Although winning the Oscars is no easy feat, several movie directors have won their first Oscars for Best Director with their feature film debut. The Academy Awards’ Best Director category honors a film director with outstanding directing for the year under review. The category was among the first categories introduced in the first-ever Academy Awards ceremony held on May 16, 1929.
Although initially split into two subcategories (Dramatic Director and Comedy Director), it was merged into one after the first ceremony. With the ever-growing number of talented directors, it’s unsurprising that several notable film directors have yet to win an Oscar in the category. However, here are 6 directors who won their first Oscars with their feature film debut.
Delbert Mann for Marty (1955)
The 1955 romantic drama Marty might have been director Delbert Mann’s feature film directorial debut, but it was far from his first as a director. Mann began his career as a theater director at a community playhouse in Columbia, South Carolina, named Town Theatre. For two years, between 1947 and 1949, Mann directed several stage plays at the theater. Before working on Marty (1955), Delbert Mann also worked extensively in television from 1949 to 1955, after he moved to New York.
Marty (1955) was adapted from the 1953 teleplay of the same name, whose screenplay (like the movie) was written by Paddy Chayefsky. Interestingly, it was also Delbert Mann who directed the 1953 teleplay. Working in familiar territory, Delbert Mann’s direction of the film adaptation was exceptional. Delbert Mann won Best Director with his 1955 feature film debut, Marty, at the 28th Academy Awards. Delbert Mann beat John Sturges (Bad Day at Black Rock), Elia Kazan (East of Eden), Joshua Logan (Picnic), and David Lean (Summertime) to clinch the win. Marty also won for Best Picture.
Jerome Robbins for West Side Story (1961)
Like Delbert Mann, director Jerome Robbins had directed the 1957 Broadway version of West Side Story. So, when executive producer Walter Mirisch wanted to make a film adaptation, he hired Jerome Robbins to helm the director’s chair, although he knew he had no film experience. To counterbalance this, Mirisch also hired Robert Wise (with a wealth of film-directing experience) as co-director.
Robbins and Wise later disagreed over Robbins increasing the budget and shooting schedules, causing Wise to fire Robbins. However, because of Robbins’ contributions to the film (even after he was fired), Robbins was still credited as co-director. When West Side Story (1961) was nominated for Best Director, Jerome Robbins and Robert Wise were both nominated as co-directors. With their win, Jerome Robbins joined the list of directors who won their first Best Director Oscars with their feature film debut. West Side Story also won for Best Picture.
Robert Redford for Ordinary People (1980)
With his feature film debut, Robert Redford became the first established actor to win an Oscar as a director. Redford began his on-screen acting career in 1960 and even received an Oscar nomination for Best Actor for his performance in The Sting (1973). Redford directed Ordinary People (1980) to commercial success, grossing a whopping $90 million at the Box Office on a $6.2 million production budget.
Screenwriter Alvin Sargent adapted Ordinary People’s screenplay from Judith Guest’s first novel of the same name, published in 1976. Robert Redford won his first Oscar in the Best Director category with his feature film debut at the 53rd Academy Awards in 1981. Redford’s win was iconic, as he was up against some of Hollywood’s top directors. Robert Redford beat David Lynch (The Elephant Man), Martin Scorsese (Raging Bull), Richard Rush (The Stunt Man), and Roman Polanski (Tess) for the win. Ordinary People also won for Best Picture.
James L. Brooks for Terms of Endearment (1983)
Filmmaker James L. Brooks wrote, produced, and directed the family comedy-drama Terms of Endearment (1983). Brooks adapted his screenplay from Larry McMurtry’s 1975 novel. Before working on Terms of Endearment, Brooks had written and co-produced the 1979 comedy Starting Over. For a feature film debut, Terms of Endearment was a huge financial success. James L. Brooks produced the movie with an $8 million budget. Terms of Endearment hauled in $165 million at the Box Office. For his directing, James L. Brooks joined the list of directors who have won Oscars with their feature film debut. James L. Brooks won all three nominations at the 56th Academy Awards. Brooks had been nominated for Best Director, Best Picture, and Best Adapted Screenplay.
Kevin Costner for Dances with Wolves (1990)
Kevin Costner is a recognizable name and face for today’s film and television audiences. As an already-established actor, Costner became the second actor-director to win Best Director with a feature film debut. Dances with Wolves was adapted from Michael Blake’s 1988 novel. Kevin Costner reportedly purchased the rights to the book and story with the intention of directing it. When Costner was ready to sit in the director’s chair and make his directorial debut, he had Michael Blake work on the screenplay.
Dances with Wolves may have cost $22 million to produce, but it raked in earnings of $424.2 million at the Box Office. Surprisingly, Kevin Costner had not received any Oscar nomination in any category before Dances with Wolves. With Costner also playing the lead role of Lt. John J. Dunbar/Dances with Wolves, Kevin Costner was nominated for Best Director, Best Picture (he co-produced the movie), and Best Actor. Winning two of three, Kevin Costner won Best Director and Best Picture for Dances with Wolves at the 63rd Academy Awards.
Sam Mendes for American Beauty (1999)
British director Sam Mendes is more popularly known in the last decade for directing two successful James Bond films – Skyfall (2012) and Spectre (2015). However, he made a glorious entry into directing with his directorial debut. Fresh out of theater, Sam Mendes decided to take on American Beauty (1999) as his first work in film. However, the studio initially offered it to directors Mike Nichols and Robert Zemeckis, who turned down the offer.
With only a $15 million production budget, Sam Mendes’ American Beauty grossed $356.3 million at the Box Office. Luckily for the director, his directing got a nod from the Academy, putting him in a category with top directors like Michael Mann (The Insider), Spike Jonze (Being John Malkovich), M. Night Shyamalan (The Sixth Sense), and Lasse Hallström (The Cider House Rules). Unarguably the underdog in the category, Sam Mendes won Best Director at the 72nd Academy Awards. If you enjoyed reading about the 6 Directors who won their Best Director Oscars with their feature debuts, here are actors who won multiple Oscars under the same director.