The Academy Award for Best Director is one of the biggest wins of the night, and one of the most elusive - some of history's most legendary filmmakers never won the coveted golden statuette, including Stanley Kubrick, Orson Welles, and Alfred Hitchcock.
Today, big names like Tarantino, PTA, and Christopher Nolan have received multiple nominations but have yet to make it past the finish line. However, that status is bound to change for at least one lucky director with the upcoming slate of films, including major Oscar-bait biographies from Nolan, Ridley Scott, and Adam McKay, and musical showcases from Rob Marshall and Richard Linklater.
Ridley Scott - Napoleon (TBA)
One of Hollywood's most prolific directors, Scott has been nominated for Best Director three times for Thelma & Louise, Black Hawk Down, and Gladiator, the latter of which won Best Picture. He received another Best Picture nomination for 2015's The Martian.
After releasing two films in 2021, the director will take another stab at the coveted trophy with his upcoming historical biopic, Napoleon, based on the titular political and military leader. Joaquin Phoenix will star as the famous Frenchman opposite Vanessa Kirby as Napoleon's influential wife, Josephine.
Wes Anderson - Asteroid City (TBA)
A director known for both style and substance, Wes Anderson's work is easily recognized by its pastel-hued aesthetics, symmetrical cinematography, and eccentric plots. The filmmaker has received one Best Director nomination to date, for 2014's The Grand Budapest Hotel.
Anderson's films frequently feature only the most famous of faces, and his upcoming Asteroid City is no different. The ensemble cast includes Margot Robbie, Tom Hanks, Scarlett Johansson, and long-time collaborator Bill Murray. Beyond the star-studded lineup, little else is known about the film.
Jordan Peele - Nope (2022)
Jordan Peele exploded onto the scene with his directorial debut Get Out, a twisting horror film that earned him a Best Director nomination. Peele's work as a writer-director is acclaimed for its originality and social commentary, and audiences are eagerly awaiting his next piece: the mysterious Nope.
Set to release this July, Nope is a sci-fi horror film starring Keke Palmer, Daniel Kaluuya, and Steven Yeun as residents of a small town who witness an abnormal, eerie event. The film's unnerving trailer keeps the central plot shrouded in mystery, but many have speculated that Nope will involve aliens or other supernatural components.
Greta Gerwig - Barbie (2023)
Actress-turned-director Greta Gerwig received a Best Director nomination for 2017's Lady Bird, as well as critical acclaim for 2019's Little Women. Her next shot at the gold comes with Barbie, her third solo directorial work that she also co-wrote alongside partner Noah Baumbach.
Barbie is the first-ever live-action iteration of the eponymous fashion doll and will star Margot Robbie as the titular character opposite Ryan Gosling's Ken. Little is known about the plot's direction, but there's no doubt about the film's star quality - alongside Robbie and Gosling, the cast list includes Simu Liu, Will Ferrell, and Robbie's own doppelganger, Emma Mackey.
Christopher Nolan - Oppenheimer (2023)
Although Nolan's films have won 11 Oscars and have a global gross of over $5 billion, the man himself has never been awarded the Best Director gong. He received a Best Director nomination for 2017's Dunkirk.
After receiving mixed reviews for his last film, Tenet, Nolan is taking a break from time loops and mind-bending narratives with his upcoming biographical flick, Oppenheimer. Cillian Murphy will lead an ensemble cast as the titular theoretical physicist who oversaw the Manhattan Project and the creation of the world's first atomic bombs.
David O. Russell - Amsterdam (2022)
Russell frequently combines black comedy, dramatic moments, and biographical elements in his films, a recipe which has led to critically acclaimed pieces including Silver Linings Playbook, American Hustle, and The Fighter. He received a Best Director nomination for the latter two.
Set to release this November, Amsterdam - previously titled Canterbury Glass - marks Russell's first film in seven years. Although details of the film remain tightly under wraps, a recent first look revealed the film's 1930s setting and central thread - a quirky trio of friends (Margot Robbie, Christian Bale, and John David Washington) who become caught up in a murder mystery.
Rob Marshall - The Little Mermaid (2023)
As a Tony-nominated theatre director, Marshall has become Hollywood's go-to guy for any musical film adaptation. Marshall brought Into The Woods, Mary Poppins Returns, and Chicago to the big screen, the latter of which won Best Picture and earned Marshall a Best Director nod.
Marshall's next project is The Little Mermaid, a live-action adaptation of Disney's 1989 animated classic that will feature Halle Bailey as the titular sea princess opposite Melissa McCarthy as the villainous Ursula. The film will include new songs from Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda and original composer, Alan Menken.
Denis Villeneuve - Dune: Part Two (2023)
Villeneuve's absence among the Best Director lineup at this year's Oscars was widely considered a major snub; the Canadian director successfully took on the Herculean task of adapting the epic sci-fi novel Dune for the big screen - a challenge many before him have failed. The director currently has one Best Director nomination for Arrival.
With Villeneuve set to direct Dune: Part Two, some suggested that the Academy may have deliberately withheld a nomination this time round in anticipation of Villeneuve making an Oscars sweep with the sequel, à la Peter Jackson for The Return of the King.
Adam McKay - Bad Blood (TBA)
McKay began his career directing comedies such as Anchorman and Step Brothers before exploring more dramatic territory with The Big Short and Vice, both of which earned him a Best Director nomination. McKay's most recent film, the satirical disaster movie Don't Look Up, polarized viewers, making it one of the lowest-rated films to receive a Best Picture nomination.
The writer-director is set to reunite with Don't Look Up lead Jennifer Lawrence in Bad Blood, a biographical film that will follow disgraced Silicon Valley star Elizabeth Holmes and the downfall of her medical tech company, Theranos. Audiences will have to wait to see how the film differs from Hulu's The Dropout, a miniseries that also explores Holmes' rise and undoing.
Richard Linklater - Merrily We Roll Along (TBA)
Many of Linklater's films have been filmed over unconventional time periods, such as the Before trilogy and Boyhood - the latter was shot over 11 years and earned Linklater a Best Director nomination. Linklater is set to continue this ambitious trend with the upcoming adaptation of Stephen Sondheim's Merrily We Roll Along.
The musical follows a group of friends in the entertainment industry over the course of 20 years and will feature Broadway alumni and real-life friends Ben Platt and Beanie Feldstein in the lead roles. Notably, Merrily We Roll Along plays out in reverse chronological order - meaning Linklater and his cast will be shooting the end of the film first.