Steven Soderbergh Biography

"Technically speaking, can anybody direct a film? Absolutely. But can they direct a film well? No. That requires a very specific and odd combination of interests and traits and talents that you can not inject somebody with. They either have it or they don't."

Born in Georgia and raised in Baton Rouge, Lousiana, Steve Soderbergh began making films when he was 13 and left for Hollywood as soon as he graduated from high school. After a stint as a freelance editor, he returned home to continue making short films and writing scripts. His documentary about the rock group 'Yes' earned him the assignment to direct a full-length concert film for the band. 9021 Live was nominated for a 1986 Grammy for Long Form Music Video.

Soderbergh then startled the international film community in 1989 when he won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival with sex, lies, and videotape at age 26. The film is important from a historical standpoint because much of the contemporary focus on independent film would not exist if it were not for this film. Although independent productions have long since been a part of cinema, there had always been a clear distinction between a studio film from an independent one. sex, lies, and videotape, however, allowed for the mainstreaming of the independent film, largely because of its critical, and financial success. The film also won Soderbergh an Oscar nomination for its screenplay and established him as one of the most promising young filmmakers of his generation.

Following the success of sex, lies, and videotape, he made Kafka (1991), a black and white mystery based on the life and letters of Frankz Kafka that starred Jeremy Irons, and received only marginal critical acclaim and nothing in the way of box office. King of the Hill (1993), based on A.E. Hotchner's depression-era memoirs, won back some of his critics but still failed to achieve much success. Underneath (1995), a tale of a reformed gambler who tries to turn his life around, only to risk it all for one final, big score, also failed to get much attention.

Finding himself in a rut and feeling the need for a refresher course in the joys of independent filmmaking, Soderbergh then retreated back to Baton Rouge and shot Schizopolis (1997) for $250,000, employing used equipment and a bare-bones crew and casting himself in a dual lead role. Adding an element of psychodrama, Soderbergh also cast his ex-wife, actress Betsy Brantley, in scenes that wickedly parodied their disintegrated five-year marriage. While editing Schizopolis in Baton Rouge, he took ten days to shoot Gray's Anatomy (1997), creating the most cinematic of the filmed Spalding Gray monologues.

With 1998's Out of Sight, starring Jennifer Lopez and George Clooney, he once again garnerd mainstream praise. Based on an Elmore Leonard novel, the film was an international success and drew him back into the spotlight. It won best picture of the year from the National Society of Film Critics, beating out favorites like Shakespeare in Love and Saving Private Ryan. (The group also named Soderbergh, not Spielberg, best director.) In addition, the film received Academy Award nominations for Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Film Editing.

He gained more momentum with The Limey (1999), about an ex-con from England who travels to Los Angeles in an effort to avenge the death of his daughter. The film was well received by critics and was listed on several top 10 lists for 1999. Soderbergh then went back to a Hollywood studio, a big budget and a big star for Erin Brockovich. With Julia Roberts in the title role, the film told the true story of a single mother from a small California town who brought a lawsuit against the local gas and electric company. In 2001, Soderbergh became the first director to earn two Best Director nominations in the same year at the Academy Awards in over 60 years. Up for directing both Erin Brockovich and Traffic, he won an Oscar for the latter. He also directed Contagion (2011), Haywire (2012) and Magic Mike (2012).

In 2013, he directed the film Side Effects starring Rooney Mara, Channing Tatum, and Jude Law. He also directed Behind the Candelabra (2013) starring Michael Douglas and Matt Damon. The film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival and was nominated for the Palme d’Or. He won the DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Movies for Television and Mini-Series and was nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Cinematography for a Miniseries or Movie.

From 2014 to 2015, he directed every episode of the award-winning series The Knick. He was nominated for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series at the Emmys for seasons one and two and was nominated for a DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Dramatic Series for season two.

After The Knick ended, Steven began working on a variety of personal projects, including an Off-Broadway play that he directed called The Library with Chloë Grace Moretz.

He returned to directing movies in 2017 with Logan Lucky, starring Channing Tatum, Adam Driver, and Daniel Craig. The next year, he directed six episodes of the series Mosaic and the horror film Unsane(2018) with Claire Foy and Juno Temple. He shot the film using iPhones.

In 2019, he directed High Flying Bird starring André Holland and The Laundromat starring Gary Oldman and Antonio Banderas.

Some of his other films include Let Them All Talk (2020), No Sudden Move(2021), and Kimi (2022).

In 2023, he returned to the Magic Mikefranchise with Magic Mike’s Last Dance. He also directed every episode of Command Z with Michael Cera and Full Circlewith Zazie Beetz. The next year, he directed Lucy Liu and Chris Sullivan in Presence(2024), although the film didn’t go into wide release until 2025.

In 2025, his stylish spy thriller Black Bag with Cate Blanchett and Michael Fassbender released to theaters, and received positive reviews.

Soderbergh lives in Los Angeles and has a daughter from his first marriage. He married second wife Jules Asner on May 12, 2003. He also has another daughter from an extramarital affair, who was born in August 2010.

Filmography:

Black Bag (2025)
Presence (2024)
Magic Mike’s Last Dance (2023)
Kimi (2022)
No Sudden Move (2021)
Let Them All Talk (2020)
The Laundromat (2019)
High Flying Bird (2019)
Unsane (2018)
Logan Lucky (2017)
Side Effects (2013)
Magic Mike (2012)
Haywire (2011)
Contagion (2011)
The Informant! (2009)
The Girlfriend Experience (2009)
Che: Part Two (2008)
Che: Part One (2008)
Ocean’s Thirteen (2007)
The Good German (2006)
Bubble (2005)
Eros (2004) (segment "Equilibrium")
Ocean’s Twelve (2004)
Solaris (2002)
Full Frontal (2002)
Ocean’s 11 (2001)
Traffic (2000)
Erin Brockovich (2000)
The Limey (1999)
Out of Sight (1998)
Schizopolis (1996)
Gray’s Anatomy (1996)
Underneath (1995)
King of the Hill (1993)
Kafka (1991)
Sex, Lies, and Videotape (1989)