From Steven Spielberg to Jane Campion, the most outstanding directors have beautiful minds that have brought some of the most iconic films to our screens. No one will forget how they felt when they first watched Jaws, and audiences soon fell in love with Spielberg’s work. These directors have created countless projects that have taken audiences’ breath away.
Unsurprisingly, many of these film directors are known for their great films; however, some have also directed episodes for television. Whether they directed a single one-off episode or directed an entire series, they brought their prowess to the small screen. Their fame may mostly come from their films, but their directed episodes are excellent, too.
10
‘The Night Manager’
“Season 1, Episode 5”, Directed by Susanne Bier
The Night Manager was a huge hit when it was released in 2016. Based on John le Carré‘s1993 book of the same name, the first season was entirely directed by Oscar-winning director Susanne Bier. The BBC One/AMC miniseries was nominated for six Emmys for its first season. The only one they won was for direction by Bier.
Bier is known for many films, but won her Academy Award for In a Better World. For Netflix, she directed the film Bird Box and the hit miniseries The Perfect Couple. She is now slated to direct Practical Magic 2. Bier has an impressive resume of films, but has been able to direct multiple projects for television, which has won her recognition in a new space.
9
‘The Twilight Zone’
“Nightmare at 20,000 Feet”, Directed by Richard Donner
Before Richard Donner became a prolific film director, he directed one of the favorite episodes of The Twilight Zone in the 1960s. “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet” is a disturbing story of a man who sees a terrifying beast on the wing of his airplane, midair. No one else sees him but this man. The flight attendants, his wife, and everyone else were not able to see him. The episode is entertaining and great fun, and eventually, Donner went on to direct the iconic horror flick The Omen in 1976.
However, this isn’t all of his famous work. He directed the original Superman, starring Christopher Reeve as the Man of Steel, as well as The Goonies and the Lethal Weapon franchise, among others. Passing away in 2021 at the age of 91, the director left a legendary filmography of great films and television episodes.
8
‘Top of the Lake’
“Season 1, Episode 6”, Directed by Jane Campion
Jane Campion co-created, co-wrote, and co-directed the Australian series Top of the Lake. The 2013 mystery drama was Campion’s first return to television since 1990. The first season starred Elizabeth Moss, and a sequel series, Top of the Lake: China Girl, was released in 2017. The first season follows the disappearance of a 12-year-old girl who is five months pregnant. Campion brings her signature psychological complexity to the mystery drama taking place in a remote town in New Zealand.
Campion is best known for her most critically acclaimed films, The Piano and The Power of the Dog. She is a glass-ceiling breaker for female directors, having broken multiple records at the Oscars. Campion is the first woman to be nominated twice in the directing category at the Academy Awards. After The Power of the Dog won for Best Directing, Campion became the oldest woman to win the award.
7
‘Sense8’
“You Want a War?”, Directed by Lana Wachowski
The Wachowskis have an impressive track record, and Sense8 is the only series the sisters have created. The Netflix series became a cult hit and ran for two seasons. After its unexpected cancellation, there was an uproar from fans, and Netflix greenlit a long series finale episode. Sense8 is a truly global and unique series, as it takes place in nine cities across the world in its first season: Berlin, Chicago, London, Mexico City, Mumbai, Nairobi, Reykjavík, San Francisco, and Seoul. Even more cities were used in the second season.
In the first season, the Wachowskis directed many of the episodes, while Lana directed a significant number of them in the second season. The sisters are most famous for writing and directing the first three Matrix films, with only Lana directing the fourth film. They also brought their impressive world-building skills to Netflix’s Sense8.
6
‘The Knick’
“Method and Madness”, Directed by Steven Soderbergh
Steven Soderbergh directed the entire 10-episode miniseries, The Knick. The Cinemax series is a period medical drama set in the 1900s New York City, specifically at Knickerbocker Hospital. It follows Dr. John Thacker (Clive Owen) as he struggles with leading his surgery staff and his addiction to cocaine and opium. We also follow Dr. Algernon Edwards (André Holland), a Harvard-educated Black doctor who must work with an all-white staff. The series garnered five nominations at the Emmys, including one for Soderbergh for this episode.
Soderbergh had a significant impact on 1990s independent cinema following the release of his Palme d’Or-winning film, Sex, Lies, and Videotape, at the age of only 26. He has directed everything from Erin Brockovich to Ocean’s Eleven to Magic Mike. It’s genuinely quite a wide range of projects that illustrate Soderbergh’s versatility.
5
‘ER’
“Motherhood”, Directed by Quentin Tarantino
Quentin Tarantino is a talented and prolific director, but he’s mostly known for his work in film. Throughout his nearly forty-year career, Tarantino has directed only four episodes of television. One of which was an episode of the most well-known medical drama, ER. It was the penultimate episode of the very first season and was viewed by more than 20 million households. On a Zoom call benefit for a nonprofit, Julianna Marguiles spoke about how Tarantino only used one cut because he wanted to force the network and producers to use only what he wanted. However, most critics pointed out that Tarantino’s distinct style wasn’t visible in the show; instead, it was much more subtle.
Tarantino is best known for iconic films, including Pulp Fiction, Kill Bill, and most recently, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. He has eight Academy Award nominations and has won two, both for Best Original Screenplay. Many of his projects are known for being gory and graphic, and have established an individual style that is a touchpoint across his films.
4
‘The Office’
“Hot Girl”, Directed by Amy Heckerling
“Hot Girl” is a Season 1 episode of the American adaptation of The Office. Written by Mindy Kaling, the episode was directed by well-known director Amy Heckerling. She only directed one episode of The Office, but surprisingly, this wasn’t her first foray into television. Best known for her films Clueless and Fast Times at Ridgemont High, among others, two of Heckerling’s films were adapted for television. The short-lived 1986 Fast Times and the 1996 series Clueless, which ran for three seasons on ABC and UPN.
While other film directors have only directed a handful of episodes, Heckerling has directed episodes of 12 different shows. Of course, she is best known for the iconic film Clueless, which remains a beloved and frequently quoted classic. In fact, in 2025, a sequel series to Clueless featuring Alicia Silverstone was announced to be in the works.
3
‘House of Cards’
“Chapter 1”, Directed by David Fincher
David Fincher is a distinctive director, having directed several critically acclaimed films and television series. He has three Oscar nominations, including one for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and another for The Social Network. He has directed other famous movies that didn’t receive nominations for his direction, like Fight Club and Gone Girl. He has also directed numerous iconic music videos, earning him two Grammy Awards.
In terms of television, he has directed three series: House of Cards, Mindhunter, and Love, Death, and Robots. He’s won three Emmys for Outstanding Short Form Animated Program for Love, Death, and Robots. He also won an Emmy for his direction of the first episode of House of Cards. Fincher is known for being a perfectionist and doing a countless number of takes until he captures “the one.”
2
‘Boardwalk Empire’
“Boardwalk Empire”, Directed by Martin Scorsese
Yes, Martin Scorsese has directed television. He’s directed episodes of four different series. Most well-known, Scorsese executive-produced HBO’s Boardwalk Empire and directed the first episode. He went on to win his first Emmy for the show. The first episode was like a film in its own right. The episode cost $18 million and spanned 73 minutes. Scorsese’s cinematic and larger-than-life direction was beautifully translated to television, serving as a strong launching point for the series.
Boardwalk Empire ran for five seasons and 56 episodes. Over the course of those four years, the crime series garnered 57 Emmy nominations and 20 wins. Based on the real-life Enoch L. Johnson, the period drama follows Enoch “Nucky” Thompson (Steve Buscemi) in Atlantic City, New Jersey, during the Prohibition era. It has now become one of the most beloved HBO shows, still ranking among the best shows of all time.
1
‘Columbo’
“Murder by the Book”, Directed by Steven Spielberg
Before Close Encounters of the Third Kind and E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Spielberg directed several episodes of television. This included an episode of one of the best cop shows, Columbo. Spielberg directed the “Murder by the Book” episode and was listed on TV Guide‘s 1997 list of the 100 Greatest Episodes of All Time at No. 16. The series ran for 10 seasons, but Spielberg’s episode is a fan favorite for many.
His suspenseful storytelling was evident as far back as 1971, when he directed the episode. Over 50 years later, Spielberg is the highest-grossing director of all time and regarded as one of the greatest. He’s directed so many iconic films that it’s hard to count them all. It’s incredible to see how much Spielberg has accomplished from the first Columbo episode to his most recent film, The Fabelmans, which was loosely based on his own childhood.