Quentin Tarantino says he wants to retire from movie-making after just 10 films, but there are plenty of veteran directors who have proved it’s possible to keep their creative spark alive well into old age. While Tarantino places a lot of emphasis on the legacy of his restricted filmography, other directors managed to carve out careers of both quantity and quality.
Some of the greatest directors ever have honed their craft across dozens of feature films, and this variety has given their careers an interesting sense of evolution, experimentation, and reinvention. Although Tarantino plans to only direct one more feature film, there are several examples of filmmakers who have continued to grow and make great work beyond their tenth movie.
8
Clint Eastwood
Directed 40 Films (So Far!)
Clint Eastwood not only stands as one of the most iconic actors who ever lived but is also a Best Picture-winning director in his own right. With classics like Unforgiven, Million Dollar Baby, and Gran Torino to his name, Eastwood has proved himself a master of many genres, as he’s equally comfortable making socially conscious dramas as he is Westerns.
With 40 feature films to his name, Eastwood has continued working well into his 90s, and his most recent movie, Juror No. 2, stood out as one of the most compelling legal dramas of 2024. Although Tarantino often speaks about filmmakers losing their spark when they get older, Eastwood has been continually at the forefront of Hollywood filmmaking since 1971.
7
Ingmar Bergman
Directed 48 Films
The Swedish screenwriter and director Ingmar Bergman was behind some of the most acclaimed films European cinema has ever seen. With classics like The Seventh Seal and Persona standing out as some of the most impressive explorations of the human psyche, faith, and sense of self ever captured on screen, there’s a haunting sense of melancholy that pervades Bergman’s work.
Through a long career that began in the early 1940s, Bergman continued making urgent and exciting work right up until his final film, Saraband, in 2003, which acted as a sequel to his acclaimed miniseries Scenes from a Marriage. Having influenced everyone from Lars von Trier to Woody Allen, Bergman was truly one of the greats.
6
Billy Wilder
Directed 27 Films
Few filmmakers captured the appeal of classic Hollywood better than Billy Wilder. With seven Academy Awards and 21 nominations, Wilder’s work includes film noir classics like Double Indemnity, legal thrillers such as Witness for the Prosecution, and the Marilyn Monroe comedy favorite Some Like It Hot.
Wilder was among the most brilliant and versatile filmmakers of his era, and it’s a testament to his enduring talent that many of his best works came later. The Best Picture winner, The Apartment, was perhaps Wilder’s greatest accomplishment, and standing as his 18th movie, it’s clear that some filmmakers can keep audiences engaged well past their tenth film.
5
John Ford
Directed 130+ Films
As the director of over 100 feature films, John Ford did not fret over the legacy of his filmography, yet he remains among the most acclaimed filmmakers ever. While many of Ford’s early silent movies are now lost, it’s clear they helped him hone his craft as he went on to make some of the most influential Westerns of all time.
Through collaborations with John Wayne on classics like Stagecoach, The Searchers, and The Quiet Man, Ford helped define the visual and thematic landscape of Westerns. With beautiful cinematography and the use of wide shots, location shooting, and an eye for detail, Ford laid the groundwork for generations of filmmakers who would emulate his style of portraying the mythic American frontier.
4
Alfred Hitchcock
Directed 53 Films
The Master of Suspense, Alfred Hitchcock, is a prime example of a filmmaker whose work continually improved throughout his career. Had Hitchcock lived by Tarantino’s philosophy of prematurely stopping at 10 films, we would have never gotten classics like Rear Window, Psycho, or Vertigo.
In fact, almost all of Hitchcock’s greatest movies came after he had already spent years making silent British thrillers, and his breakout success in Hollywood with Rebecca in 1940 was already his 26th feature film. Had Hitchcock stopped directing movies after just 10 films, modern viewers probably would not even know his name.
3
Akira Kurosawa
Directed 31 Films
The Japanese filmmaker Akira Kurosawa was one of the few international auteurs who managed to break through on a global scale and influence countless directors around the world. From the starkly original perspective changes of Rashomon to the widely mimicked gathering a team narrative of Seven Samurai, Kurosawa pioneered storytelling techniques and cinematic language that would echo through Hollywood.
Having released movies on a near-yearly basis since 1943, Kurosawa’s work slowed down as he entered his later years. However, even late-career works such as his epic King Lear-influenced historical drama Ran from 1985 stand out as some of his most accomplished releases.
2
Martin Scorsese
Directed 26 Films (So Far!)
Few directors have maintained their cultural relevance as much as Martin Scorsese, a filmmaker who has continued making truly fantastic films into his 80s. From early collaborations with Robert De Niro on releases like Mean Streets and Taxi Driver right through to his most recent movie, Killers of the Flower Moon, Scorsese has consistently evolved without losing impact.
Scorsese’s ability to adapt to different eras without losing his touch is admirable, and the sheer scope of his body of work means he’s had the freedom to try his hand at many different genres. From the sports classic Raging Bull to the all-time great gangster movie Goodfellas, every time Scorsese releases a new movie, it’s an exciting cinematic event.
1
Steven Spielberg
Directed 34 Films (So Far!)
No movie director has more name recognition than Steven Spielberg, a filmmaker who has captured viewers’ imaginations and emotions better than almost anyone else. From his breakout success with Jaws in 1975 through to kids classics like E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Spielberg walks the fine line between exciting cinematic spectacle and family-friendly entertainment.
With a career that includes one classic after another, it’s a testament to Spielberg’s constant evolution that he managed to enter a new, more mature era of his career following the release of his 17th film, Schindler’s List, in 1993. This powerful Holocaust drama not only earned Spielberg his first Best Director Academy Award but also signaled his artistic maturity.
