Why directors are now Hollywood's biggest

By: Isaac Laguer

For the past couple of weeks, we’ve seen so many anomalies at the weekend box office. We are living in an age where YouTubers are competing with and dominating established studios. We see Curry Barker with Obsession sitting in the top 5 since its release. Then we have Backrooms, by Kane Parsons, another YouTuber whose film is making almost as much as Star Wars in less time.

I say all this to say that the industry is shifting. The director of a project is becoming more and more important to the marketing of a movie. These two directors already had huge followings on social media. They built fanbases and created names for themselves, so naturally people wanted to see the work they produced.

We also saw this in last weekend’s box office with Steven Spielberg and his newest film, Disclosure Day. Although Spielberg is 79 years old and probably not the most social-media-conscious filmmaker, he is still one of the biggest names in the industry. He has built trust with audiences through films like E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark, and Ready Player One.

People know when they see a Spielberg film, they expect a certain level of quality that only he can provide. Because of that, audiences will show up off that expectation alone, whether the movie ends up being good or not.

Ryan Coogler has done the same thing with Sinners. Yes, you can argue that the cast played a huge role because it was filled with stars, like Michael B. Jordan, Delroy Lindo, Haley Stienfeild, and many more. But the ultimate pitch to Warner Bros. was still a Ryan Coogler film.

Coogler proved his value through the Creed films being major successes, the Black Panther films being a massive moment in Black culture, and projects like Judas and the Black Messiah. He built trust with audiences the same way Spielberg did. People believe that when Coogler makes a film, it will meet a certain standard.

One thing Coogler also did well was being out there during the press run with his cast, and we don’t usually see that from a lot of directors. He went on every podcast under the sun talking about IMAX, aspect ratios, and more importantly, just being the film nerd that he is

And it worked.

It helped build hype around the movie and made people want to see it.

I think directors should take note of that and realize that we live in a time where they have to become part of the face of their project. The days of hiding behind the camera are over.

In the digital age, directors have to be out there promoting their work, especially if production companies aren’t going to do it for them. Now this is not to say every director has to become an influencer like Curry Barker or constantly post content that feels forced or fake.

But they do need to get out there. Talk about their work, and share their vision.

At the end of the day, directors are no longer just the creatives behind the camera.

They are becoming talent too.