Highest-grossing film directors worldwide 2023, by cumulative global box office gross

As of February 2023, Steven Spielberg remained the highest-grossing film director in history, amassing over 10.67 billion U.S. dollars at the global box office throughout his career. James Cameron followed with 8.56 billion dollars thanks to the success of Avater: The Way of Water.

Spotlight on Steven Spielberg

Steven Spielberg is one of the most influential moviemakers in the history of Hollywood. During his decade-spanning career, he has directed and produced over 100 feature films and received three Academy Awards for his work on "Saving Private Ryan" and "Schindler's List." Other popular titles from Spielberg's extensive body of work include "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial," "Jaws," and the "Jurassic Park" series, which ranks among the highest-grossing film franchises worldwide.

Gender diversity behind the camera

The U.S. movie industry remains a male-dominated playing field, especially behind the scenes. The latest reports on gender diversity among U.S. movie directors revealed that women made up less than 22 percent of all directors in the country in 2021. This imbalance is also mirrored in the financial success and compensation of male vs. female directors, as no women are featured among the 20 highest-grossing directors worldwide. Not only that, but data also revealed that the percentage of women directing top-grossing films even declined in 2021 after reaching historic highs in 2020.