The Empire Award for Best Director was an Empire Award presented annually by the British film magazine Empire to honor directors working within the film industry.
History The Empire Award for Best Director was one of five awards which were first introduced at the 1st Empire Awards ceremony in 1996 (the others being Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Film and Best British Film) with Danny Boyle receiving the award for his direction of Shallow Grave. Winners were chosen by the readers of Empire magazine.
Since its inception, the award was given to 16 directors. Christopher Nolan has received the most awards in this category with three awards. Christopher Nolan and Peter Jackson were nominated on seven occasions, more than any other director. Kathryn Bigelow and Patty Jenkins are the only female directors to be nominated for the award. Rian Johnson was the most recent winner in this category for his direction of Star Wars: The Last Jedi.
Winners and nominees In the list below, winners are listed first in boldface, followed by the other nominees. The number of the ceremony (1st, 2nd, etc.) appears in parentheses after the awards year, linked to the article (if any) on that ceremony.
"†" indicates Academy Award for Best Director winner
"‡" indicates Academy Award for Best Director nominee
1990s Year Director Film 1996 Danny Boyle Shallow Grave 1997 Terry Gilliam 12 Monkeys 1998 Cameron Crowe Jerry Maguire 1999 Steven Spielberg † Saving Private Ryan Ang Lee The Ice Storm James Cameron † Titanic Peter Weir ‡ The Truman Show Steven Soderbergh Out of Sight
2000s Year Director Film 2000 M. Night Shyamalan ‡ The Sixth Sense Ang Lee Ride with the Devil Lily and Lana Wachowski The Matrix David Fincher Fight Club George Lucas Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace 2001 Bryan Singer X-Men Ang Lee ‡ Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon Christopher Nolan Memento Michael Mann ‡ The Insider Paul Thomas Anderson Magnolia 2002 Baz Luhrmann Moulin Rouge! Cameron Crowe Almost Famous Peter Jackson ‡ The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring Steven Soderbergh † Traffic Steven Spielberg A.I. Artificial Intelligence 2003 Steven Spielberg Minority Report M. Night Shyamalan Signs Peter Jackson The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers Sam Raimi Spider-Man Steven Soderbergh Ocean's Eleven 2004 Quentin Tarantino Kill Bill: Volume 1 Anthony Minghella Cold Mountain Joel Coen and Ethan Coen Intolerable Cruelty Peter Jackson † The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King Peter Weir Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World 2005 Sam Raimi Spider-Man 2 M. Night Shyamalan The Village Michael Mann Collateral Michel Gondry Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind Quentin Tarantino Kill Bill: Volume 2 2006 Nick Park and Steve Box Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit Christopher Nolan Batman Begins Joe Wright Pride & Prejudice Peter Jackson King Kong Ron Howard Cinderella Man Steven Spielberg War of the Worlds 2007 Christopher Nolan The Prestige Bryan Singer Superman Returns George Clooney ‡ Good Night, and Good Luck Guillermo del Toro Pan's Labyrinth Martin Scorsese † The Departed 2008 David Yates Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix David Fincher Zodiac Edgar Wright Hot Fuzz Joe Wright Atonement Paul Greengrass The Bourne Ultimatum 2009 Christopher Nolan The Dark Knight Andrew Stanton WALL-E Joel Coen and Ethan Coen † No Country for Old Men Paul Thomas Anderson ‡ There Will Be Blood Tim Burton Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
2010s Year Director Film 2010 James Cameron ‡ Avatar J. J. Abrams Star Trek Kathryn Bigelow † The Hurt Locker Neill Blomkamp District 9 Quentin Tarantino ‡ Inglourious Basterds 2011 Edgar Wright Scott Pilgrim vs. the World Christopher Nolan Inception David Fincher ‡ The Social Network Matthew Vaughn Kick-Ass Tom Hooper † The King's Speech 2012 David Yates Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 Nicolas Winding Refn Drive Rupert Wyatt Rise of the Planet of the Apes Steven Spielberg War Horse Tomas Alfredson Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy 2013 Sam Mendes Skyfall Christopher Nolan The Dark Knight Rises Joss Whedon The Avengers Peter Jackson The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey Quentin Tarantino Django Unchained 2014 Alfonso Cuarón † Gravity Edgar Wright The World's End Paul Greengrass Captain Phillips Peter Jackson The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug Steve McQueen ‡ 12 Years a Slave 2015 Christopher Nolan Interstellar Matt Reeves Dawn of the Planet of the Apes Morten Tyldum ‡ The Imitation Game Peter Jackson The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies Richard Linklater ‡ Boyhood 2016 J. J. Abrams Star Wars: The Force Awakens Ryan Coogler Creed Alejandro G. Iñárritu † The Revenant George Miller ‡ Mad Max: Fury Road Ridley Scott The Martian 2017 Gareth Edwards Rogue One: A Star Wars Story Taika Waititi Hunt for the Wilderpeople Denis Villeneuve ‡ Arrival Ken Loach I, Daniel Blake Andrea Arnold American Honey 2018 Rian Johnson Star Wars: The Last Jedi Edgar Wright Baby Driver Jordan Peele ‡ Get Out Patty Jenkins Wonder Woman Taika Waititi Thor: Ragnarok
Notes
Multiple awards and nominations
Multiple awards The following individuals received two or more Best Director awards:
Awards Film 3 Christopher Nolan 2 David Yates Steven Spielberg
Multiple nominations The following individuals received two or more Best Director nominations:
Nominations Film 7 Christopher Nolan Peter Jackson 5 Steven Spielberg 4 Quentin Tarantino Edgar Wright 3 Ang Lee David Fincher M. Night Shyamalan Steven Soderbergh 2 Bryan Singer Cameron Crowe David Yates J. J. Abrams James Cameron Joel Coen and Ethan Coen Joe Wright Michael Mann Paul Greengrass Paul Thomas Anderson Peter Weir Sam Raimi Taika Waititi
References
External links