Philip Kaufman (born October 23, 1936) is an American film director and screenwriter from Chicago, Illinois.

Director and screenwriter Philip Kaufman was born in Chicago, Illinois. He attended the University of Chicago and later Harvard Law School. He won the Prix de la Nouvelle Critique at Cannes in 1965 for his film Goldstein (1965). He was the screenwriter for Outlaw Josey Wales, The (1976) and was to direct it but was replaced as director by Clint Eastwood. Kaufman's first hit as director was Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978), a remake of Don Siegel (I)'s 1956 sci-fi classic (in fact, Siegel has a cameo in it as a cab driver), and later, Kaufman was nominated for an Oscar for Best Screenplay on Material from Another Medium in 1988 for Unbearable Lightness of Being, The (1988). Kaufman's steamy Henry & June (1990) was the first film released by a major studio to be rated NC-17, which created much controversy.