September 2025
Ronald William "Ron" Howard (born March 1, 1954) is an American actor, director, and producer. He came to prominence as a child actor, playing Opie Taylor in the sitcom The Andy Griffith Show for eight years, and later the teenaged Richie Cunningham in the sitcom Happy Days for six years. He appeared in the films American Graffiti in 1973 and The Shootist in 1976, the latter during his run on Happy Days. He made his directorial debut with the 1977 comedy Grand Theft Auto. He left Happy Days in 1980 to focus on directing; his films include the Academy Award-winning Cocoon, Apollo 13, and A Beautiful Mind. In 2003, he was awarded the National Medal of Arts. Asteroid 12561 Howard is named for him.
Filmography Ron Howard
October 2019
Pavarotti
DocumentaryDirected by: Ron HowardWith: Spike Lee, Luciano Pavarotti, Princess DianaA look at the life and work of opera legend, Luciano Pavarotti.
May 2018
Solo : A Star Wars Story
Action, Science FictionDirected by: Ron HowardWith: Emilia Clarke, Woody Harrelson, Donald GloverDuring an adventure into a dark criminal underworld, Han Solo meets his future copilot Chewbacca and encounters Lando Calrissian years before joining the Rebellion.
October 2016
Inferno
ThrillerDirected by: Ron HowardWith: Tom Hanks, Omar Sy, Felicity Jones, Ben Foster,...Academy Award® winner Ron Howard returns to direct the latest bestseller in Dan Brown's (Da Vinci Code) billion-dollar Robert Langdon series, Inferno, which finds the famous symbologist (again played by Tom Hanks) on a trail of clues tied to the great Dante himself. When Langdon wakes up in an... Read more...
September 2016
December 2015
In the Heart of the Sea
Action, Drama, AdventureDirected by: Ron HowardWith: Cillian Murphy, Chris Hemsworth, Michelle FairleyBased on the 1820 event, a whaling ship is preyed upon by a sperm whale, stranding its crew at sea for 90 days, thousands of miles from home.
October 2013
Rush
Biographical, Action, DramaDirected by: Ron HowardWith: Chris Hemsworth, Daniel Brühl, Olivia WildeA biography of Formula 1 champion driver Niki Lauda and the 1976 crash that almost claimed his life. Mere weeks after the accident, he got behind the wheel to challenge his rival, James Hunt.
May 2011
The dilemma
Drama, ComedyDirected by: Ron HowardWith: Vince Vaughn, Kevin James, Winona Ryder,...A man discovers that his best friend's wife is having an affair.
May 2009
Angels and Demons
Thriller, DramaDirected by: Ron HowardWith: Tom Hanks, Ewan McGregor, Stellan Skarsgård,...The team behind the global phenomenon "The Da Vinci Code" returns for the highly anticipated "Angels & Demons," based upon the bestselling novel by Dan Brown. Tom Hanks reprises his role as Harvard religious expert Robert Langdon, who once again finds that forces with ancient roots are willing to... Read more...
January 2009
Frost / Nixon
DramaDirected by: Ron HowardWith: Michael Sheen, Frank Langella, Kevin Bacon,...Adaptation of the hit Peter Morgan play based on a series of televised interviews that David Frost secured with former President Nixon in 1977. The final interview ended with Nixon tacitly admitting his guilt regarding his role in the Watergate scandal. Frank Langella and Michael Sheen are... Read more...
Frost/Nixon
Directed by: Ron HowardWith: Michael Sheen, Frank Langella, Matthew MacfadyenA dramatic retelling of the post-Watergate television interviews between British talk-show host David Frost and former president Richard Nixon.
May 2006
The Da Vinci Code
Thriller, DramaDirected by: Ron HowardWith: Tom Hanks, Jean Reno, Audrey Tautou, Ian McKellen,...
September 2005
Cinderella Man
Romantic, Drama, HistoricalDirected by: Ron HowardWith: Russell Crowe, Renée Zellweger, Paul Giamatti,...During the Great Depression, a common-man hero, James J. Braddock--a.k.a. the Cinderella Man--was to become one of the most surprising sports legends in history. By the early 1930s, the impoverished ex-prizefighter was seemingly as broken-down, beaten-up and out-of-luck as much of the rest of the... Read more...
March 2004
February 2002
A Beautiful Mind
DramaDirected by: Ron HowardWith: Russell Crowe, Ed Harris, Jennifer Connelly,...After John Nash, a brilliant but asocial mathematician, accepts secret work in cryptography, his life takes a turn for the nightmarish.
How the Grinch Stole Christmas
Family, ComedyDirected by: Ron HowardWith: Jim Carrey, Taylor Momsen, Jeffrey Tambor
Ransom
Action, Thriller Directed by: Ron HowardWith: Mel Gibson, Rene Russo, Gary Sinise, Delroy Lindo,...When a rich man's son is kidnapped, he cooperates with the police at first but then tries a unique tactic against the criminals.
Apollo 13
Science FictionDirected by: Ron HowardWith: Tom Hanks, Bill Paxton, Gary SiniseNASA's worst nightmare turned into one of the space agency's most heroic moments in 1970, when the Apollo 13 crew was forced to hobble home in a disabled capsule after an explosion seriously damaged the moon-bound spacecraft. Tom Hanks, Kevin Bacon, and Bill Paxton play (respectively) astronauts... Read more...
Far and Away
Adventure, Drama, Romantic, WesternDirected by: Ron HowardWith: Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman, Thomas Gibson
