Top 10 Directors Who Saved Their Careers With One Movie

“Captain America: The Winter Soldier” (2014)
Before they were two of the biggest creative names in the superhero genre, the Russo brothers mainly directed comedic TV. From 2003 to the early 2010s, the Russos directed episodes of popular TV shows, like “Arrested Development,” “Happy Endings,” and “Community.” But they followed those shows up with floundering titles like “Up All Night” and “Animal Practice.” With their TV star fading, they shifted their focus to film and directed “Captain America: The Winter Soldier”, which was one of the most critically acclaimed films of the MCU. They went on to direct “Captain America: Civil War,” “Avengers: Infinity War,” and “Avengers: Endgame.” Given the massive success of, well, all of those movies, it’s safe to say their transition from TV to mega-movie blockbuster is complete.

“First Reformed” (2017)
Schrader has been in the movie business for decades. Along the way, he’s directed critical darling like “Blue Collar” and “Rolling Thunder”. He’s also written critically acclaimed films, such as “Taxi Driver” and adapted classics like “Raging Bull.” Although Schrader continued to direct throughout the ‘90s and 2000s, none of his movies seemed to make much of an impact. That all changed with 2017’s “First Reformed.” While not very popular with mainstream audiences, the movie received widespread praise from critics. In addition to being celebrated for his directing work, Schrader earned his first Academy Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay.

“Scream” (1996)
Wes Craven is one of the biggest names in horror. He absolutely dominated the ‘70s and early ‘80s with iconic films like “The Last House on the Left,” “The Hills Have Eyes,” and “A Nightmare on Elm Street.” And while the latter proved one of the most influential horror movies ever, Craven followed it up with a series of flops that have long been forgotten by the mainstream. Twelve years after the first “Nightmare on Elm Street” debuted Craven reclaimed his throne with 1996’s “Scream”. The movie was an unbelievable success, grossing $173 million. It had the added bonus of re-igniting both Craven’s career and the entire American horror genre, which, at the time, was wallowing in uninspired movies and diminishing franchise sequels.

“The Martian” (2015)
Ridley Scott has actually enjoyed numerous comebacks, like when “Gladiator” saved him from a string of disappointments throughout the ‘90s. But his latest comeback happened after a series of duds in the late 2000s and early 2010s. Movies like “Body of Lies” and “The Counselor”, “Robin Hood,” and “Exodus: Gods and Kings” were all regarded as enormous disappointments. And then came “The Martian.” Based on the acclaimed novel by Andy Weir, “The Martian” became Scott’s highest-grossing film with a total worldwide gross of $630 million. It also earned widespread acclaim and seven Academy Award nominations. Unfortunately, the Best Director was not one of them. But Best Picture was, so it kind of evens out.

“The Player” (1992)
Known as a subversive and wickedly satirical director, Robert Altman enjoyed fantastic success throughout the 1970s. He directed “M*A*S*H” in 1970, which won the modern-day equivalent of the Palme d’Or at Cannes. It also earned Altman his first Oscar nomination for Best Director. His second came just a few years later with the musical comedy “Nashville.” But after working on 1977's “Three Women”, Altman directed a string of disappointments, including the live-action “Popeye” with Robin Williams. It wasn’t until he made 1992’s “The Player” that Altman was graciously welcomed back into elite award consideration. Serving as a satire of Hollywood itself, “The Player” was universally beloved and earned Altman his third Best Director nomination.

“Split” (2017)
M. Night Shyamalan quickly established himself as one of the leading directors of our time with enormously popular films like “Signs” and “The Sixth Sense”. But then people began to suspect that he was a two-hit wonder. Following the popular but disappointing “The Village” in 2004, Shyamalan released some truly questionable material. Movies like “Lady in the Water,” “The Happening,” “After Earth,” and “The Last Airbender” received wide condemnation, with the latter often being listed as one of the worst movies of all time. (xref) Things began to look up with “The Visit,” but it wasn’t until “Split” in 2017 that Shyamalan reclaimed his status as a thriller master. The movie received strong reviews, grossed nearly $280 million, and re-ignited interest in the “Unbreakable” series.

“Blue Velvet” (1986)
Known for his near-impossible to follow and surreal films, David Lynch earned a name for himself in the late ‘70s and early ‘80s with “Eraserhead” and “The Elephant Man.” The latter was an especially popular film and earned eight Academy Award nominations, including Best Director and Best Picture. Unfortunately, Lynch followed this up with “Dune,” a box office bomb that was universally maligned for Lynch’s sloppy writing and directing. Luckily, he bounced back two years later with “Blue Velvet”. The psychological noir horror put Lynch back on the map and greatly helped Dennis Hopper’s career. It also earned Lynch his second Best Director nomination. It is now regarded as one of his greatest movies.

“Color Out of Space” (2019)
Few directors can seamlessly return from a 20-year hiatus. Richard Stanley is definitely one of these rare talents. Stanley directed “Hardware,” and “Dust Devil,” in the early 90s. He also the big creative behind the long-form music video “Brave” for British rock band Marillion. In 1996, Stanley was scheduled to direct “The Island of Dr. Moreau” but was fired just one week into filming. This sour relationship seemingly dissuaded him from the mainstream, and he focused mainly on indie films and documentaries for the next two decades. Stanley finally returned to the mainstream with the H.P. Lovecraft adaptation “Color Out of Space,” which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2019 to great critical acclaim.

“The Hurt Locker” (2008)
Bigelow broke into the mainstream in 1991 with “Point Break,” a cult classic action film starring Keanu Reeves and Patrick Swayze. It was a great stepping stone to bigger things. Unfortunately, she followed it up with a poor string of films that included the likes of “The Weight of Water,” and “K-19: The Widowmaker.” Since the latter grossed around $65 million on a $90 million budget, it seemingly put Bigelow’s mainstream ambitions to rest. She virtually disappeared from big-budget productions for six years before returning with “The Hurt Locker.” To say the movie was a success would be an understatement. Before the film entered the National Film Registry in 2020, the film took home Best Picture and Bigelow won the Oscar for Best Director.

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.

William Friedkin, “Bug” (2006)
Arguably Friedkin’s Best Movie Since “To Live and Die in L.A.” in 1985

Clint Eastwood, “Mystic River” (2003)
Eastwood’s Best Film Since “Unforgiven”

Terry Gilliam, “The Fisher King” (1991)
Followed the Massive Bomb “The Adventures of Baron Munchausen”

Terrence Malick, “The Thin Red Line” (1998)
Malick’s First Film in Twenty Years

David Gordon Green, “Prince Avalanche” (2013)
A Great Return to Form After Comedy Flops Like “Your Highness”

“Jurassic Park” (1993)
Spielberg had one of the most historic runs in movie history throughout the ‘70s and early ‘80s. He directed incredibly successful movies like “Jaws,” “Close Encounters of the Third Kind,” “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” and E.T.” However, things started to slow down after 1985’s “The Color Purple”. “Empire of the Sun” and “Always” were middling Spielberg projects. Although “Last Crusade” was a moderate success, he followed it up with “Hook,” which didn’t live up to critical or financial expectations. By 1993, it had been almost a decade since Spielberg made a film that really broke the mold. And then he made “Jurassic Park.” The hit roared up huge box office numbers and was preserved like dinosaurs in amber in the National Film Registry.