The Academy nominates various famous directors for Best Director, but only one of them wins the award. Winners by category are listed in descending order.
- 2022: Jane Campion, The Power of the Dog
- 2021: Chloe Zhao, Nomads
- 2020: Bong Joon Ho, Parasite
- 2019: Alfonso Cuaron, Rome
- 2018: Guillermo del Toro, The Shape of Water
- 2017: Damien Chazelle, La La Land
- 2016: Alexander González Iñárritu, Resurrection
- 2015: Alexander González Iñárritu, The Birdman, or The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance
- 2014: Alfonso Cuaron, Gravity
- 2013: Ang Lee, Life of Pi
- 2012: Michel Hazanavicius, Artist
- 2011: Tom Hooper, The King’s Speech
- 2010: Kathryn Bigelow, Wounded Closet
- 2009: Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire
- 2008: Joel and Ethan Cohen, No Country for Old Men
- 2007: Martin Scorsese, The Departed
- 2006: Lee, Brokeback Mountain
- 2005: Clint Eastwood, Million Dollar Baby
- 2004: Peter Jackson, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
- 2003: Roman Polanski, Pianist
- 2002: Ron Howard, A Beautiful Mind
- 2001: Steven Soderbergh, Traffic
- 2000: Sam Mendes, American Beauty
- 1999: Steven Spielberg, Saving Private Ryan
- 1998: James Cameron, Titanic
- 1997: Anthony Minghella, English patient
- 1996: Mel Gibson, Braveheart
- 1995: Robert Zemeckis, Forrest Gump
- 1994: Steven Spielberg, Schindler’s List
- 1993: Clint Eastwood, Unforgiven
- 1992: Jonathan Demme, The Silence of the Lambs
- 1991: Kevin Costner, Dances with Wolves
- 1990: Oliver Stone, born on the Fourth of July
- 1989: Barry Levinson, Rain Man
- 1988: Bernardo Bertolucci, The Last Emperor
- 1987: Oliver Stone, Platoon
- 1986: Sydney Pollack, Out of Africa
- 1985: Miloš Forman, Amadeus
- 1984: James L. Brooks, Terms of Endearment
- 1983: Richard Attenborough, Gandhi
- 1982: Warren Beatty, Reds
- 1981: Robert Redford, Ordinary People
- 1980: Robert Brenton, Kramer v. Kramer
- 1979: Michael Cimino, Deer Hunter
- 1978: Woody Allen, Annie Hall
- 1977: John J. Avildsen, Rocky
- 1976: Miloš Forman, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
- 1975: Francis Ford Coppola, The Godfather Part II
- 1974: George Roy Hill, Sting
- 1973: Bob Fosse, Cabaret
- 1972: William Friedkin, The French Connection
- 1971: Franklin J. Schaffner, Patton
- 1970: John Schlesinger, Midnight Cowboy
- 1969: Carol Reed, Oliver!
- 1968: Mike Nichols, Graduate
- 1967: Fred Zinneman, All Seasons Man
- 1966: Robert Wise, The Sound of Music
- 1965: George Cukor, My Fair Lady
- 1964: Tony Richardson, Tom Jones
- 1963: David Lean, Lawrence of Arabia
- 1962: Jerome Robbins and Robert Wise, West Side Story
- 1961: Billy Wilder, The Apartment
- 1960: William Wyler, Ben-Hur
- 1959: Vincent Minnelli, Gigi
- 1958: David Lean, The Bridge on the River Kwai
- 1957: George Stevens, The Giant
- 1956: Delbert Mann, Marty
- 1955: Elia Kazan, On the Waterfront
- 1954: Fred Zinnemann, From Here to Forever
- 1953: John Ford, The Quiet Man
- 1952: George Stevens, A Place in the Sun
- 1951: Joseph L. Mankiewicz, All About Eve
- 1950: Joseph L. Mankiewicz, letter to three women
- 1949: John Huston, Treasure of the Sierra Madre
- 1948: Elia Kazan, A Gentleman’s Agreement
- 1947: William Wyler, The Best Years of Our Lives
- 1946: Billy Wilder, The Lost Weekend
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- 1944: Michael Curtis, Casablanca
- 1943: William Wyler, Mrs. Miniver
- 1942: John Ford, How Green Was My Valley
- 1941: John Ford, The Grapes of Wrath
- 1940: Victor Fleming, Gone with the Wind
- 1939: Frank Capra, You Can’t Take It With You
- 1938: Leo McCarey, The Awful Truth
- 1937: Frank Capra, Mr. Dead goes to town
- 1936: John Ford, whistleblower
- 1935: Frank Capra, It Happened One Night
- 1934: Frank Lloyd, Cavalcade
- 1933: Frank Borzage, Bad Girl
- 1932: Norman Taurog, Skippy
- 1931: Lewis Milstone, Quiet on the Western Front
- 1930: Frank, Lloyd, Lady of God
- 1929: Lewis Milstone, Two Arabian Knights and Frank Borzage, 7th Heaven
