- Known For
- Directing
- Born
- August 29, 1935
- Place of Birth
- Chicago, Illinois, USA
- Died
- August 7, 2023
William Friedkin
William David Friedkin (August 29, 1935 – August 7, 2023) was an American film, television and opera director, producer, and screenwriter who was closely identified with the "New Hollywood" movement of the 1970s. Beginning his career in documentaries in the early 1960s, he is best known for his crime thriller film The French Connection (1971), which won five Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director, and the horror film The Exorcist (1973), which earned him another Academy Award nomination for Best Director. Friedkin's other films in the 1970s and 1980s include the drama The Boys in the Band (1970), considered a milestone of queer cinema; the originally deprecated, now lauded thriller Sorcerer (1977); the crime comedy drama The Brink's Job (1978); the controversial thriller Cruising (1980); and the neo-noir thriller To Live and Die in L.A. (1985). Although Friedkin's work…
Filmography
movieMineshaft: The Cruising Murders
2026 · Self (archive footage)
movieFear and Love: The Story of The Exorcist
2024 · Self
movieThe Caine Mutiny Court-Martial
2023 · Teleplay, Director
tv100 Years of Warner Bros.
2023 · Self
The Lost Print: The Making of Orson Welles’ The Magnificent Ambersons
movieThe Lost Print: The Making of Orson Welles’ The Magnificent Ambersons
2022 · Self
movieAlgren
2021 · Self
movieI Am Alfred Hitchcock
2021 · Self (archive footage)
movieFellini of the Spirits
2020 · Self
movieLeap of Faith: William Friedkin on The Exorcist
2019 · Self
movieFriedkin Uncut
2018 · Self
movieThe Devil and Father Amorth
2018 · Self, Director, Writer
Return to the Genre
movieReturn to the Genre
2016
movieSorcerers: A Conversation with William Friedkin and Nicolas Winding Refn
2015
movieVerdi Aida
2015 · Stage Director
movieMagician: The Astonishing Life and Work of Orson Welles
2014 · Self - Filmmaker (archive footage)
movieHenri Langlois vu par...
2014 · Self, Director
movieThe Making of the Wonderful Wizard of Oz
2013 · Self
movieA Fuller Life
2013 · Self - Reader (segment "My Ballsy Yarns")
movieDon't Say No Until I Finish Talking: The Story of Richard D. Zanuck
2013 · Self
movieTales from the Warner Bros. Lot
2013 · Self
Stanley Kubrick in Focus
movieStanley Kubrick in Focus
2012 · Self
movieKiller Joe
2012 · Director
movieCasablanca: An Unlikely Classic
2012 · Self
movieMichael Curtiz: The Greatest Director You Never Heard Of
2012 · Self
movieMaking the Boys
2011 · Self
movieMiller's Tale
2011 · Self
movieGodard Made in USA
2010 · Self
movieThe Exorcist Locations: Georgetown Then and Now
2010 · Self
movieRaising Hell: Filming the Exorcist
2010 · Self
Fasten Your Seatbelt: The Thrilling Art of Alfred Hitchcock
movieFasten Your Seatbelt: The Thrilling Art of Alfred Hitchcock
2009 · Self
movieThe Master's Touch: Hitchcock's Signature Style
2009 · Self
movieNorth by Northwest: One for the Ages
2009 · Self
movieVictor Fleming: Master Craftsman
2009 · Self
movieAnatomy of a Chase
2009 · Self
moviePure Cinema: Through the Eyes of Hitchcock
2008 · Self
movieBreaking Barriers: The Sound of Hitchcock
2008 · Self
movieIn the Master's Shadow: Hitchcock's Legacy
2008 · Self
movieThe Masterpiece That Almost Wasn't
2008 · Self
movieGreat Bolshy Yarblockos!: Making 'A Clockwork Orange'
2007 · Self
movieThe Visions of Stanley Kubrick
2007 · Self
movieView from the Overlook: Crafting 'The Shining'
2007 · Self
movieVision of a Future Passed: The Prophecy of 2001
2007 · Self
movieStanding on the Shoulders of Kubrick: The Legacy of 2001
2007 · Self
movieThe History of 'Cruising'
2007 · Self
movieExorcising 'Cruising'
2007 · Self
Tatort Oper - Wie Filmemacher Oper machen
movieTatort Oper - Wie Filmemacher Oper machen
2007 · Self
movieThe Painter's Voice
2007 · Director
movieBug
2007 · Director
movieThe Man Who Shot Chinatown: The Life and Work of John A. Alonzo
2007 · Self
movieShadows of Suspense
2006 · Self
movieShadows in the Dark: The Val Lewton Legacy
2005
A Little Solitaire
movieA Little Solitaire
2004 · Self
tvLeçon de Cinéma
2004 · Self
movieCounterfeit World: Making 'To Live and Die in L.A.'
2003 · Self
Filming “The Hunted”
movieFilming “The Hunted”
2003 · Self
Pursuing “The Hunted”
moviePursuing “The Hunted”
2003 · Self
The Cutting Edge
movieThe Cutting Edge
2003 · Self
movieNarc: The Friedkin Connection
2003 · Self
movieA Decade Under the Influence
2003 · Self
movieThe Hunted
2003 · Director
tvThrough the Night with...
2002 · Self
movieMaking the Connection: Untold Stories of The French Connection
2001 · Self
tvCSI: Crime Scene Investigation
2000 · Director
movieRules of Engagement
2000 · Director
movieThe Poughkeepsie Shuffle: Tracing 'The French Connection'
2000 · Self
movieWithout Limits
1998 · TV Director
movieThe Fear of God: 25 Years of The Exorcist
1998 · Self - Director, Thanks
movieBilly Wilder: The Human Comedy
1998 · Self
movie12 Angry Men
1997 · Director
Howard Hawks: American Artist
movieHoward Hawks: American Artist
1997 · Self
movieHollywood Halloween
1997 · Self
movieJade
1995 · Director
movieJailbreakers
1994 · Director
tvRebel Highway
1994 · Director
movieBlue Chips
1994 · Director
movieFear in the Dark
1991 · Self
movieThe Guardian
1990 · Director, Screenplay
tvThe Simpsons
1989 · Dr. Kenneth Humphries (voice)
tvTales from the Crypt
1989 · Director
movieC.A.T. Squad: Python Wolf
1988 · Director, Story, Executive Producer
movieRampage
1987 · Director, Writer, Producer
movieC.A.T. Squad
1986 · Executive Producer, Director
moviePutting It Together: The Making of the Broadway Album
1986 · Self, Director
movieTo Live and Die in L.A.
1985 · Director, Screenplay
tvThe Twilight Zone
1985 · Director
movieDeal of the Century
1983 · Director
movieCruising
1980 · Writer, Director
movieThe Brink's Job
1978 · Director
movieSorcerer
1977 · Director, Screenplay, Producer
movieConversation with Fritz Lang
1975 · Self, Director
Oscars, Actors and The Exorcist
movieOscars, Actors and The Exorcist
1974 · Self
movieThe Exorcist
1973 · Director
moviePaper Moon
1973 · Executive Producer
movieThe French Connection
1971 · Director
movieThe Boys in the Band
1970 · Director
movieThe Night They Raided Minsky's
1968 · Director
movieThe Birthday Party
1968 · Director
movieGood Times
1967 · Director, Screenplay
The Pickle Brothers
movieThe Pickle Brothers
1967 · Director
movieMuggins
1967 · Producer
movieThe Thin Blue Line
1966 · Producer, Director, Story
moviePro Football: Mayhem on a Sunday Afternoon
1965 · Director
movieThe Bold Men
1965 · Director
tvThe Alfred Hitchcock Hour
1962 · Director
movieThe People vs. Paul Crump
1962 · Director, Producer