A celebrated American film director, producer and screenwriter. He epitomised the group of filmmakers known as the New Hollywood, which included George Lucas, Martin Scorsese, Robert Altman, Woody Allen and William Friedkin, who emerged in the early 1970s with unconventional ideas that challenged contemporary filmmaking.

He co-authored the script for Patton, winning the Academy Award in 1970. His directorial fame escalated with the release of The Godfather in 1972, which went on to win 3 Academy Awards. He followed it with an equally successful sequel The Godfather Part II, which became the first ever sequel to win the Academy Award for Best Picture. His next major directorial venture was Apocalypse Now in 1979, which was as notorious for its lengthy and troubled production as it was critically acclaimed for its vivid and stark depiction of the Vietnam War.

Although some of his ventures in the 1980s and early 1990s were critically lauded, his later work has not met the same level of critical and commercial success as his earlier films.