Gary Oldman's Best Performances, Ranked (2024)

Gary Oldman has, for five decades, been one of the greatest performers in the film industry, and comfortably holds the distinction of being one of the greatest actors of all time. Known for his immersive roles — which often require make-up and prosthetic additions — in some brilliant films, Oldman has demonstrated an impressive range rivaled by few other actors. While going unnoticed in a role is usually considered a detriment, Oldman's ability to sink into a persona completely has earned him heaps of praise, with fans often shocked to see his name next to a character they had no clue he was playing.

Gary Oldman's career spans various genres, roles and personalities, all helping to make the actor arguably one of the most talented of his generation. The icon has appeared in everything from big-budget franchises to smaller projects, taking on characters with major and minimal screen time alike. Oldman's presence is almost always pointed to as a highlight of the films in which he appears, with him being one of the most captivating individuals on the big screen when he's in his element.

Updated on July 31, 2024, by Jeremy Devoe: After showing acting merit through a vast sea of roles in cinema, Gary Oldman has begun to settle down after 45 years, and retirement from acting is not entirely off the table for him by his admission. Most recently, Oldman has been working as one part of a leading trio on Apple TV's Slow Horses as Jackson Lamb, pleased to portray another character in the world of espionage after Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. With a fourth season set to premiere on September 4, 2024, we wanted to update this article to include another five of Oldman's best performances from his storied career.

15 Jean-Baptiste Emanuel Zorg Exemplifies the Campy Villain Role

Fifth Element (May 9, 1997) - Directed by Luc Besson

The Fifth Element is set in the year 2236 amid the calculated encroaching of a great evil intent on wiping out the Earth. An alien race, the Mondoshawans, hold the key to defeating this lurking evil but are shot down by mercenaries acting at the behest of the wealthy leader of Zorg Industries, Jean-Baptiste Emanuel Zorg. When the remains of one of the aliens are cloned, they produce Leeloo (Milla Jovovich), a humanoid woman who is left with Korben Dallas (Bruce Willis), a former special forces soldier turned cabbie, as her only hope for help.

Zorg stands out as perhaps the most hammy role Oldman has ever played, and he passionately chews the scenery with a strong southern drawl every time he's on the screen, his composure progressively melting away as his efforts fail time and time again. With a costume evocative of 1950s science fiction movies and a fickle mood, Zorg is an entertaining threat to every character he crosses paths with. That said, while it's a fan-cherished role and one worth mentioning among Oldman's best, he's felt like he's done much better and those performances are ranked ahead of Zorg on this list.

The Fifth Element

PG-13

Action

Adventure

In the colorful future, a cab driver unwittingly becomes the central figure in the search for a legendary cosmic weapon to keep Evil and Mr. Zorg at bay.

Cast

Bruce Willis , Milla Jovovich , Gary Oldman , Chris Tucker , Ian Holm

Writers

Luc Besson , Robert Mark Kamen

Runtime

126 minutes

Main Genre

Sci-Fi

14 Gary Oldman portrays Sid Vicious With a Well-regarded Depiction

Sid and Nancy (November 7, 1986) - Directed by Alex Cox

While not the only biopic on Sid Vicious, after 2022's Pistol miniseries, Oldman's performance as Sid Vicious in Sid and Nancy is just one of the many examples of his ability to fill in the shoes based on the real-world influence of the person he's portraying. Despite being about a decade older than Sid was at the time, Oldman was able to blend into the role while showing a vast range of tragic, comedic and measured moments that gave Sid and Nancy a grounded but emphasized atmosphere, making the real and terrible downward spiral it depicts that much more bleak to watch.

Sid and Nancy has received criticism for romanticizing certain events, with particular attention paid to the film's odd ending, and other behavior that is certainly not looked upon fondly, especially by John Lyndon, Sex Pistol's lead vocalist, and there's no denying there is ample reason to support such criticisms. However, critical reception was otherwise quite consistent in giving Gary Oldman credit for his performance, with Oldman himself continuing to prove he could fill the shoes of other famous individuals through other films.

13 Mason Verger Is a Vengeful but Demented Antagonist to Hannibal Lector

Hannibal (February 9, 2001) - Directed by Ridley Scott

Hannibal takes place a few years after the events of The Silence of the Lambs and follows Clarice Starling as she continues her hunt for the elusive serial killer, Hannibal Lecter. The film introduces Mason Verger, a former patient of Lecter whom the psychiatrist manipulated and ultimately encouraged to mutilate himself to extreme lengths. The aftermath left Verger requiring a wheelchair to go anywhere beyond constant bedrest, also requiring around-the-clock medical attention to survive otherwise.

Verger harbors a grudge against his therapist and aids Starling in the hopes of kidnapping and killing the fugitive himself. It would be easy to watch Hannibal and never realize that Gary Oldman was the man behind one of cinema's most disturbing characters. For the entirety of Oldman's time on screen, he appears as a sickly, elderly and horribly scarred man with his mind set on revenge, backed by excellent voice acting that further masks Oldman's identity, leaving Verger feeling like a character truly brought to life.

Hannibal

R

Crime

Horror

Drama

Living in exile, Dr. Hannibal Lecter tries to reconnect with now disgraced F.B.I. Agent Clarice Starling, and finds himself a target for revenge from a powerful victim.

Cast

Gary Oldman , Julianne Moore , Ray Liotta , Anthony Hopkins

Runtime

2 hours 11 minutes

Main Genre

Thriller

12 Gary Oldman Brought Beethoven to the Big Screen In Emphatic Fashion

Immortal Beloved (January 6, 1995) - Directed by Bernard Rose

A biopic and period piece in equal measure, Immortal Beloved depicted the life and strife of Ludwig van Beethoven, through the lens of trying to unwind a mostly fictitious, but based upon some fact, mystery found within Beethoven's will. Gary Oldman took on the task of playing the German composer and pianist in a performance that critics felt was overlooked, despite the somewhat mixed opinions on the film overall during its release.

Many reviews have cited that Oldman melded into the role without a hitch, with his acting as Beethoven being considered one of the most believable parts of Immortal Beloved. Oldman earned this praise with a dynamic role that showed Beethoven at various stages in his life, primarily following his struggles with his effective and then nearly full-on deafness and the actions Beethoven carried out over his grief at the situation. The film was a fairly successful release for its time as well, eventually generating $9,914,409 with only a domestic release from which to generate profit.

Immortal Beloved

R

Biography

Music

Romance

The life and death of the legendary Ludwig van Beethoven. Besides all the work he is known for, the composer once wrote a famous love letter to a nameless beloved, and the movie tries to find out who this beloved was--not easy, as Beethoven has had many women in his life.

Cast

Gary Oldman , Isabella Rossellini , Jeroen Krabbé

Runtime

2 hours 1 minute

Main Genre

Drama

11 Rosencrantz Is One Half of a Manipulative Duo from Hamlet

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead (February 8, 1991) - Directed by Tom Stoppard

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead is an interesting look into two characters from the Iconic play, Hamlet, which portrays the two as somewhat unaware of their role in instigating the budding confrontation between Prince Hamlet and King Claudius, always trying to catch up to the events of the play itself while living their own lives. The film is based on an absurdist play of the same name, written by the film's director, Tom Stoppard.

Oldman's portrayal of Rosencrantz is one of his less disguised performances, standing out regardless on account of his strong character acting, where he plays a somewhat dimmer and more straightforward role to foil Tim Roth's Guildenstern, who is seen as the sharper of the duo. While not a monumental role, it is a fan-cherished performance by Oldman, his dynamic with Tim Roth on-screen easing the transition of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead's verbose dialogue and high-concept plot to a more cinematic and digestible framing.

10 Jim Gordon Is a Vital Part Of The Batman Mythos

Dark Knight Trilogy (June 15, 2005–July 20, 2012) - All Directed by Christopher Nolan

Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy has been praised by Batman fans for, among other things, its outstanding work in casting various iconic DC characters. This includes Oldman's performance as Jim Gordon, one of Gotham's few honest cops who moves his way up the ranks from a boots-on-the-ground detective to active commissioner. During Bruce Wayne's (Christian Bale) journey from orphan child to caped vigilante, Gordon is one of the rare people Bruce can consistently trust.

Jim Gordon is one of the most important characters in Batman's lore; Gary Oldman took charge of the role in a series of performances that he truly made his own, given minimal directorial oversight by Nolan in the process. Though many actors have had their hand at portraying the character over almost eighty years, Gary Oldman's Commissioner Gordon was felt by many to be as if the character was directly lifted from the pages of one of Batman's many notable runs in the sphere of comics. That said, Oldman still has some more notable performances as original characters and other famous individuals alike.

The Dark Knight Trilogy

The Dark Knight trilogy is Christopher Nolan's take on Bruce Wayne and his career as Batman in Gotham City.

Created by

Christopher Nolan

First Film

Batman Begins

Latest Film

The Dark Knight Rises

Cast

Christian Bale , Heath Ledger , Gary Oldman , Katie Holmes , Maggie Gyllenhaal , Anne Hathaway , Tom Hardy , Liam Neeson , Morgan Freeman , Cillian Murphy , Aaron Eckhart , Michael Caine , Joseph Gordon-Levitt

9 Ivan Korshunov Seized Air Force One as Retaliation for the USSR's Fall

Air Force One (July 25, 1997) - Directed by Wolfgang Petersen

Air Force One follows Harrison Ford in the role of fictional US President James Marshall, who makes waves in the international community by announcing a zero-tolerance policy on terrorism during a diplomatic dinner in Moscow. Shortly after, his flight aboard Air Force One is hijacked by a small team of terrorists, led by the hot-headed but intelligent Ivan, or Egor, Korshunov. The rest of the movie depicts President James Marshall using the skills he garnered as a veteran of the Vietnam War to retake his plane from Korshunov and his band of loyalists.

Air Force One casts Oldman in the role of Ivan Korshunov, and the actor turns in one of his most intense roles as an antagonist, also managing to be another role where Oldman remains unnoticed by some watchers until his name is spotted during the credits. Oldman's performance deftly ebbs and flows between determined focus and seething rage during Air For One, making any encounter with Korshunov a tense experience for the film's viewers and other characters until he's finally taken down.

Air Force One

R

Action

Drama

Thriller

Communist radicals hijack Air Force One with the U.S. President and his family on board. The Vice President negotiates from Washington D.C., while the President, a veteran, fights to rescue the hostages on board.

Cast

Harrison Ford , Gary Oldman , Glenn Close , Wendy Crewson , Liesel Matthews , Paul Guilfoyle

Writers

Andrew W. Marlowe

Runtime

124 minutes

Main Genre

Action

8 Gary Oldman Gives Herman Mankiewicz an Unfiltered and Genuine Presence

Mank (November 13, 2020) - Directed by David Fincher

Mank is a dramatic retelling of the real-life process that went into Herman J. Mankiewicz's creation of the screenplay for one of the most highly regarded films in classic cinema, Citizen Kane, for which Mankiewicz ended up sharing joint credit with Orson Welles. Oldman's performance as Mankiewicz earned him a Golden Globe nomination in 2021, with critical acclaim given to his leading performance in which David Fincher specifically wanted Oldman to shine through as himself; no extra lengths were taken to mask Oldman's appearance.

Despite this, and once again being about a decade older than the person he was portraying, Oldman fit into his role as if he had walked out of the late-thirties era of Hollywood that Mank strongly delves into. The real Herman J. Mankiewicz was the first critic of theater for the New Yorker publication, who was reportedly witty and cutting with his words, qualities that Oldman embodied well in his portrayal of the man, also displaying the harrowing reality of Mankiewicz's struggles with alcoholism.

Mank

R

Drama

Comedy

1930s Hollywood is re-evaluated through the eyes of scathing social critic and alcoholic screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz as he races to finish the screenplay of Citizen Kane (1941).

Cast

Gary Oldman , Amanda Seyfried , Lilly Collins

Main Genre

Biography

Writers

Jack Fincher

Production Company

Blue Light, Flying Studio, Netflix Studios

7 A Peculiar and Investing Take on Dracula Stuck With Watchers

Bram Stoker's Dracula (November 13, 1992) - Directed by Francis Ford Coppola

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The role of Dracula has been portrayed by countless actors for more than a century, from Bela Lugosi to Leslie Nielsen. In Francis Ford Coppola's rendition of the iconic tale, Bram Stoker's Dracula, Gary Oldman was cast as the bloodthirsty Transylvanian count. The film's prologue shows viewers Dracula's transformation from a Christian knight into the vampiric lord of the night in 1462 before jumping four centuries into the future to show the arrival of solicitor Jonathan Harker (Keanu Reeves) to Dracula's castle. Once there, Dracula imprisons Jonathan and travels to England to seduce and vampirize Harker's fiancé, Mina (Winona Ryder).

Oldman's performance as a more eccentric Dracula features some of the actor's best range in a single movie, with viewers seeing Vlad Dracula as a noble knight, an elderly recluse and a monstrous killer throughout the film. Oldman's best work in Bram Stoker's Dracula is shown in its closing sequences as Dracula's humanity begins to resurface in the face of Mina's affection, reminding viewers of the heart the man once had beating in his chest.

Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992)

R

Drama

Fantasy

Horror

The centuries old vampire Count Dracula comes to England to seduce his barrister Jonathan Harker's fiancée Mina Murray and inflict havoc in the foreign land.

Cast

Gary Oldman , Winona Ryder , Anthony Hopkins , Keanu Reeves , Richard E. Grant

Writers

Bram Stoker , James V. Hart

Runtime

2 hours 8 minutes

Production Company

American Zoetrope, Columbia Pictures, Osiris Films

6 Gary Oldman Channels Harry Truman With Praised Accuracy

Oppenheimer (July 21, 2023) - Directed by Christopher Nolan

Oppenheimer tells the story of J. Robert Oppenheimer, often cited as the father of nuclear physics, in his role in developing the atomic bomb for the United States during World War II. The film balances the science behind the bomb with Oppenheimer's own ethical qualms and doubts over its use, including the political persecution he faced following the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. In one of Oppenheimer's most poignant scenes, the titular physicist's meeting with President Harry Truman after both atomic bombs were dropped.

Oldman's role as Harry Truman makes for one of the best depictions of an American president in modern film, and the actor is practically unrecognizable in the best of ways. His short scene sees him mock Oppenheimer for his concerns, as did the real Harry Truman. Truman told Oppenheimer that he wasn't the one who had to make the call to drop the bombs, leaving the physicist almost completely disillusioned. It's a relatively brief moment, but Oldman's performance sells it as one of Oppenheimer's best, his barely masked contempt as President Truman genuine enough to make even viewers feel like they're being talked down to.

Oppenheimer

9

10

R

Biography

Drama

History

The story of American scientist J. Robert Oppenheimer and his role in the development of the atomic bomb.

Cast

Cillian Murphy , Emily Blunt , Matt Damon , Robert Downey Jr. , Alden Ehrenreich , Scott Grimes , Jason Clarke , Tony Goldwyn

Runtime

180 Minutes

Main Genre

Biography

5 Sirius Black Became a Mentor and Partial Guardian Figure to Harry Potter

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (June 4, 2004) (Some Images Include his Portrayal in Order of the Phoenix) - Directed by Alfonso Cuarón

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban follows Harry and his friends in their third year at Hogwarts. After encounters with the soul-draining Dementors, Harry learns that the alleged murderer of his parents, Sirius Black, has escaped Azkaban prison, and may be coming for him next. Throughout much of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Harry's paranoia about his godfather is steadily built upon and heightened by various events, especially when a magical map shows the presence of people believed to have been long dead.

While Gary Oldman did mellow in his performance as Sirius Black in subsequent movies, his performance in Prisoner of Azkaban was the perfect introduction to the character. As a fugitive from the Ministry of Magic, Black appears disheveled, still in his prison garb, and desperate for revenge. While Oldman himself looks back on the role as an easy one, it's hard to deny just how memorable Oldman's first outing as Sirius Black was for fans, especially after how built up his first appearance in the film was.

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

PG

Fantasy

Family

Harry Potter, Ron and Hermione return to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry for their third year of study, where they delve into the mystery surrounding an escaped prisoner who poses a dangerous threat to the young wizard.

Director

Alfonso Cuarón

Release Date

June 4, 2004

Studio

Warner Bros.

Cast

Gary Oldman , David Thewlis , Daniel Radcliffe , Emma Watson , Rupert Grint , Robbie Coltrane , Timothy Spall , Maggie Smith , Michael Gambon , Richard Griffiths , Fiona Shaw , Alan Rickman

Runtime

142 minutes

Tagline

Something Wicked This Way Comes

Main Genre

Adventure

Franchise

Harry Potter

Sequel(s)

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

4 George Smiley Is Another Example of Oldman's Supreme Ability to Blend In

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (January 6, 2012) - Directed by Tomas Alfredson

Based on a spy novel of the same name, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy is a thrilling mystery film with fictional characters and events set during the real circ*mstances of the Cold War. In it, Gary Oldman plays George Smiley, in a performance which had Oldman nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor, an intelligence officer forced to retire after an operation goes awry. What follows is George Smiley's hunt to track down the mole whose identity was to be revealed during the botched operation, becoming a tense and white-knuckling unraveling of a web of secrets.

Alfredson specifically wanted Gary Oldman in the lead role for his "quiet intensity and intelligence..." and Oldman provides a uniquely meta experience for watchers as he blends into the role of a character whose entire M.O. is dedicated to flying under the radar. Oldman had a tall act to follow, with the highly renowned actor Alec Guinness having portrayed George Smiley in the BBC series which covered Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. However, many critics have agreed that Gary Oldman did the role justice, and some say he was arguably an even better pick for the role.

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

R

Studio

Focus Features

3 Drexl Spivey Is a Bizarre and Memorable Criminal Cameo

True Romance (September 10, 1993) - Directed by Tony Scott

True Romance tells the story of Clarence and Alabama, an unlikely pairing of a comic book store employee and a call girl, who fall passionately in love after their first night together. When Clarence learns that his new love works for a shady criminal named Drexl Spivey, he confronts the crook, telling him that Alabama is now free of him before shooting Drexl dead on the spot. From the outset, Drexl establishes himself as the film's most over-the-top character and is undoubtedly a caricature of his ilk.

Drexl Spivey is one of Oldman's roles that is least reflective of the man behind the character, with an impressively subtle make-up job, beyond the contact lens to simulate a cataract, turning him into a seedy gangster that he fully bit into the scenery as. The briefness of Oldman's role didn't make it any less iconic among fans of the actor, and he perfectly fit into the surreal crime drama of True Romance with a performance that once again showcased the vastness of range in his character acting.

True Romance

R

Thriller

Drama

Romance

Crime

After a comic book store clerk and a call girl fall in love and marry, they accidentally end up with a suitcase full of cocaine. Their attempt to sell the drugs in Hollywood leads to a violent confrontation with both the original owners and the police, testing their bond in unexpected ways.

Cast

Christopher Walken , Dennis Hopper , Brad Pitt , Christian Slater , Gary Oldman , Val Kilmer , Samuel L. Jackson , Patricia Arquette

Writers

Quentin Tarantino , Roger Avary

Runtime

119 minutes

Main Genre

Crime

Studio(s)

Warner Bros. Pictures

Distributor(s)

Warner Bros. Pictures

2 Norman Stansfield Was a Corrupt DEA Agent That Menaced Everyone

Léon: The Professional (November 18, 1994) - Directed by Luc Besson

Leon: The Professional tells the story of the titular assassin, Leon (Jean Reno), who is forced to care for Mathilda (Natalie Portman), a teenage girl orphaned by a corrupt DEA agent, Norman Stansfield. With nowhere to go, she turns to Leon in the hopes that he will train her as an assassin, motivated by her drive to seek revenge on Stansfield and his team for the murder of her family. Her determination is intense and perturbing enough that Leon considers killing her, but this subsides, and he relents to teaching her what he knows.

Gary Oldman's performance as Stansfield has remained one of his most quoted and memorable among fans. He brought a unique intensity that absurdly commands every scene the drug-addled Stansfield is present for. Despite the role being one of the most transparent of Oldman's in terms of it being unmistakably Oldman at first glance, the British actor's performance as the murderous American agent Stansfield is a truly separate persona in action. It left many fans of Oldman's performance wishing they could have seen even more of him before Stansfield and Leon took each other out.

Léon: The Professional

R

Crime

Drama

12-year-old Mathilda is reluctantly taken in by Léon, a professional assassin, after her family is murdered. An unusual relationship forms as she becomes his protégée and learns the assassin's trade.

Cast

Jean Reno , Gary Oldman , Natalie Portman , Danny Aiello

Writers

Luc Besson

Runtime

1 hour 50 minutes

Main Genre

Action

Production Company

Columbia Pictures, Gaumont, Les Films du Dauphin

1 Winston Churchill Remains One of Great Britain's Most Notable Figures

Darkest Hour (December 22, 2017) - Directed by Joe Wright

Winston Churchill is often held up as one of the greatest Britons to have ever lived, and arguably one of the most important figures of the 20th century. In Darkest Hour, the story of the wartime prime minister was told in the lead-up to the UK's war against Germany, including its early military operations, such as those that took place at Dunkirk. The biopic is carried by Gary Oldman's fantastic performance as Churchill, in one of cinema's best practical effects transformations.

Gary Oldman's appearance as Winston Churchill is arguably his most immersive, leaving the actor practically beyond recognition. Darkest Hour follows Churchill through some of his most emotionally charged moments in life, culminating in his enduring "We shall fight them on the beaches" speech to Britain's Parliament. The role saw Gary Oldman win an Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance as Churchill and thus leaves it as his most critically acclaimed and best performance.

Darkest Hour

PG-13

Drama

War

In May 1940, the fate of World War II hangs on Winston Churchill, who must decide whether to negotiate with Adolf Hitler, or fight on knowing that it could mean the end of the British Empire.

Studio

Universal Pictures

Cast

Gary Oldman , Lily James , Kristin Scott Thomas

Writers

Anthony McCarten

Runtime

2 Hours 5 Minutes

Main Genre

Biography

Cinematographer

Bruno Delbonnel

Producer

Tim Bevan, Lisa Bruce, Eric Fellner, Douglas Urbanski, Anthony McCarten

Production Company

Focus Features, Perfect World Pictures, Working Title Films