Anthony Hopkins Movies List Ranked From Best To Worst

Quick Facts

A complete list of Anthony Hopkins movies shows more successes than failures. As his longtime collaborator and fellow actor Richard Attenborough described him, Anthony Hopkins is the greatest actor of his generation and we couldn’t agree more. Hopkins who began his acting career in 1960 is one of the most celebrated veterans in the movie industry. As with most actors of his generation, the Welshman began acting on stage shortly after his graduation from the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama in 1957. Additionally, he received training from London’s prestigious Royal Academy of Dramatic Art which was where he was discovered by the late English actor and director, Laurence Olivier who ultimately became his mentor. Anthony Hopkins has over a hundred acting credits to his name with over eighty credits coming from films.

As unbelievable as it sounds, Anthony Hopkins had stage fright at the early stages of his career, however, he overcame it to become one of the greatest actors to grace Hollywood. Hopkin’s debut starring role came in the 1964 short film, Changes. Four years later, he got his big break with his role as the King of England, Richard the Lionheart in the 1968 historical period film, The Lion in Winter. His portrayal earned him a BAFTA nomination for Best Supporting Actor which he lost to Ian Holm for his role in The Bofors Gun. By the 1970s, Anthony Hopkins had acted impressively in most of his roles that Attenborough confessed that he wasn’t only the best that he had worked with but the best of his generation, especially after his portrayal of British Army officer John Frost in the World War II-set film, A Bridge Too Far.

Anthony Hopkins has a string of awards to show for his illustrious career, they include but are not limited to 1 Academy Award from four nominations, 5 BAFTA Awards from 8 nominations, 1 Golden Globe from 7 nominations, Two Primetime Emmys among others. Like every actor, Hopkins has had some of his films flop, but ultimately, his hits outweigh his fails. Below is Anthony Hopkins Movies List ranked in terms of critical response as well as the performance of the films on the box office. In descending order, here goes the list.

Anthony Hopkins Movies List Ranked From Best To Worst

The Silence of the Lambs (1992)

The Silence of the Lambs has to begin this list as it was the film that brought Hopkins his first Academy Award. The American psychological horror-thriller tells the story of a young female FBI trainee named Clarice Starling (played by ) who turns to the advice of Dr. Hannibal Lecter – Hopkins’ character, who is a brilliant psychiatrist and cannibalistic serial killer, to help capture another serial killer whose trademark is skinning his female victims.

Against a budget of $19 million, the film grossed a whopping $272.7 million worldwide making it the 5th highest-grossing film of that year. It was equally successful critically as many critics have agreed to it being not only one of the greatest but also the most influential movies of all time. Hopkin’s character was also ranked as the greatest villain by the American Film Institute. The role also won him a BAFTA for Best Actor.

The Remains of the Day (1994)

The film, which stars Emma Thompson and Hugh Grant in supporting roles, was adapted from a novel of the same name by the British writer, Kazuo Ishiguro. The acclaimed novel also won a Booker Prize. The drama film, as directed by James Ivory, grossed over $60 million at the global box office against a $15 million budget. The film received a whopping 8 Academy Awards nominations including for Best Actor for Hopkins. While he lost the Oscar, he won his BAFTA nomination for Best Actor.

Nixon (1996)

Nixon is easily considered one of the best among Anthony Hopkins movies. It tells the story of the life of America’s president, Richard Nixon, played by Anthony Hopkins, as a complex and, in many respects, admirable yet deeply flawed person. The epic historical drama film, though a box office bomb, was a critical success earning a total of four Academy Awards with Hopkins earning the nod for Best Actor. Hopkins also received a Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Actor. The film also starred Joan Allen, Annabeth Gish, and Marley Shelton.

Shadowlands (1993)

Shadowlands is one of Anthony Hopkins movies done in collaboration with filmmaker Richard Attenborough. The biographical drama film is about Irish academic C. S. Lewis’ romantic relationship with American poet Joy Davidman, who later lost her life to cancer. The film also entails how Davidman’s illness challenged Lewis’ faith in Christ. Though not so successful on the box office, making only $2 million more than its $22 million budget, it swooped many awards. Since Hopkins had just earned an Oscar nomination for Remains of Day, he was ineligible for another nomination, however, he earned a BAFTA nomination and won two other awards including Los Angeles Film Critics Association award for Best Actor.

The Elephant Man (1980)

The Elephant Man is one of Anthony Hopkin’s earliest movies which was well received by the viewers. It boasts a 91% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, despite the fact that Hopkins received no award nomination for it. It grossed $25 million in North America alone, against a $5 million budget. Though Hopkins didn’t get an award, the film, in general, was a critical success, earning eight Academy Award nominations. It won the BAFTA Awards for Best Film, while the BAFTA for Best Actor went to its lead, John Hurt.

The Dresser (2015)

Anthony Hopkins himself described his role as Sir in the BBC TV film, The Dresser as the highlight of his life. His character – Sir – is an aging actor-manager preparing for his first starring role with the help of his dresser named Norman. The film which also stars Ian McKellen, Edward Fox and Emily Watson had a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes; Hopkins’ first project to receive the perfect mark on the film review website. The role earned him a Satellite Award nomination for Best Lead Actor in a Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television.

Howards End (1992)

Though Anthony Hopkins didn’t play the lead in Howards End, his role as Henry Wilcox did contribute to making the film both a critical and commercial success. The film which tells a story of class relations in turn-of-the-20th-century Britain was based on a novel of the same name by E. M. Forster. It received a whopping nine Academy Award nominations and won the BAFTA Award for Best Film. It made over $26 million against an $8 million budget.

The Mask of Zorro (1998)

In this swashbuckler film, Anthony Hopkin’s performance was rated as average, but regardless, it was a box office hit, grossing over $250 million on a budget of $95 million. His role was that of the original Zoro who would be succeeded by , who earned a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actor.

Solace (2015)

Solace is one of the films with Hopkins as both an actor an executive producer. The mystery thriller film which also stars Collin Farrel was met with tepid reviews with critics rating it at average.

Freejack (1992)

While Anthony Hopkins movies recorded lots of successes in the 90s, there were also failures and Freejack was one of them. Hopkins himself, during his appearance on the TV show, Late Show with David Letterman described the film with the word “terrible.” The science-fiction action film made $17 million against a $30 million budget.

Alexander (2004)

Anthony Hopkins seems to do well with epic historical films but Alexander was an exception. A look at the cast which in addition to Hopkins included , , , and would make anyone jump on it but it would be to their dismay as the film was a huge failure both on the critical and commercial front. Though it was averagely well received in Europe, it didn’t meet the standard for American viewers. The film was heavily criticized by historians who pointed out its misplaced representation of the Greek culture as well as the omission of some key elements.

All The King’s Men (2006)

Despite featuring an ensemble cast including and , All The King’s Men, a political drama film adapted from the 1946 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same name by Robert Penn Warren was a huge flop both critically and commercially. The film was criticized for its lack of political insight as well as the noncohesive nature of its narrative.

360 (2011)

2011’s 360 is another of Anthony Hopkins’ movies featuring an ensemble cast that was also a failure. He starred alongside Jude Law, Ben Foster among others. The film is a loose adaptation of La Ronde and follows couples and their sexual encounters.

Bad Company (2002)

Anthony Hopkins should probably just stick to dramas, thrillers, and horror movies, as comedy appears not to be his thing. His performance and that of his co-star in the action comedy film with connection to the 9/11 attacks was hugely panned by critics many of who commented that Hopkins and Rock lacked the spark to save the movie from a plot that was utterly predictable. It was also a box office bomb earning $66 million against a budget of $70 million.

Misconduct (2016)

With a rating of 7% on Rotten Tomatoes and a box office gross of $2 million despite an $11 million budget, the 2016 thriller film, Misconduct is by far Anthony Hopkin’s worst movies and the fact that it stars another veteran makes it even worse. It was the directorial debut of Shintaro Shimosawa and was written by both Simon Boyes and Adam Mason.

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