Warner Bros. Pictures is an American film studio and distribution arm of the Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group division of Warner Bros., both of which are owned by Warner Bros. Discovery as part of its Streaming & Studios division. It is headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California. Animated films produced by Warner Bros. Pictures Animation are also released under the studio banner.[3]
The studio was founded on April 4, 1923, by the brothers Harry Warner, Albert Warner, Sam Warner, and Jack L. Warner. In addition to producing its own films, the studio handles filmmaking operations, theatrical distribution, marketing and promotion for films produced and released by other Warner Bros. labels. These labels include Warner Bros. Pictures Animation, New Line Cinema and Castle Rock Entertainment, as well as various third-party producers.
Warner Bros. Pictures is currently one of four live-action film studios within the Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group, the others being New Line Cinema, Castle Rock Entertainment, and Spyglass Media Group (with a minority stake). The most commercially successful film franchises from Warner Bros. include Harry Potter, DC Universe (formerly DC Extended Universe), Batman, The Lord of the Rings, and Monsterverse; Barbie is the studio's highest-grossing film worldwide with $1.4 billion in revenue.
History
[edit]
Further information: Warner Bros. § History
The studio's predecessor (and modern Warner Bros. Entertainment as a whole) was founded in 1910 as the Warner Features Company in New Castle, Pennsylvania, by filmmaker Sam Warner and his business partners and brothers, Harry, Albert, and Jack.[4] They produced their first film, the Peril of the Plains[5] in 1912, which Sam directed for the St. Louis Motion Picture Company. In 1915, Sam and Jack moved to California to establish a production studio;[6] on July 8 of that year, Albert and Harry set up the New York–based Warner Brothers Distributing Corporation to release the films.[7][8][9] In 1918, during World War I, the four Warner brothers produced an adaptation of the book My Four Years in Germany by James W. Gerard as their first full-scale picture; the choice of subject was bold given the sensitivity of the content and the war.[10] The war film was a box office hit, and it helped the brothers to establish themselves as a prestige studio.[11]
On April 4, 1923, Warner Bros. Pictures, Inc. was officially established, as the brothers focussed entirely on the motion picture industry.[12] In 1927, Warner Bros. Pictures revolutionized the film industry by releasing its first sound film (or "talkie"), The Jazz Singer, starring Al Jolson. Studio co-founder Sam Warner died before the film's premiere, however.[13] When the company diversified during later years, it was eventually rebranded with the current umbrella name; nevertheless Warner Bros. Pictures continued to be used as the name of the company's film-production arm.
The studio has released twenty-five films that have been nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture: Disraeli (1929), I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang (1932), 42nd Street (1933), Here Comes the Navy (1934), A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935), Anthony Adverse (1936), The Life of Emile Zola (1937), The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938), Four Daughters (1938), Jezebel (1938), and Dark Victory (1939), as well as later nominees.
In the aftermath of the 1948 antitrust suit, uncertain times led Warner Bros. to sell most of its pre-1950[14][15][16] films and cartoons to Associated Artists Productions (a.a.p.) in 1956. In addition, a.a.p. also obtained the Fleischer Studios and Famous Studios Popeye cartoons, originally from Paramount Pictures. Two years later, a.a.p. was sold to United Artists (UA), which owned the company until 1981, when Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) acquired UA.[17][18]
In November 1966, Jack L. Warner acknowledged advancing age and changing times, selling 32% of control of the studio and music business to Seven Arts Productions for $32 million.[19] (Seven Arts Productions was run by Canadian investors Elliot and Kenneth Hyman.) Eventually the company, including the studio, was renamed Warner Bros.-Seven Arts on July 14, 1967.[20]
In 1982, during their independent years, Turner Broadcasting System acquired Brut Productions; this was the film production arm of the France-based, personal-care company Faberge Inc., which was struggling at the time.[21]
In 1986, Turner Broadcasting System acquired MGM. Finding itself in debt, Turner kept the pre-May 1986 MGM film and television libraries and a small portion of the UA library, while spinning off the rest of MGM.[22] (The properties retained by Turner included the a.a.p. library and North American rights to the RKO Radio Pictures library.)
In 1989, Warner Communications acquired Lorimar-Telepictures Corporation and merged with Time Inc. to form Time Warner (now known as Warner Bros. Discovery).[23][24] Lorimar's catalogue included the post-1974 library of Rankin/Bass Productions, as well as the post-1947 library of Monogram Pictures/Allied Artists Pictures Corporation.
In 1991, Turner Broadcasting System acquired animation studio Hanna-Barbera and the Ruby-Spears library from Great American Broadcasting. Years later, Turner Broadcasting System also acquired Castle Rock Entertainment on December 22, 1993,[25][26] and New Line Cinema on January 28, 1994.[27][28] On October 10, 1996, Time Warner Entertainment acquired Turner Broadcasting System, thus bringing Warner Bros.'s pre-1950 library home. In addition, Warner Bros. owns only Castle Rock Entertainment's post-1994 library.
Warner Bros. Pictures
[edit]
Warner Bros. Pictures logo and wordmark used from 1993 to 2020. This logo was used as the on-screen logo of the studio from 1984 to 2022.
The studio division was incorporated as Warner Bros. Pictures on March 3, 2003, to diversify film subjects and expand audiences for their film releases.[29] The company became part of the Warner Bros. Pictures Group, which was established in 2008, and Jeff Robinov was appointed the first president of the company.[30] In 2017, longtime New Line executive Toby Emmerich joined as president.[31] In January 2018, he was promoted to chairman.[32][33] On October 23, 2018, it was announced that Lynne Frank, President of Warner Bros. Pictures Group, would be leaving the company to pursue new opportunities.[34] In June 2019, Warner Bros. Pictures signed an agreement with SF Studios to have their films distributed in Sweden, Denmark, Norway, and Finland.[35]
Warner Bros. Pictures logo used from 2019 to 2023. The on-screen logo ran from August 2020 to August 2023. The print logo remained in use on film posters from 2019 to 2024.
Like most other film distributors, Warner Bros. Pictures struggled with releasing films during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic because of restrictions on opening theaters. After postponing several films planned for 2020 into 2021, Warner Bros. announced in December 2020 that they would take an unusual approach: planning their full slate of 2021 films for both theatrical release and simultaneous one-month availability on the HBO Max streaming service. This approach was similar to the studio's release of Wonder Woman 1984 that month.
After one month, these films would still be shown in theaters and would later become available via home media on typical release schedules.[36] The inclusion of streaming, dubbed "Project Popcorn", was criticized by production companies, directors, and actors. The criticism arose because Warner Bros. Pictures announced the streaming plan without informing these groups in advance, and because of concerns about lower payouts due to streaming options.[37] These criticisms led Warner Bros. Pictures to alter compensation rates for the affected films by January 2021, in order to provide larger payouts to their casts and crews.[38]
In March 2021, Warner Bros. announced that they would discontinue the model of same-day HBO Max and theatrical release in 2022; instead, they would use a 45-day theatrical exclusivity window.[39] This change is part of an agreement the studio reached with Cineworld (who operates Regal Cinemas).[40]
Alternate version of the 2023 Warner Bros. Pictures logo without the banner, used as the on-screen variant in only a few films. Although the late-2023 on-screen logo has been used since December 6, 2023, this logo remains in use for corporate and small-scale purposes. It is also the official current logo of Warner Bros. Pictures' parent company, Warner Bros. Entertainment and its parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery.[41]
Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) is the company formerly known as Discovery, Inc. before its acquisition of WarnerMedia in April 2022. On June 1, 2022, WBD announced several changes:
Toby Emmerich would step down as head of the Warner Bros. Pictures Group after a transition period.
The company would be divided into three units: Warner Bros. Pictures/New Line Cinema, DC Films, and Warner Animation Group.
Former MGM executives Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy would serve as co-chairs of Warner Bros. Pictures. They would also temporarily oversee the other two divisions until new executives were hired.
Emmerich would start his own production company; he would also enter into a five-year distribution and funding agreement with Warner Bros. Pictures.[42][43]
On June 8, COO Carolyn Blackwood announced that she was stepping down as well.[44]
Steve Spira returned as president of business affairs for Warner Bros. in June 2022; De Luca and Abdy took over from Emmerich in July 2022. Former president Alan Horn was appointed as a consultant for WBD President David Zaslav, working with De Luca and Abdy.[45]
In August 2022, Warner Bros. Pictures entered into a multi-year contract to distribute MGM films outside the United States, including on home entertainment. This contract included joint participation by both companies in marketing, advertising, publicity, film distribution, and relationship with exhibitors for future MGM titles.[46] That same month, the studio's plans for film distribution were revised, with increased reliance on theatrical releases rather than releases on HBO Max only.[47]
Walter Hamada, the president of DC Films, stepped down on October 19, 2022.[48] President of Production & Development Courtenay Valenti departed on October 28 and was replaced by Jesse Ehrman.[49][50] On June 9, 2023, the Warner Bros. Pictures Group was renamed as the Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group.[51]
Film library
[edit]
Main article: Lists of Warner Bros. films
Gate 4, Warner Bros. Studios, looking south towards the water tower
Mergers and acquisitions have helped Warner Bros. to accumulate a diverse collection of films, cartoons and television programs. As of 2022, Warner Bros. owned more than 145,000 hours of programming, including 12,500 feature films and 2,400 television programs comprising more than 150,000 individual episodes.[52]
Shared universes
[edit]
Warner Bros. owns several shared universes. Some of these are based on books and comics, including some of the highest grossing intellectual properties in the movie industry.
IP
No. Films
Notes
DC Extended Universe
15
Movies based on DC Comics. DCEU was Warner Bros.'s first iteration of a shared universe.
DC Universe
1
Soft-reboot of the DC Extended Universe, led by James Gunn and Peter Safran. First movie, was released in 2025.
Wizarding World
11
Film rights sold by J. K. Rowling for 2 million $ and a net % of the profits. This shared universe became the 4th highest grossing IP in movie history. This universe includes 8 movies based on the Harry Potter books and 3 movies based on Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.
The Conjuring Universe
8
Dramatized horror movies based on real-life cases of paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren. This shared universe includes movies like Annabelle, The Nun and The Curse of La Llorona.
Monsterverse
5
Shared Universe based on monster movie characters like Godzilla and King Kong, in addition to other kaiju characters created by Toho, including Mothra, Rodan and King Ghidorah. Made in co-production with Legendary Entertainment.
Middle-earth
6
Movie series based on the books written by J. R. R. Tolkien, directed by Peter Jackson.
The Lego Movie
4
Warner Bros owned the rights to Lego films up until the end of 2019. More Lego movies were planned, but were cancelled after Universal Pictures bought the Lego film rights. Cancelled sequels include a sequel to The Lego Batman Movie, called Lego Superfriends.[53][54]
Clint Eastwood's relationship with Warner Bros. began in 1971, and he has directed several of the studios best known films, including Unforgiven (1992) and Million Dollar Baby (2004).[55]
Christopher Nolan wrote and directed several of Warner Bros.'s most profitable films in the early 21st century. Like Eastwood, Nolan has had a long creative partnership with the studio.[56]
Film series
[edit]
Title
Release date
No. Films
Notes
Gold Diggers
1923–51
7
Looney Tunes/Merrie Melodies
1930–present
8
1030+ theatrical shorts
Penrod and Sam
1931–38
2
Perry Mason
1934–37
6
Philo Vance
1934–40
5
Torchy Blane
1937–39
9
Four Daughters
1938–41
4
Nancy Drew
1938–2019
6
Secret Service
1939–40
4
A Star Is Born
1954–2018
3
Acquired from Selznick International Pictures; co-production with Transcona Enterprises (1954), First Artists, Barwood Films (both 1976), Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Live Nation Productions, Gerber Pictures, Joint Effort and Gerber Pictures (all 2018)
Ocean's
1960–present
5
co-production with Village Roadshow Pictures (2001–present)
Dirty Harry
1971–88
The Exorcist
1973–2005
4
co-production with Morgan Creek (3–4)
Oh, God!
1977–84
3
Every Which Way but Loose
1978–80
2
Superman
1978–2006
5
co-production with Legendary Pictures (2006); Except for Supergirl, which was distributed by Tri-Star Pictures
Mad Max
1979–present
5
co-production with Village Roadshow Pictures
Poseidon
1979–2006
2
Friday the 13th
1980–2009
co-production with Paramount Pictures and New Line Cinema
The Shining
1980–2019
Arthur
1981–2011
3
Blade Runner
1982–2017
2
co-production with Alcon Entertainment and Columbia Pictures (2017)
National Lampoon's Vacation
1983–2015
5
Gremlins
1984–90
2
co-production with Amblin Entertainment
Police Academy
1984–94
7
Sesame Street
1985–present
2
co-production with Sesame Workshop
The Color Purple
1985–2023
co-production with Amblin Entertainment (1984–2023), The Guber-Peters Company (1984), OW Films, SGS Pictures, Quincy Jones Productions and Domain Entertainment (all 2023)
Lethal Weapon
1987–98
4
The Lost Boys
1987–2010
3
Beetlejuice
1988–present
2
Batman
1989–97
4
co-production with Polygram Pictures (1989–95)
Pure Country
1992–2017
3
Under Siege
1992–95
2
co-production with Regency Enterprises
Unforgiven
1992–2013
Grumpy Old Men
1993–95
The Fugitive
1993–98
Free Willy
1993–2010
4
co-production with Regency Enterprises
Major League
1994–98
2
distribution only; produced by Morgan Creek
Ace Ventura
1994–2009
3
Eraser
1996–2022
2
Twister
1996–2024
co-production with Universal Pictures, Amblin Entertainment (both 1996–2024), The Kennedy/Marshall Company and Domain Entertainment (both 2024)
The Dukes of Hazzard
1997–2007
4
co-production with Kudzu Productions (both 1997–2000) and Gerber Pictures (both 2005–2007)
The Matrix
1999–present
co-production with Village Roadshow Pictures
Analyze
1999–2002
2
co-production with Village Roadshow Pictures and TriBeCa Productions
Pokémon
1999–2019
4
US distribution only; co-production with The Pokémon Company
Deep Blue Sea
1999–2020
3
co-production with Village Roadshow Pictures
The Whole Yards
2000–04
2
distribution only; co-production with Morgan Creek (2000) and Franchise Pictures
Miss Congeniality
2000–05
co-production with Castle Rock Entertainment and Village Roadshow Pictures
Tom and Jerry
2001–present
16
co-production with Turner Entertainment
Cats & Dogs
2001–20
3
co-production with Village Roadshow Pictures (1–2)
Wizarding World
2001–present
11
Scooby-Doo
2002–present
6
Kangaroo Jack
2003–04
2
co-production with Jerry Bruckheimer Films
Terminator
2003–09
US distribution only; co-production with Columbia Pictures
A Cinderella Story
2004–present
6
Laura's Star
2004–21
co-production with Rothkirch Cartoon-Film
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants
2005–08
2
co-production with Alloy Entertainment
The Dark Knight trilogy
2005–12
3
co-production with Legendary Pictures
Willy Wonka
2005–present
2
co-production with Village Roadshow Pictures
Happy Feet
2006–11
300
2006–present
co-production with Legendary Pictures
The Hangover
2009–13
3
Final Destination
2009–present
2
co-production with New Line Cinema and Practical Pictures
Sherlock Holmes
co-production with Village Roadshow Pictures
Watchmen
2009–24
3
US distribution only; co-production with Paramount Pictures, DC Films (both 2009–24) and Legendary Pictures (2009)
Top Cat
2011–15
2
International distribution only; co-production with Anima Estudios, Illusion Studios (2011), Discreet Art Productions and Prana Studios (both 2015)
Dolphin Tale
2011–14
co-production with Alcon Entertainment
The Hobbit
2012–14
3
co-production with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, New Line Cinema and WingNut Films; Co-owned with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Magic Mike
2012–23
DC Extended Universe
2013–23
15
co-production with DC Entertainment (2013–16), DC Films (2016–23) and RatPac Entertainment (2016–17)
The Conjuring Universe
2013–present
7
co-production with Atomic Monster, The Safran Company and New Line Cinema
The Lego Movie
2014–19
4
co-production with Warner Bros. Pictures Animation, Village Roadshow Pictures (2014) and Lego System A/S
Monsterverse
2014–present
5
co-production with Legendary Pictures
Creed
2015–present
3
co-production with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and New Line Cinema (1–2)
The Meg
2018–present
2
It
2017–19
distribution only; produced by New Line Cinema
Detective Pikachu
2019–present
1
co-production with Legendary Pictures, The Pokémon Company and Toho
Joker
2019–24
2
co-production with Village Roadshow Pictures, DC Films (1) Bron Creative and Joint Effort.
Dune
2021–present
co-production with Legendary Pictures
The Batman
2022–present
1
distribution only; produced by DC Films (1), 6th & Idaho and Dylan Clark productions and DC Studios.
A Minecraft Movie
2025–present
co-production with Legendary Pictures, Mojang studios, Vertigo Entertainment and On the Roam.
DC Universe
distribution only; produced by DC Studios
Highest-grossing films
[edit]
† Indicates films currently in theatrical release in the week commencing 25 July 2025.
^"Warner, Movie Magnate, Dies: Sam Warner, Former Youngstown Man, Rose from Obscurity to Leader in Field". The Youngstown Daily Vindicator. October 5, 1927.
^Schickel, Richard (2008). You must remember this : the Warner Bros. story. George Perry. Philadelphia, Pa.: Running Press. ISBN 978-0-7624-3418-3. OCLC 191926490.
^WB retained a pair of features from 1949 that they merely distributed, and all short subjects released on or after September 1, 1948; in addition to all cartoons released in August 1948
Tony Bill, Julia Phillips and Michael Phillips (1973)
Francis Ford Coppola, Gray Frederickson and Fred Roos (1974)
Michael Douglas and Saul Zaentz (1975)
1976–2000
Robert Chartoff and Irwin Winkler (1976)
Charles H. Joffe (1977)
Michael Cimino, Michael Deeley, John Peverall and Barry Spikings (1978)
Stanley R. Jaffe (1979)
Ronald L. Schwary (1980)
David Puttnam (1981)
Richard Attenborough (1982)
James L. Brooks (1983)
Saul Zaentz (1984)
Sydney Pollack (1985)
Arnold Kopelson (1986)
Jeremy Thomas (1987)
Mark Johnson (1988)
Lili Fini Zanuck and Richard D. Zanuck (1989)
Kevin Costner and Jim Wilson (1990)
Ron Bozman, Edward Saxon and Kenneth Utt (1991)
Clint Eastwood (1992)
Branko Lustig, Gerald R. Molen and Steven Spielberg (1993)
Wendy Finerman, Steve Starkey and Steve Tisch (1994)
Bruce Davey, Mel Gibson and Alan Ladd Jr. (1995)
Saul Zaentz (1996)
James Cameron and Jon Landau (1997)
Donna Gigliotti, Marc Norman, David Parfitt, Harvey Weinstein and Edward Zwick (1998)
Bruce Cohen and Dan Jinks (1999)
David Franzoni, Branko Lustig and Douglas Wick (2000)
2001–present
Brian Grazer and Ron Howard (2001)
Martin Richards (2002)
Peter Jackson, Barrie M. Osborne and Fran Walsh (2003)
Clint Eastwood, Tom Rosenberg and Albert S. Ruddy (2004)
Paul Haggis and Cathy Schulman (2005)
Graham King (2006)
Ethan Coen, Joel Coen and Scott Rudin (2007)
Christian Colson (2008)
Kathryn Bigelow, Mark Boal, Nicolas Chartier and Greg Shapiro (2009)
Iain Canning, Emile Sherman and Gareth Unwin (2010)
Thomas Langmann (2011)
Ben Affleck, George Clooney and Grant Heslov (2012)
Dede Gardner, Anthony Katagas, Jeremy Kleiner, Steve McQueen and Brad Pitt (2013)
Alejandro G. Iñárritu, John Lesher and James W. Skotchdopole (2014)
Blye Pagon Faust, Steve Golin, Nicole Rocklin and Michael Sugar (2015)
Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner and Adele Romanski (2016)
J. Miles Dale and Guillermo del Toro (2017)
Jim Burke, Brian Currie, Peter Farrelly, Nick Vallelonga and Charles B. Wessler (2018)
Bong Joon-ho and Kwak Sin-ae (2019)
Mollye Asher, Dan Janvey, Frances McDormand, Peter Spears and Chloé Zhao (2020)
Fabrice Gianfermi, Philippe Rousselet, Patrick Wachsberger (2021)
Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert and Jonathan Wang (2022)
Emma Thomas, Charles Roven, and Christopher Nolan (2023)
Alex Coco, Samantha Quan, and Sean Baker (2024)
v
t
e
Academy Honorary Award
1928–1950
Warner Bros. / Charlie Chaplin (1928)
Walt Disney (1932)
Shirley Temple (1934)
D. W. Griffith (1935)
The March of Time / W. Howard Greene and Harold Rosson (1936)
Edgar Bergen / W. Howard Greene / Museum of Modern Art Film Library / Mack Sennett (1937)
J. Arthur Ball / Walt Disney / Deanna Durbin and Mickey Rooney / Gordon Jennings, Jan Domela, Devereaux Jennings, Irmin Roberts, Art Smith, Farciot Edouart, Loyal Griggs, Loren L. Ryder, Harry D. Mills, Louis Mesenkop, Walter Oberst / Oliver T. Marsh and Allen Davey / Harry Warner (1938)
Douglas Fairbanks / Judy Garland / William Cameron Menzies / Motion Picture Relief Fund (Jean Hersholt, Ralph Morgan, Ralph Block, Conrad Nagel) / Technicolor SA (1939)
Bob Hope / Nathan Levinson (1940)
Walt Disney, William Garity, John N. A. Hawkins, and the RCA Manufacturing Company / Leopold Stokowski and his associates / Rey Scott / British Ministry of Information (1941)
Charles Boyer / Noël Coward / Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (1942)
George Pal (1943)
Bob Hope / Margaret O'Brien (1944)
Republic Studio, Daniel J. Bloomberg, and the Republic Studio Sound Department / Walter Wanger / The House I Live In / Peggy Ann Garner (1945)
Harold Russell / Laurence Olivier / Ernst Lubitsch / Claude Jarman Jr. (1946)
James Baskett / Thomas Armat, William Nicholas Selig, Albert E. Smith, and George Kirke Spoor / Bill and Coo / Shoeshine (1947)
Walter Wanger / Monsieur Vincent / Sid Grauman / Adolph Zukor (1948)
Jean Hersholt / Fred Astaire / Cecil B. DeMille / The Bicycle Thief (1949)
Louis B. Mayer / George Murphy / The Walls of Malapaga (1950)
1951–1975
Gene Kelly / Rashomon (1951)
Merian C. Cooper / Bob Hope / Harold Lloyd / George Mitchell / Joseph M. Schenck / Forbidden Games (1952)
20th Century-Fox Film Corporation / Bell & Howell Company / Joseph Breen / Pete Smith (1953)
Bausch & Lomb Optical Company / Danny Kaye / Kemp Niver / Greta Garbo / Jon Whiteley / Vincent Winter / Gate of Hell (1954)
Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto (1955)
Eddie Cantor (1956)
Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers / Gilbert M. "Broncho Billy" Anderson / Charles Brackett / B. B. Kahane (1957)
Maurice Chevalier (1958)
Buster Keaton / Lee de Forest (1959)
Gary Cooper / Stan Laurel / Hayley Mills (1960)
William L. Hendricks / Fred L. Metzler / Jerome Robbins (1961)
William J. Tuttle (1964)
Bob Hope (1965)
Yakima Canutt / Y. Frank Freeman (1966)
Arthur Freed (1967)
John Chambers / Onna White (1968)
Cary Grant (1969)
Lillian Gish / Orson Welles (1970)
Charlie Chaplin (1971)
Charles S. Boren / Edward G. Robinson (1972)
Henri Langlois / Groucho Marx (1973)
Howard Hawks / Jean Renoir (1974)
Mary Pickford (1975)
1976–2000
Margaret Booth (1977)
Walter Lantz / Laurence Olivier / King Vidor / Museum of Modern Art Department of Film (1978)
Hal Elias / Alec Guinness (1979)
Henry Fonda (1980)
Barbara Stanwyck (1981)
Mickey Rooney (1982)
Hal Roach (1983)
James Stewart / National Endowment for the Arts (1984)
Paul Newman / Alex North (1985)
Ralph Bellamy (1986)
Eastman Kodak Company / National Film Board of Canada (1988)
Akira Kurosawa (1989)
Sophia Loren / Myrna Loy (1990)
Satyajit Ray (1991)
Federico Fellini (1992)
Deborah Kerr (1993)
Michelangelo Antonioni (1994)
Kirk Douglas / Chuck Jones (1995)
Michael Kidd (1996)
Stanley Donen (1997)
Elia Kazan (1998)
Andrzej Wajda (1999)
Jack Cardiff / Ernest Lehman (2000)
2001–present
Sidney Poitier / Robert Redford (2001)
Peter O'Toole (2002)
Blake Edwards (2003)
Sidney Lumet (2004)
Robert Altman (2005)
Ennio Morricone (2006)
Robert F. Boyle (2007)
Lauren Bacall / Roger Corman / Gordon Willis (2009)
Kevin Brownlow / Jean-Luc Godard / Eli Wallach (2010)
James Earl Jones / Dick Smith (2011)
D. A. Pennebaker / Hal Needham / George Stevens Jr. (2012)
Angela Lansbury / Steve Martin / Piero Tosi (2013)
Jean-Claude Carrière / Hayao Miyazaki / Maureen O'Hara (2014)
Spike Lee / Gena Rowlands (2015)
Jackie Chan / Lynn Stalmaster / Anne V. Coates / Frederick Wiseman (2016)
Charles Burnett / Owen Roizman / Donald Sutherland / Agnès Varda (2017)
Marvin Levy / Lalo Schifrin / Cicely Tyson (2018)
David Lynch / Wes Studi / Lina Wertmüller (2019)
Samuel L. Jackson / Elaine May / Liv Ullmann (2021)
Euzhan Palcy / Diane Warren / Peter Weir (2022)
Angela Bassett / Mel Brooks / Carol Littleton (2023)