The Best Director Oscar winners of the 1980s
The top 3 according to 1,521 votes from people: Robert Redford — Ordinary People · Warren Beatty — Reds · Richard Attenborough — Gandhi. (Updated Mar 24, 2026.)
The directors who won the Academy Award for Best Director for films from 1980 to 1989, with two wins for Oliver Stone.
Automatically translated (original in Español). See the original
Top 10
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1
Robert Redford — Ordinary People
1980 film. His directing debut.
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2
Warren Beatty — Reds
1981 film. Journalist John Reed and the Russian Revolution.
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3
Richard Attenborough — Gandhi
1982 film. Eight Oscars.
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4
James L. Brooks — Terms of Endearment
1983 film. His first feature.
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5
Miloš Forman — Amadeus
1984 film. His second Oscar after One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.
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6
Sydney Pollack — Out of Africa
1985 film. Meryl Streep and Robert Redford in Kenya.
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7
Oliver Stone — Platoon
1986 film. Vietnam through a veteran's eyes.
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8
Bernardo Bertolucci — The Last Emperor
1987 film. Puyi, shot in the Forbidden City; nine Oscars out of nine nominations.
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9
Barry Levinson — Rain Man
1988 film. Two brothers on a road trip across America.
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10
Oliver Stone — Born on the Fourth of July
1989 film. Tom Cruise as veteran Ron Kovic.
How is this ranking ordered? By people's votes: each ▲ adds a point and each ▼ takes one away. Anyone can vote and add what is missing.
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Comments (13)
Scorsese con Toro salvaje tampoco ganó, la Academia siempre igual.
Spielberg sin ganar en los 80 con ET y Indiana Jones, increíble.
Memorias de África, qué banda sonora.
Bertolucci con El último emperador, nueve Óscar de nueve.
Gandhi arrasó, aunque ET tenía más fans.
La fuerza del cariño, para llorar.
Oliver Stone otra vez con Nacido el 4 de julio.
Década de grandes directores.
Warren Beatty con Rojos, ambiciosísima.
Oliver Stone con Platoon, la había vivido en Vietnam.
Barry Levinson con Rain Man, Dustin Hoffman en estado de gracia.
Robert Redford ganó dirigiendo su primera película.
Amadeus de Forman, obra maestra absoluta.