American actorJeffrey Wrighthas continued to have a prolific acting career, both on-stage and off-stage, since he starred in various off-broadway productions when he was younger. He landed his first major on-screen role as a prosecuting attorney in Alan J. Pakula’sPresumed Innocent(1990), a legal thriller following a prosecutor (Harrison Ford) who gets charged with murdering his co-worker (Greta Scacchi). His prosperity continued after his breakthrough role as Belize, a nurse and caretaker of Roy Cohn, in the 1993 Broadway debut of Tony Kushner’s play,Angels in America. For this performance, Wright earned a Tony Award and later reprised his role in the play’s 2003 adaptation — which led to wins at the Emmys and the Golden Globes.
Since his career-defining first appearances in theater and on-screen, Jeffrey Wright has snagged iconic and memorable roles in film and television. From portraying Jean-Michel Basquiat inBasquiat(2006) and Beetee inThe Hunger Gamesseries, to voicing The Watcher inWhat If…?and motion capturing and voicing Isaac Dixon inThe Last of Us Part II,Wright has ventured into many genres and mediums.
With Jeffrey Wright’s most recent film,Asteroid City, now out on demandaccording to Decider, let’s take a look at Wright’s 10 best movies according to Rotten Tomatoes — before you watch another one of hisgreat performances.
10Confirmation (2016) - 84%
While in the midst of his career, Jeffrey Wright took to HBO to star in the political thriller television film,Confirmation, in 2016. The film, directed by Rick Famuyiwa ofDopeandThe Mandalorianfame, centers around the U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Clarence Thomas (played by Wendell Pierce) and his nomination hearings in 1991. Kerry Washington portrays Anita Hill, a University of Oklahoma law professor, who alleges that Thomas sexually harassed her while they worked together at the Department of Education and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
Alongside Washington and Pierce, Jeffrey Wright plays Charles Ogletree, an American attorney who decided to represent Anita Hill in the hearings. The film went on to be a hit, earning an 84% critic’s score and a 73% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. The television thriller was also nominated for various accolades, including two Primetime Emmy Awards and four NAACP Image Awards, which included a nomination for Wright’s moving performance.
9The Batman (2022) - 85%
Matt Reeves’The Batman(2022) has remained DC’s biggest box office hit of the 2020s so far. The noir-esque film is often regarded as one of the superhero entertainment company’sbest movies of all time, and many critics such asChristy Lemire of Roger Ebertadmire the film’s similar nature to “gritty, ‘70s crime drama.”
Robert Pattison, in a massive departure from his breakthrough days as Edward Cullen in the Twilight franchise, plays the titular masked crusader two years into his stint as Batman. In the film, he is investigating the Riddler (Paul Dano) as he embarks on a serial killing spree, attacking the corrupt wealthy elites of Gotham City.
On Pattinson’s side is Jeffrey Wright, who plays Gotham City Police Department (GCPD) lieutenant James Gordon. While the GCPD is wary of the Batman figure, Gordon and the superhero’s camaraderie becomes a crucial force behind the eventual takedown of the Riddler in the film.
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8Only Lovers Left Alive (2013) - 86%
The ever-iconic Jim Jarmusch has become a highly regarded director and screenwriter over his continuing career within the filmmaking industry. With hit and critically-acclaimed films such asBroken FlowersandGhost Dog: The Way of the Samurai, Jarmusch’s influence can be widely seen throughout American independent film, which many cultural film critics believe he helped propel with his 1984 classic,Stranger Than Paradise.
In 2013, Jarmusch released his 11th directed feature with Sony Pictures Classics, titledOnly Lovers Left Alive. The Palme d’Or nominated film centers around the romantic connection that involves two vampires, played by Tilda Swinton and Tom Hiddleston. Jeffrey Wright stars alongside these on-screen legends in the film as a vampire drug dealer, which he talked about in a2013 interview with Movieweb.
“Yeah, I play Doctor Watson, a vampire blood dealer. It’s a gorgeous, gorgeous, full-bodied Jim Jarmusch movie. I think it’s, not in terms of the characters, but in terms of the aesthetic of the movie and the creative homages within the movie, a perfectly autobiographical story of the inner workings of Jim Jarmusch’s mind and heart. It’s just such a celebration. I just saw it, and was just washed over with its beauty and warmth, but also really digging this celebration of all these artistic influences on him. When I watch any of his movies, I’m trying to figure out how to convince him to provide the soundtrack to my life, because nobody does music like Jarmusch in his movies. It’s so good, and Tilda (Swinton) and Tom (Hiddleston) are just rockstar vampires that we haven’t seen before. It’s so cool.”
7Moynihan (2018) - 86%
While his previous roles on this list featured him on-screen, Jeffrey Wright’s next biggest Rotten Tomatoes hit featured him behind the microphone as the film’s narrator.
The 2018 documentaryMoynihancenters on the biographical portrait of Daniel Patrick Moynihan, a former advisor to Richard Nixon and U.S. Senator for New York from 1977 to 2001. The documentary focuses on Moynihan’s ideas and passions over the course of his life, following his journey from Tusla, Oklahoma to the political atmosphere of the nation while living in New York.
6Broken Flowers (2005) - 87%
Before collaborating with Jim Jarmasuch again in 2013, Jeffrey Wright’s first interaction with the influential independent filmmaker began with the release of 2005’sBroken Flowers. The film centers on the troubled Don Johnston (Bill Murray), a retired Don Juan who was once a wealthy computer software mogul. After failing yet another relationship, the former entrepreneur receives a letter from an unknown ex claiming that he is a father to an unknown son. The film then follows Johnston as he embarks on his previous relationships, aiming to track down the source of the letter and unite with his son.
Jeffrey Wright plays Winston, Don Johnston’s close friend and neighbor, who persuades Johnston to pursue the journey and investigate the sudden mystery that appeared at his doorstep. The Independent Spirit Award and San Diego Film Critics Society Award-nominated performance is often seen as one of Wright’smost moving performances.
5O.G. (2018) - 89%
While most of the films on this list include Jeffrey Wright in a supporting role, the Washington, D.C. born actor is finally able to showcase his leading star quality in 2018’s drama,O.G.The film follows Jeffrey Wright as Louis, a prisoner who is getting ready to reenter civilization after spending 24 years behind bars. While preparing for his release, however, Louis is soon tasked with deciding whether to continue to freedom or aiding a young, new inmate Beecher (Theothus Carter).
The film premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in April 2018 before HBO acquired distribution rights to the film in October of that same year. Beloved by critics and most fans,O.G.is a prison-centric story that sees Jeffrey Wright tackle the role of a supportive inmate.
4The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013) - 90%
Throughout the 2010s,The Hunger Gamesfilm franchise took the entertainment industry by storm and launched one of the biggest crazes in modern history — the young adult-to-film adaptation craze. Amassing 2.97 billion in the domestic box office, the science-fiction dystopian series has been pulling fans into the world of Katniss Everdeen and Cornelius Snow in their contentious battle for freedom.
Beginning in the second entry in the franchise,The Hunger Games: Catching Fire(2013), Jeffrey Wright is transformed into the skillful technician Beetee Latier. The former Hunger Games victor survived the results of the 75th Hunger Games alongside the mockingjay rebel Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence), and became a crucial member in her aid against the capitol. While his role may have been small within the film franchise, Wright’s portrayal of Beetee became a charming entry in his long catalog of films.
Related:10 Movies and TV Shows to Watch While You Wait for The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes
3Source Code (2011) - 92%
Jeffrey Wright’s venture into the realm of science fiction did not begin withThe Hunger Gamesfranchise. In 2011, he was part of an ensemble cast in Duncan Jones’ action thrillerSource Code. The film follows Jake Gyllenhaal as U.S. Army pilot Captain Colter Stevens as he is thrust into someone else’s body and becomes involved in a virtual experimental government program where he must identify a terrorist after an attack occurs.
As Dr. Rutledge, Jeffrey Wright portrays a man who becomes Colter Stevens’ main source of information regarding the simulation he becomes a part of.
2Casino Royale (2006) - 94%
One of the most prolific names in all cinema and literature is James Bond, the famed fictional spy and British Secret Service personnel. In 2006, Jeffrey Wright became involved with the fifth highest-grossing film franchise in the nation — starring as Felix Leiter inCasino Royale.
Depicted in various forms of James Bond-related media, Felix Leiter is frequently seen as one of James Bond’s closest friends and CIA operative. The latest film franchise, which tapped Daniel Craig as its leading man, saw Wright take on the mantle of Leiter inCasino Royale,Quantum of Solace, andNo Time to Die. The portrayal became the longest time any actor had played the role in a live-action Bond film, and cemented Wright as a studious character actor who could uplift any supporting role.
1Ernest & Celestine (2012) - 98%
Jeffrey Wright is known for embarking in numerous roles in varying genres and mediums throughout his career, and the animated dramedyErnest & Celestinereleased in 2012 is no exception. The French film is based on a series of children’s books released by Gabrielle Vincent.
Nominated for an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature in 2014, the film centers on the unlikely friendship between Ernest, a bear, and Celestine, a mouse. The film was released with original French-speaking performers voicing the roles, but English voice actors were provided for the dubbed version. In this version, Jeffrey Wright voices The Bear Judge.
