Want to know the best James McAvoy movies? How about the worst James McAvoy movies? Curious about James McAvoy box office grosses or which James McAvoy movie picked up the most Oscar® nominations? Need to know which James McAvoy movie got the best reviews from critics and audiences? Well you have come to the right place….because we have all of that information.
James McAvoy (1979-) is a Scottish actor. He is known worldwide for his role as Professor Charles Xavier in the X-Men movies (younger version). He first gained notice for playing Mr. Tumnus in 2005’s The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.
His IMDb page shows over 50 acting credits since 1995. This page will rank James McAvoy movies from Best to Worst in six different sortable columns of information. Television roles, cameos, shorts and straight to DVD movies and movies not released in North America were not included in the rankings.
James McAvoy Movies Ranked In Chronological Order With Ultimate Movie Rankings Score (1 to 5 UMR Tickets) *Best combo of box office, reviews and awards.
James McAvoy 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 James McAvoy movies by movie titles and trailers to the movies
- Sort James McAvoy movies by his co-stars
- Sort James McAvoy movies by adjusted domestic box office grosses using current movie ticket cost (in millions)
- Sort James McAvoy movies by adjusted worldwide box office grosses using current movie ticket cost (in millions)
- Sort James McAvoy movies by 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 James McAvoy movie received.
- Sort James McAvoy movies by Ultimate Movie Rankings (UMR) Score. UMR puts box office, reviews and awards into a mathematical equation and gives each movie a score.
| CreditRank | Movie (Year) | UMR Co-Star Links | Review % | Oscar Nom / Win | S | UMR Score | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CreditRank | 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 | S | UMR Score |
| 1 | X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014) | Jennifer Lawrence & Michael Fassbender |
233.90 | 357.9 | 1,144.6 | 9 | 84 | 01 / 00 | 98.1 | |
| 3 | X-Men: First Class (2011) | Jennifer Lawrence & Kevin Bacon |
146.40 | 230.8 | 557.4 | 17 | 81 | 00 / 00 | 97.3 | |
| 2 | The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005) | Liam Neeson & Tilda Swinton |
288.70 | 563.9 | 1,449.2 | 3 | 76 | 03 / 01 | 97.1 | |
| 4 | Split (2016) | Bruce Willis & Directed by M. Night Shyamalan |
138.10 | 199.6 | 402.2 | 21 | 75 | 00 / 00 | 95.9 | |
| 6 | Wanted (2008) | Angelina Jolie & Morgan Freeman & <a href='https://www.ultimatemovierankings.com/chris-pratt-movi |
134.50 | 234.2 | 594.4 | 19 | 70 | 02 / 00 | 94.9 | |
| 4 | It Chapter Two (2019) | Jessican Chastain & Bill Hader |
211.60 | 288.7 | 644.2 | 11 | 69 | 00 / 00 | 94.4 | |
| 5 | Atonement (2007) AA Best Picture Nom |
Saoirse Ronan & Keira Knightley |
50.90 | 92.5 | 234.9 | 50 | 86 | 07 / 01 | 92.9 | |
| 8 | X-Men: Apocalypse (2016) | Jennifer Lawrence & Michael Fassbender |
155.40 | 224.6 | 786.0 | 17 | 60 | 00 / 00 | 91.1 | |
| 9 | Glass (2019) | Bruce Willis & Samuel L. Jackson |
110.80 | 151.2 | 336.1 | 25 | 68 | 00 / 00 | 88.4 | |
| 11 | Gnomeo & Juliet (2011) Voice Only |
Michael Caine & Emily Blunt |
100.00 | 157.6 | 305.7 | 31 | 57 | 00 / 00 | 84.8 | |
| 10 | Arthur Christmas (2011) Voice Only |
Hugh Laurie | 46.50 | 73.2 | 232.4 | 70 | 80 | 00 / 00 | 83.3 | |
| 13 | Atomic Blonde (2017) | Charlize Theron & John Goodman |
51.60 | 71.9 | 133.3 | 53 | 73 | 00 / 00 | 79.7 | |
| 12 | The Last King of Scotland (2006) | Forest Whitaker | 17.60 | 33.4 | 91.9 | 122 | 83 | 01 / 01 | 79.6 | |
| 14 | Speak No Evil (2024) | Mackenzie Davis | 32.60 | 32.6 | 67.4 | 44 | 72 | 00 / 00 | 69.8 | |
| 15 | X-Men: Dark Phoenix (2019) | Jennifer Lawrence & Jessica Chastain |
65.80 | 89.9 | 344.5 | 43 | 53 | 00 / 00 | 67.6 | |
| 14 | The Last Station (2009) | Christopher Plummer & Helen Mirren |
6.60 | 11.0 | 22.6 | 154 | 75 | 02 / 00 | 65.9 | |
| 18 | Wimbledon (2004) | Kirsten Dunst & Paul Bettany |
17.00 | 34.2 | 84.1 | 114 | 63 | 00 / 00 | 57.6 | |
| 19 | Becoming Jane (2007) | Anne Hathaway | 18.70 | 33.9 | 67.8 | 110 | 62 | 00 / 00 | 55.5 | |
| 16 | Rory O'Shea Was Here (2004) | Romola Garai | 0.00 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 343 | 73 | 00 / 00 | 55.3 | |
| 20 | Starter for 10 (2006) | Rebecall Hall | 0.20 | 0.4 | 3.3 | 283 | 72 | 00 / 00 | 54.5 | |
| 20 | Trance (2013) | Rosario Dawsom | 2.30 | 3.6 | 37.3 | 161 | 68 | 00 / 00 | 49.1 | |
| 22 | The Book Of Clarence (2024) | LaKeith Stanfield | 5.90 | 5.9 | 5.9 | 102 | 66 | 00 / 00 | 47.1 | |
| 21 | Bright Young Things (2003) | Peter O'Toole & Dan Aykroyd |
0.90 | 1.9 | 5.6 | 188 | 68 | 00 / 00 | 46.8 | |
| 24 | The Conspirator (2010) | Robin Wright & Directed by Robert Redford |
11.50 | 18.3 | 24.5 | 127 | 61 | 00 / 00 | 44.4 | |
| 25 | Penelope (2006) | Reese Witherspoon & Christina Ricci |
10.00 | 19.0 | 40.2 | 159 | 61 | 00 / 00 | 44.1 | |
| 25 | Filth (2013) | Imogen Poots | 0.00 | 0.1 | 14.0 | 391 | 66 | 00 / 00 | 42.6 | |
| 25 | Regeneration (1998) | Jonathan Pryce | 0.00 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 325 | 65 | 00 / 00 | 40.9 | |
| 27 | Together (2021) | Sharon Horgan | 0.20 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 126 | 63 | 00 / 00 | 35.9 | |
| 27 | The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby (2013) | Jessica Chastain & William Hurt |
0.60 | 0.9 | 1.5 | 192 | 63 | 00 / 00 | 35.9 | |
| 29 | Sherlock Gnomes (2018) Voice Only |
Johnny Depp & Michael Caine |
43.20 | 59.0 | 118.5 | 69 | 41 | 00 / 00 | 28.2 | |
| 31 | Welcome To The Punch (2013) | Mark Strong | 0.00 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 361 | 55 | 00 / 00 | 19.9 | |
| 30 | Victor Frankenstein (2015) | Daniel Radcliffe | 5.80 | 8.6 | 50.8 | 137 | 47 | 00 / 00 | 12.3 | |
| 32 | Submergence (2017) | Alicia Vikander | 0.10 | 0.1 | 1.0 | 350 | 49 | 00 / 00 | 11.5 | |
| 32 | The Bubble (2022) Netflix |
Karen Gillan & Directed by Judd Apatow |
0.10 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 303 | 41 | 00 / 00 | 4.8 |
Possibly Interesting Facts About James McAvoy
1. James McAvoy was born in Glasgow, Scotland in 1979.
2. Before turning his attention to acting, James McAvoy wanted to be a priest, wanted to become a missionary and wanted to join Royal Navy.
3. James McAvoy was inspired to become an actor after meeting actor/director David Hayman.
4. One of James McAvoy’s first roles was in 2001’s Band of Brothers. Future X-Men co-star Michael Fassbender, was also a member of that 10 episode television show.
5. James McAvoy’s fans refer to themselves as “McAvoyeurs”.
6. To prepare for his role as Charles Xavier, James McAvoy shaved his head. He soon learned that the filmmakers wanted Xavier to have a full head of hair in the prequel. Throughout the first month of filming McAvoy had to wear hair extensions.
7. James McAvoy has been married one time. He was married to actress Anne-Marie Duff from 2006 to 2016. They have one child.
8. James McAvoy’s favorite movies are: 1985’s The Goonies, 1985’s Back to the Future,1963’s The Great Escape, 1945’s Brief Encounter, 1969’s Kes and 1998’s My Name Is Joe.
9. James McAvoy broke his hand on the set of 2016’s Split after he got angry at not getting a scene. He became so annoyed with his performance that he ended up hitting a door, which he thought was a fake door, but it was a solid metal door. Viewers can see that James’s hand is injured during the scene where he’s on a train and he’s putting on his glasses.
10. Check out James McAvoy’s career compared to current and classic actors. Most 100 Million Dollar Movies of All-Time.
Steve’s James McAvoy YouTube Video
If you do a comment….please ignore the email address and website section.
Added Steve’s McAvoy YouTube video to this page. Our thoughts found on his channel found below.
“Mr. McAvoy is having a very solid career. I have seen 25 of the movies listed. Favorites would include: #6 Wanted…good action movie. #7 Arthur Christmas…one of my favorite computer-animated movies. #23 Welcome to the Punch and #28 Victor Frankenstein…now I know I am alone in this thinking…but I really enjoy his take on Dr. Frankenstein. I have not seen one of his Top 10 movies…#10 Strings….I should probably take care of that and track that movie down. Voted up and shared.”
Hi Bruce, your 25 McAvoys watched beats my 19. My favorites include the X-Men series, Wanted, Atomic Blonde, Narnia, Jack the Giant Slayer, Victor Frankenstein (I enjoyed it too) and Welcome to the Punch.
Thanks again for the vote, share and comment, always appreciated.
HI STEVE:
As always your thoughtful feedback is appreciated.
I liked the quotes and wholeheartedly agree with the comments about 3-D. I haven’t tried to watch any 3-D films [if they’re still around] recently but when the process first came out in I think it was around 1953 one was tortured trying to get the glasses to stay on. Also scenes were artificially contrived so that the actors could be seen to be apparently throwing things like chairs and knives out at the audience. Imagine sitting comfortably in your seat when someone chucks Joel’s book out of the screen at you!
Anyway keep safe and more importantly. – “Stay alert!” All these Government coronavirus catchphrases being hyped up in communications everywhere must be making you poster boys envious! They’re more dramatic than the movie posters taglines. [“Stay alert – The Meg is back!”]
I think that James McEvoy is one of the modern generation of actors who has greatly impress so I welcome thi s video which gave me personal satisfaction to the tune of a 97.5% rating. Good stuff and “Vote Up!”
BEST STILLS
1/Victor Frankenstein
2/Gnomeo and Juliet
3/Becoming Jane
4/Starter for 10 – strange title!
5/IT Chapter 2. One of the more scary King stories in my view
6/Trance
7/The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe
8/Arthur Christmas
9/two for Wanted
10/Juicy one for Atonement
11/and again all the classy X Men material held great appeal for me.
JAMES MCAVOY VIDEO – BEST POSTERS
1/Submergence
2/two for Sherlock Gnomes
3/two for Penelope
4/Wimbledon
5/Foreign Language one for Welcome to the Punch
6/Bright Young Things
7/Filth
8/2nd one for Atomic Blonde
9/Glass
10/IT Chapter 2
11/foreign language one for Trance
12/Inside i’m Dancing
13/Last Station
14/2nd one for Wanted
15/first one for Split
16/Eleanor Rigby
17/ALL material for the X Men films. I have long since ceased to be able to watch them but they yield some exceptional posters in my view.
On top of his film career James McAvoy has appeared in (1) 16 TV presentations from 1997 – present (2) a video game in 2016 and (3) 13 stage productions from the late 1990s until last year including contemporary classics like West Side Story and the [male] title roles in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet and Macbeth.
My personal favourite McAvoy films are Atonement/Wanted/and Split. As I have explained before I am not really into sequels/franchises so I have avoided Split’s follow-up Glass.
James doesn’t seem to have any future projects in the pipeline at present but he has already generated a reported net financial worth of $17 million and IMDB credits him with 19 acting awards and 35 nominations. In some photographs he reminds me in physical appearance of former British prime minister David Cameron.
Hi Bob, thanks for the review, generous rating, info and trivia, much appreciated.
Happy you liked the posters and stills.
This is my second James McAvoy video, I uploaded one 5 years ago. ‘Top 10 Highest Grossing’, which eventually needed updating.
That’s the problem with box office videos, a year later and people are wondering why you left out their biggest box office hit.
Only one James McAvoy film scored 10 out of 10 from my sources – Atonement. But that wasn’t enough to get it to no.1 on my chart once all the scores were calculated.
X-Men Days of Future Past is no.1 at both IMDB and Rotten Tomatoes. It’s the highest rated X-Men movie in my files, impressive considering it’s the 5th in the series, not counting spin-offs.
“I am a nerd, but I don’t dive head-first into any fiefdom of nerdiness, except for maybe Star Trek.”
“Thank God X-Men: First Class is not in 3-D, which is just an excuse to charge an extra ten bucks at the theatre. The idea of things coming out of the screen and making you jump out of your seat are done very well, but I think it’s a waste of time and money and I wouldn’t pay for a ticket to go to one of those films.”