1995–2008: Rise to prominence During the 1990s, Lanthimos directed a series of videos for Greek dance-theater companies. Since 1995 he has directed TV commercials, short films, experimental theater plays and music videos (such as for
Sakis Rouvas). He also worked as a photographer for the covers and interior photos of Rouvas's albums
Kati Apo Mena (1998) and
21os Akatallilos (2000). In 2004, he was a member of the creative team that designed the
opening and
closing ceremonies of the
2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. Lanthimos's feature film career started with the 2001 mainstream Greek comedy film
My Best Friend, which he co-directed with
Lakis Lazopoulos. Robert Koehler of
Variety declared "Lanthimos works mightily to make a big impression. As a result [the film] is a
sex farce on steroids, overflowing with energy and excessive curiosity about what the movie camera actually can do". His sophomore project was the
experimental and
psychological drama Kinetta, which premiered at the
2005 Toronto Film Festival. The film revolves around three nameless protagonists as they attempt to film and photograph various badly reenacted struggles between a man and a woman at a Greek hotel. The film earned mixed to negative reviews. Roger Moore of
Movie Nation described it as "overtly navel-gazing, obscure to the point of suggesting obscurant. It’s a 95 minute exercise in
minimalism,
behavior studies, psychology and boredom." John DeFore of
The Hollywood Reporter wrote a positive review he stating, "The standoffish debut holds some pleasures for patient viewers" adding, "Lanthimos enjoys provoking us visually...The camera’s gaze is as idiosyncratic as the visions the Driver tries to bring to life, but unlike him, the film seems satisfied with what it creates." In 2008 he directed a production of
Natura morta in un fosso written by
Fausto Paravidino at the Amore Theatre in Greece.
2009–2017: Breakthrough and acclaim Lanthimos's third feature film, the Greek psychological drama
Dogtooth, won the
Un Certain Regard prize at the
2009 Cannes Film Festival and was nominated for
Best Foreign Language Film at the
83rd Academy Awards. Critic
Roger Ebert praised Lanthimos for "his command of visuals and performances".
The Associated Press described the film as "Disturbing and at times startlingly brutal, the film will alienate those who seek genteel fare at the art house. But its edgy integrity and distinctive atmosphere should win fans in some corners, particularly among those who admire the less tongue-in-cheek work of
Lars Von Trier." In 2010, he acted in and co-produced
Attenberg, a Greek drama film directed by
Athina Rachel Tsangari. His fourth feature film,
Alps (2011), won the Osella Award for Best Screenplay at the
68th Venice International Film Festival. A. O. Scott of
The New York Times described the film as "systematically unsettling our sense of what is normal and habitual in human interactions." Lanthimos's fifth film was the
absurdist black comedy
The Lobster (2015) starring
Colin Farrell,
Rachel Weisz, and
John C. Reilly. The script for this film won the ARTE International Award as Best CineMart Project at the 42nd
International Film Festival Rotterdam. The film was selected to compete for the at the
2015 Cannes Film Festival and won the
Jury Prize. Chris Nashawatay of
Entertainment Weekly praised the film, saying that "Lanthimos' films aren't for everyone. They're deadpan and almost clinically detached. At times they feel like dispatches from a distant alien planet." Lanthimos directed a video vignette for the
Radiohead song "Identikit", released on their 2016 album
A Moon Shaped Pool. In 2017, Lanthimos directed the
psychological horror film
The Killing of a Sacred Deer starring
Colin Farrell,
Nicole Kidman and
Barry Keoghan. It premiered at the
2017 Cannes Film Festival where it competed for the .
Mark Kermode of
The Observer wrote: "As black comedy gives way to grand guignol, we are reminded of the tortured games that
Michael Haneke once played upon his bourgeois protagonists and audiences." He also compared it to films such as
Roman Polanski's ''
Rosemary's Baby'',
William Friedkin's
The Exorcist (1973), and
Lynne Ramsay's
We Need to Talk About Kevin.
2018–present: Collaborations with Emma Stone on numerous projects including
Poor Things which earned her the
Academy Award for Best Actress. In 2018 he directed the
period black comedy,
The Favourite starring
Olivia Colman,
Emma Stone and
Rachel Weisz. The film is a
tragicomic tale of personal and political jealousy and intrigue revolving around
Anne, Queen of Great Britain in 18th-century England. It made its debut at the
75th Venice International Film Festival where it won the
Grand Jury Prize.
The New York Times labeled the film a Critic's Pick with
A.O. Scott writing, "Lanthimos, his camera gliding through gilded corridors and down stone staircases — in exquisitely patterned light and shadow, with weird lenses and startling angles — choreographs an elaborate pageant of decorum and violence, claustrophobia and release." The film went on to tie with the
Alfonso Cuarón directed drama film
Roma for the most nominations at
91st Academy Awards, with ten, including
Best Picture and
Best Director for Lanthimos (winning the
Academy Award for Best Actress for
Olivia Colman). He then directed the
16mm black and white
silent short
Bleat (2022) starring Emma Stone and
Damien Bonnard.
Bleat was co-commissioned by the
Greek National Opera and Athens-based cultural foundation
NEON. The story, set on the
Greek Cycladic island of
Tinos, revolves around a woman in black who is mourning inside a simple house. The film has been described as
experimental and
surrealist in style and focuses on themes of
loneliness, connection, death, and
desire as well as human and animal interaction. The film has only been shown twice, first being at the
Stavros Niarchos Hall in Athens in 2022, and the second at
Alice Tully Hall at the
New York Film Festival in 2023. Lanthimos designed
Bleat to be screened only in theaters with a live orchestra and chorus. In 2023, he directed and produced the
coming of age dark comedy Poor Things, which is based on
the 1992 novel of the same name. The film marked the third collaboration between Lanthimos and Stone, and also featured performances from
Mark Ruffalo,
Willem Dafoe, and
Ramy Youssef. The film premiered at the
80th Venice International Film Festival where it won the
Golden Lion.
Kyle Smith of
The Wall Street Journal described the film as "Sumptuous, dazzling and glorious". The film earned eleven nominations at the
96th Academy Awards, winning four (including the
Academy Award for Best Actress for
Emma Stone) as well as seven nominations at the
81st Golden Globe Awards, where it won
Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy. Lanthimos published a book of behind the scenes photographs in his first photography monograph 'Dear God, the Parthenon is still broken' (Void, 2024). For the
anthology film Kinds of Kindness (2024), Lanthimos reunited with many actors he previously worked with such as
Emma Stone,
Willem Dafoe,
Margaret Qualley, and
Joe Alwyn and new collaborators
Jesse Plemons,
Hong Chau, and
Hunter Schafer. Originally titled
AND, the film is centered around three separate stories, with the actors playing a different character in each. It premiered at the
77th Cannes Film Festival on 17 May 2024, and was released on 21 June 2024 by
Searchlight Pictures. In January 2024, it was announced he would direct an English-language remake of the 2003 Korean science fiction comedy
Save the Green Planet! with
Ari Aster as co-producer; in May, it was announced that Stone and Plemons had been cast in the project, now titled
Bugonia. The film premiered at the
82nd Venice International Film Festival. Also in 2025, he directed the music video "Beth's Farm" for
Jerskin Fendrix also starring Stone which was released on 29 July 2025. Lanthimos and Stone are both signatories of the
Film Workers for Palestine boycott pledge that was published in September 2025. In January 2026, Lanthimos directed Stone on an ad for
Squarespace for the
Super Bowl.
Upcoming projects In 2020, it was reported that Lanthimos was in talks to direct adaptations of
The Hawkline Monster: A Gothic Western, with
New Regency and
Vertigo Entertainment joined as co-producers, following the announcement of a
Pop. 1280 project in 2019. In 2024 it was reported that Lanthimos was working on an adaptation of
My Year of Rest and Relaxation together with author
Ottessa Moshfegh. In February 2025, it was reported that Lanthimos would write and direct an adaptation of
Jean-Patrick Manchette's thriller
Fatale with
James Schamus producing. ==Style and themes==