1923–1929: Early work and silent films Around 1923, Wyler arrived in
Los Angeles and began work on the Universal Studios lot in the
swing gang, cleaning the stages and moving the sets. His break came when he was hired as a second assistant editor. But his work ethic was uneven, and he would often sneak off and play billiards in a pool hall across the street from the studio, or organize card games during working hours. After some ups and downs (including getting fired), Wyler put all his efforts into becoming a director. He started as a third assistant director and by 1925 he became the youngest director on the Universal lot directing the
westerns that Universal was famed for turning out. Wyler was so engrossed in his work that he would dream about "different ways (for an actor) to get on a horse". In several of the one-reelers, he would join the posse in the inevitable chase of the 'bad man'. He directed his first non-Western, the lost
Anybody Here Seen Kelly?, in 1928. This was followed by his first part-talkie films,
The Shakedown and
The Love Trap. He proved himself an able craftsman. In 1928 he became a
naturalized United States citizen. He also directed
These Three (1936) with
Miriam Hopkins and
Merle Oberon,
Dead End (1937) with
Humphrey Bogart,
Wuthering Heights (1939) with
Laurence Olivier and Merle Oberon,
The Westerner (1940) with
Gary Cooper and
Walter Brennan,
The Little Foxes (1941) with
Bette Davis, and
The Best Years of Our Lives (1946) with
Myrna Loy and
Fredric March. Wyler's visual style pioneered long, uncut takes in what has come to be called
deep-focus cinematography - the use of lenses which can take in the entire depth of a room, keeping everything in focus, i.e. depth of field, and thus can contain dramatic changes in lighting and characters' movements in the same shot. In this, he collaborated with the pathbreaking young cinematographer of 1940's
Citizen Kane,
Gregg Toland. Gregg Toland shot three of the director's most celebrated films:
Wuthering Heights (1939), where Toland's use of low angles, dark shadows and diffusion won him the Oscar for best cinematography; next in
Lillian Hellman's adaptation of her searing stage play,
The Little Foxes, into Wyler's 1941 film, which had Wyler and Toland working closely together to bring the hard-edged deep focus from Citizen Kane to bear on another tale of soul-destroying family wealth - including inventing a totally white make-up scheme for its star, Bette Davis, conveying her soullessness. Third, and most famously, is Toland's work in one of the cinematographer's last films, Wyler's heart-wrenching masterpiece,
The Best Years of Our Lives (1946). This story of three American servicemen struggling to adjust to civilian life after fighting in World War 2 hit a chord with postwar audiences. Memorable examples of deep focus here include the complex scene in which the three men wind up at the same bar, unable to stay at home, and, in its powerful closing shot, a crowded family wedding disperses, leaving only two young lovers staring at one another across the expanse of an empty living room, as stunned in place, seemingly, as the camera. All three films were decorated with multiple Oscars (see the following section).
Bette Davis received three Oscar nominations for her screen work under Wyler, and won her second Oscar for her performance in Wyler's 1938 film
Jezebel. She told
Merv Griffin in 1972 that Wyler trained her with that film to be a "far, far better actress" than she had been. She recalled a scene that was only a bare paragraph in the script, but "without a word of dialog, Willy created a scene of power and tension. This was moviemaking on the highest plane," she said. "A scene of such suspense that I never have not marveled at the direction of it." ''
Laurence Olivier, whom Wyler directed in
Wuthering Heights (1939) for his first Oscar nomination, credited Wyler with teaching him how to act for the screen, despite clashing with Wyler on multiple occasions. Olivier would go on to hold the record for the most nominations in the
Best Actor category at nine, tied with
Spencer Tracy. Critic
Frank S. Nugent wrote in
The New York Times: "William Wyler has directed it magnificently. It is, unquestionably, one of the most distinguished pictures of the year." In 1950, Wyler and Olivier made a second film together,
Carrie, which was not a commercial success. However, some critics state that it nonetheless contains Olivier's finest film performance, but because of its old-fashioned story, the film was very under-appreciated: In critic
Michael Billington's opinion: Director and screenwriter
John Huston had been a close friend of Wyler during his career. When he was twenty-eight and penniless, sleeping in parks in London, Huston returned to Hollywood to see if he could find work. Wyler, four years his senior, had met Huston when he was directing his father,
Walter Huston, in
A House Divided in 1931, and they got along well. Wyler read dialogue suggestions that Huston had given to his father Walter and hired John to work on the dialogue for the script. He later inspired Huston to become a director and became his "early mentor." When America entered
World War II in 1941, Wyler, Huston,
Anatole Litvak and
Frank Capra, by then all directors, enlisted at the same time. Later in his career, Huston recalled his friendship with Wyler during an interview:
Wyler and the Second World War In 1941, Wyler directed
Mrs. Miniver, based on the 1940 novel; it was the story of a middle-class English family adjusting to the war in Europe and the bombing
blitz in London. It starred
Greer Garson and
Walter Pidgeon. Pidgeon originally had doubts about taking on the role, until fellow actor
Paul Lukas told him, "You will find working with Wyler to be the most delightful experience you ever had, and that's the way it turned out." Pidgeon recalled: "One thing that would have been a terrific regret in my life is if I had succeeded in getting out of doing
Mrs. Miniver" The film succeeded in its propagandistic aims, eliciting sympathy for the British people by showing Britain during its darkest days of the war. Years later, having been in the war himself, Wyler said that the film "only scratched the surface of war... It was incomplete." But MGM producer
Eddie Mannix disagreed, saying that "someone should salute England. And even if we lose $100,000, that'll be okay."
Mrs. Miniver went on to win six Academy Awards, becoming the top box office hit of 1942. It was Wyler's first Academy Award for Best Director.
President Roosevelt and British Prime Minister
Winston Churchill both loved the film, said historian Emily Yellin, and Roosevelt wanted prints rushed to theaters nationwide. The
Voice of America radio network broadcast the minister's speech from the film, magazines reprinted it, and it was copied onto leaflets and dropped over
German-occupied countries. Churchill sent MGM chief
Louis B. Mayer a telegram claiming that "
Mrs. Miniver is propaganda worth 100 battleships."
Bosley Crowther wrote in his
New York Times review that
Mrs. Miniver was the finest film yet made about the war, "and a most exalting tribute to the British." Between 1942 and 1945, Wyler volunteered to serve as a
major in the
United States Army Air Forces and directed a pair of documentaries:
The Memphis Belle: A Story of a Flying Fortress (1944), about a
Boeing B-17 and its U.S. Army Air Force crew; and
Thunderbolt! (1947), highlighting a
P-47 fighter-
bomber squadron in the
Mediterranean. Wyler filmed
The Memphis Belle at great personal risk, flying over enemy territory on actual bombing missions in 1943; on one flight, Wyler lost consciousness from lack of oxygen. Wyler's associate, cinematographer Harold J. Tannenbaum, a
First Lieutenant, was shot down and perished during the filming. Director
Steven Spielberg describes Wyler's filming of
Memphis Belle in the 2017 Netflix series,
Five Came Back. Before being assigned to the Air Force, Wyler was hired to direct the documentary
The Negro Soldier on
African-Americans in the United States Armed Forces. Working on
Thunderbolt! Wyler was exposed to such loud noise that he passed out. When he awoke, he found he was deaf in one ear. Wyler returned from the War a
lieutenant colonel and a disabled veteran. Returning from the War and unsure whether he could work again, Wyler turned to a subject that he knew well This story of the homecoming of three veterans from
World War II dramatized the problems of returning veterans in their adjustment back to civilian life. Arguably his most personal film,
Best Years drew on Wyler's own experience returning home to his family after three years at the front.
The Best Years of Our Lives won the
Academy Award for Best Director (Wyler's second) and
Academy Award for Best Picture, as well as six other Academy Awards including one Academy Honorary Award. In 1949, Wyler directed
The Heiress, which earned
Olivia de Havilland her second Oscar and garnered additional Oscars for
Best Art Direction,
Best Costume Design, and
Best Music. The film is considered by some to be a highlight in her career, "that could strike envy even in the most versatile and successful actress," according to one critic. De Havilland had seen the play in New York and felt she could play the lead perfectly. She then called Wyler to convince him to have Paramount buy the film rights. He flew to New York to see the play and moved by the story, persuaded the studio to buy it. Along with de Havilland, he managed to get
Montgomery Clift and
Ralph Richardson to co-star.
1950–1959: Established director '' (1953) In 1951, Wyler produced and directed
Kirk Douglas and
Eleanor Parker in
Detective Story, portraying a day in the lives of the various people in a detective squad.
Lee Grant and
Joseph Wiseman made their screen debuts in the film, which was nominated for four
Academy Awards, including one for Grant. Critic
Bosley Crowther lauded the film, describing it as "a brisk, absorbing film by producer-director William Wyler, with the help of a fine, responsive cast."
Carrie was released in 1952 starring Jennifer Jones in the title role and Laurence Olivier as Hurstwood. Eddie Albert played Charles Drouet. Carrie received two Academy Award nominations: Costume Design (Edith Head), and Best Art Direction (Hal Pereira, Roland Anderson, Emile Kuri). Wyler was reluctant to cast Jennifer Jones, and the filming was subsequently plagued by a variety of troubles. Jones had not revealed that she was pregnant; Wyler was mourning the death of his year-old son; Olivier had a painful leg ailment, and he developed a dislike for Jones. Hollywood was reeling under the effects of McCarthyism, and the studio was afraid to distribute a film that could be attacked as immoral. Ultimately, the ending was changed and the film was cut to make it more positive in tone. During the immediate postwar period, Wyler directed a handful of critically acclaimed and influential films.
Roman Holiday (1953) introduced
Audrey Hepburn to U.S. audiences in her first starring role, winning her an Academy Award for Best Actress. Wyler said of Hepburn years later, when describing truly great actresses, "In that league there's only ever been Garbo, and the other Hepburn, and maybe Bergman. It's a rare quality, but boy, do you know when you've found it." The film was an instant hit, also winning for Best Costume Design (
Edith Head), and Best Writing (
Dalton Trumbo). Hepburn would eventually do three movies with Wyler, who her son said was one of the most important directors in her career.
Friendly Persuasion (1956) was awarded the
Palme d'Or (Golden Palm) at the
Cannes Film Festival. And in 1959, Wyler directed
Ben-Hur, which won 11 Oscars, a feat unequaled until
Titanic in 1997 and
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King in 2003. He had also assisted in the production of the
1925 version. as Ben-Hur Wyler and its star,
Charlton Heston, both knew what the film meant for
MGM, which had massive investments in its outcome, with the film's budget having gone from $7 million to $15 million, and the fact that MGM was already in dire financial straits. They were aware that if it failed at the box office, MGM might go bankrupt. Part of the reason for that was the financial stress placed on making the film a success. With a cast of fifteen thousand extras, a leading star, and shot on 70mm film with stereophonic tracks, it was the most expensive film ever made at that time. The nine-minute chariot race, for example, took six months to film.
Ben-Hur became a great box office success. Wyler won his third Academy Award for Best Director and
Charlton Heston his first and only Academy Award as its star. Heston recalled in his autobiography that at first he had doubts about playing the role. But his agent advised him otherwise: "Don't you know that actors take parts with Wyler without even reading the damn script? I'm telling you, you
have to do this picture!"
Ben-Hur cost $15 million to produce but earned $47 million by the end of 1961 and $90 million worldwide. Audiences mobbed movie theaters in the months after it opened. Critic
Pauline Kael praised Wyler's achievement:
1960–1970: Later work and final films ,
James Garner and
Shirley MacLaine in ''
The Children's Hour'' (1961) In 1961, he became a director for
20th Century Fox and also cast
James Garner in ''
The Children's Hour with Audrey Hepburn and Shirley MacLaine. Garner had beaten Warner Bros. in a lawsuit, enabling him to leave the television series Maverick'', and had been briefly
graylisted as a result but Wyler broke the graylist by casting him; the following year, Garner played a leading role in four major motion pictures. In 1968, he directed
Barbra Streisand in her debut film,
Funny Girl, costarring
Omar Sharif, which became a huge financial success. It was nominated for eight Academy Awards, and like
Audrey Hepburn in her first starring role, Streisand won as Best Actress, becoming the thirteenth actor to win an Oscar under his direction. Streisand had already starred in the Broadway musical of
Funny Girl, with seven hundred performances. And although she knew the part well, Wyler still had to mold her stage role for the screen. She naturally wanted to be involved in the film's production, often asking Wyler questions, but they got along well. "Things were ironed out when she discovered some of us knew what we were doing," kidded Wyler. What originally attracted him to direct Streisand was similar to what attracted him to Audrey Hepburn, who had also been new to film audiences. He met with Streisand during her musical run and became excited at the prospect of guiding another new star into an award-winning performance. He sensed and admired that Streisand had the same kind of dedication to being an actress as did Bette Davis, early in her career. "It just needed to be controlled and toned down for the movie camera." Wyler said afterwards, "I'm terribly fond of her. She was very professional, very good, a hard worker, too hard at times. She would work day and night if you would let her. She is absolutely tireless". Wyler was hired to direct
Patton (1970), but quit before the beginning of production in 1969. The last film Wyler directed was
The Liberation of L.B. Jones, released in 1970. ==Style and technique ==