William Wyler

William Wyler

1902-07-01 – 1981-07-27 (age 79) Mรผlhausen, Alsace-Lorraine, German Empire [now Mulhouse, Haut-Rhin, France]
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Biography

William Wyler (July 1, 1902 โ€“ July 27, 1981) was a German-born film director, producer, and screenwriter. Notable works include Ben-Hur (1959), The Best Years of Our Lives (1946), and Mrs. Miniver (1942), all which won Wyler Academy Awards for Best Director, and also won Best Picture. He earned his first Oscar nomination for directing Dodsworth in 1936, sparking a 20-year run of almost unbroken greatness.

Film historian Ian Freer calls Wyler a "bona fide perfectionist," whose penchant for retakes and an attempt to hone every last nuance "became the stuff of legend." His ability to direct a string of classic literary adaptations into huge box office and critical successes made him one of Hollywood's most bankable moviemakers during the 1930s and 1940s.

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Known For

The Best Years of Our Lives
The Best Years of Our Lives

1946

as Drug Store customer (uncredited)

Dodsworth
Dodsworth

1936

as Violin Player in Dance Orchestra (uncredited)

Five Came Back
Five Came Back

2017

as Self (archive footage)

Ben-Hur: The Epic That Changed Cinema
Ben-Hur: The Epic That Changed Cinema

2005

as Self (archive footage)

Sword-and-Sandal: The Story of the Period Epic
Sword-and-Sandal: The Story of the Period Epic

2019

as Self - Filmmaker (archive footage)

🎦
The Screen Director

1951

as Self (staged 'archive' footage) (uncredited)

🎦
Reel Radicals: The Sixties Revolution in Film

2002

as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)

Directed by William Wyler
The Cold Blue
The Cold Blue

2018

as Himself (archive footage)

Backstory: 'How Green Was My Valley'
Backstory: 'How Green Was My Valley'

2000

as Self (archive footage)

Stars of Cabaret
Stars of Cabaret

1956

as Self (archive footage)

Fun in the Big Country
Ben-Hur: The Making of an Epic
Ben-Hur: The Making of an Epic

1993

as Self - Director (archive footage)

William Wyler: Forty Takes Willy
William Wyler: Forty Takes Willy

2025

as Himself (Archival)

Hollywood's Second World War
Hollywood's Second World War

2019

as Self (archive footage)

Laurence Olivier: a life