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
1984 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Amadeus	<ref name="Oscars57">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Broadway Danny Rose
	Template:Sort	Places in the Heart
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
1985 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Out of Africa	<ref name="Oscars58">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Kiss of the Spider Woman
	Template:Sort	Prizzi's Honor
	Template:Sort	Ran
	Template:Sort	Witness
1986 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Platoon	<ref name="Oscars59">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Hannah and Her Sisters
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Blue Velvet
1987 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars60">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Hope and Glory
	Template:Sort	My Life as a Dog
	Template:Sort	Moonstruck
	Template:Sort	Fatal Attraction
1988 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Rain Man	<ref name="Oscars61">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Working Girl
	Template:Sort	Mississippi Burning
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
1989 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Born on the Fourth of July	<ref name="Oscars62">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Crimes and Misdemeanors
	Template:Sort	Henry V
	Template:Sort	My Left Foot
	Template:Sort	Dead Poets Society

1990s

Year	Director(s)	Film	Template:Abbr
1990 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Dances With Wolves	<ref name="Oscars63">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Reversal of Fortune
	Template:Sort	Goodfellas
1991 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars64">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Bugsy
	Template:Sort	Thelma & Louise
	Template:Sort	Boyz n the Hood
	Template:Sort	JFK
1992 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Unforgiven	<ref name="Oscars65">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Scent of a Woman
	Template:Sort	Howards End
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
1993 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Schindler's List	<ref name="Oscars66">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Short Cuts
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	In the Name of the Father
1994 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Forrest Gump	<ref name="Oscars67">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Bullets Over Broadway
	Template:Sort	Three Colours: Red
	Template:Sort	Quiz Show
	Template:Sort	Pulp Fiction
1995 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Braveheart	<ref name="Oscars68">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Leaving Las Vegas
	Template:Sort	Babe
	Template:Sort	Il Postino: The Postman
	Template:Sort	Dead Man Walking
1996 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars69">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Fargo
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Shine
	Template:Sort	Secrets & Lies
1997 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Titanic	<ref name="Oscars70">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	L.A. Confidential
	Template:Sort	Good Will Hunting
1998 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Saving Private Ryan	<ref name="Oscars71">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Life Is Beautiful
	Template:Sort	Shakespeare in Love
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
1999 Template:Small	Template:Sort	American Beauty	<ref name="Oscars72">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Being John Malkovich
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort

2000s

Year	Director(s)	Film	Template:Abbr
2000 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Traffic	<ref name="Oscars73">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Billy Elliot
	Template:Sort	Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
	Template:Sort	Gladiator
	Template:Sort	Erin Brockovich
2001 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars74">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Gosford Park
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Mulholland Drive
	Template:Sort	Black Hawk Down
2002 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars75">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Talk to Her
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Chicago
	Template:Sort	Gangs of New York
2003 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars76">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Lost in Translation
	Template:Sort	Mystic River
	Template:Sort	City of God
	Template:Sort	Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World
2004 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Million Dollar Baby	<ref name="Oscars77">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Ray
	Template:Sort	Vera Drake
	Template:Sort	Sideways
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
2005 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Brokeback Mountain	<ref name="Oscars78">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Good Night, and Good Luck
	Template:Sort	Crash
	Template:Sort	Capote
	Template:Sort	Munich
2006 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars79">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Letters from Iwo Jima
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	United 93
	Template:Sort	Babel
2007 Template:Small	Template:Sort	No Country for Old Men	<ref name="Oscars80">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	There Will Be Blood
	Template:Sort	Michael Clayton
	Template:Sort	Juno
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
2008 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Slumdog Millionaire	<ref name="Oscars81">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Frost/Nixon
	Template:Sort	Milk
2009 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars82">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Avatar
	Template:Sort	Precious
	Template:Sort	Up in the Air
	Template:Sort	Inglourious Basterds

2010s

Year	Director(s)	Film	Template:Abbr
2010 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars83">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Black Swan
	Template:Sort	True Grit
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
2011 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars84">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Midnight in Paris
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Hugo
2012 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Life of Pi	<ref name="Oscars85">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Amour
	Template:Sort	Silver Linings Playbook
	Template:Sort	Lincoln
	Template:Sort	Beasts of the Southern Wild
2013 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Gravity	<ref name="Oscars86">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	12 Years a Slave
	Template:Sort	Nebraska
	Template:Sort	American Hustle
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
2014 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Birdman	<ref name="Oscars87">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Boyhood
	Template:Sort	Foxcatcher
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
2015 Template:Small	Template:Sort	The Revenant	<ref name="Oscars88">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Room
	Template:Sort	Spotlight
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
	Template:Sort	Mad Max: Fury Road
2016 Template:Small	Template:Sort	La La Land	<ref name="Oscars89">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Hacksaw Ridge
	Template:Sort	Moonlight
	Template:Sort	Manchester by the Sea
	Template:Sort	Arrival
2017 Template:Small	Template:Sort	The Shape of Water	<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Phantom Thread
	Template:Sort	Lady Bird
	Template:Sort	Dunkirk
	Template:Sort	Get Out
2018 Template:Small	Template:Sort	Roma	<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
	Template:Sort	The Favourite
	Template:Sort	BlacKkKlansman
	Template:Sort	Vice
	Template:Sort	Cold War
2019 (92nd)	Template:Sort	Parasite	<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
	Template:Sort	1917
	Template:Sort	Joker
	Template:Sort	The Irishman
	Template:Sort	Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

2020s

Year	Director(s)	Film	Template:Abbr
2020/21 Template:Efn (93rd)	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars93">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Minari
	Template:Sort	Promising Young Woman
	Template:Sort	Mank
	Template:Sort	Template:Sort
2021 (94th)	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars94">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Template:Sort	Licorice Pizza
	Template:Sort	Belfast
	Template:Sort	Drive My Car
	Template:Sort	West Side Story
2022 (95th)	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars95">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Todd Field	Tár
	Martin McDonagh	The Banshees of Inisherin
	Ruben Östlund	Triangle of Sadness
	Steven Spielberg	The Fabelmans
2023 (96th)	Template:Sort	Template:Sort	<ref name="Oscars96">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Jonathan Glazer	The Zone of Interest
	Yorgos Lanthimos	Poor Things
	Martin Scorsese	Killers of the Flower Moon
	Justine Triet	Anatomy of a Fall
2024 (97th)	Sean Baker	Anora	<ref name="Oscars97">Template:Cite news</ref>
	Jacques Audiard	Emilia Pérez
	Brady Corbet	The Brutalist
	Coralie Fargeat	The Substance
	James Mangold	A Complete Unknown

Multiple wins and nominations

Multiple wins

Wins	Director
check|unknown=|preview=Page using Template:Center with unknown parameter "_VALUE_"|ignoreblank=y| 1 | style }}	John Ford
3	Frank Capra
	William Wyler
2	Frank Borzage
	Alfonso Cuarón
	Clint Eastwood
	Miloš Forman
	Alejandro G. Iñárritu
	Elia Kazan
	David Lean
	Ang Lee
	Frank LloydTemplate:Efn
	Joseph L. Mankiewicz
	Leo McCarey
	Lewis Milestone
	Steven Spielberg
	George Stevens
	Oliver Stone
	Billy Wilder
	Robert WiseTemplate:Efn
	Fred Zinnemann

Three or more nominations

Nominations	Director
12	William Wyler
10	Martin Scorsese
9	Steven Spielberg
8	Billy Wilder
7	Woody Allen
	David Lean
	Fred Zinnemann
6	Frank Capra
5	Robert Altman
	Clarence BrownTemplate:Efn
	George Cukor
	John Ford
	Alfred Hitchcock
	John Huston
	Elia Kazan
	George Stevens
	King Vidor
4	Francis Ford Coppola
	Michael CurtizTemplate:Efn
	Clint Eastwood
	Federico Fellini
	Stanley Kubrick
	Frank LloydTemplate:Efn
	Sidney Lumet
	Joseph L. Mankiewicz
	Mike Nichols
	Peter Weir
3	Paul Thomas Anderson
	Ingmar Bergman
	Richard Brooks
	Joel CoenTemplate:Efn
	Stephen Daldry
	David Fincher
	Miloš Forman
	Bob Fosse
	Alejandro González Iñárritu
	James Ivory
	Norman Jewison
	Stanley Kramer
	Ang Lee
	Ernst Lubitsch
	David Lynch
	Leo McCarey
	Lewis Milestone
	Alexander Payne
	Arthur Penn
	Roman Polanski
	Sydney Pollack
	Carol Reed
	David O. Russell
	John Schlesinger
	Ridley Scott
	Oliver Stone
	Quentin Tarantino
	William A. Wellman
	Robert WiseTemplate:Efn
	Sam Wood

Age superlatives

{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}}

Record	Director	Film	Age	Template:Abbr
Oldest winner	Clint Eastwood	Million Dollar Baby	74 years, 272 days	<ref name="Age">Template:Cite news</ref>
Oldest nominee	Martin Scorsese	Killers of the Flower Moon	81 years, 67 days	<ref name="Oscars96"/>
Youngest winner	Damien Chazelle	La La Land	32 years, 38 days	<ref name="Age" />
Youngest nominee	John Singleton	Boyz n the Hood	24 years, 44 days	<ref name="Age" />

Records

• John Ford has received the most awards in this category, with four. Frank Capra and William Wyler won three each.
  • Wyler has the most nominations, with 12—including a record four years in a row. Martin Scorsese is currently second, with 10 nominations.
  • Clarence Brown received the most nominations without a win (6). Alfred Hitchcock and King Vidor each received 5 nominations without a win.
• Four directors have won twice for films that did not win Best Picture: Frank Borzage, George Stevens, Ang Lee, and Alfonso Cuarón.
  • Of John Ford's four wins, the only film which also won Best Picture was How Green Was My Valley (1941).
  • Ford (1940–1941), Joseph L. Mankiewicz (1949–1950), and Alejandro González Iñárritu (2014–2015) are the only directors to have won the award in two consecutive years.
  • Francis Ford Coppola is the only director to be nominated for each film of a trilogy, The Godfather trilogy, winning for the second film.
• Four directing teams have been nominated together (a total of five times, winning on three occasions): Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins for West Side Story (1961, winners); Warren Beatty and Buck Henry for Heaven Can Wait (1978); Joel and Ethan Coen for No Country for Old Men (2007, winners) and True Grit (2010); and Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert for Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022, winners).
  • The Coen Brothers are the only siblings to have won the award.
• Six directors won the award for their feature film debut: Delbert Mann for Marty (1955), Jerome Robbins for West Side Story (1961), Robert Redford for Ordinary People (1980), James L. Brooks for Terms of Endearment (1983), Kevin Costner for Dances With Wolves (1990), and Sam Mendes for American Beauty (1999).
  • Robbins is the only director to have won for his only career directing credit.
• Lina Wertmüller was the first woman nominated in the category, for Seven Beauties (1976).
  • Kathryn Bigelow became the first woman to win the award, for The Hurt Locker (2009).
  • Chloé Zhao was the first woman of color to win the award, for Nomadland (2020).
  • Jane Campion is the first woman to be nominated twice for the award: The Piano (1993) and The Power of the Dog (2021)—winning for the latter.
• John Singleton is the first Black (and youngest) nominee for Boyz n the Hood (1991).
  • Steve McQueen is the first Black nominee to direct a Best Picture winner, for 12 Years a Slave. Barry Jenkins subsequently did the same three years later, with Moonlight (2016).
• David Lean was the first non-American to win—and twice, for The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) and Lawrence of Arabia (1962). This did not recur for five decades with any other non-American directors, until Ang Lee, Alfonso Cuarón, and Alejandro González Iñárritu each won twice themselves.
  • Lee was the first Asian director to win the award, for Brokeback Mountain (2005). He won again for Life of Pi (2012).
  • Cuarón was the first Mexican (and Latin American) director to win the award, for Gravity (2013). He won again for Roma (2018).

See also

• BAFTA Award for Best Direction
• Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Director
• Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Feature Film
• Golden Globe Award for Best Director
• Independent Spirit Award for Best Director
• List of Academy Award–nominated films

Bibliography

• Template:Cite book
• Template:Cite book

External links

• Oscars.org (official Academy site)
• The Academy Awards Database (official site)
• Oscar.com Template:Webarchive (official ceremony promotional site)