Director Ron Howard (1954)

Thirteen Lives (2022) is a biographical survival film by director and producer Ron Howard, with a screenplay by William Nicholson. The movie tells the story of the Tham Luang cave rescue, which took place in 2018. On June 23rd of that year, twelve boys from the junior football team “Wild Boars” and their assistant coach Ekkaphon Chanthawong decide to explore the Tham Luang cave after practice. When they fail to show up for a birthday party arranged by their parents, their families head to the caves. To their horror, they discover that the boys are missing and ...

Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018) is an American space Western film that revolves around Han Solo, a character from the Star Wars franchise. It is part of the Star Wars anthology series and is preceded by Rogue One (2016). The story begins on the planet Corellia, where orphans Han and Qi’ra escape a local gang. In order to secure their passage on a transport, they bribe an Imperial officer with stolen coaxium, a type of starship fuel. Unfortunately, Qi’ra is captured before she can board. Determined to rescue her, Han joins the Imperial Navy as a flight cadet and adopts the surname ‘Solo’. After being expelled from the ...

Inferno (2016), an American action mystery thriller film directed by Ron Howard and written by David Koepp, is loosely based on the novel of the same name by Dan Brown. Following his involvement in halting an antimatter threat at the Vatican, Harvard professor Robert Langdon wakes up in a Florence hospital with no recollection of recent events, but haunted by terrifying visions. His attending physician, Dr. Sienna Brooks, explains that his amnesia is a result of being shot in the head. A staff member warns them that police have arrived to question Langdon, but it turns ...

The historical adventure-drama film In the Heart of the Sea (2015), directed and produced by Ron Howard and written by Charles Leavitt, is based on Nathaniel Philbrick’s non-fiction book The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex. This true story follows the sinking of the American whaling ship in 1820, which served as inspiration for Herman Melville’s famous novel Moby-Dick. In 1850, Melville seeks out Thomas Nickerson, the last surviving member of the ...

The biographical sports film Rush (2013) delves into the intense competition between two Formula One drivers during the 1976 motor-racing season. James Hunt, a confident and bold personality, and Niki Lauda, a methodical and precise technical genius, are both exceptional behind the wheel. They first encounter each other as rivals in 1970 at a London Formula Three race where Hunt ultimately secures victory despite both cars spinning out. Lauda secures a loan from Raiffeisen Bank in Austria to join the BRM Formula One team, where he meets teammate Clay Regazzoni for the first time. At the same time, Hesketh Racing, Hunt’s racing team, also enters Formula One. ...

Angels & Demons (2009) is an American mystery thriller film directed by Ron Howard and written by Akiva Goldsman and David Koepp, adapted from Dan Brown’s novel of the same name. Following the sudden death of Pope Pius XVI, the Catholic Church prepares for the papal conclave to elect his successor in Vatican City. During this time, Father Patrick McKenna serves as temporary ruler of the Vatican as Camerlengo. Meanwhile, scientists Father Silvano Bentivoglio and Dr. ...

The mystery thriller film, The Da Vinci Code (2006), was directed by Ron Howard and written by Akiva Goldsman. It is based on Dan Brown’s 2003 novel of the same name. In the story, Jacques Saunière, a curator at the Louvre, is being pursued by an albino Catholic monk named Silas. Silas is determined to find the ‘keystone’ and destroy the Holy Grail. However, Saunière gives him false information before being tragically murdered. The police discover his body in a pose resembling Da Vinci’s Vitruvian ...

Directed by Ron Howard, The Missing (2003) is a gritty American Western. Starring Tommy Lee Jones and Cate Blanchett, the film is adapted from Thomas Eidson’s novel The Last Ride, published in 1996. Set in late 19th-century New Mexico, the story follows Samuel Jones as he seeks to reconcile with his daughter Magdalena ‘Maggie’ Gilkeson, after leaving her and her mother many years ago. However, Maggie refuses to forgive him for causing her ...

How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000) is an American Christmas fantasy comedy film directed by Ron Howard, who also produced with Brian Grazer. It is based on Dr. Seuss’s beloved 1957 children’s book of the same name and was the first to be adapted into a full-length feature film. As Whoville gears up for the holiday season, their plans are threatened by the Grinch, a grumpy green creature living in isolation on Mount Crumpit. One day, six-year-old Cindy Lou Who encounters him at the town’s post office and ...

From the Earth to the Moon (1998) is a docudrama series, co-produced by Ron Howard, Brian Grazer, Tom Hanks and Michael Bostick in 1998 for HBO. It depicts the Apollo program during the 1960s and early 1970s and is based on Andrew Chaikin’s book A Man on the Moon. The special effects are under visual director Ernest D. Farino and are known for their accuracy. The ...

Ransom (1996) is an American action thriller film directed by Ron Howard from a screenplay by Richard Price and Alexander Ignon. While billionaire Tom Mullen and his wife Kate attend a science fair, their son Sean disappears from their sight. He is taken to an apartment by Maris Conner, the Mullens’ caterer, along with brothers Clark and Cubby Barnes, and tech expert Miles Roberts. As it turns out, NYPD Detective Jimmy Shaker, who is dating Maris, is the man behind Sean’s kidnapping. The kidnappers send an email ...

Apollo 13 (1995), a docudrama directed by Ron Howard, follows the journey of astronaut Jim Lovell as he prepares for his next space mission after having orbited the Moon on Apollo 8. Excitement builds as Lovell and his guests gather to watch Neil Armstrong’s historical steps on the Moon from Apollo 11. Lovell shares with his wife Marilyn his desire to one day walk on the lunar surface. However, a twist of events occurs when Lovell’s crew is informed that they will be flying Apollo 13 instead of their initially assigned mission, due to a swap with Alan Shepard’s crew. Alongside Ken Mattingly and Fred ...

The American comedy-drama film, The Paper (1994), directed by Ron Howard, follows Henry Hackett, a dedicated metro editor at The New York Sun. While he loves his job, Henry is tired of the long hours and low pay. He fears becoming like his work-obsessed boss, Bernie White, who neglects his family. When Bernie reveals his prostate cancer diagnosis, he tries to reconcile with his estranged daughter before it’s too late. Facing financial struggles, the paper’s owner enacts unpopular cutbacks under the supervision of Henry’s rival, managing editor Alicia Clark. At home, Henry clashes with his pregnant wife ...

Far and Away (1992) is an American epic Western romantic adventure drama film directed by Ron Howard from a screenplay by Bob Dolman. In Ireland in 1892, tenant farmers worked land they could never own and paid unfairly high rents to their wealthy landlords. Joseph Donnelly dreamed of owning his own land, but after his father’s death, their family home is burned down by their landlord Daniel Christie’s men for unpaid rent. Seeking revenge, Joseph travels to Daniel’s home to kill him but only ends up injured. Nursed back to health by Daniel’s wife Nora ...

Backdraft (1991) is an American action thriller film directed by Ron Howard and written by Gregory Widen. The story follows two brothers in the Chicago Fire Department’s Engine 17 unit. Lt. Stephen ‘Bull’ McCaffrey, the elder brother, is a seasoned firefighter while Brian has previously struggled to live up to his brother’s legacy. After trying his hand at multiple careers, Brian returns to firefighting, although Stephen has reservations about his abilities. In 1971, Brian witnessed the death of their father Captain Dennis McCaffrey during a call, ...

Parenthood (1989) is a hilarious and touching family dramedy, helmed by director Ron Howard who collaborated with screenwriters Lowell Ganz and Babaloo Mandel on the story. Gil Buckman, a salesman from St. Louis, is struggling to juggle his job and his family. He faces a tough situation when he discovers that his oldest son Kevin needs therapy for emotional problems, and that his younger children Taylor and Justin also have their own issues. As he begins to blame himself and question his parenting abilities, Gil’s ...

Gung Ho (1986) is an American comedy film directed by Ron Howard and starring Michael Keaton. In fictional Hadleyville, Pennsylvania, the town’s main source of employment, the local auto plant, has been shut down for nine months. Former foreman Hunt Stevenson travels to Tokyo in hopes of persuading the Assan Motors Corporation to reopen the plant. The Japanese company agrees and upon their arrival in the U.S., implements several changes among the desperate work force. This includes prohibiting unionization, reducing wages, rotating workers throughout different job ...

Splash (1983) is an American romantic fantasy comedy film directed by Ron Howard. In 1964, eight-year-old Allen Bauer and his family are enjoying a boat tour at Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Fascinated by something below the surface, Allen jumps overboard despite not knowing how to swim. He then comes across a young girl who shares an inexplicable connection with him when they hold hands underwater. However, Allen is eventually rescued and separated from the girl. As no one else saw her, he starts to believe it was all just a near-death hallucination. It’s revealed that the girl actually is a mermaid as the boat pulls ...

Night Shift (1982), an American comedy film directed by Ron Howard, tells the story of Charles ‘Chuck’ Lumley. Once a successful stockbroker, he now works as an attendant at a New York City morgue to escape the stress of Wall Street. However, his new role as night-shift supervisor, which was given to him in order to make room for his boss’ nephew Leonard, is not something he is pleased with. Adding to Chuck’s frustration is the exuberance of his co-worker Bill ‘Blaze’ Blazejowski. With inspiration from their neighbor Belinda, a prostitute, Chuck and Bill decide to use Chuck’s ...