Nook NotesPick a film
Ari Aster

Director

Ari Aster

Born July 15, 1986 in New York City, New York, USA9 films

Ari Aster (born July 15, 1986) is an American filmmaker. His films are noted for their unsettling combination of dark comedy, horror, and graphic violence. After garnering some recognition for writing and directing the short horror film The Strange Thing About the Johnsons (2011) as part of his studies at the AFI Conservatory, he became widely known for writing and directing the horror films Hereditary (2018) and Midsommar (2019), establishing himself in the genre of elevated horror.

Read more

Aster co-founded the production company Square Peg with Danish producer Lars Knudsen in 2019. He pivoted away from horror by writing, directing, and producing the surrealist comedy-drama film Beau Is Afraid (2023) and the satirical neo-Western thriller film Eddington (2025). Both films received positive reviews but failed to recoup their budgets at the box office.

Description above from the Wikipedia article Ari Aster, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Start here

The best way into Ari Aster's work
Hereditary posterFirst watchHereditary20187.3Following the death of the Leigh family matriarch, Annie and her children uncover disturbing secrets about their heritage.View film

Essential films

Ranked by acclaim and reach
Midsommar poster7.1Midsommar2019Beau Is Afraid poster6.8Beau Is Afraid2023Eddington poster6.5Eddington2025The Strange Thing About the Johnsons poster6.8The Strange Thing About the Johnsons2011Munchausen poster6.7Munchausen2013

Filmography

9 films as director
  1. TBAScapegoatDirector
  2. TBAUntitled Sixth Ari Aster Feature FilmDirector
  3. 2025EddingtonDirector
  4. 2023Beau Is AfraidDirector
  5. 2019MidsommarDirector
  6. 2018HereditaryDirector
  7. 2014BasicallyDirector
  8. 2013MunchausenDirector
  9. 2011The Strange Thing About the JohnsonsDirector