September 25 is National One-Hit Wonder Day, and while most people link one-hit wonders to music, it also has strong connotations in other areas of entertainment. In Hollywood, there are a number of movie directors that came out and gave the world a masterpiece, but never followed it up with anything nearing the brilliance of their breakout movie. Here is a look at the biggest one-hit wonder directors in movie history.
John Singleton – John Singleton broke out with his debut film “Boyz in the Hood” in 1991. The movie earned two Oscar nominations and remains one of the best urban movies ever made. He tried to revisit the genre after that, but never came close to the success of his breakthrough. Critics panned his most recent movie, “Abduction,” and not even Taylor Lautner could win the box office for him.
Michael Cimino – Arguably, the most infamous one-hit wonder in cinema history is Michael Cimino. With “The Deer Hunter,” Cimino won five Oscars out of nine nominations and earned the right to control his career after that. He flushed it down the toilet when he bankrupted MGM with “Heaven’s Gate” and he never reached success again.
Tony Kaye – Tony Kaye directed the impressive “American History X,” but the experience soured him on Hollywood when his own star Ed Norton locked him out of the editing room and changed his movie. That was in 1998 and he only made two movies since that debut.
Charles Laughton – Actor Charles Laughton is a one-hit wonder as a director because he only helmed one movie in his career. As an actor, he picked up three Oscar nominations and won once, but as a director he helmed one of the best thrillers of all time with “The Night of the Hunter.”
Daniel Myrick & Eduardo Sanchez – When small independent movies hit it big, it opens up a chance for the creators to move up the Hollywood ladder. James Wan directed “Saw” and is now a major player in the horror genre. However, the two men who created “The Blair Witch Project” never matched up to their promise.
Shane Carruth – Shane Carruth created one of the most brilliant science fiction movies of all time. He was so influential that Rian Johnson thanked him in the credits for “Looper.” However, after Carruth directed “Primer” in 2004, he never made another movie.
Tom Hanks – Tom Hanks is one of the greatest actors of his generation and in 1996, he directed “That Thing You Do.” It was a great debut for Hanks but he didn’t direct another movie for 15 more years, and when he did it was the disappointing “Larry Crowne,” which disappointed at the box office.
Richard Kelly – Richard Kelly set the independent world on fire with the amazing “Donnie Darko” in 2001. Since that cult favorite, he directed the critically panned “Southland Tales” and the underwhelming “The Box.” He is the perfect example of someone who couldn’t match up to their press clippings.
Peter Care – Peter Care was a successful music video director and got the chance to direct his debut feature film in 2002 with “The Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys.” The movie was an amazing feat, part live-action and part animated using the art work of comic book artist Todd McFarland. Despite the success, he moved back to the music and commercial world and never made another movie.
Kinka Usher – Kinka Usher served as a crew member on various movies and got the chance to direct the comic book adaptation “Mystery Men” in 1999. The film was a great comedy superhero movie, but failed to impress at the box office and he never got another opportunity.
