7 Up-And-Coming Directors Attached To Huge Hollywood Movies

2. James Wan

What Put Him On The Map: 2013's The Conjuring What He's On Now: 2015's Fast & Furious 7 In truth, James Wan has been busting his butt in the industry for a while and while The Conjuring is certainly the most lucrative of his outings, it was also his most expansive film to date. I could have just as easily pointed to lower-budget successes such as Saw or Insidious as Wan's jumping off point; however, it's hard to deny the impact of The Conjuring. A deftly effective old-school horror film that decimated its more publicized, more pricey opening weekend competition, The Conjuring was the most fun I've had at the movies in a long time (and I had the added pleasure of seeing it at the drive-in.) After conquering the world of modern horror, Wan now takes over the reigns of the hugely popular Fast & Furious franchise, whose 2011 entry, Fast Five, revitalized the series in a big bad way. (The film took in over 400 million dollars more in worldwide box office than the very first Fast & Furious film. How many fifth installments can boast that?) And while the tragic death of franchise mainstay Paul Walker has pushed the film's release into 2015, fans of the series are no less ravenous for the new film. Its hopeful success should really solidify Wan's place among must-have Hollywood directors and blow open the doors to whatever project he might want to pursue next.