We all have our fave movie stars and directors that we’ll turn up for no matter what.It’s always a treat when these actors and directors form bonds throughout their careers and frequently collaborate together.
Call me a film nerd, but it makes the projects feel more intimate. It’s like a band putting out a new album with fresh influences and pushing each other to try new and different things.
Thankfully, there are countless actor-director combos throughout cinema history who were able to truly push each other to make some of the best films.
Here are the ultimate actor-director combos that you know always make a killer film.
Ryan Coogler & Michael B. Jordan
Despite what some might think, Ryan Coogler and Michael B. Jordan have been ride or die from the earliest years of their career. Before the pair would go on to make the big hits we know them for, like Creed or Black Panther, the duo’s bromance actually started in smaller indie films.
Coogler cast Jordan in his debut film, Fruitvale Station, in 2013. It was also the first film Jordan had ever been the lead actor of. The film follows the true story of Oscar Grant on his last day alive before being killed by a police officer. Despite a mere $800,000 (USD) budget, the film went on to gross $17 million and earned Coogler a Best First Film award at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival. Not a bad start to a career, hey?
Now, the pair have reunited to create Sinners, which is shaping up to be a terrifying thriller.
The film is about two twin brothers (played by Michael B. Jordan) who try to leave their troubled lives behind by returning to their hometown. Quickly, the pair realise that an even greater evil is waiting for them. The exciting thriller will also star Hailee Steinfeld, Li Jun Li, Omar Benson Miller, and more.
Coogler has said Sinners is his most personal film yet. Inspired by a trip to America’s South, Coogler started digging into his ancestral history in the United States. This started a thread that led him to explore the blues music important to his uncle and its history. As a voice warns in the trailer, “The gift of music can conjure spirits from the past and the future. This gift can bring fame and fortune, but it can also pierce the veil between life and death.”
“Working with [Michael B. Jordan] again is always a joy,” Coogler told XONicole. “We can get to the emotional truth of a scene quickly because we understand each other so well. That’s what makes their collaborations so special.”
It should come as no surprise that Coogler would cast Jordan as the lead yet again in such a personal film about race and generational trauma.
You can catch the film in cinemas from April 17.
Martin Scorsese & Robert De Niro
Ask any Letterboxd user who their Mount Rushmore of filmmakers is, and the odds are that Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro are there.
It’s easy to see why. The duo have gone on to make some of the most iconic films ever made including Taxi Driver, Raging Bull and most recently, Killers of the Flower Moon. So you already know that whenever these two collab together, it’s (need I say) absolute cinema.
Both De Niro and Scorsese’s films laid the blueprint for some of the most iconic gangster stories of all time, influencing later hits like The Sopranos, Joker, and Breaking Bad.
Even better, the pair have been collabbing throughout their careers, which is incredibly wholesome. Who doesn’t love the idea of lifelong friends working together to make some of the most gripping and uncomfortable character studies in film? Not me, that’s who.
Greta Gerwig & Saoirse Ronan
No pair has nailed indie teenage angst like Greta Gerwig and Saoirse Ronan.
Gerwig made her directorial debut with Lady Bird in 2017 and cast a young Ronan for the lead. If you haven’t seen the film (what’s wrong with you?) follows a young Christine (who calls herself Lady Bird) in her final year of high school. Along the way, she falls in love, discovers a passion for theatre, and butts heads with her mother over the direction of her life.
I might be making a bold claim here, but it’s fair to say Lady Bird is probably one of the best coming-of-age stories ever made. Both Gerwig and Ronan knew how to toe the line between humour, teenage cringe and sentimentality, making it a bittersweet watch.
Gerwig would then make Little Women with Saoirse as the lead again. Both films would net Ronan Best Actress and Gerwig Best Screenplay nominations. So, hopefully, they’ll be back to collabbing together sooner rather than later. Manifesting.
Quentin Tarantino & Samuel L. Jackson
No pair proves opposites attract like Quentin Tarantino and Samuel L Jackson. Tarantino, a neurotic dweeby nerd (I say respectfully) and Jackson, who oozes charisma and coolness. Despite their very different personalities, the pair absolutely ride or die for each other.
The pair first collaborated with Tarantino’s film Pulp Fiction, which starred Jackson as the endlessly quotable Jules Winnfield. The film was such a resounding success that it took no time to launch Tarantino and Jackson’s careers into cinema royalty.
Since then, Jackson has appeared in six of Tarantino’s films, ranging from iconic side characters like in Django Unchained to the stone-cold lead in The Hateful Eight.
As any Tarantino fan would know, the man is obsessed with every detail of his films and legacy. So, it speaks volumes that Jackson keeps ending up being the one person he chooses to collaborate with. I would also like to cast Samuel L. Jackson in every movie I make. Keep living my dream for me, Tarantino.
Sofia Coppola & Kirsten Dunst
The best collaborations are ones that empower both creators — and that’s particularly true of iconic duo Sofia Coppola and Kirsten Dunst.
Coppola cast Dunst in her 1999 directorial debut, The Virgin Suicides, kicking off a creative partnership that continues to this day. It was Dunst’s opportunity to shed her child star status, and Coppola’s big break to define her style as a director beyond her father’s shadow.
The film — a dark coming of age tale that follows five sisters in 1970s Detroit, and adapted from Jeffrey Eugenides’ book of the same name — received largely positive reviews, but really found success as a cult classic. Coppola’s take on teenage angst and instantly recognisable visual style was a hit, and is still referenced in fashion today.
“I felt really protected,” Dunst told W Magazine in 2024 about working with Coppola on The Virgin Suicides. “She made me feel like I was cool, like my teeth were cool, and I was pretty. At 16, I did not think anything of myself. And it’s nice to have had another woman celebrate that transition, rather than it having been sexualized through a man’s perspective.”
Coppola’s career as a director only grew from there, becoming the third ever woman to be nominated for the Oscar for Best Director (for 2003’s Lost In Translation), and making a name for her works exploring subversive portrayals of the female experience. She would later cast Dunst in Marie Antoinette (2006) and The Beguiled (2017) — and we hope there’s many more to come.
David Lynch & Kyle MacLachlan
With David Lynch‘s unfortunate passing earlier this year, many (including myself) have revisited his filmography. It’s easy to say that Lynch’s projects are like no other. While he has many imitators who attempt his style, no one can quite capture the same vibe Lynch went for.
With that in mind, choosing the right actors to nail these unique performances is one of the most important factors in a successful Lynch film.
That’s why Kyle MacLachlan’s appearance in so many of his projects is a staple of the pair’s ability to match each other’s freak.
From their truly chaotic Dune adaptation in 1984, the pair would go on to collaborate on five projects, including the iconic Blue Velvet. However, it’s the 1990 cult classic Twin Peaks that the pair are most known for, which I’d argue is one of the best TV shows of all time.
McLachlan plays the lead, Agent Dale Cooper, an out-of-town FBI agent investigating the death of teenager Amanda Palmer. Quickly, Cooper meets all of the eccentric personalities in town and realises something is very off. It’s one of the most surreal TV shows ever, but it’s an absolute must-watch for anyone interested in true crime.
And there you have it, folks. If there’s anything about a solid actor-director combo, it’s that the pair start from a spot of vulnerability and manage to make something truly powerful. Whether it’s a directorial debut with a bold message or creating something new and transgressive, both collaborators managing to trust each other and stay friends is high-key inspiring. My University group projects could never.
Anyways, if you haven’t seen any of these director’s films, you have zero excuses now! I will be checking your Letterboxd reviews later. I expect zero funny one-liners.
