Want to know the best Richard Pryor movies? How about the worst Richard Pryor movies? Curious about Richard Pryor box office grosses or which Richard Pryor movie picked up the most Oscar® nominations? Need to know which Richard Pryor movie got the best reviews from critics and audiences? Well you have come to the right place….because we have all of that information.
Richard Pryor (1940-2005) was an American stand-up comedian and actor. Pryor is considered by many to be the most influential stand-up comedian of the last 50 years. His movie career was impressive too…as his movies grossed over $3.50 billion in adjusted box office. Pryor’s IMDb page shows acting credits from 1966-1999.
This page will rank Richard Pryor movies from Best to Worst in six different sortable columns of information. Television roles, cameos, shorts and straight to DVD movies were not included in the rankings. Drivel Part: Whenever I think of Richard Pryor I can’t but help think of the time my brother and I watched Richard Pryor: Live In Concert. for the first time. It had to be a Friday or Saturday night and HBO was showing the movie. We were laughing so hard that our dad kept coming in the room and telling us to be quiet. After the third or fourth time of telling us to be quiet my dad gave up and went to bed. I do not think I have ever laughed that much or that hard in my life. Thank you Mr. Pryor.
Frequent co-stars Gene Wilder and Richard Pryor in 1980’s Stir Crazy
Richard Pryor Adjusted World Wide Box Office Grosses
Check out Richard Pryor’s career compared to current and classic actors. Most 100 Million Dollar Movies of All-Time
Academy Award® and Oscar® are the registered trademarks of the Academy of Motion Arts and Sciences. Golden Globe® and Emmy® are registered trademarks.
Richard Pryor Movies Ranked In Chronological Order With Ultimate Movie Rankings Score (1 to 5 UMR Tickets) *Best combo of box office, reviews and awards.
| Year | Movie (Year) | Rating | S |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Movie (Year) | Rating | S |
| 1974 | Blazing Saddles (1974) AA Best Writing Nom |
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| 1976 | Silver Streak (1976) | |
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| 1972 | Lady Sings the Blues (1972) | |
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| 1979 | The Muppet Movie (1979) | |
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| 1980 | Stir Crazy (1980) | |
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| 1982 | Richard Pryor: Live on the Sunset Strip (1982) | |
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| 1978 | California Suite (1978) | |
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| 1976 | Car Wash (1976) |  |
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| 1974 | Uptown Saturday Night (1974) | |
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| 1982 | The Toy (1982) | |
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| 1979 | Richard Pryor: Live in Concert (1979) | |
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| 1977 | Which Way Is Up? (1977) | |
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| 1981 | Bustin' Loose (1981) | |
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| 1989 | See No Evil, Hear No Evil (1989) | |
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| 1976 | Bingo Long's Traveling All-Stars & Motor Kings (1976) | |
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| 1983 | Superman III (1983) | |
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| 1985 | Brewster's Millions (1985) | |
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| 1983 | Richard Pryor... Here and Now (1983) |  |
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| 1968 | Wild in The Streets (1968) | |
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| 1977 | Greased Lightning (1977) | |
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| 1989 | Harlem Nights (1989) | |
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| 1982 | Some Kind of Hero (1982) | |
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| 1978 | Blue Collar (1978) | |
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| 1978 | The Wiz (1978) | |
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| 1973 | The Mack (1973) | |
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| 1986 | Jo Jo Dancer, Your Life Is Calling (1986) | |
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| 1973 | Wattstax (1973) |  |
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| 1997 | Lost Highway (1997) | |
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| 1980 | Wholly Moses! (1980) | |
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| 1987 | Critical Condition (1987) |  |
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| 1988 | Moving (1988) | |
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| 1980 | In God We Trust (1980) |  |
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| 1973 | Hit! (1973) | |
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| 1967 | The Busy Body (1967) | |
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| 1969 | Uncle Tom's Fairy Tales (1969) |  |
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| 1971 | You've Got to Walk It Like You Talk It or You'll Lose That Beat (1971) | |
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| 1991 | Another You (1991) |  |
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| 1971 | Dynamite Chicken (1971) | |
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| 1973 | Some Call It Loving (1973) | |
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| 1970 | The Phynx (1970) | |
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| 1975 | Adiós Amigo (1975) | |
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| 1996 | Mad Dog Time (1996) | |
Richard Pryor 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 Richard Pryor movies by his co-stars
- Sort Richard Pryor movies by adjusted domestic box office grosses using current movie ticket cost (in millions)
- Sort Richard Pryor movies by yearly domestic box office rank
- Sort Richard Pryor movies how they were received by critics and audiences. 60% rating or higher should indicate a good movie.
- Sort by how many Oscar® nominations and how many Oscar® wins each Richard Pryor movie received.
- Sort Richard Pryor movies by Ultimate Movie Rankings (UMR) Score. UMR puts box office, reviews and awards into a mathematical equation and gives each movie a score.
| R | Movie (Year) | UMR Co-Star Links | Adj. B.O. Worldwide (mil) | Review | Oscar Nom / Win | UMR Score | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R | Movie (Year) | UMR Co-Star Links | Actual B.O. Domestic (mil) | Adj. B.O. Domestic (mil) | Adj. B.O. Worldwide (mil) | B.O. Rank by Year | Review | Oscar Nom / Win | UMR Score | S |
| 1 | Blazing Saddles (1974) AA Best Writing Nom |
Mel Brooks | 118.10 | 789.4 | 789.40 | 1 | 81 | 03 / 00 | 97.9 | |
| 2 | Silver Streak (1976) | Gene Wilder & Jill Clayburgh |
51.10 | 299.8 | 299.80 | 11 | 78 | 01 / 00 | 97.0 | |
| 5 | Lady Sings the Blues (1972) | Diana Ross & Billy Dee Williams |
29.30 | 215.4 | 215.40 | 10 | 72 | 05 / 00 | 96.2 | |
| 3 | The Muppet Movie (1979) | Orson Welles | 65.20 | 324.7 | 324.70 | 13 | 74 | 02 / 00 | 96.1 | |
| 4 | Stir Crazy (1980) | Gene Wilder & Directed by Sidney Poitier |
101.30 | 487.0 | 487.00 | 4 | 67 | 00 / 00 | 93.6 | |
| 6 | Richard Pryor: Live on the Sunset Strip (1982) | Gene Cross | 36.30 | 154.3 | 154.30 | 20 | 79 | 00 / 00 | 93.0 | |
| 7 | California Suite (1978) | Michael Caine & Jane Fonda |
42.90 | 229.2 | 229.20 | 13 | 55 | 03 / 01 | 90.8 | |
| 10 | Car Wash (1976) | George Carlin | 27.30 | 160.1 | 160.10 | 26 | 64 | 00 / 00 | 88.2 | |
| 9 | Uptown Saturday Night (1974) | Sidney Poitier & Bill Cosby |
22.40 | 149.9 | 149.90 | 27 | 67 | 00 / 00 | 87.9 | |
| 11 | The Toy (1982) | Jackie Gleason | 47.10 | 200.3 | 200.30 | 13 | 49 | 00 / 00 | 87.1 | |
| 11 | Richard Pryor: Live in Concert (1979) | Jennifer Lee | 15.10 | 75.3 | 75.30 | 53 | 85 | 00 / 00 | 85.9 | |
| 12 | Which Way Is Up? (1977) | Lonette McKee | 25.90 | 145.0 | 145.00 | 33 | 63 | 00 / 00 | 85.8 | |
| 15 | Bustin' Loose (1981) | Cicely Tyson | 31.30 | 140.6 | 140.60 | 23 | 62 | 00 / 00 | 85.0 | |
| 16 | See No Evil, Hear No Evil (1989) | Gene Wilder | 46.90 | 147.7 | 147.70 | 27 | 60 | 00 / 00 | 85.0 | |
| 14 | Bingo Long's Traveling All-Stars & Motor Kings (1976) | Billy Dee Williams | 16.20 | 94.9 | 94.90 | 41 | 76 | 00 / 00 | 84.7 | |
| 16 | Superman III (1983) | Christopher Reeve | 60.00 | 237.9 | 440.20 | 13 | 39 | 00 / 00 | 83.3 | |
| 20 | Brewster's Millions (1985) | John Candy | 40.80 | 143.8 | 143.80 | 20 | 51 | 00 / 00 | 80.1 | |
| 17 | Richard Pryor... Here and Now (1983) | Paul Mooney | 16.20 | 64.1 | 64.10 | 44 | 75 | 00 / 00 | 79.7 | |
| 19 | Wild in The Streets (1968) | Shelley Winters | 11.40 | 109.1 | 109.10 | 35 | 59 | 01 / 00 | 79.2 | |
| 21 | Greased Lightning (1977) | Beau Bridges | 20.50 | 115.1 | 115.10 | 39 | 57 | 00 / 00 | 78.5 | |
| 23 | Harlem Nights (1989) | Eddie Murphy & Redd Foxx |
60.90 | 191.6 | 301.80 | 21 | 30 | 01 / 00 | 77.3 | |
| 22 | Some Kind of Hero (1982) | Margot Kidder | 23.70 | 100.6 | 100.60 | 29 | 59 | 00 / 00 | 76.8 | |
| 21 | Blue Collar (1978) | Harvey Keitel | 6.70 | 35.6 | 35.60 | 74 | 79 | 00 / 00 | 75.9 | |
| 24 | The Wiz (1978) | Diana Ross & Michael Jackson |
21.00 | 112.4 | 112.40 | 33 | 50 | 04 / 00 | 75.1 | |
| 23 | The Mack (1973) | Max Julien | 9.10 | 64.2 | 64.20 | 39 | 68 | 00 / 00 | 74.2 | |
| 25 | Jo Jo Dancer, Your Life Is Calling (1986) | Debbie Allen | 18.00 | 60.8 | 60.80 | 47 | 65 | 00 / 00 | 70.3 | |
| 26 | Wattstax (1973) | Kim Weston | 4.70 | 33.4 | 33.40 | 67 | 70 | 00 / 00 | 66.6 | |
| 28 | Lost Highway (1997) | Bill Pullman & Directed by David Lynch |
3.70 | 10.0 | 10.10 | 149 | 69 | 00 / 00 | 55.1 | |
| 29 | Wholly Moses! (1980) | Dudley Moore | 17.90 | 85.9 | 85.90 | 41 | 45 | 00 / 00 | 53.5 | |
| 31 | Critical Condition (1987) | Rachel Ticotin | 20.20 | 64.7 | 64.70 | 55 | 49 | 00 / 00 | 49.9 | |
| 32 | Moving (1988) | Beverly Todd | 10.80 | 32.9 | 32.90 | 86 | 55 | 00 / 00 | 42.2 | |
| 33 | In God We Trust (1980) | Marty Feldman | 6.20 | 29.6 | 29.60 | 96 | 55 | 00 / 00 | 38.3 | |
| 32 | Hit! (1973) | Billy Dee Williams | 2.70 | 19.3 | 19.30 | 101 | 57 | 00 / 00 | 36.5 | |
| 34 | The Busy Body (1967) | Robert Ryan | 1.60 | 16.1 | 16.10 | 115 | 57 | 00 / 00 | 34.1 | |
| 35 | Uncle Tom's Fairy Tales (1969) | Franklyn Ajaye | 0.00 | 0.3 | 0.30 | 182 | 54 | 00 / 00 | 18.5 | |
| 36 | You've Got to Walk It Like You Talk It or You'll Lose That Beat (1971) | Directed by Robert Downey, Sr. | 1.60 | 12.1 | 12.10 | 136 | 48 | 00 / 00 | 15.6 | |
| 37 | Another You (1991) | Gene Wilder | 2.90 | 8.5 | 8.50 | 138 | 44 | 00 / 00 | 9.0 | |
| 38 | Dynamite Chicken (1971) | Fred Willard | 1.50 | 11.5 | 11.50 | 140 | 42 | 00 / 00 | 8.6 | |
| 40 | Some Call It Loving (1973) | Zalman King | 2.00 | 13.9 | 13.90 | 123 | 41 | 00 / 00 | 7.8 | |
| 39 | The Phynx (1970) | Ray Chippeway | 0.00 | 0.4 | 0.40 | 190 | 44 | 00 / 00 | 7.2 | |
| 41 | Adiós Amigo (1975) | Fred Williamson | 1.80 | 11.1 | 11.10 | 120 | 37 | 00 / 00 | 4.3 | |
| 42 | Mad Dog Time (1996) | Burt Reynolds & Richard Dreyfuss |
0.10 | 0.3 | 0.30 | 248 | 36 | 00 / 00 | 2.2 |
Richard Pryor Adjusted World Wide Box Office Grosses
Movie (Year) UMR Co-Star Links World-Wide Box Office Adjusted (mil) S
Check out Richard Pryor’s career compared to current and classic actors. Most 100 Million Dollar Movies of All-Time
Academy Award® and Oscar® are the registered trademarks of the Academy of Motion Arts and Sciences. Golden Globe® and Emmy® are registered trademarks.| Movie (Year) | UMR Co-Star Links | World-Wide Box Office Adjusted (mil) | S |
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Possibly Interesting Facts About Richard Pryor
1. Richard Franklin Lennox Thomas Pryor was born in Peoria, Illinois in 1940. 2. Richard Pryor served in the United States Army from 1958 to 1960. In 1963 he started performing stand-up in New York City. He performed regularly besides then unknowns…Bob Dylan and Woody Allen. 3. Richard Pryor was originally slated to play Bart in 1974’s Blazing Saddles. Due to Pryor’s background and controversial stand-up routines, Mel Brooks couldn’t secure financing for the project. Pryor is credited as one of the screen play writers of that monster hit. 4. Richard Pryor pointed to Bill Cosby as his role model and inspiration to become a comedian himself. Eddie Murphy pointed to Pryor as his role model and inspiration to become a comedian himself. Murphy cast prior Pryor in his directorial debut…Harlem Nights. 5. Richard Pryor was ranked as the 5th most popular movie star in 1982 according to Quigley Publications….his one and only appearance on that list. 6. Richard Pryor was awarded The First Annual Kennedy Center Mark Twain Prize in 1999. 7. Richard Pryor was married 7 times…he had eight children. 8. Check out Richard Pryor’s career compared to current and classic actors. Most 100 Million Dollar Movies of All-Time.
Academy Award® and Oscar® are the registered trademarks of the Academy of Motion Arts and Sciences. Golden Globes® are the registered trademark and service mark of the Hollywood Foreign Press.
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Hey Bruce. Strange timing here. Over the weekend I was watching Silver Streak for the first time. As I often do I checked your site and saw you had this Pryor page but I did not see a Gene Wilder page. Somehow I only heard of his passing today and now you have a Gene page. Sad day. Having just watched him looking so young it is more than a little disturbing that he passed away yesterday. Anyway I was not too impressed with Silver Streak. Pryor is barely in the movie. But I do admit that Pryor and Wilder had good chemistry. Sad day.
Hey Helakoski….sorry you did not like Silver Streak. That is weird timing indeed. I just recently re-watched Young Frankenstein with the Brooks commentary…..Brooks gave Wilder many many compliments in that commentary. It was a very sad day….thanks for stopping by and checking out our Richard Pryor page.