Decade-Defining Directors: The 2000s

Finally, here is a curated list of several prominent and/or prolific filmmakers who've had a major impact on film throughout the 2000s, for better or worse.

Paul Thomas Anderson

Punch-Drunk Love (2002) / There Will Be Blood (2007)

Wes Anderson

The Royal Tenenbaums (2001) / The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou (2004) / The Darjeeling Limited (2007) / Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)

Michael Bay 

Pearl Harbor (2001) / Bad Boys II (2003) / The Island (2005) / Transformers (2007) / Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009) 

Brad Bird 

The Incredibles (2004) / Ratatouille (2007)

Danny Boyle 

The Beach (2000) / 28 Days Later (2002) / Millions (2004) / Sunshine (2007) / Slumdog Millionaire (2008) 

Joel Coen & Ethan Coen 

O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000) / The Man Who Wasn't There (2001) / Intolerable Cruelty (2003) / The Ladykillers (2004) / No Country For Old Men (2007) / Burn After Reading (2008) / A Serious Man (2009) 

Pete Docter

Monsters, Inc. (2001) / Up (2009) 

Clint Eastwood 

Space Cowboys (2000) / Blood Work (2002) / Mystic River (2003) / Million Dollar Baby (2004) / Flags of Our Fathers (2006) / Letters From Iwo Jima (2006) / Changeling (2008) / Gran Torino (2008) / Invictus (2009) 

Paul Greengrass 

Bloody Sunday (2002) / The Bourne Supremacy (2004) / United 93 (2006) / The Bourne Ultimatum (2007) 

Ron Howard

Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000) / A Beautiful Mind (2001) / The Missing (2003) / Cinderella Man (2005) / The DaVinci Code (2006) / Frost/Nixon (2008) / Angels and Demons (2009) 

Peter Jackson

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) / The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) / The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) / King Kong (2005) / The Lovely Bones (2009) 

Spike Jones

Adaptation. (2002) / Where the Wild Things Are (2009)

Hayao Miyazaki

Spirited Away (2001) / Howl's Moving Castle (2004) / Ponyo (2008) 

Christopher Nolan 

Memento (2000) / Insomnia (2002) / Batman Begins (2005) / The Prestige (2006) / The Dark Knight (2008)

Ridley Scott 

Gladiator (2000) / Hannibal (2001) / Black Hawk Down (2001) / Matchstick Men (2003) / Kingdom of Heaven (2005) / A Good Year (2006) / American Gangster (2007) / Body of Lies (2008) 

Steven Spielberg

A.I.: Artificial Intelligence (2001) / Minority Report (2002) / Catch Me If You Can (2002) / The Terminal (2004) / War of the Worlds (2005) / Munich (2005) / Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008) 

Andrew Stanton

Finding Nemo (2003) / WALL*E (2008)

Guillermo del Toro 

The Devil's Backbone (2001) / Blade II (2002) / Hellboy (2004) / Pan's Labyrinth (2006) / Hellboy II: The Golden Army (2008)

Edgar Wright

Shaun of the Dead (2004) / Hot Fuzz (2007) 

Decade-Defining Performers: The 2000s

Some film actors are commended for a single performance they gave in one decade. Others are celebrated for an incredible body of work they gave in the same duration. Here is a curated list of such performers from the 2000s. 

George Clooney

Oceans Eleven (2001) / Good Night, and Good Luck (2005) / Syriana (2005) / Michael Clayton (2007) / Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009) / Up In the Air (2009)

Johnny Depp 

Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003) / Finding Neverland (2004) / Tim Burton's Corpse Bride (2005) / Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007) 

Leonardo DiCaprio

Gangs of New York (2002) / Catch Me If You Can (2002) / The Aviator (2004) / The Departed (2006) / Blood Diamond (2008) 

Robert Downey, Jr. 

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005) / Charlie Bartlett (2007) / Iron Man (2008) / Tropic Thunder (2008) / The Soloist (2009) 

Philip Seymour Hoffman

Punch-Drunk Love (2002) / Capote (2005) / The Savages (2007) / Synechdoce, New York (2008) 

Heath Ledger

A Knight's Tale (2001) / Brokeback Mountain (2005) / I'm Not There (2007) / The Dark Knight (2008) 

Bill Murray

The Royal Tenenbaums (2001) / Lost In Translation (2003) / The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou (2004) / Broken Flowers (2005) / The Darjeeling Limited (2007) / Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009) 

Brad Pitt

Oceans Eleven (2001) / Troy (2004) / Burn After Reading (2008) / The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008) / Inglorious Basterds (2009) 

Kate Winslet

Iris (2001) / Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) / Little Children (2006) / The Reader (2008) / Revolutionary Road (2008) 

Decade-Defining Performances: The 2000s

Since we're already more than two decades into the 21st Century, I thought I'd share several screen performances that really stuck out to me, starting with the 2000s.

WRITER'S NOTE: Both live-action and voice performances will be included.  

Nicolas Cage

Adaptation. (2002) 

Jim Carrey

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) 

Keisha Castle-Hughes

Whale Rider (2003) 

Marion Cottilard

La Vie en Rose (2007) 

Russell Crowe

Gladiator (2000) 

Daniel Day-Lewis

There Will Be Blood (2007) 

Ellen DeGeneres

Finding Nemo (2003) 

Johnny Depp 

Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003)

Jamie Foxx

Ray (2004)

*other standout performances: Collateral (2004) 

Philip Seymour Hoffman

Capote (2005)

Heath Ledger 

The Dark Knight (2008)

Mo'nique

Precious (2009)

Catalina Sandino Moreno

Maria Full of Grace (2004)

Eddie Murphy

Shrek (2001)

Bill Murray

Lost In Translation (2003)

Mike Myers

Shrek (2001)

Jack Nicholson

About Schmidt (2002)

Patton Oswald

Ratatouille (2007)

Zoe Saldana

Avatar (2009)

Adam Sandler

Punch-Drunk Love (2002)

Andy Serkis

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)

Gabourey Sidibe

Precious (2009)

Sylvester Stallone 

Rocky Balboa (2006) 

Christoph Waltz 

Inglorious Basterds (2009)

Michelle Williams

Wendy & Lucy (2008)

Kate Winslet

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)