Sam Mendes

Sam Mendes was a star director or the British stage when he won an Oscar for directing his first film, 1999's American Beauty. The film won four other Oscars, including for best picture and best actor (Kevin Spacey). Prior to being a filmmaker, Mendes spent more than a decade as director and artistic director of the Donmar Warehouse and had a run of successes with the Royal Shakespeare Company. As a filmmaker, he made critically-acclaimed relationship dramas like Away We Go (2008) and Revolutionary Road (2008) before making the James Bond box office hits Skyfall (2012) and Spectre (2015, both starring Daniel Craig). His other films include Jarhead (2005, starring Jake Gyllenhaal) and the World War I drama 1917 (2019).