By the late 1950s Siegel had established himself as an inspired orchestrator of tense, action-packed "B" thrillers, including the controversially violent "Riot in Cell Block 11" (1954), the classic sci-fi anti-totalitarian parable "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" (1956), the crime melodrama "Baby Face Nelson" (1957) and "The Killers" (1964), an uncompromising remake of Robert Siodmak's 1946 underworld saga featuring a hot-tempered Ronald Reagan in his last screen appearance. These films attracted the attention of the French CAHIERS DU CINEMA critics who praised Siegel's technical finesse and no-nonsense approach to a quintessentially American genre.
Siegel went on to enjoy a prolific and productive association with Clint Eastwood, directing the actor in "Coogan's Bluff" (1968), "The Beguiled" (1971) and "Dirty Harry" (1973) which began the classic urban crime series. Other directors followed, but in the character of San Francisco police detective "Dirty" Harry Callahan, Eastwood became the ultimate embodiment of one of Siegel's favorite trademarks, the avenging "rogue cop." Siegel also appeared (as Murphy the bartender) in the Eastwood-directed "Play Misty for Me" (1971) and in the 1978 remake of "Invasion of the Body Snatchers". His son Kristoffer Tabori, from his marriage to actress Viveca Lindfors (1945-53), is an actor.