The All Time Greatest Actors Cum Moviestars In The History Of Cinema
by DareDevilKid | created - 25 Oct 2010 | updated - 07 Jul 2021 | PublicIf I have four or more movies of an actor, which I consider classics & on my all time favourites list; & if I keep viewing those movies again because of the actor, besides the direction, plot & technical aspects; & also if I anticipate a particular actor's movies irrespective of his recent works' critical or commercial acclaim, then that actor to me is one of my all time favoutites. In my view, this makes him a brilliant actor plus a superstar, hence the unique title of my list.
I know I've left out many other all time greats which may have made other peoples' list. So a worthy mention for these artists is also in order: Laurince Oliver, Clark Gable, Spencer Tracy, Gene Hackman, Dustin Hoffman, Cary Grant, James Stewart, John Wayne, Mel Gibson, Johnny Depp, Morgan Freeman, Alec Guinness, Peter Sellers, Peter O'Toole, Heath Ledger, Greogry Peck, Salman Khan, Aamir Khan, Amitabh Bachchan, Vinod Khanna, Sanjeev Kumar, Ashok Kumar, Guru Dutt, Pran, Dev Anand, Raj Kapoor, Rishi Kapoor, Sanjay Dutt, Michael Douglas, Burt Lancaster, Montgomery Clift, Takashi Shimura, Takashi Kitano, Marcello Mastroianni, Tom Hanks, Will Smith, Denzel Washington, Humphrey Bogart, Rock Hudson & maybe some others who are just not coming to mind as of this moment.
But this is my list & I'm backing up every actor on this list with ample evidence of his classic movies & legendary performances, so here goes:
1. Clint Eastwood
Actor | Million Dollar Baby
Clint Eastwood was born May 31, 1930 in San Francisco, to Clinton Eastwood Sr., a bond salesman and later manufacturing executive for Georgia-Pacific Corporation, and Ruth Wood (née Margret Ruth Runner), a housewife turned IBM clerk. He grew up in nearby Piedmont. At school Clint took interest in ...
To showcase his classic movies (all among my favourites), I was compelled to compile another list within this list: 1.) The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966) 2.) Dirty Harry (1971) 3.) For a Few Dollars More (1965) 4.) Unforgiven (1992) 5.) A Fistful of Dollars (1964) 6.) In the Line of Fire (1993) 7.) High Plains Drifter (1973) 8.) Where Eagles Dare (1968) 9.) Kelly's Heroes (1970) 10.) Million Dollar Baby (2004) 11.) The Bridges of Madison County (1995) 12.) Gran Torino (2008) 13.) Play Misty for Me (1971) 14.) The Eiger Sanction (1975) 15.) The Gauntlet (1977) 16.) The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976) 17.) Coogan's Bluff (1968) 18.) Joe Kidd (1972) 19.) Trouble With The Curve (2013) 20.) The Mule (2018)
2. Shah Rukh Khan
Actor | Don 2
Known for his trademark gelled spiked up crew cut with sunglasses, Shah Rukh Khan (SRK) is an Indian Bollywood movie star, movie producer, magazine model, showman, public speaker, author, philanthropist and television host/personality working predominantly in Hindi cinema.
Khan began his on-camera ...
Another actor for which I was compelled to showcase him in his own list: 1.) Swades (2004) 2.) Darr (1993) 3.) Chak De India! (2007) 4.) Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995) 5.) Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa (1993) 6.) Baazigar (1993) 7.) Don 2 (2011) 8.) Yes Boss (1997) 8.) Don (2006) 10.) My Name Is Khan (2010) 11.) Baadshah (1999) 12.) Chennai Express (2013)
3. Marlon Brando
Actor | Apocalypse Now
Marlon Brando is widely considered the greatest movie actor of all time, rivaled only by the more theatrically oriented Laurence Olivier in terms of esteem. Unlike Olivier, who preferred the stage to the screen, Brando concentrated his talents on movies after bidding the Broadway stage adieu in ...
The Godfather (1972), On the Waterfront (1954), The Chase (1966), The Wild One (1953), A Streetcar Named Desire (1951)
4. Daniel Day-Lewis
Actor | There Will Be Blood
Born in London, England, Daniel Michael Blake Day-Lewis is the second child of Cecil Day-Lewis, Poet Laureate of the U.K., and his second wife, actress Jill Balcon. His maternal grandfather was Sir Michael Balcon, an important figure in the history of British cinema and head of the famous Ealing ...
Gangs Of New York (2002), In the Name of the Father (1993), There Will Be Blood (2007), The Last of the Mohicans (1992), My Left Foot (1989), Lincoln (2012)
5. Jack Nicholson
Actor | Chinatown
Jack Nicholson, an American actor, producer, director and screenwriter, is a three-time Academy Award winner and twelve-time nominee. Nicholson is also notable for being one of two actors - the other being Michael Caine - who have received an Oscar nomination in every decade from the '60s through ...
A Few Good Men (1992), The Departed (2006), The Shining (1980), Chinatown (1974), One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), Batman (1989)
6. Al Pacino
Actor | Serpico
Alfredo James "Al" 'Pacino established himself as a film actor during one of cinema's most vibrant decades, the 1970s, and has become an enduring and iconic figure in the world of American movies.
He was born April 25, 1940 in Manhattan, New York City, to Italian-American parents, Rose (nee Gerardi)...
The Godfather (1972), Scarface (1983), The Recruit (2003), The Devil's Advocate (1997), Dog Day Afternoon (1975), Scent Of A Woman (1992), The Irishman (2019)
7. James Cagney
Actor | Angels with Dirty Faces
One of Hollywood's preeminent male stars of all time, James Cagney was also an accomplished dancer and easily played light comedy. James Francis Cagney was born on the Lower East Side of Manhattan in New York City, to Carolyn (Nelson) and James Francis Cagney, Sr., who was a bartender and amateur ...
White Heat (1949), Angels with Dirty Faces (1938), Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942), The Roaring Twenties (1939), Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye (1950)
8. Robert De Niro
Actor | Cape Fear
One of the greatest actors of all time, Robert De Niro was born on August 17, 1943 in Manhattan, New York City, to artists Virginia (Admiral) and Robert De Niro Sr. His paternal grandfather was of Italian descent, and his other ancestry is Irish, English, Dutch, German, and French. He was trained ...
Could any sane person expect De Niro not to have his own list: 1.) Goodfellas (1990) 2.) The Untouchables (1987) 3.) Taxi Driver (1976) 4.) Cape Fear (1991) 5.) The King Of Comedy (1982) 6.) Midnight Run (1988) 7.) The Irishman (2019) 8.) Casino (1995) 9.) Meet the Parents (2000) 10.) Silver Linings Playbook (2012) 11.) Ronin (1998)
9. Harrison Ford
Actor | Raiders of the Lost Ark
Harrison Ford was born on July 13, 1942 in Chicago, Illinois, to Dorothy (Nidelman), a radio actress, and Christopher Ford (born John William Ford), an actor turned advertising executive. His father was of Irish and German ancestry, while his maternal grandparents were Jewish emigrants from Minsk, ...
Here again, this legendary superstar & brilliant actor demanded his own list: 1.) Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980) 2.) Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) 3.) Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977) 4.) Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) 5.) Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) 6.) Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983) 7.) Air Force One (1997) 8.) Blade Runner (1982) 9.) The Fugitive (1993) 10.) Witness (1985) 11.) 42 (2013)
10. Sean Connery
Actor | The Rock
The tall, handsome and muscular Scottish actor Sean Connery is best known as the original actor to portray James Bond in the hugely successful movie franchise, starring in seven films between 1962 and 1983. Some believed that such a career-defining role might leave him unable to escape it, but he ...
Another legendary star who demands his own list & nothing less: 1.) Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) 2.) The Untouchables (1987) 3.) Dr. No (1962) 4.) Finding Forrester (2000) 5.) Goldfinger (1964) 6.) From Russia with Love (1963) 7.) The Hunt for Red October (1990) 8.) The Rock (1996) 9.) The League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen (2003) 10.) Just Cause (1995)
11. Dharmendra
Actor | Sholay
Dharmendra is one of the biggest stars of Indian cinema. Dharmendra Deol played the romantic hero in woman Cedric films from 1960-1968 and became romantic hero from 1968-69 and played the role of action hero from 1971-1997. Dharmendra has appeared in 306 films.
He is known as 'Garam' Dharam in ...
Here comes another actor compelling his own list: 1.) Sholay (1975) 2.) Yaadon Ki Baaraat (1973) 3.) Johnny Gaddaar (2007) 4.) Chupke Chupke (1975) 5.) Mera Gaon Mera Desh (1971) 6.) Anupama (1966) 7.) The Burning Train (1980) 8.) Seeta Aur Geeta (1972) 9.) Yamla Pagla Deewana (2011) 10.) Charas (1976) 11.) Phool Aur Patthar (1966)
12. Jeff Bridges
Actor | The Big Lebowski
Jeffrey Leon Bridges was born on December 4, 1949 in Los Angeles, California, the son of well-known film and TV star Lloyd Bridges and his long-time wife Dorothy Dean Bridges (née Simpson). He grew up amid the happening Hollywood scene with big brother Beau Bridges. Both boys popped up, without ...
The Big Lebowski (1998), True Grit (2010), Iron Man (2008), Starman (1984), Arlington Road (1999), Crazy Heart (2009)
13. Christian Bale
Actor | The Dark Knight
Christian Charles Philip Bale was born in Pembrokeshire, Wales, UK on January 30, 1974, to English parents Jennifer "Jenny" (James) and David Bale. His mother was a circus performer and his father, who was born in South Africa, was a commercial pilot. The family lived in different countries ...
The only actor among the few superstars nowadays who merits his own list: 1.) The Dark Knight (2008) 2.) The Dark Knight Rises (2012) 3.) Batman Begins (2005) 4.) The Fighter (2010) 5.) 3:10 To Yuma (2007) 6.) The Flowers Of War (2011) 7.) The Prestige (2006) 8.) American Hustle (2013) 9.) Treasure Island (1990)
14. Sidney Poitier
Actor | In the Heat of the Night
Sidney Poitier was a native of Cat Island, Bahamas, although born, two months prematurely, in Miami during a visit by his parents, Evelyn (Outten) and Reginald James Poitier. He grew up in poverty as the son of farmers, with his father also driving a cab in Nassau. Sidney had little formal ...
In the Heat of the Night (1967), Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967), A Raisin In The Sun (1961), The Defiant Ones (1958), To Sir, with Love (1967), Lilies of the Field (1963), A Patch of Blue (1965), Shoot To Kill (1988)
15. Kurt Russell
Actor | Escape from New York
Kurt Vogel Russell was born on March 17, 1951 in Springfield, Massachusetts and raised in Thousand Oaks, California to Louise Julia Russell (née Crone), a dancer & Bing Russell, an actor. He is of English, German, Scottish and Irish descent. His first roles were as a child on television series, ...
Escape from New York (1981), The Hateful Eight (2015), The Thing (1982), Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017), Bone Tomahawk (2015), Dark Blue (2003), Big Trouble in Little China (1986)
16. Gary Cooper
Actor | High Noon
Born to Alice Cooper and Charles Cooper. Gary attended school at Dunstable school England, Helena Montana and Grinnell College, Grinnell, Iowa (then called Iowa College). His first stage experience was during high school and college. Afterwards, he worked as an extra for one year before getting a ...
High Noon (1952), Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936), Beau Geste (1939), Man of the West (1958), Vera Cruz (1954), Meet John Doe (1941), Friendly Persuasion (1956)
17. Bruce Willis
Actor | Die Hard
Actor and musician Bruce Willis is well known for playing wisecracking or hard-edged characters, often in spectacular action films. Collectively, he has appeared in films that have grossed in excess of $2.5 billion USD.
Walter Bruce Willis was born on March 19, 1955, in Idar-Oberstein, West Germany,...
This brilliant action star proves his versatility with some diverse roles & different genres, thus meriting his own list: 1.) Pulp Fiction (1994) 2.) Die Hard (1988) 3.) The Sixth Sense (1999) 4.) Looper (2012) 5.) Live Free or Die Hard (2007) 6.) Die Hard 2 (1990) 7.) Die Hard: With a Vengeance (1995) 8.) Red (2010) 9.) Tears of the Sun (2003) 10.) Red 2 (2013) 11.) Sin City (2005) 12.) Armageddon (1998) 13.) Blind Date (1987)
18. Kirk Douglas
Actor | The Final Countdown
Cleft-chinned, steely-eyed and virile star of international cinema who rose from being "the ragman's son" (the name of his best-selling 1988 autobiography) to become a bona fide superstar, Kirk Douglas, also known as Issur Danielovitch Demsky, was born on December 9, 1916 in Amsterdam, New York. ...
Paths of Glory (1957), Last Train from Gun Hill (1959), Spartacus (1960), Ace in the Hole (1951), Detective Story (1951)
19. Tom Cruise
Actor | Top Gun
In 1976, if you had told fourteen-year-old Franciscan seminary student Thomas Cruise Mapother IV that one day in the not too distant future he would be Tom Cruise, one of the top 100 movie stars of all time, he would have probably grinned and told you that his ambition was to join the priesthood. ...
Again I was compelled to compile his own list: 1.) A Few Good Men (1992) 2.) Mission: Impossible (1996) 3.) Jerry Maguire (1996) 4.) Rain Man (1988) 5.) Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011) 6.)Mission: Impossible – Fallout (2018) 7.) Top Gun (1993) 8.)Mission: Impossible 3 (2006) 9.) The Firm (1986) 10.) Collateral (2004) 11.) Edge of Tomorrow 12.) Knight and Day (2010) 13.) The Last Samurai (2003) 14.) Oblivion (2013) 15.)Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation (2015)
20. Toshirô Mifune
Actor | Yôjinbô
Toshiro Mifune achieved more worldwide fame than any other Japanese actor of his century. He was born in Tsingtao, China, to Japanese parents and grew up in Dalian. He did not set foot in Japan until he was 21. His father was an importer and a commercial photographer, and young Toshiro worked in ...
Yojimbo (1961), Seven Samurai (1954), The Hidden Fortress (1958), Throne of Blood (1957), The Bad Sleep Well (1960), Red Sun(1971), Rashomon (1950)
21. Idris Elba
Actor | Beasts of No Nation
An only child, Idrissa Akuna Elba was born and raised in London, England. His father, Winston, is from Sierra Leone and worked at Ford Dagenham; his mother, Eve, is from Ghana and had a clerical duty. Idris attended school in Canning Town, where he first became involved in acting, before he dropped...
Prometheus (2012), Pacific Rim (2013), Luther (2010) [T.V. Series], Thor (2011), The Losers (2010), No Good Deed (2014)
22. Michael Caine
Actor | The Dark Knight
Michael Caine was born as Maurice Joseph Micklewhite in London, to Ellen (née Burchell), a cook, and Maurice Micklewhite Sr., a fish-market porter. He had a younger brother, Stanley Caine, and an older maternal half-brother named David Burchell. He left school at age 15 and took a series of ...
His own list and nothing less: 1.) The Dark Knight (2008) 2.) The Dark Knight Rises (2012) 3.) Batman Begins (2005) 4.) The Prestige (2006) 5.) Jack The Ripper (1988) [T.V. Miniseries] 6.) The Italian Job (1969) 7.) Dressed to Kill (1980) 8.) Now You See Me (2013) 9.) Austin Powers in Goldmember (2002) 10.) Miss Congeniality (2000)
23. Matthew McConaughey
Actor | Interstellar
American actor and producer Matthew David McConaughey was born in Uvalde, Texas. His mother, Mary Kathleen (McCabe), is a substitute school teacher originally from New Jersey. His father, James Donald McConaughey, was a Mississippi-born gas station owner who ran an oil pipe supply business. He is ...
Interstellar (2014), A Time to Kill (1996), Dallas Buyers Club (2013), The Lincoln Lawyer (2011), Contact (1997), Free State of Jones (2016), Fool's Gold (2008)
24. Charlton Heston
Actor | Ben-Hur
With features chiseled in stone, and renowned for playing a long list of historical figures, particularly in Biblical epics, the tall, well-built and ruggedly handsome Charlton Heston was one of Hollywood's top leading men of his prime and remained active in front of movie cameras for over sixty ...
Planet of the Apes (1968), Touch of Evil (1958), Soylent Green (1973), The Ten Commandments (1956), Ben-Hur (1959), Airport 1975 (1974)
25. Eddie Murphy
Actor | The Nutty Professor
Edward Regan Murphy was born April 3, 1961 in Brooklyn, New York, to Lillian Lynch (born: Lillian Laney), a telephone operator, and Charles Edward Murphy, a transit police officer who was also an amateur comedian and actor. After his father died, his mother married Vernon Lynch, a foreman at a ...
48 Hrs. (1982), Beverly Hills Cop (1984), Shrek 2 (2004), Shrek (2001), Coming to America (1988), Beverly Hills Cop II (1987), Shrek Forever After (2010)
26. Buster Keaton
Actor | The General
Joseph Frank Keaton was born on October 4, 1895 in Piqua, Kansas, to Joe Keaton and Myra Keaton. Joe and Myra were Vaudevillian comedians with a popular, ever-changing variety act, giving Keaton an eclectic and interesting upbringing. In the earliest days on stage, they traveled with a medicine ...
The Cameraman (1928), The General (1926), College (1927), Seven Chances (1925), Sherlock Jr. (1924), Steamboat Bill, Jr. (1928), Our Hospitality (1923)
27. Brad Pitt
Actor | Fight Club
William Bradley "Brad" Pitt was born on December 18, 1963 in Shawnee, Oklahoma and raised in Springfield, Missouri to Jane Etta Pitt (née Hillhouse), a school counselor & William Alvin "Bill" Pitt, a truck company manager. At Kickapoo High School, Pitt was involved in sports, debating, student ...
Too many great films not to have his own list: 1.) Inglourious Basterds (2009) 2.) Se7en (1995) 3.) Snatch (2000) 4.) Ocean's Eleven (2001) 5.) World War Z (2013) 6.) Fight Club (1999) 7.) Once Upon a Time in America (2019) 8.) The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008) 9.) Burn After Reading (2008)
28. Anil Kapoor
Actor | Slumdog Millionaire
Living in a Chawl in Tilak Nagar, Punjabi-speaking Anil was born in 1959 to Surinder and Nirmal aka Suchitra Kapoor. He has an elder brother, Boney, a sister, Reena, and a younger brother, Sanjay. His dad used to be Shammi Kapoor's Secretary.
A loner, without many friends, he studied in the nearby ...
Pukar (2000), Parinda (1989), Mashaal (1984), Slumdog Millionaire (2008), Mr. India (1987), Meri Jung (1985)
29. Aamir Khan
Actor | Taare Zameen Par
Aamir Khan was born on March 14, 1965 in Mumbai. He is one of the most successful Indian Bollywood actors who is also known as "Mr. Perfectionist of Bollywood". With his recent successes in both the Indian and Chinese film markets, he has shouldered his way into becoming one of the world's biggest ...
If he doesn't deserve his own list, then few others do: 1.) Lagaan (2001) 2.) Range De Basanti (2006) 3.) 3 Idiots (2009) 4.) Ghulam (1998) 5.) Andaz Apna Apna (1994) 6.) Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar (1992) 7.) Sarfarosh (1999) 8.) Dil Chahta Hai (2001) 9.) PK (2014) 10.) Dangal (2016) 11.) Taare Zameen Par (2007)
30. Liam Neeson
Actor | Kinsey
Liam Neeson was born on June 7, 1952 in Ballymena, Northern Ireland, to Katherine (Brown), a cook, and Bernard Neeson, a school caretaker. He was raised in a Catholic household. During his early years, Liam worked as a forklift operator for Guinness, a truck driver, an assistant architect and an ...
Schindler's List (1993), Batman Begins (2005), Taken (2008), The A-Team (2010), The Lego Movie (2014)
31. Emraan Hashmi
Actor | Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai
Emraan Hashmi (born 24 March 1979) is an Indian film actor who appears in Hindi language films. Through his successful career, Hashmi has received three Filmfare Award nominations and has established himself as one of the most popular and highest-paid actor of Hindi cinema.
Hashmi was born and ...
Once Upon a Time in Mumbai (2010), Shanghai (2012), Jannat (2008), Jannat 2 (2012), Gangster (2006), Murder (2004)
32. Jim Caviezel
Actor | The Passion of the Christ
James Patrick Caviezel was born on September 26, 1968 in Mount Vernon, Washington. He was one of five children born to Margaret (Lavery), a former stage actress, and James Caviezel, a chiropractor. The Caviezels are a closely knit Catholic family. He is of Irish (mother) and Swiss-Romansh and ...
Person of Interest (2011 - TV Series), The Count of Monte Cristo (2002), Outlander (2008), Transit (2012).
33. Errol Flynn
Actor | The Adventures of Robin Hood
Errol Flynn was born to parents Theodore Flynn, a respected biologist, and Marrelle Young, an adventurous young woman. Young Flynn was a rambunctious child who could be counted on to find trouble. Errol managed to have himself thrown out of every school in which he was enrolled. In his late teens ...
The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938), Adventures of Don Juan (1948), Captain Blood (1935), The Sea Hawk (1940)
34. Dilip Kumar
Actor | Gunga Jumna
Dilip Kumar (1922-2021) is widely considered the greatest acting exponent India ever produced. Born Muhammad Yusuf Khan on December 11, 1922, in Qissa Khwani Bazaar, Peshawar, British India (present-day Pakistan), he is better known by his stage name Dilip Kumar given to him by actress and owner of...
Naya Daur (1957), Mashaal (1984), Gopi (1973), Ram Aur Shyam (1967), Gunga Jumna (1961), Shakti (1982), Madhumati (1958)
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