William Friedkin

29 films directed 10 Awards 3 Nominations

Biography

William David Friedkin (August 29, 1935 – August 7, 2023) was an American film, television and opera director, producer, and screenwriter who was closely identified with the "New Hollywood" movement of the 1970s. Beginning his career in documentaries in the early 1960s, he is best known for his crime thriller film The French Connection (1971), which won five Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director, and the horror film The Exorcist (1973), which earned him another Academy Award nomination for Best Director.

Friedkin's other films in the 1970s and 1980s include the drama The Boys in the Band (1970), considered a milestone of queer cinema; the originally deprecated, now lauded thriller Sorcerer (1977); the crime comedy drama The Brink's Job (1978); the controversial thriller Cruising (1980); and the neo-noir thriller To Live and Die in L.A. (1985). Although Friedkin's works suffered an overall commercial and critical decline in the late 1980s, his last three feature films, all based on plays, were positively received by critics: the psychological horror film Bug (2006), the crime film Killer Joe (2011), and the legal drama film The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial (2023), released two months after his death. He also worked extensively as an opera director from 1998 until his death, and directed various television films and series episodes for television.

Description above from the Wikipedia article William Friedkin, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Most directed genres

Recurring actors

Awards and nominations

2017 Sitges Grand Honorary Award
2014 Robert Honorary Award
2007 Time Machine Award
1981 Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Director Nominated
1981 Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Screenplay Nominated
1973 Golden Globe Award for Best Director
1972 Academy Award for Best Director
1972 Academy Award for Best Director Nominated
1971 Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Feature Film
— Leopard of Honour
— The George Pal Memorial Award
— Officer of Arts and Letters
— star on Hollywood Walk of Fame

The career in numbers

US$ 281 mi Total budget from 14 film(s) with data
US$ 695 mi Total box office from 15 film(s) with data
US$ 20 mi Average budget from 14 film(s) with data
US$ 46 mi Average box office from 15 film(s) with data
6.4 Average rating from 19 film(s) with data
2.4× Return on investment from 14 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
The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial	2023	—	—	6.7
The Devil and Father Amorth	2018	—	—	5.1
Henri Langlois vu par...	2014	—	—	5.0
Killer Joe	2012	US$ 10 mi	US$ 5 mi	6.5
Bug	2007	US$ 4 mi	US$ 8 mi	6.1
The Hunted	2003	US$ 55 mi	US$ 34 mi	6.2
Rules of Engagement	2000	US$ 60 mi	US$ 71 mi	6.2
12 Angry Men	1997	US$ 2 mi	US$ 2 mi	7.7
Jade	1995	US$ 50 mi	US$ 10 mi	5.5
Blue Chips	1994	US$ 35 mi	US$ 26 mi	6.1
Jailbreakers	1994	—	—	5.6
The Guardian	1990	—	US$ 17 mi	5.7
C.A.T. Squad: Python Wolf	1988	—	—	5.5
Rampage	1987	US$ 8 mi	US$ 796,368	5.9
C.A.T. Squad	1986	—	—	5.0
To Live and Die in L.A.	1985	US$ 6 mi	US$ 17 mi	7.1
Deal of the Century	1983	—	—	4.6
Cruising	1980	US$ 11 mi	US$ 20 mi	6.6
The Brink's Job	1978	—	—	6.2
Sorcerer	1977	US$ 22 mi	US$ 9 mi	7.5
Conversation with Fritz Lang	1975	—	—	7.1
The Exorcist	1973	US$ 11 mi	US$ 431 mi	7.7
The French Connection	1971	US$ 2 mi	US$ 41 mi	7.5
The Boys in the Band	1970	US$ 6 mi	US$ 4 mi	7.0
The Night They Raided Minsky's	1968	—	—	5.5
The Birthday Party	1968	—	—	6.5
Good Times	1967	—	—	5.0
The Thin Blue Line	1966	—	—	—
Pro Football: Mayhem on a Sunday Afternoon	1965	—	—	—

Directors