Why Directors Work With The Same Actor Multiple Times
People may wonder why directors work with the same actor or and over again. There are a list of reasons including: a great working relationship, romance, hitting box office goal with each film, the comfort of working with someone you know and trust, things go smoother during production, there is a creative partnership, and so on. It is a fact that many directors do have their favorite actor(s) they love working with. Here are some directors who have worked repeatedly with the same actor.
(Actor Samuel L. Jackson and Director Quentin Tarantino)
Quentin Tarantino’s working relationship and friendship with Samuel L. Jackson spans 20 years and six films, with more to come.
- Pulp Fiction (1994)
- Jackie Brown (1997)
- Kill Bill: Volume 2 (2004)
- Inglourious Basterds (2009)
- Django Unchained (2012)
- The Hateful Eight (2015)
Tim Burton and Actors Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter

(Actor Johnny Depp and Director Tim Burton)
Tim Burton and his source of artistic inspiration comes in the form of actor Johnny Deep. It’s easy to see why they hit it off considering they both have quirky, eccentric sides to him. Burton is known for directing dark, peculiar, freakish movies, think “Edward Scissorhands.”
Burton and Depp met in a coffee shop in 1989 and through conversation, they hit it off, and a connection was made for many years, and movies, to come.
Burton and Depp best known for:
- Edward Scissorhands (1990)
- Ed Wood (1994)
- Sleepy Hollow (1999)
- Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005)
- Corpse Bride (2005)
- Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007)
- Alice in Wonderland (2010)
- Dark Shadows (2012)

(Director Tim Burton and Actor Helena Bonham Carter)
Hollywood is a tough town when it comes to making a marriage work. It is even tougher when a husband and wife work together as did Burton and Bonham Carter. Married for thirteen years, with two children, and over six films they did together, the couple divorced in 2014.
- Planet of the Apes (2001)
- Big Fish (2003)
- Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005)
- Corpse Bride (2005)
- Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007)
- Alice in Wonderland (2010)
- Dark Shadows (2012)
Martin Scorsese and Actors Robert De Niro and Leonardo DiCaprio
It was writer/director Brian De Palma who introduced director Martin Scorsese to actor Robert De Niro during the ‘70’s. The two hit it off and Scorsese and De Niro have made eight films together so far.
Paying it forward, it was De Niro who introduced Scorsese to DiCaprio, and the two of them are building a similar working relationship like the one Scorsese has with De Niro.
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(Actor Robert DeNiro and Director Martin Scorsese)
- Mean Streets (1973)
- Taxi Driver (1976)
- New York, New York (1977)
- Raging Bull (1980)
- The King of Comedy (1983)
- Goodfellas (1990)
- Cape Fear (1991)
- Casino (1995)
- The Audition (2015 Short Film)

(Director Martin Scorsese and Actor Leonardo DiCaprio)
Leonardo DiCaprio
- Gangs of New York (2002)
- The Aviator (2004)
- The Departed (2006)
- Shutter Island (2010)
- The Wolf of Wall Street (2013)
- The Audition (2015 Short Film)
Wes Anderson and Actors Bill Murray and Owen Wilson

(Actor Bill Murray and Director Wes Anderson)
Owen Wilson has appeared in six of Anderson's movies and Bill Murray has appeared in eight them.

(Actor Owen Wilson and Director Wes Anderson)
Bill Murray
- Rushmore (1998)
- The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)
- The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004)
- The Darjeeling Limited (2007)
- Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)
- Moonrise Kingdom (2012)
- The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)
- Isle of Dogs (2017)
- Bottle Rocket (1996)
- The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)
- The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004)
- The Darjeeling Limited (2007)
- Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)
- The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)

(Antoine Fuqua and Denzel Washington)
After Denzel Washington won a Best Actor Oscar for his first collaboration with Antoine Fuqua on the gritty crime drama “Training Day,” they loved working together so much they paired up again on other films.
- Training Day (2001)
- The Equalizer (2014)
- The Magnificent Seven (2016)
Currently, Fuqua and Washington are working on a sequel for “The Equalizer.”

(Director Peter Jackson and Actor Andy Serkis)
Andy Serkis is best known for motion performance capture work he does to create characters like Gollum in “The Lord of the Rings” movies, which have been directed by Peter Jackson. He also worked as the motion-capture ape in King Kong in 2015. Also, directed by Jackson.



- The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
- The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
- The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
- King Kong (2005)
- The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)

(Director Malcolm D. Lee and Actor Regina Hall)
- The Best Man (1999)
- The Best Man Holiday (2013)
- Barbershop: The Next Cut (2016)
- Girl Trip (2017)

(Director Sam Raimi and Actor Bruce Campbell)
The Kings of Horror, Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell, have known each other since they were in high school. Raimi used to sit behind Campbell in class and press a pencil into his back while Campbell tried to answer the teacher’s questions. Despite their dysfunctional relationship, the two collaborated on their first movie, “It’s Murder!” in 1977 and have continued to work together over many years.
- It's Murder! (1977)
- Within the Woods (1978)
- The Evil Dead (1981)
- Crimewave (1985)
- Evil Dead II (1987)
- Darkman (1990)
- Army of Darkness (1993)
- The Quick and the Dead (1995)
- Spider-Man (2002)
- Spider-Man 2 (2004)
- Spider-Man 3 (2007)
- Oz: The Great and Powerful (2013)
Robert Rodriguez and Actors Danny Trejo and Antonio Banderas

(Director Robert Rodriguez and Actor Danny Trejo)
Danny Trejo usually plays the badass in movies, but in real life, he’s a softie. He and Rodriguez have been friends for over 20 years. They have watched each other’s kids grow up. Trejo was first cast as the silent assassin in Rodriguez’s movie “Desperado.”
Danny Trejo
- Desperado (1995)
- From Dusk till Dawn (1996)
- Spy Kids (2001)
- Spy Kids 2: The Island of Lost Dreams (2002)
- Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over (2003)
- Once Upon a Time in Mexico (2003)
- Grindhouse (2007) (Machete Fake Trailer)
- Machete (2010)
- Spy Kids: All the Time in the World (2011)
- Machete Kills (2013)

(Actor Antonio Banderas and Director Robert Rodriguez)
After the huge success of Rodriguez’s first movie, El Mariachi, which he made for $7,000, Sony Pictures got involved and wanted to produce Rodriguez’s next movie, entitled "Desperado." Banderas was cast as the lead.
At this time Rodriguez was trying to figure out his way in the Hollywood system and Banderas, who came to America from Spain speaking very little English, understood what Rodriquez was going through as a fish out of water. So they decided to work together in a form of solidarity and their friendship grew from there.
Antonio Banderas
- Desperado (1995)
- Four Rooms (1995 Segment: The Misbehavers)
- Spy Kids (2001)
- Spy Kids 2: The Island of Lost Dreams (2002)
- Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over (2003)
- Once Upon a Time in Mexico (2003)
- Machete Kills (2013)

(Actor Matt Damon and Director Steven Soderbergh)
- Ocean's Eleven (2001)
- Ocean's Twelve (2004)
- Ocean's Thirteen (2007)
- Che Part 2: Guerrilla (2008)
- The Informant! (2009)
- Contagion (2011)
- Behind the Candelabra (2013)

(Actor Tom Hanks and Director Steven Spielberg)
Unlike some directors who have that director-actor collaboration, the Hanks-Spielberg relationship goes deeper. Spielberg produced two early Hanks films: “The Money Pit” and “Joe Versus the Volcano.” And Hanks and Spielberg co-produced the critically acclaimed series “Band of Brothers” and “The Pacific.” In Hollywood, it has been noted that Hanks, who also directs movies, and Spielberg, have been called “the all-time greatest producers” in Hollywood.
- Saving Private Ryan (1998)
- Catch Me If You Can (2002)
- The Terminal (2004)
- Bridge of Spies (2015)
- The Papers (2017)

(Director Jillian Bullock and Actor John Quinlan)
As an up-and-coming award-winning director, Jillian Bullock plans to follow in the footsteps of the directors listed above. She has already forged a tight relationship with actor John Quinlan while they worked on the set of “A Sense of Purpose: Fighting For Our Lives” for the past two years.
Cast as the leading male actor, Quinlan portrays Army Captain Jake Nixon, a serial rapist, who struggles with PTSD. Jillian, not only directs John, but they are also husband and wife in the movie. Jillian and John, who have known each other for five years, have a close friendship and solid working relationship that helps make things run smooth.

(Actor John Quinlan and Director Jillian Bullock portray husband and wife in the movie)
In the works for Bullock and Quinlan after “A Sense of Purpose: Fighting For Our Lives” are two projects:
1) Fighting Spirit Warriors: Fitness For Self-Defense


(John Quinlan and Jillian Bullock on the book cover)
Bullock’s first novel, “Shadows of Love, Betrayal and Murder,” will be published in October 2017. Eventually, the book will be turned into a movie. Guess who will be cast in the movie? For more information – www.jbullockenterprises.com
#ASOPmovie #JillianBullock #JohnQuinlan #TamaraWoods #LamontFountain #independentfilmmakers #filmmakers #WomenInFilm #FilmFestivals #FemaleDirectors #Netflix #Hulu #Amazon #FollowFriday
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