Greta Gerwig

5 films directed 6 Awards 3 Nominations

Biography

Greta Gerwig is an American actress, playwright, screenwriter, and director based in NY. She has collaborated with Noah Baumbach on several films, including Greenberg (2010), Frances Ha (2012), for which she earned a Golden Globe nomination, and Mistress America (2015). Gerwig made her solo directorial debut with the critically acclaimed comedy-drama film Lady Bird (2017), which she also wrote, and has also had starring roles in the films Damsels in Distress (2011), Jackie (2016), and 20th Century Women (2016).

Greta Celeste Gerwig was born in Sacramento, California, to Christine Gerwig (née Sauer), a nurse, and Gordon Gerwig, a financial consultant and computer programmer. She has German, Irish, and English ancestry. Gerwig was raised as a Unitarian Universalist, but also attended an all-girls Catholic school. She has described herself as "an intense child". With an early interest in dance, she intended to get a degree in musical theatre in New York. She graduated from Barnard College in NY, where she studied English and philosophy, instead.

Originally intending to become a playwright, after meeting young film director Joe Swanberg, she became the star of a series of intellectual low budget movies made by first-time filmmakers, a trend dubbed "mumblecore". Gerwig was cast in a minor role in Swanberg's LOL (2006) in 2006, while still studying at Barnard. She then appeared in many of Swanberg's films, and personally co-directed, co-wrote and co-produced one entitled Nights and Weekends (2008). She has worked with good quality directors such as Ti West (The House of the Devil (2009)), Whit Stillman (Damsels in Distress (2011)), or Woody Allen (To Rome with Love (2012)) but success and (international) recognition did not come until Frances Ha (2012), directed by Noah Baumbach, a film she also co-wrote. Both tall and immature, awkward and graceful, blundering and candid, annoying and engaging, Greta has won all hearts in the title role of Frances Ha(liday).

Most directed genres

Recurring actors

Awards and nominations

2024 Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Original and Adapted Screenplay
2024 Women of the Year
2020 Academy Award for Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay Nominated
2018 Time 100
2018 Independent Spirit Award for Best Screenplay
2018 Academy Award for Best Director Nominated
2018 Academy Award for Best Writing, Original Screenplay Nominated
2017 National Board of Review Award for Best Director
— Bradbury Award

The career in numbers

US$ 475 mi Total budget from 4 film(s) with data
US$ 1.9 bi Total box office from 3 film(s) with data
US$ 119 mi Average budget from 4 film(s) with data
US$ 619 mi Average box office from 3 film(s) with data
6.9 Average rating from 4 film(s) with data
9.5× Return on investment from 3 film(s) with data

Budget and box office do not exist for every film in our records. Averages are computed over the films that carry the figure, and the count beside each one says how many.

Films directed

Film	Year	Budget	Box office	Rating
Narnia: The Magician's Nephew	2027	US$ 280 mi	—	—
Barbie	2023	US$ 145 mi	US$ 1.4 bi	6.9
Little Women	2019	US$ 40 mi	US$ 332 mi	7.8
Lady Bird	2017	US$ 10 mi	US$ 79 mi	7.2
Nights and Weekends	2008	—	—	5.6

Directors