In the film community, there is always excitement in the air whenever a movie star ascends to the director's chair for the first time. Audiences can now witness the vision Michael B. Jordan is bringing to the screen with his directorial debut, Creed III, and his authorship of the series. Of course, there are always naysayers, as well. Actors are often dinged with the reputation that they lack the credentials to direct, as they are perceived as nothing more than just pretty faces on screen. Matching the range of audience expectations, actors-turned-directors in their debut bout have experienced various outcomes over the years. Debut features are capable of kickstarting an enduring filmmaking career, convincing the actor to stay in front of the camera for good, or somewhere in between. No matter the outcome, their bid as auteurs is representative of the branding and image-making of the movie star.

RELATED: 7 Best Actor-Turned-Director Debuts of the Last Decade

Clint Eastwood - 'Play Misty for Me' (1971)

Donna Mills and Clint Eastwood in Play Misty for Me
Image Via Universal Pictures

1971 was an impactful year for Clint Eastwood. In addition to the release of Dirty Harry and the launch of an iconic character, he began his directing career with Play Misty for Me, and never looked back, as he went on to make nearly 40 films behind the camera. This psychological thriller starring Eastwood as a radio DJ who is stalked by an obsessive fan (Jessica Walter) is the kind of genre fare that he could have made a killing off of if he leaned into it harder as a director. After years of working on film and television sets, Eastwood felt confident in his abilities to finally control his production. His frequent collaborator and filmmaking mentor, Don Siegel, served as a watchful advisor on this film and even helped out as a supporting character on screen. Play Misty for Me, being so confidently crafted, is the perfect demonstration of Eastwood as the consummate professional and the naturally gifted, once-in-a-lifetime talent who was born to thrive in movies.

Warren Beatty - 'Heaven Can Wait' (1978)

James Mason and Warren Beatty in Heaven Can Wait
Image via Paramount Pictures

On the exterior, Warren Beatty was a playboy who was all style with no substance. In reality, Beatty was heavily collaborative, perhaps forcefully so, with his writers and directors during film production. Unsure of his aptitude to direct solo, he paired himself with the sharp comedic mind of Buck Henry in 1978 to co-direct his feature debut in Heaven Can Wait, a fantasy comedy about a star quarterback who is mistakenly sent to the afterlife and is reincarnated as a millionaire who was just murdered. Beatty showcased his palatable sense of humor and a keen self-awareness of his pretty-boy image in the film. According to Beatty's biography Star, written by Peter Biskind, art director Paul Sylbert stated that as soon as he found his chops as a director, Beatty realized "he didn't need Buck Henry anymore. Warren pushed him into the background and just took over." If he wasn't already, Heaven Can Wait made Beatty sure of himself as a mega-star. From here on, he was very selective with his projects and only participated in films if he possessed some form of creative authorship.

Robert Redford - 'Ordinary People' (1980)

Beth and Conrad sitting outside their home in Ordinary People.
Image via Paramount Pictures

No matinée idol shined brighter than Robert Redford. One of the most handsome and charismatic figures in Hollywood did the unthinkable and stayed exclusively behind the camera for his directorial debut, Ordinary People. Anyone who doubted the star's abilities to take the helm of a poignant and sobering drama about a dysfunctional grieving family was upended by the film's runaway success at the Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director for Redford. In most instances, actors pursue an ambitious project in their debut in order to be taken seriously by the public. Redford's 1980 film, while emotionally striking, is fairly quaint, features a limited amount of athletic filmmaking flourishes, and could disguise itself as a TV movie. Through minimalism, Redford challenged himself with this film and taps into a thoughtful side of himself. This can also be attributed to the casting of Mary Tyler Moore and Judd Hirsch in heartfelt, dramatic roles. Since then, Redford has rarely starred in his directorial bids.

Eddie Murphy - 'Harlem Nights' (1989)

redd Foxx, Eddie murphy and richard pryor
Image Via Paramount

The immense stardom of Eddie Murphy was tested when he decided to take the mantle of director with his critically panned misfire, Harlem Nights. In 1989, Murphy was assured that directing is not for everyone, as he acknowledges when discussing the failure of the film and his unpleasant experience while filming. While it appeared that Murphy would've been too famous and distant to ever cooperate with cast or crew, his co-star and idol Richard Pryor claimed he was quite collaborative. The final product is a bloated mess and Murphy never directed again and has avoided risky and compelling films like Harlem Nights.

Kevin Costner - 'Dances with Wolves' (1990)

Kevin Costner in Dances With Wolves
Image via Orion Pictures

Critics and the filmgoing audience were targeting the media-dubbed "Kevin's Gate," riffing on the notorious flop, Heaven's Gate, from the get-go. People were appalled that Kevin Costner, the star of baseball movies, had the nerve to become an auteur of an epic three-hour western, a genre that was stagnant in 1990. What was expected to be a cinematic disaster for the ages, Dances with Wolves amounted to a smash box office hit that accumulated seven Oscars, including the prized Best Picture and Best Director for Costner. The film, about a Civil War lieutenant who befriends a Native American tribe, certainly feeds into the tropes of White Savior movies, but there is no denying the legitimacy that the role and direction granted Costner in Hollywood. It is the kind of ambitious task that only the classical greats could execute. The star felt himself in the aftermath, stretching his prowess by working on more provocative films like JFK and equally grand epics like Waterworld, with the latter's disappointing reception and revenue bringing him back down to Earth. Amid the catastrophic failure of Costner's second directing bid, The Postman, he only directed one more film since. However, we might get another Kevin Costner directorial since he'll have more time after leaving Yellowstone.

Robert De Niro - 'A Bronx Tale' (1993)

Robert De Niro sitting next to Lillo Brancato in A Bronx Tale
Image via Savoy Pictures

Arguably the finest actor of his generation, if not of all time, Robert De Niro does have a few directing credits also. His 1993 debut, A Bronx Tale, is indebted to the work of Martin Scorsese just on its appearance. While effectively paced and engaged with its characterization, the film, about a boy who is lured into the criminal underworld after following the mentorship of a mob boss (Chazz Palminteri), plays like Scorsese karaoke. The cinematic master has inspired countless imitators over the years, and this film exhibits the harsh reality of attempting to mimic his style, that even his most famous collaborator will fail to copy him. De Niro's performance in the film does not feature his usual internal dramatic weight or vigorous pathos. He only directed one more film in the aftermath, which was The Good Shepherd in 2006.

Ben Affleck - 'Gone Baby Gone' (2007)

Patrick and Angie looking intently at something off-camera in gone baby gone

By 2007, the reputation of Ben Affleck was in a dire situation after a string of films like Daredevil and Gigli that turned him into a mockery. His status as fodder for the tabloids caused him to be written off as a star by the mid-2000s. This was until he stunned the world by showing off his directing chops with Gone Baby Gone. Affleck possessed a sharp understanding of the mechanics of a classic Hollywood genre in the noir and managed to put a modern spin on it. Staying exclusively behind the camera, he tells the story of a pair of private investigators (Casey Affleck and Michelle Monaghan) who uncover the harrowing truth about a kidnapping of a little girl. In retrospect, it was a smart choice for Ben Affleck himself to not star in the film, as it might have been distracting for viewers at the time and forced the narrative to lose credibility. Gone Baby Gone is a presentation of Affleck as a sophisticated artist and not a paycheck-focused movie star. In his following films, not only did Affleck star in all of them, but his presence grew in prominence with each film. He won the Best Picture award for 2012's Argo, which he also directed and starred in.

Bradley Cooper - 'A Star is Born' (2018)

Bradley Cooper looking sullen in a scene from A Star is Born.

In a true test of stardom, Bradley Cooper threw his hat in the ring of directing to adapt the 21st-century iteration of A Star is Born. It had been nearly 40 years since the story of a fading alcoholic musician (Cooper) and the romance he sparks with a rising star (Lady Gaga) had been brought back to the big screen. There were three previous takes on A Star is Born in the '30s, '50s, and '70s. In 2018, Cooper inserted himself within the canon of film history and revived a form of pastiche melodrama and earnest storytelling that appeared to be forever out of style. The evolution of Cooper as a supporting player in comedies in the 2000s to the formation of him as the last of a specific type of classical movie star was complete. He is expected to have a new film releasing this year, Maestro, the story of famed composer Leonard Bernstein, once again as the star, producer, writer, and director. If there is a Warren Beatty in 2023, the closest thing we have is Bradley Cooper!

Greta Gerwig - Lady Bird

Lady Bird0

A vibrant actor and screen presence, Greta Gerwig worked her way up to be one of the most prominent auteurs to emerge in the 2010s. She first co-directed a small indie with Joe Swanberg titled Nights and Weekends and co-wrote Frances Ha and Mistress America, two films that she starred in under the direction of her partner, Noah Baumbach. After years of entertaining and thoughtful work as a writer and actor, Gerwig accomplished the dream of any artist in 2017, becoming the author of a personal story carried out under a unique vision when she wrote and directed Lady Bird. The film, with its fast-paced tone and distinct perspective from a free-spirited young adult who aspires for greater freedom and artistic expression, is very much in-tune with Gerwig. From its understanding of its Sacramento location and the mindset of a teenage girl in the early 21st century, every aspect of the film feels directly pulled from Gerwig’s life. Between the mass critical acclaim for this and her follow-up, a lively adaptation of Little Women in 2019, Gerwig is forging one of the most impressive careers in film today. Her next film, Barbie, is set to be released in 2023, and audiences would be rightfully excited about it.