25 Best Film Directors of the 21st Century (So Far)
Which directors have received the best reviews from professional critics since 2000? Find out below, where we rank this century's top filmmakers by their average Metascores.
To be included, a director must have four or more eligible films. Such films have seven or more reviews from professional critics and were first released (in any country) on or after January 1, 2000, and must have been released (including as a straight-to-Netflix streaming release) at some point in the USA. Multi-director anthology films are excluded, as are theatrical re-releases of older films. Averages were calculated using Metascores from July 12, 2017, and include films released through July 7, 2017.
#25 (tie)
Jeff Nichols
The 38-year-old American director has only been active in film for a decade, but he has quickly made a mark on indie cinema with a string of critical hits that, more often than not, star Michael Shannon. Several of his films flirt with (or openly embrace) science fiction, and that appears to be where he is headed in the future as well as he moves into bigger-budget fare: Nichols has signed on to direct a remake of the 1988 film Alien Nation.
| Films directed, 2000-2017 | ||
|---|---|---|
| ▣ | Take Shelter | 2011 |
| ▣ | Loving | 2016 |
| ▣ | Shotgun Stories | 2007 |
| ▣ | Mud | 2012 |
| ▣ | Midnight Special | 2016 |