Random Movies That Were More Than Likely Ghost-Directed (12 items)

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  (#1) Poltergeist

  • Craig T. Nelson, JoBeth Williams, Heather O'Rourke, Zelda Rubinstein, Beatrice Straight, James Karen, Dominique Dunne, Lou Perryman, Dirk Blocker, Richard Lawson, Allan Graf, Sonny Landham, Michael McManus, Oliver Robins, Virginia Kiser, Joey Walsh, Robert Broyles, William Vail, Helen Baron, Martin Casella, Noel Conlon, Clair E. Leucart, Jeffrey Bannister, Craig Simmons, Phil Stone

  Credited Director: Tobe Hooper

  Rumored Director: Steven Spielberg

  Poltergeiest was a massive hit, raking in almost $80 million and spawning two sequels and a television series. Steven Spielberg was a red-hot director in the early 1980s, with Jaws, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, and Raiders of the Lost Ark under his belt. The director came up with the story and co-wrote the screenplay for Poltergeist, then signed on to produce. By many accounts, Spielberg really wanted to direct the haunted house thriller, as well.

  So why did Spielberg hand the film to Tobe Hopper (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre)? As it turns out, he was under contract with Universal Pictures in 1982, preparing to direct ET. Therefore, his contract prohibited him from directing any other movie.

  When Spielberg was questioned by a reporter about Hooper's role in the supernatural movie, he said: "Tobe isn't... a take-charge sort of guy. If a question was asked and an answer wasn't immediately forthcoming, I'd jump in and say what we could do. Tobe would nod agreement, and that become the process of collaboration."

  According to a 1982 issue of FANGORIA, many crewmembers who worked on the film said Spielberg was very active on the set, so much so he should have been given a co-director credit. During a 1982 interview with the L.A. Times, Spielberg said he "designed" the movie with storyboards, was actively involved in all of the camera setups, and set the shot designs. He was even literally hands-on for one shot, in which, during a nightmare sequence, a paranoramal investigator pulls the flesh from his face; it is Spielberg's hands doing the ripping. The Director's Guild of America stepped in to investigate the movie's authorship following Spielberg's remarks, but it remains credited solely to Hooper.
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  (#2) A Prairie Home Companion

  • Lindsay Lohan, Meryl Streep, Tommy Lee Jones, Woody Harrelson, Kevin Kline, Maya Rudolph, Lily Tomlin, John C. Reilly, Virginia Madsen, Marylouise Burke, Garrison Keillor, L. Q. Jones, Tim Russell, Jim Westcott, Sue Scott

  Credited Director: Robert Altman

  Rumored Director: Paul Thomas Anderson

  When you watch a PT Anderson movie (Boogie Nights, Magnolia, There Will Be Blood), it's clear to anyone with an eye for cinema his narrative and visual style borrows a lot from Robert Altman's sweeping, long-take, realist school of filmmaking. When Altman took on A Prairie Home Companion in 2006, the veteran director was in his 80s. The ensemble comedy was his last movie behind the camera, his 89th directing credited.

  According to MNSpeak, Anderson took on a lot of the directing duties.

   “... the producers of the film probably insisted that Altman commit to a 'backup' director because of his age... and some say [Anderson is] basically running daily production of the film. […] Between cuts, Robert belts directions over a mic while PT runs up to stage and speaks with the actors directly.”
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  (#3) Tombstone

  • Val Kilmer, Kurt Russell, Charlton Heston, Billy Bob Thornton, Dana Delany, Bill Paxton, Sam Elliott, Billy Zane, Jason Priestley, Stephen Lang, Michael Biehn, Thomas Haden Church, John Corbett, Michael Rooker, Powers Boothe, Paula Malcomson, Jon Tenney, Dana Wheeler-Nicholson, Joanna Pacuła, Robert John Burke, Lisa Collins

  Credited Director: George P. Cosmatos

  Rumored Director: Kurt Russell

  Wyatt Earp-centered drama Tombstone (1993) ran into road bumps as soon as production began. The film's screenwriter, Kevin Jarre, was fired as director early in the production process and replaced by Rambo: First Blood Part II director George Cosmatos. Despite rumors, it took more than a decade for the real on-set boss to emerge.

  During a 2006 interview with True West Magazine, Kurt Russell revealed the story of how he directed the film and why it took so long for the truth to come out:

  "Tombstone is one that’s actually worth talking about—that was the one time I had gone out and got the money. I backed the director; the director got fired, so we brought in a guy to be a ghost director. They wanted me to take over the movie. I said, 'I’ll do it, but I don’t want to put my name on it. I don’t want to be the guy.'"

  Russell went so far as to give Cosmatos a shot list every night for the following day's work, and told him he didn't want any arguments about directorial decisions. According to Russell, this wasn't Cosmatos's first ghost directing job. "I got him from Sly Stallone - called up Sly, said 'I need a guy.' Sly did the same thing with Rambo 2 with George."

  Russell told Cosmatos that he would not reveal the film's secret while George was still alive. Cosmatos passed away in 2005.
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  (#4) Rambo: First Blood Part II

  • Sylvester Stallone, Charles Napier, Richard Crenna, Steven Berkoff, Julia Nickson-Soul, Martin Kove, George Cheung, Dana Lee, Voyo Goric, Baoan Coleman, Don Collins, Christopher Grant

  Credited Director: George Cosmatos

  Rumored Director: Sylvester Stallone

  George Cosmatos may not have directed Rambo: First Blood Part II, as he's credited as having done. Though Stallone isn't listed as the film's director, there's evidence he ghost-directing the second installment in the Rambo franchise, in which he also starred. Stallone officially has nine directing credits on his resume, including four Rocky films, so it's not beyond belief he called all the shots on Rambo: First Blood Part II, as Kurt Russell claimed in an interview about Tombstone.
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  (#5) Super Mario Bros.

  • Dennis Hopper, Bob Hoskins, John Leguizamo, Lance Henriksen, Samantha Mathis, Fiona Shaw, Fisher Stevens, Mojo Nixon, Don Lake, Richard Edson, Gianni Russo, Desiree Marie Velez, Francesca P. Roberts, Robert D. Raiford, Dana Kaminski

  Credited Directors: Annabel Jankel, Rocky Morton

  Rumored Directors: Dean Semler, Roland Joffe

  Notorious box office and critical flop, and the first video-game-to-big-screen adaptation, Super Mario Bros. is credited to Max Headroom creators Annabel Jankel and Rocky Morton. However, there are rumors cinematographer Dean Semler and producer Roland Joffe took on a large chunk of these duties. Though it was a critical punching bag and financial disappointment, the film has become a cult hit, especially in the gaming community.

  According to Morton, there were several production issues, because the studio stepped in and rewrote most of the original script. In an interview with Nintendo Life, he recalled:

  "I remember when the new script came in, we had a phone call — [Jankel] was casting in LA, I was in NC building the sets, and we’d both just read the new script, we called each other up and said 'This is terrible, we've gotta get away from this movie, it’s not the movie we wanted to make'... We decided to soldier on and rectify the film as we carried on. But we were a bit naive in that what’s in the script is what’s on the screen — it’s very hard to remake a movie as you’re filming, and that’s what caused a lot of the problems too."

  When asked what his overall memory was from working on the movie, Morton answered with just a single word, "humiliation." Even still, he's never admitted to not directing the picture.
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  (#6) Dances with Wolves

  • Kevin Costner, Mary McDonnell, Charles Rocket, Graham Greene, Maury Chaykin, Robert Pastorelli, Wes Studi, Tantoo Cardinal, Tom Everett, Floyd Red Crow Westerman, Rodney A. Grant, Michael Spears, Jimmy Herman

  Credited Director: Kevin Costner

  Rumored Director: Kevin Reynolds

  Kevin Costner’s 1990 epic western drama Dances with Wolves earned him an Academy Award for Best Director. Not bad for a directorial debut. The film also won the Oscar for Best Picture in 1991. However, there are rumors Costner’s friend Kevin Reynolds directed several important scenes in the film, including one of the its best sequences, the bison hunt. Whatever work Reynolds did on the film was not enough to warrant a co-directing credit from Costner.

  Reynolds, who directed some major Kevin Costner projects, including Waterworld and Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, said Costner asked him to come to the Dances with Wolves set for a few weeks to help out. When asked about the buffalo hunt sequence, Reynolds responded, “I directed some of the bison hunt, I didn't direct the entire thing, I went out there and I think I was there for three weeks or something like that. My feelings were that it was fun to be working out there on a picture that, and, you know, help a friend.”
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  (#7) Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi

  • Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, James Earl Jones, Alec Guinness, Billy Dee Williams, Frank Oz, Ian McDiarmid, Warwick Davis, Kenny Baker, Peter Mayhew, David Prowse, Anthony Daniels, Denis Lawson, Sebastian Shaw, Kenneth Colley, Jeremy Bulloch, Michael Pennington, Mike Quinn, Larry Ward

  Credited Director: Richard Marquand

  Rumored Director: George Lucas

  George Lucas directed the first installment of Star Wars in 1977, then turned to Irvin Kershner, his old USC professor, to direct Empire Strikes Back. The decision was largely based on Lucas's need to stay in California to save Lucasfilm from bankruptcy. Kershner decided not to take on the major commitment of the third installment, so Lucas handed the reins to another relatively unknown director, Richard Marquand. An interesting side note: David Lynch was offered the opportunity to direct Return of the Jedi but declined in order to direct Dune.

  The story goes: Lucas wasn't heavily involved in Empire, which. while it a huge success, went way over budget. Because of this,he decided to have a heavier hand with Return of the Jedi. He reportedly stood over Marquand’s shoulder every step of the way, forcing him to film a master shot of each scene - the entire scene filmed in one long take - to take away Marquand's control of the film's aesthetic. Because Kershner did not film master shots, whatever he shot had to be used; therefore, he exerted a lot of control over Empire.

  Lucas also had final edit once production was complete, so he could shape the movie exactly how he wanted. He used the master shots to work around footage Marquand shot that he didn't like. 
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  (#8) Tango & Cash

  • Sylvester Stallone, Teri Hatcher, Kurt Russell, Jack Palance, Clint Howard, Geoffrey Lewis, James Hong, Michael J. Pollard, Brion James, Lewis Arquette, Robert Z'Dar, Marc Alaimo

  Credited Director: Andrei Konchalovsky

  Rumored Directors: Albert Magnoli, Stuart Baird

  Tango & Cash stars Sylvester Stallone and Kurt Russell appear on this list as rumored ghost-directors; it's possible they got the idea from their experience on that film. The movie was well-known for its production problems, some of which arose from Stallone's ever-growing ego and need to take over projects. There were also issues with establishing a coherent tone. The producers wanted a campy, light comedy, but Andrei Konchalovsky and Sly wanted a realistic cop movie.

  Konchalovsky, a Russian filmmaker, is credited with directing the picture. However, he was replaced months into production by Purple Rain director Albert Magnoli. Tango & Cash was also reportedly completely retooled by the film's editor, Stuart Baird. Basically, the movie had four "directorial voices": Konchalovsky, Magnoli, Baird, and Stallone. Typically, when there are too many cooks in the kitchen, a movie turns out to be a total mess. Tango & Cash certainly did not cater to critics. However, it did well at the box office, and is considered a cinematic guilty pleasure for fans of '80s action.
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  (#9) Waterworld

  • Kevin Costner, Jack Black, Dennis Hopper, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Michael Jeter, Tina Majorino, Kim Coates, Robert Joy, Sab Shimono, Jack Kehler, Robert LaSardo, Leonardo Cimino, Lee Arenberg, Sean Whalen, Rick Aviles, Zakes Mokae, Gerard Murphy, R. D. Call, Greg Goossen, Robert A. Silverman, Chris Douridas, Lanny Flaherty, John Toles-Bey, Neil Giuntoli, Doug Spinuzza, Zitto Kazann, John Fleck, William Preston, John Otrin, Chris Moore, Ari Barak, Hal Douglas, Alexa Jago, Anne Gaybis, Rita Zohar, Chaim Girafi, Michael Haddad, August Neves, Henry Kapono Kaaihue, Paul Bogh, Anthony DeMasters, Willy Petrovic, Luke Ka'ili Jr., Delisa Sexton, Tracy Anderson, Victor Sánchez, Jenny Tallent, David Finnegan

  Credited Director: Kevin Reynolds

  Rumored Director: Kevin Costner

  This is a switcheroo from Dances With Wolves, for which rumor has it Reynolds had a heavy hand in helping Costner direct. This time, Costner, who produced and starred in Waterworld, handed off helming duties to good friend Reynolds. Unfortunately, for all involved, the extremely ambitious idea of producing a major blockbuster on the water ran into a lot of production trouble, including a sinking set and going way over budget. At the time of production, in 1995, it was the most expensive film ever made.

  Towards the end of production, an altercation between Costner and Reynolds resulted in the latter leaving the project. It's unknown whether Reynolds was fired or he left of his own accord. Costner then took over directing, and had a major voice in how the film was edited.

  Many think Waterworld, because it was so expensive to make, was a box office disaster. Although it didn't perform well stateside, it brought in a large international audience. In the end, when factoring in rentals and sales, the film turned a decent profit. Despite the rocky relationship between Costner and Reynolds, the pair worked together again on the 2012 TV Mini-Series Hatfields &McCoys.
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  (#10) The Thing from Another World

  • James Arness, Paul Frees, George Fenneman, Kenneth Tobey, Eduard Franz, John Dierkes, Margaret Sheridan, Douglas Spencer, Robert Cornthwaite, Robert Bray, Robert Nichols, Dewey Martin, William Edwin Self, James R. Young, Sally Creighton

  Credited Director: Christian Nyby

  Rumored Director: Howard Hawks

  Howard Hawks produced black and white horror classic The Thing From Another World, on which John Carpenter's '82 classic is based, though how much say the film's credited director Christian Nyby had remains disputed. 

  Nyby edited several of Hawks's most acclaimed pictures: To Have and Have Not, Red River, The Big Sleep. The rumor is Hawks directed The Thing and gave Nyby credit as a way of thanking him for saving Red River, which was reportedly mishandled by its original editor. This claim is corroborated in Variety critic Todd McCarthy's Howard Hawks: The Grey Fox of Hollywood, which claims Nyby had a minimal role in directing The Thing.

  However, several actors in The Thing From Another World claim otherwise. George Fenneman said of Nyby's role in the picture, "Chris got a bad deal... I was there every morning, so was Chris. Sometimes Hawks was late and Chris in the meantime was making the show go. Hawks would once in a while direct, if he had an idea, but it was Chris' show."

  That sentiment is also felt by Robert Cornthwaite, who played Dr. Carrington in the movie. "It sickens me, some of the things that have been said. Chris always deferred to Hawks, as well he should. Hawks was giving him the break, after all, though he had done much fine work for Hawks and had his confidence... Maybe because he did defer to him, people misinterpreted it."
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  (#11) Cobra

  • Sylvester Stallone, Ron Jeremy, Brigitte Nielsen, Andrew Robinson, David Rasche, Val Avery, Art LaFleur, Brian Thompson, Lee Garlington, Marco Rodríguez, Reni Santoni, Roger Aaron Brown, Jim Wilkey, Helen Kelly, John Herzfeld, Bert Williams, Nina Axelrod, Dorothy Meyer, Christine Craft, Fred Lucky, John Hauk, Nick Angotti, Brian Edwards, Kurt V. Hulett, Louise Caire Clark, Leslie Morris, Gregory Norman Cruz, Harry Demopoulos, Paul Dion Monte, Ken Hill, Karen Kondazian, Ross St. Phillip, Deborah Dalton, Clare Nono, John Cahill, Robert Martini, Joe Fowler, Kevin Breslin, Malik Carter, Brad Bovee, Glenda Wina, Scott Dockstader, Michael Bershad, Joe Stone, Julie Hampton, Arthur Kassell, Joe Masino Jr., Steve Lentz, Joe Bonny, Laura Drake

  Credited Director: George P. Cosmatos

  Rumored Director: Sylvester Stallone

  Here's that Cosmatos guy again. Stallone wrote the script for Cobra; a raw, unapologetic look at a cop who's willing to break all the rules in his personal search for street justice. It's just a rumor that Stallone ghost-directed the 1986 crime thriller, but it does have his signature style all over it. Sly described his vision for the film, "I try to keep it at a gut level.  I try to reduce the dialogue and intensify the action."

  No one will ever argue Cobra is overly pretentious or too wordy.
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  (#12) A Night at the Roxbury

  • Eva Mendes, Will Ferrell, Jennifer Coolidge, Loni Anderson, Michael Clarke Duncan, Molly Shannon, Chris Kattan, Colin Quinn, Chazz Palminteri, Richard Grieco, Mark McKinney, Dan Hedaya, Lochlyn Munro, Dwayne Hickman, Jim Wise, Meredith Scott Lynn, Gigi Rice, Elisa Donovan, Twink Caplan, Maree Cheatham, Louis E. Rosas, Kristen Dalton, Chad Bannon, Kip King, Deborah Kellner, Christian Mixon, Roy Jenkins, Mary Ann Schmidt, Viveca Paulin, Raquel Gardner, Paulette Braxton, Mary Ann Kellogg, Rachel Galvin, Gina Mari, Trish Ramish, Victor Kobayashi, Yoshio Be, Patrick Ferrell, Richard Francese, Valentin Siroon, Agata Gotova, Betty A. Bridges, Robin Krieger, Christina Eliason, Dorian Spencer, Andrew Marks, Tina Weisinger, Michael M. Horton

  Credited Director: John Fortenberry

  Rumored Director: Amy Heckerling

  On A Night at the Roxbury's IMDb page, Amy Heckerling is listed as an uncredited director. There are rumors the Clueless and Fast Times at Ridgemont High helmer directed a couple of scenes from the Saturday Night Live-sketch-to-film. Heckerling produced the picture, which was written by SNL alums Will Ferrell and Chris Kattan. How much Heckerling actually directed remain unclear - was she stepping in for one scene? Was she serving as a second unit director? 

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