While he did not get an Oscar for Tootsie, Pollack did earn a statue 3 years later for Out Of Africa, a gorgeous romantic drama starring Robert Redford and Meryl Streep. Pollack continued to be a proficient director for the rest of his career, but never managed to reach quite the same level of artistic or commercial success that he found in the 1970s and 1980s. He scored a massive hit with the 1993 Tom Cruise court thriller The Firm, which earned $270 million worldwide before quietly vanishing into obscurity. He also directed a pair of Harrison Ford movies Sabrina and Random Hearts, neither of which reached the level of success typical for the star. His last movie as a director was the 2005 political thriller The Interpreter which stared Nichole Kidman and Sean Penn asnd was well received, earning almost $200 million.

While Pollack’s directing career may have dimmed slightly in later years, his acting career took off in a manner that nobody could have expected. The director gave very memorable and impressive performances in Woody Allen’s acidic marriage dramedy Husbands And Wives as well as in Stanley Kubrick’s final movie Eyes Wide. In addition to his dramatic acting work, Pollack also drew a number of laughs during guest roles on television comedies including Frasier, King Of The Hill, and Will & Grace. He acted right up until his death with one final memorable performance in Michael Clayton, which he also produced (ok, so his actual final role is in Made Of Honor, but let’s not discuss that).