10 Greatest Actors Turned Directors

The Godfather Part III isn’t the unmitigated disaster many would have you believe, but one thing’s for sure: the performance of Sophia Coppola was not very good. Thankfully, no one understood that better than Coppola herself, and she quickly made the move behind the lens.

It turned out that, like her old man, she is very good at directing. Starting with The Virgin Suicides, Coppola demonstrated her fully formed visual style, vibrant, high energy, always with a great soundtrack.

Her next was even better - Lost In Translation. A bittersweet tale of two Americans at loose ends in Japan, she helped put Scarlett Johansson on the map, and reminded the world of just how great an actor Bill Murray is (she’s one of the few directors the reclusive star will always turn up for).

Her latest, The Beguiled, was a departure for her but proved one of her most fascinating projects yet. She’s a real actors’ director - Kirsten Dunst, particularly, is never better than when working with Coppola. This was a career change that paid dividends and then some.