One of the most accomplished filmmakers working today, Ridley Scott is the director and producer of the new geopolitical thriller, “Body of Lies,” co-starring his favorite actor Russell Crowe and Leonardo DiCaprio.
Scott has been honored with three Oscar Award nominations as Best Director. He earned his latest Oscar nomination in 2002 for his work on “Black Hawk Down,” for which he also received a Directors Guild of America (DGA) Award nomination.
The year before, Scott received Oscar, Golden Globe, BAFTA Award and DGA Award nominations for Best Director for the epic “Gladiator.” The film also won the Oscar, Golden Globe and BAFTA Award for Best Picture, in addition to being named Best Picture by numerous critics groups. Scott earned his first Academy Award nomination, as well as his first DGA Award nomination, for his work on the groundbreaking 1991 drama “Thelma & Louise,” starring Susan Sarandon and Geena Davis, who were both Oscar-nominated for their performances in the film.
Earlier this year, Scott garnered another Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Director for the true-life drama “American Gangster,” starring Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe. Scott also received a BAFTA Award nomination for Best Film as a producer on the film. In addition, he recently directed and produced “A Good Year,” starring Russell Crowe and Albert Finney; the epic “Kingdom of Heaven,” with an ensemble cast led by Orlando Bloom and Jeremy Irons; and “Matchstick Men,” starring Nicolas Cage and Sam Rockwell.
Oscar Context:
In 1991, the Directing Oscar went to Jonathan Demme for the horror thriller, “The Silence of the Lambs,” which also received Best Picture, Screenplay, Actor and Actress.
In 2000, the winner of the Best Director Oscar was Steven Soderbergh for “Traffic,” who was also nominated that year for “Erin Brockovich.”
In 2001, Ron Howard won the Best Director Oscar for A Beautiful Mind,” which also won Best Picture Oscar and starred Scott's favorite actor, Russell Crowe.