World's highest-paid director isn't Spielberg or the Russos but someone who never went to film school

The world's highest-paid director earns a hefty sum of salary for their work. Names like Steven Spielberg and James Cameron might pop up in our heads, but the actual name is quite different. This director did not even attend a film school.

Christopher Nolan is currently the world's highest-paid director. He has emerged as a highly paid director amid several names who have made films before him. However, Nolan's ability to consistently deliver critically acclaimed blockbusters throughout his career sets him apart. His work has surpassed some of the biggest names, including the Russo brothers.

Christopher Nolan is the world's highest-paid director

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Christopher Nolan's most recent directorial venture was the historical biographical drama Oppenheimer which ended up earning close to $958 million at the box office. As per a report by Variety, he received a sum of around $100 million for the film. This amount included backend money, apart from his salary, along with extra bonus after his Oscar win.

Many directors, including Cameron and Spielberg, would charge around $10, $20, or even $30 million for their films back in the day. However, most have not given up on that salary to have a share of the film's total revenue. Amid the sea of names, Nolan has slowly become a profitable director for studios because of his body of work. Hence, they are willing to pay him a large amount, which has made him the world's highest-paid director.

Oppenheimer was based on the life of physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer, who participated in the Manhattan Project, which created the world's first nuclear weapons. Nolan directed, wrote, and co-produced the film with his wife Emma Thomas, and Charles Roven. Made on a whopping budget of $100 million, the film ended up grossing ten times that amount.

More about Christopher Nolan

"Gladiator II" Conversation with Director Ridley Scott and Director Christopher Nolan - Source: Getty

Christopher Nolan studied English literature at UCL, London. During that time, he ended up making two short films titled Doodlebug and Larceny. He eventually wrote, shot, and directed a no-budget feature called Following with his friends. After that, he moved base to Los Angeles and wrote Memento which was based on a short story his brother Jonathan Nolan wrote.

After that, Nolan helmed a thriller called Insomnia, starring Al Pacino and Hilary Swank. However, the biggest film of his career came with Batman Begins for Warner Bros. This led to The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises. Nolan witnessed more success and credibility with films like The Prestige, Inception, Dunkirk, and Interstellar. All these films are different from each other and are in different genres. They are critically well-received and have also earned bucks at the box office, which is why he is the world's highest-paid director.

His work on Oppenheimer finally earned him an Academy Award. As per Deadline, Nolan expressed his happiness about the win. He said,