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Jafar Panahi, actor & director
Actor & Director

Jafar Panahi: Movies, Awards & Box Office

films
17
as director
4
on screen
1994–2025
box office
$18.8M
nominations
3
average score
82
Born
July 11, 1960 (age 66)
Birthplace
Mianeh, East Azerbaijan, Imperial State of Iran
Citizenship
Iranian
Occupations
Film director, screenwriter, producer, editor
Years active
1988-present
Spouses
Tahereh Saeedi
Children
2
Biggest hits

The Best Jafar Panahi Movies

The films of Jafar Panahi that made the most at the worldwide box office, biggest first: It Was Just an Accident (2025) leads with $10.5M. The full ranking adds the most awarded films and the newest releases.

Full ranking
Career at a glance

Jafar Panahi's Career in Numbers

Jafar Panahi's films in numbers — as an actor and a director, not counting appearances as themselves: when they were made, the genres Jafar Panahi works in most and the milestones along the way. The filmography runs from The White Balloon (1995) to It Was Just an Accident (2025), and the 2020s were the busiest decade.

Jafar Panahi Movies by Decade

  1. 1990s 2
  2. 2010s 2
  3. 2020s 4

The 2020s were Jafar Panahi's busiest decade, with 4 films.

Jafar Panahi Movies by Genre

  • Drama 5
  • Action 1
  • Documentary 1

Drama is the genre Jafar Panahi has worked in most, with 5 films, ahead of action (1).

Jafar Panahi Career Milestones

First film
The White Balloon 1995
Biggest box office hit
It Was Just an Accident $10.5M worldwide
Best-rated film
It Was Just an Accident Movie Echo Score 88
Newest film
It Was Just an Accident 2025
17 credits

Jafar Panahi Filmography: Every Movie

Every film Jafar Panahi is credited on, newest first, with the role, the box office and the Movie Echo Score. 4 as director and 4 as actor. Rated films average a score of 82. Re-order the list to see the best-rated films or the biggest hits first.

3 nominations

Jafar Panahi: Awards & Nominations

3 nominations across 2 award bodies, from 2026 to 2026. Every ceremony is listed newest first, with the category and the film.

All movie awards
  • Oscars logo Oscars 2 nominations
  • Golden Globes logo Golden Globes 1 nomination
Biography

Who Is Jafar Panahi?

Jafar Panahi was born in Mianeh, East Azerbaijan, Imperial State of Iran in 1960 and is 66 years old. Credited on films since 1994, as both an actor and a director. The background, training and the roles that shaped the career.

Jafar Panahi, born on 11 July 1960, is commonly associated with the Iranian New Wave film movement. After years of making short films and assisting fellow filmmaker Abbas Kiarostami, Panahi achieved international recognition with his feature film debut, The White Balloon (1995), which bagged the Caméra d'Or at the 1995 Cannes Film Festival, marking the first time an Iranian film won a major award at Cannes. Panahi's films are known for their humanistic perspective on life in Iran, with a consistent focus on the tribulations of children, the underprivileged, and women. Despite experiencing multiple detentions by the Iranian government and enduring a 20-year ban on directing any movies, Panahi made a documentary feature, This Is Not a Film (2011), while awaiting the result of an appeal and continued to produce critically acclaimed work. His film Taxi (2015) won the Golden Bear at the 65th Berlin International Film Festival. Panahi's films capture universal concepts of humanitarianism in a realistic, yet unsentimental, lens, forging a significant aesthetic in Iranian cinema.

FAQ

Jafar Panahi: Questions & Answers

How many movies Jafar Panahi has made, the biggest hit, the best-rated film, the award record and more, answered from the filmography above.

How many movies has Jafar Panahi been in?

Jafar Panahi is credited on 17 films, from 1994 to 2025. 4 of them as an actor and 4 as a director. The filmography on this page lists every one of them, newest first, with the role and the Movie Echo Score.

What is Jafar Panahi's highest-grossing movie?

It Was Just an Accident (2025) is Jafar Panahi's biggest box office hit, with $10.5M worldwide, ahead of Taxi (2015) ($3.91M). Across every film with box office figures, Jafar Panahi's movies have made $18.8M.

Jafar Panahi's biggest hits

What is the best Jafar Panahi movie?

By the Movie Echo Score, which blends critic reviews, audience ratings and lasting impact, Jafar Panahi's best-rated film is It Was Just an Accident (2025) with a score of 88, followed by Nasrin (2020) (82).

Best Jafar Panahi movies, ranked

Has Jafar Panahi won an Oscar?

Jafar Panahi has been nominated for 2 Oscars but has not won one yet. Across every ceremony in the awards database, Jafar Panahi has 0 wins from 3 nominations.

How old is Jafar Panahi?

Jafar Panahi is 66 years old, born on July 11, 1960 in Mianeh, East Azerbaijan, Imperial State of Iran.

What is Jafar Panahi's newest movie?

The most recent film on Jafar Panahi's filmography is It Was Just an Accident (2025), which Jafar Panahi directed.

Who does Jafar Panahi work with most often?

Jafar Panahi shares the most films with Abbas Kiarostami (2 films) and Mohsen Makhmalbaf (2 films).

The Best Jafar Panahi Movies, Ranked

Top rated, most awarded and biggest box office hits from 17 credits.

See the ranking

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