Steven Spielberg Films : The Ultimate Ranking
After joining the Boy Scouts when he was just 12 years old, Steven Spielberg began chasing after a goal he made for himself to achieve the photography merit badge. In order to achieve this badge, a Boy Scout has to accomplish several things like explaining how a camera works, how photos react in certain situations, and then provide the den leader a few photos along the way. Fortunately his father’s camera was broken, so he called an audible and asked if he could use his movie camera to tell a story. He then began working on a Western themed movie and ended up earning that coveted photography merit badge. This, as Steven would later discuss, is the moment his career in film-making started.
By 1969, just eleven years after earning that merit badge, Steven Spielberg was hired to direct a pilot episode of Night Gallery, a made-for-tv horror anthology film. But he ran into a problem with the series star actress, and a Hollywood legend, Joan Crawford. She upset about having some 21-year old kid direct her. She quickly changed her mind once she started working with him and realized just how brilliant of a filmmaker he could one day become. They became good friends that year and remained friends the rest of her life.
Steven began showing off his talents as he kept earning directing jobs around Hollywood until he eventually got his feature film début with the 1974 crime drama, The Sugarland Express. The following year he directed a little film named Jaws and he instantly became the hottest name in the business. He brought so many new techniques and approaches to film-making that no one had ever seen before. His revolutionary style of directing feature films would pave the road for all those that followed.
At age 71, Steven continues to make films and is currently working on multiple projects including the latest Indiana Jones film, the fifth of the franchise. He is also working on West Side Story and The Kidnapping of Edgardo Mortara, both in pre-production. He hopes to begin filming on a Halo movie in the near future as well.
In honor of one of the greatest film directors of our generation, we wanted to produce a list of films considered to be his best work. These are all films that has been involved in, as a Director, Producer, Executive Producer, and even Writer. We have found 70 films to rank and hope you enjoy the list.
70) Dreams
- Year: 1990
- Credited As: Executive Producer
69) An American Tale
- Year: 1986
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $84 million
68) Transformers: The Last Knight
- Year: 2017
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $605.4 million
67) Eagle Eye
- Year: 2008
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $178.1 million
66) Transformers: Age of Extinction
- Year: 2014
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $1.104 billion
65) Deep Impact
- Year: 1998
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $349.5 million
64) Casper
- Year: 1995
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $287.9 million
63) Cowboys & Aliens
- Year: 2011
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $174.8 million
62) Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
- Year: 2009
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $836.6 million
61) Memoirs of a Geisha
- Year: 2005
- Credited As: Producer
- Box Office: $162.2 million
60) The Mask of Zorro
- Year: 1998
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $250.3 million
59) Transformers: Dark of the Moon
- Year: 2011
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $1.124 billion
58) The Lovely Bones
- Year: 2009
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $93.6 million
57) Hook
- Year: 1991
- Credited As: Director
- Box Office: $300.9 million
56) The Lost World: Jurassic Park
- Year: 1997
- Credited As: Director
- Box Office: $618.6 million
55) Twilight Zone: The Movie
- Year: 1983
- Credited As: Director and Producer
- Box Office: $29.5 million
54) The Land Before Time
- Year: 1988
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $84.4 million
53) Men in Black II
- Year: 2002
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $441.8 million
52) Real Steel
- Year: 2011
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $299.3 million
51) Hereafter
- Year: 2010
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $105.2 million
50) 1941
- Year: 1979
- Credited As: Director
- Box Office: $94.9 million
49) Batteries Not Included
- Year: 1987
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $65.1 million
48) Men in Black III
- Year: 2012
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $624 million
47) Monster House
- Year: 2006
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $140.2 million
46) The Adventures of Tintin
- Year: 2011
- Credited As: Director and Producer
- Box Office: $374 million
45) Empire of the Sun
- Year: 1987
- Credited As: Director and Producer
- Box Office: $66.7 million
44) Always
- Year: 1989
- Credited As: Director and Producer
- Box Office: $74.1 million
43) War of the Worlds
- Year: 2005
- Credited As: Director
- Box Office: $591.7 million
42) Jurassic Park III
- Year: 2001
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $368.8 million
41) Gremlins 2: The New Batch
- Year: 1990
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $41.5 million
40) Back to the Future Part II
- Year: 1989
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $332 million
39) Innerspace
- Year: 1987
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $25 million
38) Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
- Year: 2008
- Credited As: Director
- Box Office: $786.6 million
37) Ready Player One
- Year: 2018
- Credited As: Director and Producer
- Box Office: $579.1 million
36) Jurassic World
- Year: 2015
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $1.67 billion
35) Minority Report
- Year: 2002
- Credited As: Director
- Box Office: $358.4 million
34) Transformers
- Year: 2007
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $709.7 million
33) The Goonies
- Year: 1985
- Credited As: Writer
- Box Office: $61.5 million
32) Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
- Year: 1984
- Credited As: Director
- Box Office: $333.1 million
31) Back to the Future Part III
- Year: 1990
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $244.5 million
30) Poltergeist
- Year: 1982
- Credited As: Producer and Writer
- Box Office: $121.7 million
29) Super 8
- Year: 2011
- Credited As: Producer
- Box Office: $260.1 million
28) The BFG
- Year: 2016
- Credited As: Director and Producer
- Box Office: $183.3 million
27) Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade
- Year: 1989
- Credited As: Director
- Box Office: $474.2 million
26) Gremlins
- Year: 1984
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $153.1 million
25) A.I. Artificial Intelligence
- Year: 2001
- Credited As: Director, Producer, and Writer
- Box Office: $235.9 million
24) Cape Fear
- Year: 1991
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $182.3 million
23) Men in Black
- Year: 1997
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $589.4 million
22) The Terminal
- Year: 2004
- Credited As: Director and Producer
- Box Office: $219.4 million
21) Jurassic Park
- Year: 1993
- Credited As: Director
- Box Office: $1.03 billion
20) The Sugarland Express
- Year: 1974
- Credited As: Director and Writer
- Box Office: $12.8 million
19) The Post
- Year: 2017
- Credited As: Director and Producer
- Box Office: $174.5 million
18) Arachnophobia
- Year: 1990
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $53.2 million
17) Close Encounters of the Third Kind
- Year: 1977
- Credited As: Director and Writer
- Box Office: $306.1 million
16) Bridge of Spies
- Year: 2015
- Credited As: Director and Producer
- Box Office: $165.5 million
15) True Grit
- Year: 2010
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $252.3 million
14) Letters from Iwo Jima
- Year: 2006
- Credited As: Producer
- Box Office: $68.7 million
13) Amistad
- Year: 1997
- Credited As: Director and Producer
- Box Office: $44.2 million
12) Raiders of the Lost Ark
- Year: 1981
- Credited As: Director
- Box Office: $389.9 million
11) War Horse
- Year: 2011
- Credited As: Director and Producer
- Box Office: $177.6 million
10) Who Framed Roger Rabbit
- Year: 1988
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $329.8 million
9) Catch Me If You Can
- Year: 2002
- Credited As: Director and Producer
- Box Office: $352.1 million
8) Jaws
- Year: 1975
- Credited As: Director
- Box Office: $470.7 million
7) Back to the Future
- Year: 1985
- Credited As: Executive Producer
- Box Office: $381.1 million
6) Munich
- Year: 2005
- Credited As: Director and Producer
- Box Office: $130.4 million
5) The Color Purple
- Year: 1985
- Credited As: Director and Producer
- Box Office: $142 million
4) Lincoln
- Year: 2012
- Credited As: Director and Producer
- Box Office: $275.3 million
3) E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
- Year: 1982
- Credited As: Director and Producer
- Box Office: $792.9 million
2) Saving Private Ryan
- Year: 1998
- Credited As: Director and Producer
- Box Office: $481.8 million
1) Schindler’s List
- Year: 1993
- Credited As: Director and Producer
- Box Office: $321.2 million