*Bruce Willis is taking a break from acting as he battles aphasia, a neurological condition that affects the ability to communicate. 3/30/2022
Want to know the best Bruce Willis movies? How about the worst Bruce Willis movies? Curious about Bruce Willis’s box office grosses or which Bruce Willis movie picked up the most Oscar® nominations? Need to know which Bruce Willis movie got the best reviews from critics and audiences? Well you have come to the right place.
I have followed Bruce Willis’ career since he hit the big time with his star making role as David Addison on Moonlighting. I still think the Moonlighting 3 episode story arc with Mark Harmon,was some the best television I have ever seen and the pinnacle of that series. Since Moonlighting, Bruce Willis has had a very busy career, making over 60 movies over the last 27 years. It has been a roller coaster ride…the highs….. movies like Pulp Fiction, most of the Die Hards, and The Sixth Sense…..the lows….movies like The Whole Ten Yards, Hudson Hawk, Bonfire of the Vanities and North. His IMDb page shows 145 acting credits since 1980. In the table below, Ultimate Movie Rankings ranks movies in 6 different sortable columns.
Bruce Willis Movies Ranked In Chronological Order With Ultimate Movie Rankings Score (1 to 5 UMR Tickets) *Best combo of box office, reviews, and awards.
Bruce Willis Movies Can Be Ranked 6 Ways In This Table
The really cool thing about this table is that it is “user-sortable”. Rank the movies anyway you want.
- Sort Bruce Willis movies by movie title and movie trailers.
- Sort Bruce Willis movies by co-stars of his movies.
- Sort Bruce Willis movies by adjusted domestic box office grosses using current movie ticket cost
- Sort Bruce Willis movies by adjusted worldwide box office grosses using current movie ticket cost
- Sort Bruce Willis movies how they were received by critics and audiences. 60% rating or higher should indicate a good movie.
- Sort by how many Oscar® nominations each Bruce Willis movie received and how many Oscar® wins each Bruce Willis movie won.
- Sort Bruce Willis movies by Ultimate Movie Rankings (UMR) Score. UMR Score puts box office, reviews and awards into a mathematical equation and gives each movie a score.
Possibly Interesting Facts About Bruce Willis
1. Walter Bruce Willis was born on March 19, 1955, in the town of Idar-Oberstein, West Germany. His dad was an American while his mother was a German.
2. Bruce Willis worked as a bartender when he was a struggling actor in New York City.
3. In 1984, Bruce Willis left New York City to audition for roles in Los Angeles.
4. Bruce Willis’ big break was getting the role in the television series Moonlighting (1985-1989). Glenn Gordon Caron had to fight with ABC to put Willis in the lead role having already signed Shepherd for both the pilot and series. Caron claims he tested Willis about a third of the way through testing over 2,000 actors, knew “this was the guy” immediately, and had to fight through twice as many more acting tests and readings while arguing with ABC executives before receiving (initial) conditional authorization to cast Willis in the pilot. ABC, according to Caron, did not feel that anyone viewing would think there could possibly be any “believable” sexual tension between Shepherd and Willis.
5. Although Bruce Willis was the 115th choice to play John McClane in 1988’s Die Hard….he was given an unheard, at the time, salary of $5 million dollars.
6. Bruce Willis was the only celebrity that attended Julia Roberts’ wedding to Daniel Moder. Their friendship is referred to in Ocean’s Twelve (2004), when he mistakes Tess Ocean for Julia Roberts, and asks her about ‘Danny’.
7. Bruce Willis was the first actor to ever “act” in a video game (Apocalypse (1998)). No one before had ever done voice work along with having their likeness and movements digitally added to the game, as well as receiving prominent billing on the game’s cover.
8. Bruce Willis was considered for the role of Kyle Reese in The Terminator (1984), which went to Michael Biehn.
9. Bruce Willis has been married two times. He has 5 daughters. His first marriage was to Demi Moore. His current marriage is to Emma Heming.
10. Check out Bruce Willis’ career compared to current and classic actors. Most 100 Million Dollar Movies of All-Time.
Personal Top Ten Bruce Willis Movies
- Die Hard
- The Fifth Element
- Looper
- Lucky Number Slevin
- Nobody’s Fool
- Pulp Fiction
- Sin City
- The Sixth Sense
- Twelve Monkeys
- Unbreakable
Our You Tube Video that goes through the Rankings all of Bruce Willis’ movies.
My Letterboxd.com Bruce Willis Movie Reviews.
Steve Lensman’s Bruce Willis Top 50 Movies You Tube Video
If you do a comment….please ignore the email address and website section.
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1 I am a great fan of Willis movies and enjoyed him especially in The 6th Sense, Striking Distance and even the huge flop Sunset which gets artistically panned in the table above. I am already on record on this site as opining that Willis has been greatly underestimated by those who compile ranking lists of movie stars.
2 However maybe now that he is 62 he will settle down and act his age in normal dramatic acting parts which 6th Sense and even the critically panned flop Perfect Stranger [singular Bruce Cogerson!] convince me he is capable of doing. Seeing him and his contemporaries like Stallone [70], Arnie [69] and Mel Gibson [61] posing as action heroes at the peak of their strength and agility is to me as embarrassing and nonsensical as it would have been to watch Weissmuller swing through the trees at an advanced age or Brando reprising Stanley or the Wild One when HE was in his 60s. Indeed the 48 year old Mumbles went in the opposite direction and played the 60 something Don Corelone and at least when Scott, McCrea and Astaire posed as men a lot younger than themselves they didn’t profess that their characters had exceptional physical powers – just quick on the draw and with the ability to pull ‘young chicks’ !!
3 However if Willis and his would-be Peter Pan chums can’t discipline themselves to grow old gracefully on the screen perhaps we could persuade the FBI to step in as the 64 year old Steven Seagal claims they did in his case and have virtually terminated his action man career.
4 That said I too wish you a happy birthday Bruce Willis.
Hey Bob….thanks for the feedback on one of my favorites. I am glad somebody liked Sunset….but I think Sunset is almost unwatchable….on paper it sounds promising….Bruce as Mix and James Garner as Earp. I was disappointed when it came out…..and could not finish it on a second viewing. It is right there with Breakfast of Champions and the Whole Ten Yards as the worst of his career….in my humble opinion of course.
I will fix my plural problem on Perfect Stranger…thanks for the heads up. Years ago Willis claimed he was done with action movies….apparently that did not last very long…as all of his are now low budget action movies…that never even reach theaters.
Sorry it took so long to respond back. Good comment!
HI BRUCE
1 I realise in liking Sunset I’m in a minority and that it had no great artistic value and certainly one cant’ accuse you of bias in panning a Willis film ! However for me Willis and Garner are such relaxing actors to watch that their teaming was a must-see and presumably you saw some entertainment value in it first time round when you a gave it at least a partial 2nd viewing.
2 I am actually a sucker for what can always be a once-in-a-lifetime teaming of actors that I admire and I am sure you will therefore realise what a treat Space Cowboys was for me in teaming Eastwood, Garner, Tommy Lee and Donald Sutherland [with one of my favourite character actors James Cromwell thrown in for good measure] though I see that your critic/audience panel was not overly excited about that one either giving it just around 63%.
Hey Bob….I had huge expectations for Sunset…..Moonlighting was huge….Blind Date had been a modest success….loved Garner….then I saw this one….in theaters….I was bored out of my mind. Looking back on it…..it was the first time of many….that Bruce appears to be mailing it in. The second viewing was years later when I thought….it can not be as bad as I remember it…..and it was.
Looking at his movies…..it was one of 39 movies that I have gone to the theater to see…..that has to be the most of any actor in my movie going career….a career that pays me nothing….but gives me so much pleasure. Still glad somebody liked the movie. One day I will do a Blake Edwards page (he directed that one…and Blind Date).
Some interesting new trivia for Die Hard fans –
http://www.tvovermind.com/movies/die-hard-co-writer-reveals-29-year-old-nagging-plot-hole
Hey Steve….good read. Thanks for sharing…..it was not too much of a nagging plot hole…..but still pretty interesting.
1 I always feel that generally there is rarely a sense of proportion regarding Bruce Willis as he seldom appears on ANYONE’s lists of actors with great achievements of one kind or another.
Possibly that reflects snobbery as he is not ‘perceived’ as a great actor whereas STARDOM though it boasts many great actors does not necessary relate to the finer acting skills, but as Joan Crawford said to be considered a STAR “you have to pull your weight at the box office” and Edward Norton for example who is rightly regarded as one of today’s finest actors does not have any serious reputation as a box office draw.
2 The credentials of Willis in that respect are beyond doubt as illustrated by the fact that the total worldwide grosses in the above table come to $12.5 billion in adjusted dollars. If we PROVISIONALLY apply to for example Tyrone Power’s total adjusted domestic gross of $7.2 billion the normal classic era average ratio of 65%domestic /35% foreign we get a worldwide gross of $11 billion for Ty so that as Power was one of the biggest box office stars of the classic era it follows that Willis on a WW basis would out gross most of the stars from those days. I feel that an actor’s WW box office achievements are too often overlooked.
3 Anyway I do not think that Willis is a bad actor and is certainly more accomplished than the likes of Stallone or Arnie as Willis’ sensitive performances in for example 6th Sense and Nobody’ Fool illustrate in my opinion.
BOB
Hey Bob.
1. Always glad to talk Bruce Willis. Good point about Willis being a star versus “an actor”….as well as Norton being “an actor” versus a box office draw. Pretty sure Willis has gotten paid better than Norton….heck Bruce got 20 million for Hart’s War….which barely grossed 20 million in the USA.
2. I think Bruce and Tyrone are a good match…especially when you compare their box office grosses. Plus I think when Willis is thought about in the future….people will be amazed at his box office success…just like I was when I did my Power page.
3. I agree Bruce is a better actor than Sly and Arnold….but he needs another hit because the last 3 years have been pretty rough for him….as he is stuck in straight to home entertainment hell with Nicolas Cage. Maybe that would be a good movie…Cage and Willis play themselves as they search for a hit that will return them to the top.
4. Bruce does very well in The Sixth Sense and Nobody’s Fool…along with Twelve Monkeys….his acting is stellar in that one.
Thanks for the thoughts on Bruce.
I like Bruce but his movie career seems to be over. How did he and Cage fall so far so fast?
Hey Anonymous…..sadly I am right there with you. Seems his meltdown while promoting Red 2 has gotten him somewhat banned from big budget movies….now he is stuck in low budget never to be seen horrible crappy movie hell. Still…I hold out hope he has one more run of good movies….Fingers crossed.
Bruce Willis Oscar Winning Co-Stars – Just From Memory – No IMDb help- so I know I am missing a few
Halle Berry – Perfect Strangers
Cate Blanchett – Bandits
George Clooney – Ocean’s 12
James Coburn – Hudson Hawk
5.Robert DeNiro – What Just Happened
Richard Dreyfuss- Red
Morgan Freeman – Red, Bonfire of Vanities, Lucky Number Slevin
Tom Hanks – Bonfire of the Vanities
Goldie Hawn – Death Becomes Her
10. Dustin Hoffman – Billy Bathgate
Anthony Hopkins – Red 2
Catherine Zeta Jones – Lay The Favorite, Red 2
Nicole Kidman – Billy Bathgate
Ben Kingsley – Lucky Number Slevin
15. Frances McDormand – Moonrise Kingdom
Helen Mirren – Red, Red 2
Paul Newman – Nobody’s Fool
Sean Penn – What Just Happened
Sidney Poitier – The Jackal
20. Julia Roberts – Grand Champion, The Player, Ocean’s 12
Meryl Streep – Death Becomes Her
Tilda Swinton – Moonrise Kingdom
Jessica Tandy – Nobody’s Fool
Christopher Walken – Pulp Fiction, Last Man Standing
25. Denzel Washington – The Seige
Plus you could include many more from his Player cameo….I only included Roberts since her scene was with him.
I liked the Prince. I find Bruce co-starring with 53 Oscar winners.
Altman (2014) – Robin Williams, Julianne Moore
Armageddon (1998) – Charlton Heston
Bandits (2001) – Cate Blanchett
Beavis and Butt-Head Do America (1996) – Cloris Leachman
Billy Bathgate (1991) – Dustin Hoffman, Nicole Kidman
Blind Date (1987) – Kim Basinger
Death Becomes Her (1992) – Meryl Streep, Goldie Hawn
Die Hard: With a Vengeance (1995) – Jeremy Irons
Fast Food Nation (2006) – Patricia Arquette
Four Rooms (1995) – Marisa Tomei
Grand Champion (2002) – Julia Roberts
Grindhouse (2007) – Nicolas Cage
Hudson Hawk (1991) – James Coburn
I’m Still Here (2010) – Sean Penn, Jack Nicholson, Jamie Foxx
Last Man Standing (1996) – Christopher Walken
Loaded Weapon 1 (1993) – F. Murray Abraham, Whoopi Goldberg
Look Who’s Talking (1989) – Olympia Dukakis
Look Who’s Talking Too (1990) – Olympia Dukakis
Lucky Number Slevin (2006) – Morgan Freeman, Ben Kingsley
Moonrise Kingdom (2012) – Frances McDormand, Tilda Swinton
Nobody’s Fool (1994) – Philip Seymour Hoffman, Paul Newman, Jessica Tandy
North (1994) – Alan Arkin, Kathy Bates
Ocean’s Twelve (2004) – Julia Roberts, George Clooney, Catherine Zeta-Jones
Perfect Stranger (2007) – Halle Berry
Pulp Fiction (1994) – Christopher Walken
Red (2010) – Helen Mirren, Morgan Freeman
Red 2 (2013) – Helen Mirren, Catherine Zeta-Jones
Sin City (2005) – Benicio Del Toro
The Astronaut Farmer (2006) – J.K. Simmons
The Bonfire of the Vanities (1990) – Morgan Freeman, F. Murray Abraham, Tom Hanks
The First Deadly Sin (1980) – Faye Dunaway, Frank Sinatra
The Jackal (1997) – J.K. Simmons, Sidney Poitier
The Last Boy Scout (1991) – Halle Berry
The Player (1992) – Susan Sarandon, Rod Steiger, Julia Roberts, Whoopi Goldberg, Anjelica Huston, James Coburn, Louise Fletcher, Jack Lemmon, Cher
The Siege (1998) – Denzel Washington
The Story of Us (1999) – Red Buttons
The Verdict (1982) – Paul Newman
Twelve Monkeys (1995) – Christopher Plummer
What Just Happened (2008) – Robert De Niro
Hey Dan….wow that is twice my total…..some I did not include because they were cameo or documentaries…..others I just missed…and I am disappointed in myself. Those would include Christopher Plummer, F. Murray Abraham, B. Del Toro, Olympia Dukakis, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Jeremy Irons (that one bugs me the most). Others I did not know….Red Buttons, J.K. Simmons and Alan Arkin. Thanks for showing me the error of my ways. 🙂