A year after his Oscars triumph with “Oppenheimer,” Christopher Nolan is now the next president of the Directors Guild of America.
Nolan ran unopposed to succeed outgoing president Lesli Linka Glatter and now leads a union of 19,500 directors, assistant directors, unit production managers and stage managers. While Nolan is known for multiple acclaimed box office hits, he has also been an active member of the DGA, serving on its national board and Western Directors Council since 2015.
“To be elected President of the Directors Guild of America is one of the greatest honors of my career,” Nolan said statement. “Our industry is experiencing tremendous change, and I thank the Guild’s membership for entrusting me with this responsibility. I also want to thank President Glatter for her leadership over the past four years. I look forward to collaborating with her and the newly elected Board to achieve important creative and economic protections for our members.”
Nolan will serve as president alongside vice president director Laura Belsey and secretary-treasurer Paris Barclay, who were re-elected to their respective positions. Both Belsey and Barclay are veteran television directors, with Belsey’s credits including “The Walking Dead” and Barclay’s credits including an Emmy-winning run as a director for “NYPD Blue”
Other members elected to leadership positions include Joyce Thomas as assistant secretary-treasurer, Todd Holland as first vice president, Ron Howard as second vice president and Gina Prince-Bythewood as third vice president.
Nolan will lead the Directors Guild alongside national executive director Russell Hollander and chief negotiators Jon Avnet and Karen Gaviola in next year’s contract negotiations with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. The DGA was the only above-the-line union in 2023 that completed its negotiations in its first round, as the Writers Guild of America and SAG-AFTRA went on strikes that lasted a combined 191 days.
Nolan will also release his next film “The Odyssey,” in July 2026.
