The 100 Most Influential People In Movies

JJ Abrams

Über-geek writer/producer/director, surging forward with immaculately re-tooled Star Trek.

Paul Thomas Anderson

New Hollywood’s flame-bearer, his generation’s best filmmaker after Magnolia and There Will Be Blood.

Jennifer Aniston and Kristin Hahn

Echo Films pairing, with “first look” at Universal Pictures, pursuing “relatable” fare.

Judd Apatow

King of sweetly saucy bromantic comedy, maturing wine-like with Funny People.

Avi Arad

Marvel’s main motivator was formerly CEO and chairman of the comic hothouse, later chairman, founder and CEO at Marvel Studios. He now rules Avi Arad Productions, producing Marvel properties and more.

Hits have included Spider-Man, X-Men, Hulk and Iron Man while his upcoming production empire boasts sequels/spin-offs Thor, Captain America, and teen-novel adaptations Fablehaven and Maximum Ride.

Darren Aronofsky

Maverick auteur, currently seducing stars for Black Swan after his actor-friendly The Wrestler.

Christian Bale

Saturnine, method-honed, shape-shifting A-lister, looks good in rubber, rugged physicality. Dodgy throat.

Drew Barrymore and Nancy Juvonen

Star and producer turned Flower Films industry players, slate ranging from Donnie Darko to Whip It.

Michael Bay

Overlord of box-office-smashing bombast, unleashing FX armageddon every other summer.

Mattias Bergström, Martin Alen and Magnus Dahlman

Net-sharp and marketing-savvy triumvirate behind Voddler, which is supposedly ‘Spotify for movies’.

Next: Bigelow, Boyle, Bruckheimer [page-break]

Jeff Bezos

Amazon founder and CEO, an internet pioneer with a finger in suborbital spaceflight programmes.

Kathryn Bigelow

Smart, sharp-shooting stylist and action queen, resurgent with 2009’s The Hurt Locker.

Danny Boyle

Brit-indie auteur whose post-28 Days Later… form led to Slumdog Millionaire.

Barbara Broccoli and Michael G Wilson

Bond dynasty offspring turned 007 miracle reboot engineers, each OBE-armed.

Jerry Bruckheimer

High-concept production titan whose populist touch helped launch Pirates’ fleet.

Simon Calver

CEO of LoveFilm, one-stop online home-ents shop, thriving despite postal strikes.

James Cameron

Resurgent king of ‘game-changing’ event movies, just unleashed a certain 3D epic...

Michael Cera

Minimalist alt-pin-up and the standard-bearer for romantically awkward (but cool) souls.

George Clooney

Old-school smouldering leading man with added activist’s conscience. Mr Fox, indeed.

Diablo Cody

Stripper turned sassy punk-rebel Juno scribe, currently producing Sweet Valley High.

Joel and Ethan Coen

Deadpan arthouse-crossover duo, on top form once again with A Serious Man.

Next: Coppola, Craig, Cruise [page-break]

Sofia Coppola

Woozy indie hipster behind Lost In Translation. Superlative stylist heading to Somewhere.

Daniel Craig

Character actor and rugged man-totty who carved respect for brusque, bad-ass nu-Bond.

Tom Cruise

High-concept Hollywood’s can-do king as star and producer, media-bruised but unbeaten.

Jeremy Dale

Microsoft’s main marketing man, formerly behind the groundbreaking and hugely popular Orange Wednesdays campaign.

Matt Damon

Preppy every dude turned action tough as Jason Bourne, soon occupying Green Zone.

Daniel Day-Lewis

Choosy and oft-awesome method titan, enticingly cast in Martin Scorsese’s forthcoming Silence.

Guillermo Del Toro

Leading fantasy filmmaker of his age, currently in New Zealand making The Hobbit(s).

Johnny Depp

Dapper boho dude, cheque-cashing über-star and winning oddball. Hollywood’s biggest? Might just be...

Fae Desmond

Executive director of San Diego Comic-Con, international geek hub gossip-starter.

Cameron Diaz

Model turned surprisingly versatile, game lead. Green days ahead, with more Shrek and Green Hornet.

Next: Downey Jr, Eastwood, Efron [page-break]

Lorenzo di Bonaventura

Transformers super-producer now scouting for post-Potter franchise heat with The Alchemyst: Secrets Of The Immortal Nicholas Flamel.

Leonardo DiCaprio

Former pin-up star turned prime Scorsese protégé, soon to be visiting Shutter Island.

Jack Dorsey, Biz Stone and Evan Williams

The Twitter co-founders’ no-nonsense status-sharing programme is a real-time one-to-the-world microblogging hub. Dorsey was a software engineer, Stone a Silicon Valley entrepreneur and writer before they teamed with Evan Williams to create the on-the-run communications service. Opinion splits over content but Twitter’s what users make it. Silicon Valley’s new kings aren’t twits.

Robert Downey Jr and Susan Downey

Star-producer power spouses and recent collaborators on rebooted Sherlock Holmes.

Clint Eastwood

Hollywood’s oldest box-office anti-hero, charismatic at 79 and a crack classicist filmmaker.

Zac Efron

Pretty face (and feet) of High School Musical, grew up in Me And Orson Welles.

Ari Emanuel

CEO at the William Morris Endeavour talent agency, with Scorsese and Matt Damon on call.

Jon Favreau

One-time Swingers hipster turned star-writer-director, currently knocking Iron Man 2 into shape.

Will Ferrell

SNL graduate and critic-proof frat packer. Sliding, but Anchorman 2’s blowing in…

David Fincher

Prince of darkness – stylistic and substantial, fashioning a Facebook film alongside Kevin Spacey.

Next: Gervais, Gibson, Greengrass [page-break]

Megan Fox

“World’s hottest...” so-and-so, survived Transformers to soon play Jonah Hex’s cowgirl.

Thierry Frémaux

The king of Cannes, credited with boosting the festival’s global remit and profile.

Ricky Gervais

Close-to-the-bone comic vivisectionist of acute embarrassment, romantic mortification and human foible.

Mel Gibson

Hollywood’s last macho man is an old-school ‘primitivist’ director and debate-starter – think Passion Of The Christ. Two forthcoming films tap his star appeal, Edge Of Darkness being a thriller in his lucrative ‘angry family man’ mode and Beaver providing a comic re-team with Maverick co-star Jodie Foster. George Miller’s Mad Max reboot may ignite nostalgia for young Mel.

Paul Greengrass

Brit TV émigré turned muscular, intelligent action-drama auteur, occupying Green Zone.

Brad Grey

TV/film producer and CEO of Paramount, hits include The Sopranos and The Departed.

Tom Hanks

Respected, trusted star as everyman, back on voice duties for Toy Story 3.

Sandra Hebron

Artistic Director of BFI Film Festivals, valiantly keeping the LFF for the public.

Chris Hemsworth

Kirk senior in Trek, ready to roar in Red Dawn and Thor.

Alan Horn

Warner President and COO, nurturing Batman and Harry Potter franchises.

Next: Jackman, Jackson, Jobs [page-break]

Ron Howard and Brian Grazer

Imagine Entertainment founders, upcoming slate including Ridley Scott’s new take on Robin Hood.

Robert ‘Bob’ Iger

Conciliatory Disney President and CEO, who oversaw the acquisitions of Pixar and Marvel.

Hugh Jackman

All-man Wolverine hunk and all-singing, all-dancing charmer in his role as 2009’s Oscar host.

Peter Jackson and Fran Walsh

Rings power spouses, looking Oscar-wards with The Lovely Bones.

Steve Jobs

Softly spoken tech visionary and business icon behind Pixar, Apple, iTunes and iPhone.

Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt

Or Brangelina, star-producer-parent power couple and Hollywood’s hottest humanitarians.

Spike Jonze

Maverick MTV scamp turned arch auteur, hanging with the Wild Things.

Jeffrey Katzenberg

Producer and DreamWorks Animation CEO, now a keen champion of 3D filmmaking.

Charlie Kaufman

Scriptwriting’s first auteur, a surrealist-romantic philosopher who recently turned director with Synecdoche, New York.

Richard Kelly

Donnie Darko boy wonder, opening The Box and prepping a 3D sci-fi.

Next: LaBeouf, Lasseter, Lucas [page-break]

Harry Knowles

Self-styled “headgeek” on gossip site Ain’t It Cool News and fantasy-fest programmer.

Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci

Kings of smartly character-driven blockbuster scriptwriting, anointed for nailing the tone on Star Trek.

Shia LaBeouf

Disney graduate and bankable everyguy action dude, rapidly maturing for Wall Street 2.

John Lasseter

Pioneering Pixar pilot and animation saviour, with Toy Story 3 due to hit in a big way very soon.

Richard Lovett

President of Creative Artists Agency, talent home for Spielberg, Pitt, Clooney et al…

George Lucas

Jedi forefather and Indy’s co-parent, now re-re-re-visiting Star Wars’ universe in animated fashion for telly.

Ron Meyer

The long-distance runner, President and COO of Universal since ’95, with Green Zone forthcoming.

Stephanie Meyer

The vampire queen, post-Anne Rice. Connecticut’s superstar scribe of emo-bloodsucker splash Twilight consolidated her standing with the record-busting success of movie sequel New Moon, tearing into franchise terrain soon to be vacated by Harry Potter. Andrew Niccol’s adaptation of her sci-fi novel The Host should spread her web further.

Col Needham

Co-founder and general manager of online industry first-call movie-pedia IMDb.

Christopher Nolan

Brit who re-began Batman, now making Inception and frustratingly dodging all those Bat 3 queries.

Next: Page, Pattinson, Pine [page-break]

Jonathan Nolan

Dark Knight super-scribe penning sci-fi Interstellar for Spielberg. Batman 3, please?

Ellen Page

Breakthrough Canadian, effortlessly graduating from Juno’s indie scene to Inception hugeness.

Amy Pascal

Sony Pictures Entertainment’s populist co-chairman, with successes including Superbad and Spider-Man.

Robert Pattinson

Emo-goth pin-up and va-va-vamp with a heart-spearing quiff.

Alexander Payne

Director of much-adored dysfunctional character coms (About Schmidt, Sideways) and sometime writer/producer.

Chris Pine

The LA-born son of acting stock brought requisite firm-jawed, rebel-hunk appeal to James T Kirk in JJ Abrams’ Star Trek reboot, adding wit and charm to boot. His stated influence being Harrison Ford, rumours that he’ll boldly tackle Ford’s old role of Jack Ryan fit like a sci-fi pyjama top over pin-up-grade abs.

Natalie Portman

The Star Wars prequels’ brainy indie-mainstream crossover star, soon to be seen nursing Thor.

Sam Raimi

Schlock godhead in prime pulp form to spin Spidey 4 a blockbusting web.

Ryan Reynolds and Scarlett Johansson

Super-hot Hollywood alternacouple, imminently set to turn superheroic as Green Lantern/Black Widow respectively.

Seth Rogen

Team Apatow’s curvy comedy king, gearing up for The Green Hornet.

Next: Sandler, Scorcese, Scott [page-break]

Tom Rothman and Jim Gianopulos

Fox’s controversial tag-team co-chairmen, rallying for James Cameron’s Avatar to re-boost popularity.

JK Rowling

Fairy-tale success story whose wizardry made children read again.

Adam Sandler

Über-bankable ‘dork star’ of colourful, goofball critic-proof comedy and sometime producer.

Peter Sciretta

Founder and Editor-in-Chief at well respected breaking-news mega-blog /Film.

Martin Scorsese

‘America’s Greatest Living Filmmaker’, finally Oscar-blessed and readying Shutter Island.

Tony and Ridley Scott

Former ad men turned cine-stylists and A-Team production brothers. Alien prequel looming.

Joel Silver

Crowd-pleasing slam-bang action producer, currently nurturing Ninja Assassin and Sherlock Holmes.

Bryan Singer

Geek-loved X-Men auteur, vacillating post Valkyrie but attached to modern-day fairy tale Jack The Giant Killer.

Will Smith

The former Fresh Prince is part every guy, part career racehorse and one of few big names still able to “open a film”. He carried I Am Legend alone, and Hancock and Hitch proved critic-resistant.

Collapses of Spielberg’s OldBoy remake and McG’s mooted 20,000 Leagues needn’t worry him: rumoured sequels to ID4, Hancock and I, Robot will always secure brand Will’s standing.

Steven Soderbergh

Multi-purpose indie-mainstream crossover auteur, heating up lady-actioner Knockout.

Next: Washington, Weinstein, Winslet [page-break]

Steven Spielberg

Hollywood’s populist conscience and head beard.

Ben Stiller

Frat pack favourite, once again targeting home base with Little Fockers.

Quentin Tarantino

Motor-mouthed po-mo trash-hound and junk genie, making genres his own since 1992.

Bonnie Timmermann

Crack casting director of Heat who scored early with Scarlett Johansson.

Denzel Washington

Top leading man as ethical heavweight, packing action muscle to boot in his movies.

Harvey Weinstein

Producer and controversial studio heavyweight, still fronting for Team Tarantino.

Joss Whedon

Bedevilled Buffy godhead, mourning Dollhouse but producing 3D horror Cabin In The Woods.

Kate Winslet

This generation’s Meryl Streep, an Oscar-grade star with undeniable populist punch. Relatable.

Edgar Wright, Nick frost and Simon Pegg

Three kings of po-mo prankster comedy, reuniting for The World’s End.