---
name: "Jonathan Demme"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/jonathan-demme"
fi1m_id: "jonathan-demme"
imdb_id: "nm0001129"
tmdb_id: 16294
wikidata_id: "Q48987"
roles: ["Director","Producer"]
born: "22 February 1944"
died: "26 April 2017"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 9
average_fi1m_score: 81
average_as: "director"
average_over: 7
updated: "2026-10-07T15:22:45.802938+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Jonathan Demme

## Identity

Jonathan Demme

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/jonathan-demme
- **Type:** Person
- **Fi1m ID:** jonathan-demme
- **IMDb ID:** nm0001129
- **TMDB ID:** 16294
- **Wikidata ID:** Q48987
- **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonathan_Demme, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q48987, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001129/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/16294

Director and producer. Born 22 February 1944 in Baldwin, Long Island, New York, USA. Died 26 April 2017.

## Details

- **Work:** Director, Producer
- **Born:** 22 February 1944, Baldwin, Long Island, New York, USA
- **Died:** 26 April 2017
- **Active:** 1971–2011
- **Also known as:** 조나단 드미, Robert Jonathan Demme
- **Titles on Fi1m:** 9: 1 acting, 7 directing, 1 producing
- **Frequently works with:** [Edward Saxon](https://film.one/person/edward-saxon.md), [Kenneth Utt](https://film.one/person/kenneth-utt.md)
- **Academy Awards:** 1 Oscar (1 won)
- **Average Fi1m score:** 81, as director, over 7 titles
- **Fi1m score by decade:** 1970s 86 (1), 1980s 82 (1), 1990s 82 (3), 2000s 84 (2), 2010s 73 (2)
- **Fi1m against the critics:** 80 to 71 across 6 titles
- **Score spread:** 5 at 80+, 2 at 60–79, 0 under 60
- **Genres:** Drama 6, Crime 4, Comedy 2, Mystery 2, Romance 2, Thriller 1
- **Screen time:** 8 hours of reviewed films
- **Box office:** $505m across 4 films with figures
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonathan_Demme, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q48987, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001129/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/16294

## Streaming the US now

- **Amazon Prime Video:** [*The Silence of the Lambs*](https://film.one/film/the-silence-of-the-lambs.md) (91), [*Adaptation.*](https://film.one/film/adaptation.md) (83)
- **Peacock:** [*Columbo*](https://film.one/tv/columbo.md) (86)
- **HBO Max:** [*Enlightened*](https://film.one/tv/enlightened.md) (84)
- **Netflix:** [*Rachel Getting Married*](https://film.one/film/rachel-getting-married.md) (84)
- **Apple TV:** [*Something Wild*](https://film.one/film/something-wild.md) (82)
- **AMC+:** [*The Killing*](https://film.one/tv/the-killing-2011.md) (62)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Fi1m on Jonathan Demme

> Jonathan Demme makes us watch people listening as closely as people speaking. We rate him highly for that care, which makes *The Silence of the Lambs* frightening without requiring constant violence.

In *The Silence of the Lambs* (1991), Jonathan Demme keeps us watching Jodie Foster’s Clarice Starling as she listens to Anthony Hopkins’s Lecter. Demme and cinematographer Tak Fujimoto bring their faces close, so that a response can matter as much as a question. We felt cornered by these conversations because Hopkins makes listening seem intrusive and Demme leaves us with Clarice’s discomfort. This is where we rate him highest: a thriller becomes more frightening because he will not let us forget the person doing the investigating.

He began directing exploitation films for Roger Corman with *Caged Heat* (1974), then moved into studio features, including *Melvin and Howard* (1980). His interest in eccentric people and the communities around them remained a useful constant as the films changed shape. Music mattered in both the concert film *Stop Making Sense* (1984), with Talking Heads, and the shifting moods of the road comedy *Something Wild* (1986). By the time *The Silence of the Lambs* brought wider recognition, that attention could make an encounter frightening without requiring another injury.

That film also shows how much his restraint depends on collaborators. Kristi Zea’s production design makes the settings oppressive without letting them become more interesting than the people, while Howard Shore’s music adds unease without dictating every reaction. Ted Tally’s adaptation of Thomas Harris’s novel puts Clarice’s vulnerability into the questioning itself. Demme allows those exchanges to carry the suspense and keeps much of the macabre material off-screen.

His collaborative, low-rehearsal approach to actors did not rule out theatricality. Hopkins is sometimes so enjoyable that Lecter threatens to distract us from Clarice and the investigation. Demme keeps returning to Foster, but we sometimes wish he made Lecter a little harder to enjoy.

The uneven *The Truth About Charlie* (2002) suggests that his interest in genre did not always produce a distinctive film. The intimate family drama *Rachel Getting Married* (2008) brought ensemble acting and music back to the fore. Start with *The Silence of the Lambs*, then let *Stop Making Sense* change the mood.

## Biography

Jonathan Demme was an American film director, producer and screenwriter. He was born on 22 February 1944 in Baldwin, Long Island, New York, and died on 26 April 2017 in Manhattan, New York City.

Demme directed *The Silence of the Lambs* (1991) and *Philadelphia* (1993), on which he also served as producer. He received the Academy Award for Best Director for the former. His other directing credits include *Something Wild* (1986), *Married to the Mob* (1988), *The Manchurian Candidate* (2004), *Rachel Getting Married* (2008) and *Ricki and the Flash* (2015). He also directed the concert film *Stop Making Sense* (1984).

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, latimes.com, imdb.com.*

## On Fi1m (9)

### Performed in (1)

- *Oz* (1997), Fi1m 80, as Commercial Director — [page](https://film.one/tv/oz.md)

### Directed (7) — the average rests on these

- *Enlightened* (2011), Fi1m 84, Director — [page](https://film.one/tv/enlightened.md)
- *The Killing* (2011), Fi1m 62, Director — [page](https://film.one/tv/the-killing-2011.md)
- *Rachel Getting Married* (2008), Fi1m 84, Director, Producer — [page](https://film.one/film/rachel-getting-married.md)
- *Philadelphia* (1993), Fi1m 76, Director, Producer — [page](https://film.one/film/philadelphia.md)
- *The Silence of the Lambs* (1991), Fi1m 91, Director — [page](https://film.one/film/the-silence-of-the-lambs.md)
- *Something Wild* (1986), Fi1m 82, Producer, Director — [page](https://film.one/film/something-wild.md)
- *Columbo* (1971), Fi1m 86, Director — [page](https://film.one/tv/columbo.md)

### Produced (1)

- *Adaptation.* (2002), Fi1m 83, Producer — [page](https://film.one/film/adaptation.md)

## Complete filmography (86)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *Suspiria* (2018), In Memory Of
- *Vox Lux* (2018), In Memory Of
- *Seven Seconds* (2018), series, Director
- *Phantom Thread* (2017), In Memory Of — Fi1m 87, [page](https://film.one/film/phantom-thread.md)
- *The Power of Rock* (2017), Director
- *Shots Fired* (2017), series, Director
- *Protection Not Protest: The People of Standing Rock* (2016), Director
- *Justin Timberlake + The Tennessee Kids* (2016), Director
- *The New Yorker Presents* (2016), series, Director
- *Ricki and the Flash* (2015), Director
- *Another Telepathic Thing* (2015), Director
- *I Thought I Told You To Shut Up!!* (2015), as Narrator (voice)
- *Deep Time* (2015), Executive Producer
- *The Center* (2015), Executive Producer
- *What's Motivating Hayes* (2015), Director
- *A Master Builder* (2014), Director
- *Song One* (2014), Producer
- *Enzo Avitabile Music Life* (2013), Producer, Director
- *Gimme the Loot* (2012), Presenter
- *Neil Young Journeys* (2012), Director, Producer
- *Enlightened* (2011), series, Director — Fi1m 84, [page](https://film.one/tv/enlightened.md)
- *A Gifted Man* (2011), series, Director
- *I'm Carolyn Parker* (2011), Cinematography, Producer, Director
- *The Killing* (2011), series, Director — Fi1m 62, [page](https://film.one/tv/the-killing-2011.md)
- *Joe and Linda Flooded Out of Holy Cross* (2010), Director of Photography, Producer, Director
- *Neil Young Trunk Show* (2009), Producer, Music, Director
- *Crude Independence* (2009), Executive Producer
- *Rachel Getting Married* (2008), Director, Producer — Fi1m 84, [page](https://film.one/film/rachel-getting-married.md)
- *Jimmy Carter Man from Plains* (2007), Writer, Producer, Director
- *Neil Young: Heart of Gold* (2006), Director, Producer
- *The Manchurian Candidate* (2004), Director, Producer
- *The Agronomist* (2004), Producer, Cinematography, Director
- *Beah: A Black Woman Speaks* (2004), Producer
- *Adaptation.* (2002), Producer — Fi1m 83, [page](https://film.one/film/adaptation.md)
- *The Truth About Charlie* (2002), Director, Screenplay, Producer
- *Bruce Springsteen: The Complete Video Anthology 1978-2000* (2001), Director
- *Maangamizi: The Ancient One* (2001), Executive Producer
- *The Opportunists* (2000), Executive Producer
- *Storefront Hitchcock* (1998), Director
- *Beloved* (1998), Producer, Director
- *Shadrach* (1998), Executive Producer
- *Subway Stories* (1997), Director, Executive Producer
- *Oz* (1997), series, as Commercial Director — Fi1m 80, [page](https://film.one/tv/oz.md)
- *Ulee's Gold* (1997), Presenter, Producer
- *Mandela* (1996), Producer
- *That Thing You Do!* (1996), as Major Motion Picture Director · Producer
- *Devil in a Blue Dress* (1995), Executive Producer
- *Roy Cohn/Jack Smith* (1995), Executive Producer
- *Neil Young and Crazy Horse: The Complex Sessions* (1995), Director
- *Blood Brothers* (1995), Actor
- *One Foot on a Banana Peel, the Other Foot in the Grave: Secrets from the Dolly Madison Room* (1994), as Narrator · Producer
- *Philadelphia* (1993), Director, Producer — Fi1m 76, [page](https://film.one/film/philadelphia.md)
- *Household Saints* (1993), Executive Producer
- *Amos & Andrew* (1993), Executive Producer
- *Cousin Bobby* (1992), Director
- *Women & Men 2: In Love There Are No Rules* (1991), Producer
- *The Silence of the Lambs* (1991), Director — Fi1m 91, [page](https://film.one/film/the-silence-of-the-lambs.md)
- *Red Hot + Blue: A Tribute to Cole Porter* (1990), Director
- *Miami Blues* (1990), Producer
- *Haiti: Dreams of Democracy* (1988), Writer, Producer, Director
- *Married to the Mob* (1988), as Man Getting off Elevator (uncredited) · Director
- *Point of View* (1988), series, Director
- *Trying Times* (1987), series, Director
- *Swimming to Cambodia* (1987), Director
- *Midnight Sun Film Festival* (1987), Actor
- *Something Wild* (1986), Director, Producer — Fi1m 82, [page](https://film.one/film/something-wild.md)
- *Trisha Brown's Accumulation with Talking Plus Watermotor* (1986), Director
- *The Perfect Kiss* (1985), Director
- *Into the Night* (1985), as Federal Agent
- *Stop Making Sense* (1984), Director, Writer, Sound Supervisor
- *Swing Shift* (1984), Director
- *Who Am I This Time?* (1982), Director
- *American Playhouse* (1982), series, Director
- *Melvin and Howard* (1980), Director
- *Last Embrace* (1979), as Man on Train (uncredited) · Director
- *The Incredible Melting Man* (1977), as Matt Winters
- *Citizens Band* (1977), Director
- *Fighting Mad* (1976), Director, Writer
- *Crazy Mama* (1975), Director
- *Caged Heat* (1974), Director, Writer
- *Fly Me* (1973), Second Unit
- *Black Mama, White Mama* (1973), Story
- *The Hot Box* (1972), Screenplay, Producer, Second Unit Director
- *Columbo* (1971), series, Director — Fi1m 86, [page](https://film.one/tv/columbo.md)
- *Angels Hard as They Come* (1971), Screenplay, Producer
- *Eyewitness* (1970), Music Coordinator

## Gallery

- ![Jonathan Demme](https://film.one/media/person/78341/gallery-13956d012df1.jpg) Jonathan Demme — Dan D'Errico / Montclair Film Festival, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/95/Jonathan_Demme_May_2015.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled)
- ![Jonathan Demme, an American film director, producer and screenwriter (2015)](https://film.one/media/person/78341/gallery-6f0535756658.jpg) Jonathan Demme, an American film director, producer and screenwriter (2015) — Photo by “Dan D'Errico / Montclair Film Festival”, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c5/Jonathan_Demme_%28May_2015%29_%28cropped%29.JPG/1280px-Jonathan_Demme_%28May_2015%29_%28cropped%29.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Jonathan Demme, an American film director, producer and screenwriter (2015)](https://film.one/media/person/78341/gallery-bb8c03561e0e.jpg) Jonathan Demme, an American film director, producer and screenwriter (2015) — Photo by “Dan D'Errico / Montclair Film Festival”, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ee/Jonathan_Demme_%28May_2015%29_%28cropped2%29.JPG/1280px-Jonathan_Demme_%28May_2015%29_%28cropped2%29.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Jonathan Demme, an American film director, producer and screenwriter. (2015)](https://film.one/media/person/78341/gallery-eebba9360d3e.jpg) Jonathan Demme, an American film director, producer and screenwriter. (2015) — photo by “Dan D'Errico / Montclair Film Festival”, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e6/Jonathan_Demme.JPG/1280px-Jonathan_Demme.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Jonathan Demme](https://film.one/media/person/78341/gallery-e1d491e6af4f.jpg) Jonathan Demme — Image via TMDB
- ![Jonathan Demme](https://film.one/media/person/78341/gallery-d763f8db856c.jpg) Jonathan Demme — Image via TMDB
- ![Jonathan Demme](https://film.one/media/person/78341/gallery-cf8ee7175de3.jpg) Jonathan Demme — Image via TMDB
- ![Jonathan Demme, an American film director, producer and screenwriter (2015)](https://film.one/media/person/78341/gallery-43152fe5896a.jpg) Jonathan Demme, an American film director, producer and screenwriter (2015) — Photo by “Dan D'Errico / Montclair Film Festival”, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/ba/Jonathan_Demme_%28May_2015%29.JPG/1280px-Jonathan_Demme_%28May_2015%29.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Jonathan Demme, an American film director, producer and screenwriter. (2015)](https://film.one/media/person/78341/gallery-49a932df7e98.jpg) Jonathan Demme, an American film director, producer and screenwriter. (2015) — Photo by “Dan D'Errico / Montclair Film Festival”, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3d/Jonathan_Demme_%282015%29.JPG/1280px-Jonathan_Demme_%282015%29.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Jonathan Demme](https://film.one/media/person/78341/gallery-36f4d9808775.jpg) Jonathan Demme — Image via TMDB
- ![Jonathan Demme](https://film.one/media/person/78341/gallery-c10475c0782a.jpg) Jonathan Demme — Image via TMDB
- ![Jonathan Demme](https://film.one/media/person/78341/gallery-ef32ded23bfa.jpg) Jonathan Demme — Image via TMDB

## Awards

### Academy Awards — 1 won

- 1992: Best Director (won), for *The Silence of the Lambs*

### Other awards — 1 won

- Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Feature Film 1991: Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Feature Film (won), for *The Silence of the Lambs*

*From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.*

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/jonathan-demme