Sorrentino made his directorial film debut with the Italian comedy-drama One Man Up (2001) for which he received the Nastro d'Argento for Best New Director followed by The Consequences of Love (2004), The Family Friend (2006), and This Must Be the Place (2011).

He has worked with songwriters Antonello Venditti, Paloma Faith and Mark Kozelek and written three books published in Italian.

Sorrentino was born in the Arenella district of Naples in 1970, and was orphaned at age 16 after losing both of his parents to an accidental carbon monoxide leak.

Sorrentino's following film, Il Divo (2008), is a dramatised biopic of Giulio Andreotti, the controversial Italian politician.

The feature, which won the Prix du Jury at Cannes Film Festival, sees Sorrentino reunited with The Consequences of Love star Toni Servillo, who plays the part of Andreotti.

The plot centres on a middle-aged, wealthy rock star, played by two-time Academy Award winner Sean Penn, who becomes bored in his retirement and takes on the quest of finding the guard of the German camp where his father was imprisoned, who now lives in hiding in the United States.

[10] Jay Weissberg of Variety hailed the film as "a densely packed, often astonishing cinematic feast that honors Rome in all its splendor and superficiality.

Sorrentino also called the film "a completely different movie" in terms of style and, regarding the autobiographical elements, acknowledged that "almost everything is true.

The movie — to be written by Lauren Schuker Blum, Rebecca Angelo and John Logan — will chronicle the life of Hollywood agent Sue Mengers as Apple Studios backs the film.

[24] In 2025, Sorrentino confirmed to Entertainment Weekly that the Jennifer Lawrence projects Mob Girl and Sue would not be going forward.