So many actors have made the jump from acting to directing, whether it's a small character actor or a bankable star like George Clooney. It's hardly surprising, as spending so much time on set as an actor, standing around so many creatives, and watching visionaries at work will no doubt give actors the directing bug.
While it doesn't always pan out, there have been so many incredible movies that have come from the minds of action stars, comedy actors, and so many other least-suspecting actors. And in some cases, some actors have even made better directing careers for themselves.
Easy Rider (1969) - 7.3
While most of Dennis Hopper's best roles are as sadistic villains, Easy Rider saw him as a hippie without a care in the world. The 1969 movie is a time capsule, as its counterculture narrative is perfectly representative of the late 60s. Between the rising tensions in the U.S. at the time and the use of drugs in the movie, the film was the subject of controversy upon release, but is now considered a classic.
Easy Rider is one of the most beautiful-looking and compelling American history lessons ever. On top of that, it's one of Hopper's defining performances, not to mention a flawless masterpiece of a directorial debut on his behalf as well. And the final moments will leave audiences in a state of absolute shock.
Henry V (1989) - 7.5
Kenneth Branagh is a jack of all trades. In the past year alone, the filmmaker directed the Academy Award-nominated black-and-white drama Belfast and the comedy adventure movie Death on the Nile, two extremely different movies.
While that latter saw him sport a goofy mustache and speak in a thick Belgian accent, he is a classically trained actor who can recite whole Shakespeare plays. And for his directorial debut, the actor directed an extremely faithful and ambitious adaptation of Shakespeare's Henry V. Branagh is such a Shakespeare obsessive that he even adapted Hamlet seven years later, and at four hours in length, it was even more ambitious.
Gone Baby Gone (2007) - 7.6
Before Ben Affleck won Best Picture for Argo, and before he directed one of the best heist movies ever, The Town, the actor made his directorial debut with the grueling Gone Baby Gone. It's a riveting crime drama that follows the investigation of the kidnapping of a little girl. The investigation sees two PIs face off against cops and drug addicts, and it features some of the most suspenseful and thrilling scenes found outside of a David Fincher-directed movie.
Of all the actor-turned-directors working today, Affleck is one of the most consistent. The actor makes a movie every few years to mostly critical acclaim and huge box office numbers. Though his last movie, Live By Night, was the least successful of his movies, every director has a bad day at the office, and it seems like a big comeback is just around the corner. At the moment, Affleck has two movies in pre-production, Keeper of the Lost Cities and Ghost Army.
A Star Is Born (2018) - 7.6
Though Bradley Cooper has produced loads of hugely successful movies, including American Sniper, American Hustle, and even Joker, he hadn't directed anything until 2018's musical hit. It comes as a surprise that A Star Is Born is Bradley Cooper's directorial debut, as it's so accomplished in every department.
The drama is one of the most compelling portrayals of a musician, and Cooper pushed himself to the limit, as he didn't just direct it, but he wrote the screenplay and starred in the movie too. Alongside his costar Lady Gaga, the film has some of the best chemistry between two actors ever found in a movie. And it seems like Cooper has gotten the directing bug. The actor will be directing Maestro, a biopic about composer Leonard Bernstein, and it starts shooting in May.
Get Out (2017) - 7.7
Get Out is one of only six horror movies nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards. While that says more about how the horror genre is undeservedly overlooked by the Academy than anything, it's also a testament to how great of a horror movie Get Out is, as it was even recognized by the awards body.
The film is the directorial debut of Jordan Peele, who interestingly comes from a comedy background. And though the 2017 film is full of humor, it's also shocking, terrifying, and paints a picture of racism amongst liberals using surrealism. Though the movie didn't end up winning Best Picture, Peele did win the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay. The writer-director followed the movie with the just as terrifying Us, and his third movie, Nope, will be released this year, cementing him as the best 21st-century horror auteur.
A Bronx Tale (1993) - 7.8
After spending so much time around Martin Scorsese, one of the greatest and most visionary movie directors ever, it was only a matter of time until Robert De Niro would be influenced to make a gangster movie of his own. However, A Bronx Tale isn't as thrilling or as entertaining as Scorsese's fast-paced gangster movies, but it's instead a fascinating character study and coming-of-age movie.
The 1993 film follows a boy who is raised by an honest father but comes to a crossroads when he starts working for a mob boss. Unlike other actor-turned-directors, De Niro hasn't continuously directed, as he only made one other movie, The Good Shepherd, 13 years later.
Ordinary People (1980) - 7.8
Robert Redford has had one of the greatest careers an actor could ask for, starring in some of the most iconic movies ever including Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and All The President's Men. And as if he wasn't respected in Hollywood enough, he directed some of the best movies of the 1990s, but it all started with Ordinary People.
The 1980 movie is an adaptation of the 1976 novel of the same name, and it follows a couple who struggle to process the death of their son. The movie is emotionally exhausting, and it's one of the best examples of how, when it comes to powerful and dramatic performances, actors are much better directors than filmmakers who are simply technically proficient.
Sling Blade (1996) - 8.0
Sling Blade had been a passion project of Billy Bob Thornton's for a long time, as it was originally a stage play that he had written and performed all by himself. The movie is an emotional rollercoaster and wonderfully acted, as it follows the events of a man with an intellectual disability who is released from a psychiatric hospital where he stayed after killing his mother.
Thornton starred in the movie on top of writing and directing it, and it earned the actor the most critical success has ever seen. Not only was it a huge box office success relative to its micro-budget of $1.2 million, but he won the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay and was nominated for Best Actor.
Dances With Wolves (1990) - 8.1
Though some think Dances with Wolves is underrated, the film was a phenomenon upon its release in 1990 and still holds up today. Along with starring in the movie, Kevin Costner directed the western, and it's easily the most ambitious directorial debut of all time.
Along with its huge scope, Dances with Wolves clocks in at just over three hours long, and that runtime is full of breathtaking establishing shots and incredible and believable 1800s set and costume designs. Costner followed the 1990 hit with his sophomore effort, The Postman, which was just as long and ambitious, but it was the opposite of Dances with Wolves in every other way. The 1997 movie was a bomb and hated by critics.
Citizen Kane (1941) - 8.3
Even if directors don't know it, they are influenced by Citizen Kane, as it pioneered almost everything about contemporary filmmaking. Whether it's non-linear storytelling or the use of deep focus, who knows how many decades it would have been until they were popularized if Orson Welles didn't do it first.
Despite being so accomplished and seeming like the work of a director who has been fine-tuning their craft for decades, it was the first directorial effort of a 25-year-old. Even at 81 years old, Citizen Kane is still considered one of the greatest movies of all time, and even despite starting out as an actor, Welles was a visionary filmmaker and one of the greatest of all time.