Most stars are perfectly happy raking in the moolah as popular actors, but a few eventually go beyond stardom and get the urge to make their own films.
What pushes them to go way beyond their comfort zone? They want to see their vision or version of life up there on the big screen and that shining prospect makes the many additional problems involved in directing worth solving.
Take Clint Eastwood: He got his start in the movies as a “B” actor in so-called “spaghetti” Westerns (cowboy movies financed by Italian producers), but is now a directing icon. His latest film, “American Sniper,” is winning plaudits and awards while also doing very well at the box office.
Eastwood has megged 31 feature films to date, starting with the psychological thriller, “Play Misty for Me,” in 1971. He established his versatility by also megging a comedy (“Bronco Billy”), adult romance (“The Bridges of Madison County”), historical dramas (“Flags of Our Fathers”), biopics (“Bird”), plus movies about the sporting world’s winners—and losers.
Occasionally, he goes back to his Western roots with preeminent success: In 1992, “Unforgiven” won both the best director and best picture plums at the Oscars.
In 2013, the big actor-turned-director sensation was Ben Affleck, whose “Argo” was a big winner in film award derbies. It was a “logical” followup to his achievement in 2007, when his first film, “Gone Baby Gone,” was hailed by the US National Board of Review the best directorial debut of the year.
His stellar career may be in eclipse at the moment, but in the 1990s, Mel Gibson’s “Braveheart” similarly hit the jackpot, winning five Oscars, including best picture and best director for Gibson. Another epic, “The Passion of the Christ,” was similarly significant and even amazing, becoming the first religious film to gross a billion dollars worldwide!
Ironically, Gibson later got involved in scandals that tainted his reputation, both professionally and personally, but the ending to his story has yet to be written, so hope springs that he could still make amends for his many lapses.
Much less controversial is the career arc of actor-director George Clooney, whose significant directorial efforts include “Confessions of a Dangerous Mind,” “The Ides of March” and “Good Night, and Good Luck.”
Another award-winning actor, Sean Penn, has also chalked up notable directorial credits with “The Pledge,” “The Crossing Guard” and “Into the Wild.”
He hasn’t been busy behind the camera for years, but Warren Beatty has also achieved iconic status both as actor and director, and “Reds” (about an American journalist in Russia) is still his most preeminent claim to fame—with a best director Oscar to show for it.
On the distaff side, Jodie Foster occasionally megs striking films like “Little Man Tate,” “The Beaver” and “Home for the Holidays.” Former TV comedienne Penny Marshall became the first female director to have a film gross of over $100 million (for “Big,” in 1998). Her other films, like “Awakenings” and “A League of Their Own,” have also done well.
And, just last year, Angelina Jolie’s second directorial effort, “Unbroken,” made it very clear that she was much more than just a pretty face!