Cinephiles seemed to mourn when the filmmaking duo Josh and Benny Safdie (“Uncut Gems,” “Good Time”) parted ways creatively. But rather than a breakup, it’s more like a branching out. Benny Safdie has leaned into acting—with roles in Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer,” Paul Thomas Anderson’s “Licorice Pizza,” and the upcoming “Odyssey”—while still directing, most recently with the series “The Curse.” Josh Safdie, meanwhile, has spent the past few years developing his own solo effort and directing some Adam Sandler comedy specials. But audiences should really rejoice: they’re getting an excellent two-for-one this fall.
Benny already released the MMA drama “The Smashing Machine,” featuring a remarkably vulnerable Dwayne Johnson, while Josh just debuted his solo directorial feature “Marty Supreme,” starring Timothée Chalamet, which absolutely blew the roof off Alice Tully Hall during a surprise NYFF screening last night. (See reactions here, including mine.)
And while the brothers have occasionally hinted at reuniting behind the camera, in a new interview with Kim Masters on The Business, Benny suggested the parting is likely permanent—not from animosity, but from divergent artistic appetites.
“Well, I think it doesn’t seem like [the door is ajar] because we made some amazing movies together, and I learned so much [from] them—and he’s my brother,” Safdie said. “But I just got to the point where there were things I wanted to explore that he didn’t, and there were things he wanted to explore that I didn’t. And I thought, well, I’m going to go to the place where I’m excited.”
While most audiences associate them with their frenetic, gritty New York street movies, Benny reminded listeners that collaboration wasn’t always the norm. “It’s interesting because we started out making movies separately,” he said. “Then we joined together to better understand the subjects we were exploring. Inevitably, the first movie was about our childhood. I have a very critical view of it, and he had a more romantic view. Putting those together helped that film—and helped me understand certain things about my father. I’m very happy and grateful for that.”
“It’s like the question of like, the definitive nature of, ‘Oh yeah, we made some great things together, and now we’re going to make things separately,’” he continued.
Another obstacle to reuniting lies in the Directors Guild of America’s (DGA) rules, which complicate post-split partnerships. “Part of it is there’s a rule that once you separate as partners, you can’t come back together,” Safdie explained. “I don’t know the rule—it’s a DGA rule—but it’s like, okay, fine. The point of it is to make you think about whether this is something you really want to do.”
“And it was something I wanted to explore,” he continued. “I wanted to do that because I have certain things I want to look at, and he has certain things he wants to look at. And we’re both going to try and do that.”
It’s worth noting that while online discourse often tries to pit the brothers against each other—especially after Benny forgot to thank Josh during his Venice Film Festival Best Director win—there appears to be no bad blood. Josh produced “The Curse,” and the interview makes it clear their split is rooted in creative curiosity, not conflict. (See also: the Coen Brothers, the Hughes Brothers, etc.)
For context, it’s worth remembering how the Coen brothers navigated similar territory. For years, Joel Coen received sole directing credit due to DGA regulations, despite having always co-directed and produced with his brother, Ethan Coen. That changed with “The Ladykillers” (2004), when the DGA began allowing shared directing credits. So it’s entirely possible the Safdies could collaborate again under a similar structure—one taking the official directing title while both effectively direct—if that ever ends up on the table.
“The Smashing Machine” is in theaters now, with early Oscar buzz for Dwayne Johnson, and “Marty Supreme” opens Christmas Day—both from A24. Listen to the whole conversation below.
