Paul Thomas Anderson in the context of "One Battle After Another"

Magnolia is a 1999 American drama film written, directed and co-produced by Paul Thomas Anderson. It stars an ensemble cast, including Jeremy Blackman, Tom Cruise, Melinda Dillon, Philip Baker Hall, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Ricky Jay, William H. Macy, Alfred Molina, Julianne Moore, John C. Reilly, Jason Robards (in his final film role), and Melora Walters. The film is an epic mosaic of interrelated characters in search of happiness, forgiveness, and meaning in the San Fernando Valley. The script was inspired by the music of Aimee Mann, who contributed several songs to its soundtrack.

The film had a limited theatrical release on December 17, 1999, before expanding wide on January 7, 2000. Magnolia received acclaim from critics. It grossed $48.5 million against a $37 million budget. Of the ensemble cast, Cruise was nominated for Best Supporting Actor at the 72nd Academy Awards and won the award in that category at the Golden Globes.

Inherent Vice is a 2014 American neo-noir black comedy crime film written for the screen, co-produced, and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, based on the 2009 novel by Thomas Pynchon. The ensemble cast includes Joaquin Phoenix, Josh Brolin, Owen Wilson, Katherine Waterston, Eric Roberts, Reese Witherspoon, Benicio del Toro, Jena Malone, Maya Rudolph, Martin Short and Joanna Newsom. The film follows Larry "Doc" Sportello, a well-intentioned but fumbling stoner, hippie, and private investigator embroiled in the criminal underworld of 1970 Los Angeles, investigating three cases linked by the disappearance of his ex-girlfriend and her wealthy new boyfriend.

Anderson's adaptation of Inherent Vice had been in development since 2010, and is the first Pynchon novel to be adapted for the screen. Anderson was previously inspired by Pynchon's novel V. while writing the screenplay for The Master (2012), and would go on to loosely adapt Vineland into One Battle After Another (2025). It is Anderson's second collaboration with Phoenix, following The Master, and involves a number of his other recurring collaborators, including producers Daniel Lupi and JoAnne Sellar, cinematographer Robert Elswit, editor Leslie Jones, and composer Jonny Greenwood.