Director David Fincher established his reputation as one of today’s greatest American directors after helming cult-classic films like Se7en, Fight Club, and Zodiac. The 52-year-old visionary earned best director Oscar nominations for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and The Social Network, and now his adaptation of Gillian Flynn’s best-selling novel Gone Girl is being considered an early Oscar contender.

Gone Girl centers on journalist Nick Dunne, who stands accused of murdering his wife Amy after she disappears on the morning of their fifth anniversary. Ben Affleck, who has become a celebrated director himself in recent years, portrays Dunne in the film adaptation and had nothing but praise for Fincher’s process.

“I would have done the phonebook with David … I would do it again and again and again, a million times. It was a joy. David’s also, despite his reputation, a really funny and nice guy, not just a demon; very kind, and smart and sweet,” said Affleck. “He is genuinely an actor’s director, and he has the deepest and most proficient understanding of the technical aspects of film-making, more than anyone I’ve ever worked with. So he’s got this engineer’s mind and yet this taste of an artist.”

The rest of the cast has also spoken out about Fincher’s remarkable attention to detail, with Tyler Perry, who portrays defense laywer Tanner Bolt in Gone Girl, stating that “He sees everything at once. He’s trying to paint this perfect tableau and if one thing’s out of place it has to be redone.”

Gillian Flynn admits that she always hoped Fincher would agree to direct a film adaptation of her best-selling novel, stating that his dark humor is a perfect fit for the subject matter.

“He’s really well known for the sense of dread and claustrophobia and sense of place, but he’s really underrated for those weird bursts of dark humour that are in his films. I think those moments are really important, particularly with the media,” said Flynn.

With Gone Girl already being considered an Oscar contender, viewers can look forward to Flynn and Fincher’s next collaboration; the two will work together on HBO’s Utopia, the remake of a British show centering on fans of a cult graphic novel.