From his days as a "New Hollywood" arrival in the 1970s to the wave of big-budget box-office draws he would either direct himself or co-sign others to, Steven Spielberg has long been a household name.
Yet the mastermind behind summer splashes (Raiders of the Lost Ark, Jurassic Park) and Oscar-winning dramas (Schindler's List, Saving Private Ryan) still surprises audiences when they see his name attached to projects for which he was not the credited director. Rumors of ghost-directing Poltergeist (1982) aside, such also rang true for the following 10 projects that Spielberg either produced, shot footage for, or even starred in.
Shrek (2001)
Though Shrek was helmed by the Spielberg-founded Dreamworks, his uncredited involvement leaves one susceptible to not immediately knowing the depth of his duties on the picture.
The film starred Hollywood funnyman Mike Myers, who provided the voice-work for the titular ogre after fellow Saturday Night Live alum Chris Farley died before completing audio for the character. Since Myers gained Spielberg's permission to spoof Jurassic Park in Wayne's World 2 (1993) and also cast him in Goldmember (2002), it is no surprise their creative rapport remained strong on "set" of the inaugural Best Animated Feature Oscar-winner as well.
Men In Black (1997)
While Spielberg never directed Will Smith - whose then-string of consecutive box-office smashes only compared with frequent Spielberg collaborators Tom Cruise and Tom Hanks' own streaks - the director sure did produce him.
The sci-fi mega-smash based on The Men In Black comic book series was produced by Columbia Pictures in conjunction with Spielberg's own Amblin Entertainment; meaning the name-brand executive producer most assuredly spent at least some time on the Barry Sonnenfeld-commanded set (though not as much as he famously did throughout the production of Poltergeist).
The Incredible Hulk (1977-1982 TV Series)
Long before Mark Ruffalo smashed his big green fists through big green screen-dominated big box-office draws, Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno split duties on ABC's The Incredible Hulk.
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When Spielberg learned archival footage from his TV film Duel (1971) was used for the first season's ninth episode, "Never Give a Trucker an Even Break," the man-behind-Jaws reacted with Bannerian outrage. Contractually, he was unable to sue; however, he ended up making off with a director credit on the episode - according to the "Miscellaneous Crew" section on his IMDb page.
Casper (1995)
In the early 1990s, Brad Silberling was most known for having dated up-and-coming actress Rebecca Schaffer at the time of her tragic and highly-publicized murder. The TV director then gained Spielberg's attention after the latter saw an episode of Brooklyn Bridge he (Silberling) directed.
Spielberg - who was long planning a film adaptation of "Casper the Friendly Ghost" at the time - tabbed Silberling to direct, and the rest was history. Notably, a young JJ Abrams - the producer whom HBO Max recently order a Justice League Dark series from - also did an uncredited script polish on the film that was the first to ever feature a fully CGI-animated lead character.
The Land Before Time (1988)
Not only did Spielberg executive produce the only theatrically-released installment in a franchise that spawned a whopping thirteen direct-to-video musical sequels in VHS' heyday; he and Amblin Entertainment teamed up with LucasFilm - the production company headed by Spielberg's close personal friend and Star Wars creator, George Lucas - to develop the animated adventure/drama.
The film currently holds a 72 percent "certified fresh" stamp of approval on Rotten Tomatoes, convincing Spielberg that raising the stakes could only lead to more, larger-scaled successes within the dawning of the age of the Dinosaur picture.
Monster House (2006)
Leave it to Spielberg to be behind a Halloween movie released in the dead of July.
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Together with friend Robert Zemeckis (director, Back to The Future, The Polar Express), Spielberg backed the impressively motion-capture animated film nominated for Best Animated Feature at the 2007 Academy Awards. Co-written by future Community and Rick and Morty creator Dan Harmon, Monster House - currently streaming on Netflix - is now remembered as a collaborative torch-passing representation of the old guard ushering in the new.
The Flintstones (1994)
Of those who "yabba-dabba-don't" recall Spielberg's role on the cartoon's live-action reboot (nor the film's existence in general), there are plenty.
But, since all things Amblin-related went to the top, Spielberg's executive producer status was unshakable - even when left uncredited. A notable contribution of his on the film, in addition to commissioning Jim Henson's Creature Shop for the CGI effects following their commendable efforts on Jurrasic Park: insisting on John Goodman's casting as Fred Flintstone after working with him on Always (1989).
Tiny Toon Adventures (1990-1992)
Mostly every '90s kid can recall the name-drop "Steven Spielberg Presents" that preceded each episode of Animaniacs (1993-1998) - perhaps due to the meta-commentary on, and in-universe incorporation of the Warner Bros. logo. Yet prior to Animaniacs' run, another Spielberg-presented cartoon reigned supreme.
The show that featured a new class of Looney Tunes-hopefuls looking to follow in their elders' footsteps reinvented the genre first popularized by Muppet Babies (1984-1991). Though Animaniacs won out in the end, Tiny Toon Adventures developed a strong cult following in rerun years later.
The Blues Brothers (1980)
In the 21st century, fans of both Spielberg and mainstream cinema could likely recall with ease the director's few on-screen turns. He completed cameo appearances as himself in Vanilla Sky (2001), Austin Powers in Goldmember (2002), and Paul (2011) as favors for friends Tom Cruise, Mike Myers, and Simon Pegg, respectively.
However, decades earlier Spielberg appeared as the Cook County Assessor's Office Clerk for John Landis and the film's stars - dynamic duo Dan Akroyd and the late John Belushi - who both starred in Spielberg's 1941 (1979) the previous year.
Cats (2019)
Tom Hooper's universally panned ensemble adaptation of the Broadway musical can be summed up by a short-and-telling American Dad quote: "El Gato no es Bueno."
Before the animated branch of Amblin known as "Amblimation" foreclose in the 1990s, Spielberg tracked an animated film version of Andrew Lloyd Webber's production. Even after Universal acquired the rights, Spielberg and Amblin Entertainment were retained for the eventual box-office bomb actors and crew-members alike are already distancing themselves from in waves.