Egoyan began making films in the early 1980s; his debut film
Next of Kin (1984) had a world premier at the
International Filmfestival Mannheim-Heidelberg and won a major prize. The next year he directed the 1985
Twilight Zone episode "The Wall", written by
J. Michael Straczynski. His commercial breakthrough came with his film
Exotica (1994). He received the
Grand Prix (Belgian Film Critics Association) in Brussels, the
FIPRESCI Jury Prize at the
Cannes Film Festival, and
Best Motion Picture at the
Canadian Screen Awards (then called the
Genie Awards). Egoyan's first attempt at adapted material resulted in his best-known work, the highly praised
The Sweet Hereafter (1997). It earned him three prizes at the
50th Cannes Film Festival: the
Grand Prix, the FIPRESCI Jury Prize, and the
Prize of the Ecumenical Jury. The film also earned Egoyan
Academy Award nominations for
Best Director and
Best Adapted Screenplay. Beginning in 1996, Egoyan has directed several operas, including
Salome,
Così fan tutte,
Jenůfa, and
The Ring Cycle, at the Canadian Opera, Vancouver Opera, Pacific Opera Victoria, and elsewhere. The film
Ararat (2002) generated much publicity for Egoyan. After
Henri Verneuil's French-language film
Mayrig (1991), it was the first major motion picture to deal directly with the
Armenian genocide.
Ararat later won the award for
Best Motion Picture at the Canadian Screen Awards, marking Egoyan's third win. The film was released in over 30 countries around the world. In 2004, Egoyan opened Camera Bar, a 50-seat cinema-lounge on
Queen Street West in Toronto. The bar closed in 2006. Beginning in September 2006, Egoyan taught at the
University of Toronto for three years. He joined the Faculty of Arts and Science as the Dean's Distinguished Visitor in theatre, film, music, and visual studies. He subsequently taught at
Ryerson University. In 2006, he received the Master of Cinema Award of the
International Filmfestival Mannheim-Heidelberg. His film
Adoration (2008) has been adapted into an opera by
Mary Kouyoumdjian and librettist
Royce Vavrek. It premiered in New York in 2024 and is set to be presented again by
LA Opera in 2025. In 2009, he directed the erotic thriller
Chloe, which was theatrically released by
Sony Pictures Classics on March 26, 2010. This film grossed $3 million in
limited theatrical release in the United States, which was generally considered respectable for an
arthouse film release in the early 2010's. Several months after the DVD/Blu-ray release of
Chloe, Egoyan said that
Chloe had made more money than any of his previous films. The success of
Chloe led Egoyan to receive many scripts of erotic thrillers. In 2012, he directed a production of
Martin Crimp's
Cruel and Tender, after winning the Irish Times/ESB Award for Best Director for his production of Samuel Beckett’s Eh Joe, starring Michael Gambon and Penelope Wilton in Dublin. In 2025, he directed his original play Donation for the
Maxim Gorki Theater in Berlin and his production of Jenůfa for
Opéra de Montréal at La Place des Arts. After the release of the
West Memphis Three from 18 years in prison, Egoyan directed a movie about the case called ''
Devil's Knot (2013) starring Reese Witherspoon and Colin Firth, based on a book, Devil's Knot: The True Story of the West Memphis Three by Mara Leveritt. His next feature, The Captive'' (2014), starred
Ryan Reynolds and screened in competition for the
Palme d'Or at the
2014 Cannes Film Festival, where it received largely negative reviews from critics. Justin Chang from
Variety described the film as "a ludicrous abduction thriller that finds a once-great filmmaker slipping into previously un-entered realms of self-parody." In 2015, Egoyan directed the thriller
Remember, which starred
Christopher Plummer and premiered at the
Toronto International Film Festival in September, before being given a limited release in theatres. His 2019 drama
Guest of Honour, was nominated for a Golden Lion in competition in Venice in 2019, had a Special Presentation at the Toronto International Film Festival, and opening night galas in Vancouver and Montreal. His latest film is
Seven Veils (2023); the film was a Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) Official Selection with a special advance premiere at the Canadian Opera Company’s theatre, the
Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts. In 2023, Egoyan premiered
Seven Veils at the Toronto International Film Festival. The film, starring Amanda Seyfried, continues his exploration of trauma, performance, and identity in the arts. He has also occasionally appeared in films as an actor, most notably in his own film
Calendar and
Jean Pierre Lefebvre's
The Box of Sun (La boîte à soleil). == Personal life ==