Most cinephiles have a favorite film director and could debate endlessly in support of their top pick. With the diversity of film styles and genres produced through the ages, dozens of directors have been considered among the best at their craft by film critics and everyday people alike. (Some directors have also been wildly successful. Here are the 50 highest grossing film directors of all time.)
While some directors cater to a niche audience, others make films that garner mass appeal and may be wildly more popular. To compile a list of the most popular movie directors, 24/7 Tempo reviewed the list The Most Popular Directors (Q4 2022) – the results of an online survey of more than 1,200 respondents conducted by YouGov, an international market and data analytics website.Â
The best movie by each director was determined using a 24/7 Tempo-developed index of IMDb ratings and a combination of audience scores and Tomatometer scores on Rotten Tomatoes, weighting all ratings equally. Data is as of March 2023. Cast credits are from IMDb.
The list includes classic directors from the Golden Age of cinema, such as Alfred Hitchcock, Frank Capra, and John Huston. More modern auteurs are also on the list, including John Hughes, Martin Scorsese, Spike Lee, and Quentin Tarantino. The filmmaking styles of such directors are so distinctly personal that their films are instantly recognizable as their own.
As women have been historically underrepresented in directing roles, only one woman director made the list. Actress-turned-director Penny Marshall is remembered for directing the smash hit “Big” starring Tom Hanks as a youth stuck in a man’s body, as well as “Awakenings” and “A League of Their Own.” These are the 50 highest grossing films directed by women.
Click here to see the most popular movie directors in America
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31. Frank Capra
> People with a positive opinion of Frank Capra: 42%
> Best movie: It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)
> Starring: James Stewart, Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore
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30. John Hughes
> People with a positive opinion of John Hughes: 42%
> Best movie: The Breakfast Club (1985)
> Starring: Emilio Estevez, Judd Nelson, Molly Ringwald
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Source: Michael Ochs Archives / Moviepix via Getty Images
29. Allen Funt
> People with a positive opinion of Allen Funt: 42%
> Best movie: Money Talks (1997)
> Starring: Joseph R. Sicari, Muhammad Ali, David McHarris
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28. J.J. Abrams
> People with a positive opinion of J.J. Abrams: 44%
> Best movie: Star Trek (2009)
> Starring: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Simon Pegg
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27. M. Night Shyamalan
> People with a positive opinion of M. Night Shyamalan: 45%
> Best movie: The Sixth Sense (1999)
> Starring: Bruce Willis, Haley Joel Osment, Toni Collette
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26. John Huston
> People with a positive opinion of John Huston: 45%
> Best movie: The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1947)
> Starring: Humphrey Bogart, Walter Huston, Tim Holt
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25. Stanley Kubrick
> People with a positive opinion of Stanley Kubrick: 46%
> Best movie: Dr. Strangelove (1963)
> Starring: Peter Sellers, George C. Scott, Sterling Hayden
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24. Richard Attenborough
> People with a positive opinion of Richard Attenborough: 46%
> Best movie: Gandhi (1982)
> Starring: Ben Kingsley, John Gielgud, Rohini Hattangadi
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23. Ingmar Bergman
> People with a positive opinion of Ingmar Bergman: 47%
> Best movie: Fanny och Alexander (1983)
> Starring: Bertil Guve, Pernilla Allwin, Kristina Adolphson
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22. Ridley Scott
> People with a positive opinion of Ridley Scott: 47%
> Best movie: Alien (1979)
> Starring: Sigourney Weaver, Tom Skerritt, John Hurt
Source: Kevin Winter / Getty Images Entertainment via Getty Images
21. Garry Marshall
> People with a positive opinion of Garry Marshall: 48%
> Best movie: Pretty Woman (1990)
> Starring: Richard Gere, Julia Roberts, Jason Alexander
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20. John Carpenter
> People with a positive opinion of John Carpenter: 48%
> Best movie: Halloween (1978)
> Starring: Donald Pleasence, Jamie Lee Curtis, Tony Moran
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19. Keenen Ivory Wayans
> People with a positive opinion of Keenen Ivory Wayans: 49%
> Best movie: Scary Movie (2000)
> Starring: Anna Faris, Jon Abrahams, Marlon Wayans
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18. Oliver Stone
> People with a positive opinion of Oliver Stone: 50%
> Best movie: Platoon (1986)
> Starring: Charlie Sheen, Tom Berenger, Willem Dafoe
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17. Spike Lee
> People with a positive opinion of Spike Lee: 51%
> Best movie: 4 Little Girls (1997)
> Starring: Maxine McNair, Walter Cronkite, Chris McNair
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16. Wes Craven
> People with a positive opinion of Wes Craven: 53%
> Best movie: A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
> Starring: Heather Langenkamp, Johnny Depp, Robert Englund
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15. Francis Ford Coppola
> People with a positive opinion of Francis Ford Coppola: 54%
> Best movie: The Godfather (1972)
> Starring: Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan
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14. Rob Reiner
> People with a positive opinion of Rob Reiner: 55%
> Best movie: The Princess Bride (1987)
> Starring: Cary Elwes, Mandy Patinkin, Robin Wright
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13. James Cameron
> People with a positive opinion of James Cameron: 55%
> Best movie: Aliens (1986)
> Starring: Sigourney Weaver, Michael Biehn, Carrie Henn
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12. Penny Marshall
> People with a positive opinion of Penny Marshall: 56%
> Best movie: Awakenings (1990)
> Starring: Robert De Niro, Robin Williams, Julie Kavner
Source: Alberto E. Rodriguez / Getty Images Entertainment via Getty Images
11. Tim Burton
> People with a positive opinion of Tim Burton: 56%
> Best movie: Edward Scissorhands (1990)
> Starring: Johnny Depp, Winona Ryder, Dianne Wiest
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10. Quentin Tarantino
> People with a positive opinion of Quentin Tarantino: 57%
> Best movie: Pulp Fiction (1994)
> Starring: John Travolta, Uma Thurman, Samuel L. Jackson
Source: Hulton Archive / Hulton Archive via Getty Images
9. Orson Welles
> People with a positive opinion of Orson Welles: 58%
> Best movie: The Magnificent Ambersons (1942)
> Starring: Tim Holt, Joseph Cotten, Dolores Costello
Source: Kevin Winter / Getty Images
8. Martin Scorsese
> People with a positive opinion of Martin Scorsese: 58%
> Best movie: Goodfellas (1990)
> Starring: Robert De Niro, Ray Liotta, Joe Pesci
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7. Jim Henson
> People with a positive opinion of Jim Henson: 59%
> Best movie: Labyrinth (1986)
> Starring: David Bowie, Jennifer Connelly, Toby Froud
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6. Mel Brooks
> People with a positive opinion of Mel Brooks: 62%
> Best movie: Young Frankenstein (1974)
> Starring: Gene Wilder, Madeline Kahn, Marty Feldman
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5. George Lucas
> People with a positive opinion of George Lucas: 66%
> Best movie: Star Wars Ep. IV: A New Hope (1977)
> Starring: Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher
Source: Hulton Archive / Archive Photos via Getty Images
4. Walt Disney
> People with a positive opinion of Walt Disney: 67%
> Best movie: N/A
> Starring: N/A
Source: Tim P. Whitby / Getty Images
3. Ron Howard
> People with a positive opinion of Ron Howard: 68%
> Best movie: The Beatles: Eight Days a Week (2015)
> Starring: Paul McCartney
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2. Alfred Hitchcock
> People with a positive opinion of Alfred Hitchcock: 71%
> Best movie: Rear Window (1954)
> Starring: James Stewart, Grace Kelly, Wendell Corey
Source: Frazer Harrison / Getty Images
1. Steven Spielberg
> People with a positive opinion of Steven Spielberg: 73%
> Best movie: Schindler’s List (1993)
> Starring: Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes, Ben Kingsley
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