John Curran (born September 11, 1960) is an American film director and screenwriter.

Born in Utica, New York, Curran studied illustration and design at Syracuse University, then worked as an illustrator, graphic designer, and production designer in Manhattan before moving to Sydney, Australia in 1986. There he worked on television commercials before writing and directing the short film Down Rusty Down. For his debut feature film, the 1998 drama Praise, he was nominated for the Australian Film Institute Award for Best Direction and won the Film Critics Circle of Australia Award for Best Director and the International Critics' Award at the Toronto International Film Festival.