Directors who followed a parent into directing

The first time Coppola made an impact on the movie-going audience, she was struggling while being miscast in “The Godfather Part III.” For that, you can blame her father, Francis Ford Coppola. Hey, other than that bit of nepotism, the elder Coppola has done a lot of great things on the big screen. Sofia moved to directing, where he made her first big splash with “Lost in Translation.” Other films of hers include “The Bling Ring” and “Priscilla.”

In hindsight, the late Ivan Reitman’s best skill was being a Bill Murray wrangler. Murray is mercurial on a good day, but Reitman managed to direct him in “Meatballs,” “Stripes,” and “Ghostbusters.” Jason has worked more in the dramedy space than the outright comedy of his father, with movies like “Up in the Air” and “Young Adult.” Then, he directed that first “Ghostbusters” continuation film, “Afterlife,” before ceding “Frozen Empire” to…somebody.

Both Carl and Rob made big splashes in sitcoms. Carl created “The Dıck Van Dyke Show.” Rob played “Meathead” in “All in the Family.” On the big screen, Carl’s most-notable works were done alongside Steve Martin, including “The Jerk” and “All of Me” among others. Rob’s filmography is strong early on. There’s “This is Spinal Tap,” “When Harry Met Sally…,” “A Few Good Men,” and more. After 2007’s “The Bucket List,” though, Rob’s films have made effectively zero impact on the big screen.

Caitlin, who first found success as a photographer, released a self-published book of portraits, which is quite interesting coming from the daughter of David Cronenberg, the master of body horror. Like, for him, “The Fly” is a chill outing. Caitlin has gotten into directing, though, with the 2024 horror film “Humane” her first feature-length movie.

We heard on a podcast that Nancy Meyers doesn’t like the focus on the interiors in his movies so, um, we won’t mention it beyond that mention. She’s directed popular romantic comedies such as “Something’s Gotta Give” and “It’s Complicated.” Her daughter Meyers-Shyer is actually the progeny of TWO directors, as Charles Shyer directed “Baby Boom” and the 1990s “Father of the Bride,” among others. Hallie’s first film, “Home Again,” came out in 2017, and her second, “Goodrich,” is a 2024 release.

Ron and Bryce Dallas Howard have both had successful acting careers. It will be hard for Ron’s daughter to have as successful a directing career, at least commercially. While Ron is sort of the face of “unobtrusive directing,” the dude directed “Apollo 13” and those three Tom Hanks movies based on those Dan Brown books that made a ton of cash. While Bryce Dallas is yet to direct a feature-length narrative film, she’s a go-to director in the “Star Wars” television universe. Most notably, she’s directed three episodes of “The Mandalorian.”

Following in the footsteps of Hayao Miyazaki must have been daunting. Not only is the elder Miyazaki the most acclaimed animation director of all time, but if you have ever seen him interviewed or seen a documentary about him, he’s not, um, the warmest guy. And yet, Goro was not daunted! He doesn't have two, or even one, Best Animated Feature Oscar like his father, but Goro has directed three films to date, all for his father’s Studio Ghibli.

Peter and John Hyams both have what could be described as goofy, but fun filmographies. The best film, in a traditional sense, between them is Peter’s “Capricorn One,” a ‘70s conspiracy thriller about faking a mission to Mars. Mostly, the Hyams family have made something akin to elevated trash. Peter gave us “Timecop” and “End of Days.” People will tell you John’s “Universal Soldier” sequels are actually quite good, so really it’s a very specific type of person that will tell you that.

John and Nick Cassavetes have decidedly different filmographies and sensibilities. In addition to being a talented actor, John was an early indie movie darling, the director of critically acclaimed films with the general vibe of, “What if everybody was terrible and life was a bummer?” Nick directed “The Notebook” and “The Other Woman.” Watch “Husbands” and “The Notebook” back-to-back sometime.

Tom Hanks is an acting icon, and Colin has had a solid career as a character actor. Neither is a director, first and foremost, but both have gotten behind the camera. “That Thing You Do!” is certainly the jewel of Tom’s directorial career. That’s a legit good movie! Colin has directed two documentaries, one about Tower Records, and one about the band Eagles of Death Metal.

David Lynch is an acquired taste, but those who like him tend to love him. That’s true of his TV work like “Twin Peaks” and his film work like “Blue Velvet” and “Mulholland Drive.” Jennifer, his daughter, made her directorial debut with “Boxing Helena,” a film that feels akin to something David would have done. However, after a tumultuous production, the ensuing film was a failure, and even won Jennifer a Razzie. She also has a film called “Hisss” that she wrote, directed, and disowned. Jennifer has done the journeyman director thing on television, though.

Melvin Van Peebles was a key figure in the blaxploitation genre, most significantly with “Sweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song.” Mario has been a character actor in film and television, but also directed some films and some TV episodes as well. His most notable film is probably “Baadasssss! The movie is a biopic of his father Melvin, in which Mario also plays his padre.

Lawrence Kasdan wrote on “Empire Strikes Back,” “Return of the Jedi,” and “Raiders of the Lost Ark.” That’s a real career right there. On top of that, though, Lawrence directed “The Big Chill,” “The Accidental Tourist,” and more. Jake’s best film is his debut, the indie movie “Zero Effect,” but he’s directed the two “Jumanji” sequels, which is what’s made him quite successful as a blockbuster director.

Clint, in addition to being a Western icon as an actor, is about as prolific as directors get. That includes hits like “American Sniper” and Best Picture winner “Unforgiven.” Alison’s acting, and directing, career are not on the same level. She has acted, though, and also directed two feature films, “Rails & Ties” and “Battlecreek.”

That’s right, we have two Cronenberg’s on the list. Apparently David’s work, unsettling as it is, was not offputting to his children. In fact, Brandon works within the same milieu of gross, distressing horror. Brandon’s films include “Possessor” and “Infinity Pool.” An interesting family, to be sure.