American Female Directors

Bryce Dallas Howard is an American actress and filmmaker, who attained fame after starring in the psychological thriller, The Village. Some of her other notable films are Lady in the Water, As You Like, Spiderman 3, Terminator Salvation, The Twilight Saga: Eclipse, Jurassic World and Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom. She is the daughter of famous and celebrated director and producer, Ron Howard.

Regina King was first noticed when she appeared in the series 227 and then gained fame with her role in Jerry Maguire. Her performance as Sharon Rivers in If Beale Street Could Talk won her both the Academy and the Golden Globe awards for Best Supporting Actress.

An American actress, singer, songwriter, filmmaker, writer, and YouTuber, Jennette McCurdy is truly an inspiration to several young girls and women; despite suffering from conditions like obsessive-compulsive disorder, anorexia, and bulimia, McCurdy has managed to establish herself as a successful entertainer. As a writer, she has contributed immensely to publications like The Huffington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and Seventeen.

Born to actor-director John Huston and ballerina Enrica Soma, Anjelica Huston was no stranger to the world of entertainment as a child. Initially a model, she later became full-time actor and won an Academy Award for her role in Prizzi's Honor. She later became a regular in Wes Anderson’s films.

American actress, Kerry Washington, attained fame when she starred in the television series, Scandal, which ran from 2012 to 2018. She was also commended for her role in the television film, Confirmation, and for the miniseries, Little Fires Everywhere. She has also acted in films like The Last King of Scotland, Django Unchained, Our Song, The Dead Girl and American Son.

Initially a ballerina, Lea Thompson later deviated to acting, after being told she didn’t have the perfect body to pursue ballet. She then modeled for Burger King and eventually bagged a role in Jaws 3-D. She later gained fame with Caroline in the City and the Back to the Future trilogy.

Melissa Gilbert is an actress and politician. She played an important and influential role in the American film and TV industry while serving as the president of the Screen Actors Guild between 2001 and 2005. Also a writer, Melissa Gilbert has published an autobiography, cookbook, and short story for children.

The daughter of the popular filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola, Sofia Coppola followed in her father's footsteps to become a screenwriter and filmmaker. Sofia became only the second woman to win the Best Director award in the history of Cannes Film Festival when she won the award at the 2017 Festival.

Active in Hollywood for over two decades, actress Sasha Alexander began her career in theater. Soon, she moved on to TV and appeared in a few shows before gaining popularity. She has also acted in many short films and feature films and is the winner of one People's Choice Award. One interesting fact about her is that she is multilingual.

Sara Gilbert is an American actress and filmmaker. She is credited with creating the popular CBS talk show The Talk. Since she is openly lesbian, Sara Gilbert serves as an inspiration to the LGBT community; she came out in July 2010 while preparing to launch The Talk.

Lake Bell is an American actress, screenwriter, and director. Also known for her good looks and fashion sense, Bell has been featured on lists like Femme Fatales' 50 Sexiest Women, Maxim's Hot 100, and British Vogue's 10 Best Dressed Women. Apart from being an actress and model, Bell also contributes as an automotive writer and editor to The Hollywood Reporter.

Emily Mortimer is an English-American screenwriter and actress. Mortimer, who started her acting career in stage productions, went on to establish herself as a bankable actress in the British film and TV industry. In 2010, she became an American citizen and has since been playing important roles in American films.

Portuguese-American actress, Daniela Rua,h is best known for her role in the TV series, NCIS: Los Angeles. She began acting as a teenager and went on to study performing arts at the London Metropolitan University. She then trained at the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute before commencing her professional career. She works in both Portuguese and American films.

Amy Jo Johnson is an American-Canadian filmmaker, actress, singer, and songwriter. Over the years, Johnson has been honored at several important film festivals including Long Island Film Festival and Toronto International Film Festival. A multi-talented personality, Amy Jo Johnson has also directed a couple of films like Tammy's Always Dying and The Space Between.

Nora Ephron was an American writer, filmmaker, and journalist. She is known for writing films like Sleepless in Seattle and When Harry Met Sally... The Nora Ephron Prize was created by the Tribeca Film Festival in her memory. Her life and work inspired the 2016 documentary film Everything Is Copy, which was directed by her son Jacob Bernstein.

Diane Ladd is an American actress, author, and filmmaker. Over the years, Diane Ladd has contributed immensely to the success of several films and TV series. Perhaps, her greatest contribution to Hollywood is guiding and mentoring her daughter and Academy Award-winning actress Laura Dern. Both Ladd and Dern received Academy Award nominations for Best Actress for the film Rambling Rose. 

South African filmmaker, Tosca Musk, has produced and directed several TV programs, films, and web series. Beginning her career in the early 2000s, she teamed up with Jeff Macpherson to produce the web series, Tiki Bar TV. Her movie, Simple Things, received the California Independent Film Festival Slate Award. She is also the founder of the streaming service Passionflix.

Actress, director, and producer, Alison Eastwood, is the daughter of actor Clint Eastwood. Growing up in close proximity to Hollywood, she began getting acting offers at an early age. She took up a few projects as a child and decided to pursue acting professionally as a young woman. She also runs her own business and a non-profit animal welfare organization. 

Danielle Harris started off as a child actor and grew up to be a "scream queen,” appearing in cult horror films. She is best known for her roles in the Halloween franchise and the Hatchet movie series. She has also voiced Debbie Thornberry in the animated series The Wild Thornberrys.

Chandra Wilson is an American actress best known for playing Dr. Miranda Bailey in the popular medical drama TV series Grey's Anatomy, for which she has received four Primetime Emmy Award nominations. Apart from being an actress and director, Chandra Wilson is also an activist; she works towards raising awareness about cyclic vomiting syndrome.

Actress, reality show host, and director, Alison Sweeney, is best known for her role in the NBC soap opera, Days of Our Lives. She began acting as a child and made her TV debut at the age of five in an advertisement. As a young woman, she started acting in TV shows and became a popular TV actress.

Jodie Foster is considered to be one of the best actors of her time. She attained fame as a child actor in the acclaimed film Taxi Driver. Some of her memorable roles as an adult are The Accused, The Silence of the Lambs and Sommersby. She’s a director too. Foster has been in the news for her sexual orientation.

Elizabeth Banks is famous for The Hunger Games film series and Pitch Perfect film series. The 2019 action comedy film Charlie's Angels was directed, written and produced by her, in which she acted too. The Spider-Man trilogy, Seabiscuit, The 40-Year-Old Virgin, The Next Three Days and Power Rangers are some of her other notable films. 

Popular actress and filmmaker, Olivia Wilde shot to fame with the award winning medical drama, House. Since then, she has appeared in numerous movies and television productions like TRON: Legacy, Richard Jewell and Bickford Shmeckler’s Cool Ideas; made her Broadway debut with 1984 and directorial debut with Booksmart. She is also a board member of Artists for Peace and Justice.

Hailing from Mexico, Salma Hayek moved to Hollywood and attained fame with films like Desperado, From Dusk till Dawn, Wild Wild West, Dogma, Tale of Tales, Grown Ups, and Grown Ups 2. Her breakthrough role was the film Frida in 2002 for which she received critical appreciation. She works to raise awareness about violence against women and discrimination against immigrants.