{"id":690094,"date":"2026-07-13T22:48:10","date_gmt":"2026-07-13T22:48:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/690094\/"},"modified":"2026-07-13T22:48:10","modified_gmt":"2026-07-13T22:48:10","slug":"the-extraordinary-director-arnold-schwarzenegger-called-the-greatest-ever","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/690094\/","title":{"rendered":"The “extraordinary” director Arnold Schwarzenegger called the greatest ever"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Arnold<\/p>\n

Credit: Far Out \/ Gage Skidmore<\/p>\n

Mon 13 July 2026 20:15, UK <\/p>\n

One of the biggest differences between Arnold Schwarzenegger<\/a> and the rest of his era\u2019s action stars, and potentially the most important, was the calibre of director that he worked with.<\/p>\n

You\u2019d never catch Steven Seagal, Chuck Norris, Jean-Claude Van Damme, or Dolph Lundgren working with a bona fide auteur, partly because those bona fide auteurs wouldn\u2019t lower themselves to that level, but the \u2018Austrian Oak\u2019 was such a powerful influence that he could convince them otherwise.<\/p>\n

His main rival, Sylvester Stallone, hasn\u2019t worked with any filmmaker more frequently<\/a> in his career than Sylvester Stallone, but apart from the occasional exception, like a James Mangold, a Ryan Coogler, or a James Gunn, Sly hasn\u2019t exactly been known for collaborating with top-tier behind-the-camera talent.<\/p>\n

You could state a case for Bruce Willis, though, who counts Quentin Tarantino, M Night Shyamalan, Wes Anderson, Terry Gilliam, and Luc Besson among his former cohorts, which makes him about the only gun-toting icon of 1980s and 1990s action cinema who can hold a candle to Schwarzenegger.<\/p>\n

Of course, he wasn\u2019t popping up in low-budget independent films<\/a>, but with multiple James Cameron pictures, not to mention his films with peak-era John McTiernan, Ivan Reitman, Paul Verhoeven, Walter Hill, and John Milius, the former California governor\u2019s track record holds up against his closest rivals and betters almost all of them.<\/p>\n

As a self-confessed and massive fan of ET the Extra-Terrestrial and Unforgiven, both of which were helmed by legendary directors, in Steven Spielberg and Clint Eastwood, respectively, Schwarzenegger knows a well-made feature from a filmmaker at the top of their game when he sees one.<\/p>\n

However, it shouldn\u2019t come as a surprise that he considers the mastermind behind his single favourite movie of all time<\/a> as the single greatest director of all time. That, and the fact they\u2019ve been friends for over 40 years and counting, with Cameron the only person worthy of taking Arnie\u2019s top spot.<\/p>\n

Further reading: Cutting Room Floor<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s an extraordinary writer and director,\u201d he declared. \u201cProbably the best there\u2019s ever been in the world.\u201d Is Cameron an extraordinary writer and director? As a writer, no, he\u2019s nowhere near it. As a director, you can\u2019t leave him out of the conversation, based entirely on what he\u2019s achieved.<\/p>\n

He may not be remembered as a seminal auteur on the same level as the Alfred Hitchcocks, David Leans, Akira Kurosawas, and Stanley Kubricks of the world, but thanks to his constant, boundary-pushing, and game-changing technological advancements, the Terminator and Avatar creator is unquestionably one of the most important, impactful, and influential directors<\/a> in history, even if he\u2019s not the best.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

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