Directors Who Act

[Kitty Whiskers]

After seeing Roman Polanski turn up in The Magic Christian (being chatted up by Yul Brynner in drag ), I wondered why he didn't/doesn't act more. Not so much from that film, I'm thinking more of A Pure Formality and The Tennent where he was rather good, I thought.



This led me to mulling over other directors who act (as opposed to actors who direct). Can anyone think of any one else? I can only come up with M. Night Shyamalan off the top of my head, but there must be others.

[zettel45]

John Huston in Chinatown, of course - which also has an excellent cameo from Polanski himself.



Polanski's also good in Dance of the Vampires. Less good in Pirates!



Scorcese's also done a few parts, most memorably (for me) as the murderously jealous husband in Taxi Driver.



Oh, and Tarantino, of course.

[dremble wedge]

Ken Russell in The Russia House and a TV Marple.



David Cronenberg in Nightbreed



Roger Corman in The Silence of the Lambs



Nicholas Ray in The American Friend



John Landis often used directors in cameos in his films (I believe Michael Winner will appear in his Burke and Hare due out later this year).

[Steve Crook]

Hitchcock was famous for his cameo appearances in his films.



Michael Powell did a few appearances in his own films. Usually when they were just short of a body for a minor role. Powell learned his acting skills by appearing in some of the silent films he worked on as he was learning all about films. He did just about every job possible, including acting



Steve

[zettel45]

name='dremble wedge' timestamp='1280414068' post='457674']

Ken Russell in The Russia House and a TV Marple.

Oh, and let's not forget Ken's performance in the TV version of Lady Chatterley. He appears on screen, he says things, but you'd be hard pressed to call it "acting". Michael Winner's performance in those Esure ads looks like John Mills by comparison!

[zettel45]

Francis Ford Coppola also gives himself a bit-part in Apocalypse Now as the news cameraman shouting "don't look at the camera - just go by like you're fighting!".

[zettel45]

Sam Pekinpah has a "blink and you'll miss him" role in the original version of Invasion of the Body Snatchers.

[eddie badger]

Peckinpah also has a small part in Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid. Don Siegal appears in Play Misty for Me as the barman friend of Clint Eastwood and also as a taxi driver in the remake of Invasion of the Body Snatchers.

[will.15]

I started a thread like that a long time agp.



http://www.britmovie.co.uk/forums/to...act-or-try-to/

[Robin Davies]

David Lynch in Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me.

[Maurice]

Ingmar Bergman had a few fleeting appearances: man in audience or on stairs etc.

[TomDaws]

Lindsay Anderson played a university don in Chariots Of Fire.

[narabdela]

Peter Bogdanovich has a long list of acting credits.

[CaptainWaggett]

Sydney Pollack and Mel Brooks have both done as much acting as directing as did Orson Welles.

[charliekane]

Both Cecil B De Mille and Erich von Stroheim in Sunset Boulevard.

Vittorio de Sica in lots of things.

[charliekane]

John Schlesinger had bit parts in both Oh.. Rosalinda !! and The Battle of the River Plate.

Bryan Forbes was in The Small Back Room and plenty more since.

[ShirlGirl]

Noah Baumbach has appeared in three movies which he also directed: "Kicking and Screaming", "Highball" and "Mr. Jealousy", and in "The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou", which he co-wrote with the director Wes Anderson.

[Gerald Lovell]

Lewis Gilbert started out as an actor.



Otto Preminger continued with both careers as a director and an actor throughout his career. Some say the acting performances when he was the director were his best!

[Zlatna]

Emir Kusturica - twice the winner of the Palme d'or at Cannes for his directing (1985 - When Father Was Away on Business, 1995 - Underground.)



Currently getting good reviews for his role of Sergei Gregoriev in "Farewell" and I thought he was excellent in "The Widow of St. Pierre".



IMDb - Kusturica



Also a member of "The No Smoking Orchestra"

[Nick Dando]

Spike Lee has done a lot of acting, and so has Maurizio Nichetti.



Nick