Academy Award for Best Director (1990-2008)

Year	Winner film	Nominated
1990	Kevin Costner – Dances with Wolves	Francis Ford Coppola – The Godfather Part III Stephen Frears – The Grifters Barbet Schroeder – Reversal of Fortune Martin Scorsese – Goodfellas
1991	Jonathan Demme – The Silence of the Lambs	Barry Levinson – Bugsy Ridley Scott – Thelma & Louise John Singleton – Boyz n the Hood Oliver Stone – JFK
1992	Clint Eastwood – Unforgiven	Robert Altman – The Player Martin Brest – Scent of a Woman James Ivory – Howards End Neil Jordan – The Crying Game
1993	Steven Spielberg – Schindler's List	Robert Altman – Short Cuts Jane Campion – The Piano James Ivory – The Remains of the Day Jim Sheridan – In the Name of the Father
1994	Robert Zemeckis – Forrest Gump	Woody Allen – Bullets Over Broadway Krzysztof Kieślowski – Three Colours: Red Robert Redford – Quiz Show Quentin Tarantino – Pulp Fiction
1995	Mel Gibson – Braveheart	Mike Figgis – Leaving Las Vegas Chris Noonan – Babe Michael Radford – Il Postino Tim Robbins – Dead Man Walking
1996	Anthony Minghella – The English Patient	Joel Coen – Fargo Miloš Forman – The People vs. Larry Flynt Scott Hicks – Shine Mike Leigh – Secrets & Lies
1997	James Cameron – Titanic	Peter Cattaneo – The Full Monty Atom Egoyan – The Sweet Hereafter Curtis Hanson – L.A. Confidential Gus Van Sant – Good Will Hunting
1998	Steven Spielberg – Saving Private Ryan	Roberto Benigni – Life Is Beautiful John Madden – Shakespeare in Love Terrence Malick – The Thin Red Line Peter Weir – The Truman Show
1999	Sam Mendes – American Beauty	Lasse Hallström – The Cider House Rules Spike Jonze – Being John Malkovich Michael Mann – The Insider M. Night Shyamalan – The Sixth Sense

Year	Winner film	Nominated
2000	Steven Soderbergh – Traffic	Stephen Daldry – Billy Elliot Ang Lee – Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon Ridley Scott – Gladiator Steven Soderbergh – Erin Brockovich
2001	Ron Howard – A Beautiful Mind	Robert Altman – Gosford Park Peter Jackson – The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring David Lynch – Mulholland Drive Ridley Scott – Black Hawk Down
2002	Roman Polanski – The Pianist	Pedro Almodóvar – Talk to Her Stephen Daldry – The Hours Rob Marshall – Chicago Martin Scorsese – Gangs of New York
2003	Peter Jackson – The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King	Sofia Coppola – Lost in Translation Clint Eastwood – Mystic River Fernando Meirelles – City of God Peter Weir – Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World
2004	Clint Eastwood – Million Dollar Baby	Taylor Hackford – Ray Mike Leigh – Vera Drake Alexander Payne – Sideways Martin Scorsese – The Aviator
2005	Ang Lee – Brokeback Mountain	George Clooney – Good Night, and Good Luck. Paul Haggis – Crash Bennett Miller – Capote Steven Spielberg – Munich
2006	Martin Scorsese – The Departed	Clint Eastwood – Letters from Iwo Jima Stephen Frears – The Queen Alejandro González Iñárritu – Babel Paul Greengrass – United 93
2007	Joel & Ethan Coen – No Country for Old Men	Paul Thomas Anderson – There Will Be Blood Tony Gilroy – Michael Clayton Jason Reitman – Juno Julian Schnabel – The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
2008	Danny Boyle – Slumdog Millionaire	Stephen Daldry – The Reader David Fincher – The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Ron Howard – Frost/Nixon Gus Van Sant – Milk