The Best Danny DeVito Movies
From Gotham's Penguin to Cinematic Masterpieces
Explore the definitive ranking of Danny DeVito's greatest film performances, featuring his most iconic roles and critically acclaimed movies.
About Danny DeVito
In an industry built on the pedestals of traditional leading men, Danny DeVito stands as a singular, subversive force who reimagined what a movie star could look like. He possesses a kinetic energy that blurs the line between high-strung comedy and genuine menace, a quality that first flickered into the public consciousness through the institutional haze of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. While his physical stature is often the first thing people note, it is his massive, lived-in screen presence that has sustained a career across six decades. He manages to be both the funniest person in the room and the most technically proficient, a duality that has made him a beloved fixture of the American canon.
His greatness lies in a willingness to embrace the grotesque and the cynical without ever losing the audience's empathy. This was perhaps most evident during his prolific run in the late eighties and early nineties. In the pitch-black comedy The War of the Roses, which he also directed, he dissected the anatomy of a failing marriage with surgical precision. He channeled that same dark electricity into his portrayal of the Penguin in Batman Returns, transforming a comic book villain into a tragic, mud-streaked figure of gothic horror. Even when playing against type in the sunny, mismatched chemistry of Twins, he grounded the absurdity with a street-smart charm that felt entirely authentic.
Behind the scenes, his sharp instincts as a filmmaker and producer helped shape the aesthetic of modern cinema. He has an eye for projects that balance mainstream appeal with a certain quirky grit. This sensibility allowed him to navigate the noir complexities of L.A. Confidential as a sleazy tabloid peddler just as easily as he handled the whimsical, tall-tale atmosphere of Big Fish. He understands the mechanics of storytelling, serving as the heartbeat of the modern classic Matilda, where he played the ultimate cartoonish patriarch while ensuring the film remained a sincere tribute to childhood resilience.
Audiences connect with him because there is zero vanity in his performances. Whether he is getting caught in the gears of a kidnapping plot in Ruthless People or playing the weary, cynical protagonist in The Big Kahuna, he commits fully to the bit. He is a master of the ensemble, popping up as a memorable presence in Men in Black or providing the necessary friction in The Rainmaker. His work in Man on the Moon and Hoffa showed a deeper, more dramatic gear, proving that beneath the quick-witted exterior lies a performer capable of immense gravity.
Today, he occupies a rare space in pop culture where he is respected by critics and adored by younger generations who have discovered his chaotic brilliance through television. He remains a symbol of an era when character actors were allowed to become titans. He never needed to fit the Hollywood mold because he was busy carving out one of his own. Through a filmography that spans from the breathless adventure of Romancing the Stone to the murderous antics of Throw Momma from the Train, he has proven that the most enduring stars are the ones who refuse to play it safe. He is a reminder that being the loudest, strangest, or most honest person on screen will always beat being the most conventional.
Renaissance Man
1994An advertising man is slowly sliding downhill. When he is fired from his job in Detroit, he signs up for unemployment. One day they find him a job: teaching thinking skills to Army recruits. He arrives on base to find that there is no structure set up for the class.
Death to Smoochy
2002Tells the story of Rainbow Randolph, the corrupt, costumed star of a popular children's TV show, who is fired over a bribery scandal and replaced by squeaky-clean Smoochy, a puffy fuchsia rhinoceros. As Smoochy catapults to fame - scoring hit ratings and the affections of a network executive - Randolph makes the unsuspecting rhino the target of his numerous outrageous attempts to exact revenge and reclaim his status as America's sweetheart.
Jumanji: The Next Level
2019As the gang return to Jumanji to rescue one of their own, they discover that nothing is as they expect. The players will have to brave parts unknown and unexplored in order to escape the world’s most dangerous game.
The Virgin Suicides
2000A group of male friends become obsessed with five mysterious sisters who are sheltered by their strict, religious parents.
The Big Kahuna
1999Three salesmen working for a firm that makes industrial lubricants are waiting in the company's "hospitality suite" at a manufacturers' convention for a "big kahuna" named Dick Fuller to show up, in hopes they can persuade him to place an order that could salvage the company's flagging sales.
Throw Momma from the Train
1987Larry Donner, an author with a cruel ex-wife, teaches a writing workshop in which one of his students, Owen, is fed up with his domineering mother. When Owen watches a Hitchcock classic that seems to mirror his own life, he decides to put the movie's plot into action and offers to kill Larry's ex-wife, if Larry promises to murder his mom. Before Larry gets a chance to react to the plan, it seems that Owen has already set things in motion.
The War of the Roses
1989Barbara and Oliver Rose live happily as a married couple. When Barbara starts to wonder what life would be like without Oliver and likes what she sees, the two begin a campaign to force each other to leave their house, with their divorce lawyer D'Amato caught in the middle.
Hoffa
1992A portrait of union leader James R. Hoffa, as seen through the eyes of his friend, Bobby Ciaro. The film follows Hoffa through his countless battles with the RTA and President Roosevelt.
Man on the Moon
1999The story of the life and career of eccentric avant-garde comedian, Andy Kaufman.
By playing Andy Kaufman's agent, George Shapiro, DeVito serves as the grounded emotional anchor in an otherwise surreal biographical journey. It is a subtle, selfless performance that allows his real-life friend's legacy to take center stage.
Men in Black
1997After a police chase with an otherworldly being, a New York City cop is recruited as an agent in a top-secret organization established to monitor and police alien activity on Earth: the Men in Black. Agent K and new recruit Agent J find themselves in the middle of a deadly plot by an intergalactic terrorist who has arrived on Earth to assassinate two ambassadors from opposing galaxies.
Even behind layers of prosthetics and alien goo, his distinctive gravelly barking makes a lasting impression in a brief but vital cameo. This performance highlights his unique ability to command a scene through vocal presence alone.
Big Fish
2003Throughout his life Edward Bloom has always been a man of big appetites, enormous passions and tall tales. In his later years, he remains a huge mystery to his son, William. Now, to get to know the real man, Will begins piecing together a true picture of his father from flashbacks of his amazing adventures.
DeVito brings a weary, magical realism to the role of Amos Calloway, perfectly suiting Tim Burton's dreamlike aesthetic. He captures the cynical yet protective nature of a circus master who has seen it all.
Twins
1988Julius and Vincent Benedict are the results of an experiment that would allow for the perfect child. Julius was planned and grows to athletic proportions. Vincent is an accident and is somewhat smaller in stature. Vincent is placed in an orphanage while Julius is taken to a south seas island and raised by philosophers. Vincent becomes the ultimate low life and is about to be killed by loan sharks.
DeVito weaponizes his signature abrasive energy to play the ultimate genetic underdog, grounding the high-concept premise with a scrappy, fast-talking cynicism. This role marked a pivotal shift for the actor, proving he could pivot from being a sharp-tongued character actor to a genuine comedic lead alongside an action icon. He manages to be both the film's relentless comic engine and its unexpected emotional core.
Though she can spin wild tales of passionate romance, novelist Joan Wilder has no life of her own. Then one day adventure comes her way in the form of a mysterious package. It turns out that the parcel is the ransom she'll need to free her abducted sister, so Joan flies to South America to hand it over. But she gets on the wrong bus and winds up hopelessly stranded in the jungle.
In the role of the bumbling Ralph, DeVito provides the essential comedic friction that propels this high-stakes adventure. His ability to turn a minor antagonist into the film's most reliable source of frantic energy solidified his status as a premier character actor.
Matilda
1996Matilda Wormwood is an exquisite and intelligent little girl. Unfortunately, her parents, Harry and Zinnia, don’t agree. As time passes, she finally starts school and has a kind teacher, loyal friends, and a sadistic headmistress. As she becomes fed up with the constant cruelty, she discovers she has a special gift that she just might be able to use to outwit the unruly adults around her.
Pulling double duty as director and the wretched Harry Wormwood, DeVito weaponizes his comedic timing to create a vivid caricature of suburban greed. He successfully balances the film's whimsical heart with a sharp, necessary edge of parental malice.
Ruthless People
1986Sam Stone hates his wife Barbara so much that he wants her dead. He's ecstatic when she's taken by a duo of kidnappers who want $500,000 ransom in exchange for her life. Fully intending to ignore every one of the kidnappers' demands in the hopes that they do him a favor and murder her for him, the two confused kidnappers have to figure out how they're going get their money, and what they're going to do with the overbearing Barbara.
DeVito reaches a manic peak here, portraying a husband whose murderous intent is constantly thwarted by his own incompetence. His chemistry with Bette Midler creates a volcanic comedic duo that defines the excess of the eighties.
Batman Returns
1992The monstrous Penguin, who dwells in the sewers beneath Gotham, joins up with corrupt mayoral candidate Max Shreck to topple the Batman once and for all. But when Shreck's timid assistant Selina Kyle finds out, and Shreck tries to kill her, she's transformed into the sexy Catwoman. She teams up with the Penguin and Shreck to destroy Batman, but sparks fly unexpectedly when she confronts the caped crusader.
His transformation into the Penguin remains a gothic marvel, blending tragic pathos with a terrifying, bird-like physicality. DeVito redefined the comic book villain by leaning into the grotesque rather than the cartoonish.
Get Shorty
1995Chili Palmer is a Miami mobster who gets sent to L.A. to collect a bad debt from Harry Zimm, a Hollywood producer who specializes in cheesy horror films. When Chili meets Harry's leading lady, the romantic sparks fly. After pitching his own life story as a movie idea, Chili learns that being a mobster and being a Hollywood producer really aren't all that different.
DeVito wields a weaponized sense of self-importance as Martin Weir, perfectly skewering the preening insecurity of a Hollywood A-lister. By playing a pint-sized egoist who believes his own hype, he transformed his established frantic energy into a sharp, satirical portrait of vanity. It remains a career high point for his ability to be simultaneously ridiculous and entirely grounded in the absurdity of the movie business.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
1975A petty criminal fakes insanity to serve his sentence in a mental ward rather than prison. He soon finds himself as a leader to the other patients—and an enemy to the cruel, domineering nurse who runs the ward.
As the timid Martini, DeVito manages to find a vulnerable, wide-eyed humanity amidst the sterile brutality of the ward. This breakout role proved he could hold his own alongside powerhouse talents like Jack Nicholson long before he became a household name.
The Rainmaker
1997Fresh out of law school and desperate for work, idealistic rookie Rudy Baylor takes on a powerful insurance company accused of denying a dying boy’s claim. Teaming up with a scrappy, unlicensed paralegal, he finds himself in a David-versus-Goliath courtroom battle that tests his ethics, courage, and belief in justice.
As the scrappy paralegal Deck Shifflet, he provides a gritty, street-smart counterbalance to the film's legal idealism. DeVito infuses the procedural drama with a much-needed sense of cynical hustle and wit.
Three detectives in the corrupt and brutal L.A. police force of the 1950s use differing methods to uncover a conspiracy behind the shotgun slayings of the patrons at an all-night diner.
Playing the sleazy Sid Hudgens, DeVito embodies the toxic intersection of tabloid journalism and police corruption with a greasy, rhythmic charisma. It is a masterful exercise in playing a character the audience loves to loathe.
Frequently Asked Questions
Everything you need to know about this list and SnakeDrafts
- L.A. Confidential is ranked highest because Danny DeVito delivers a compelling performance in this critically acclaimed crime thriller. His role as a cunning and ambitious detective showcases his ability to combine subtle menace with sharp wit, marking it as a standout in his career.
- Danny DeVito's role in 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest' was pivotal in launching his career by revealing his talent for blending high-strung comedy with a genuine, sometimes dark, intensity. This 1975 classic brought him into the public eye as a dynamic character actor capable of nuanced performances.
- 'Matilda' is unique because it is directed by Danny DeVito himself, showcasing his versatility beyond acting. The film combines comedy, family themes, and fantasy, highlighting DeVito's creative vision and his ability to connect with audiences of all ages.
- The 1990s were a prolific decade for Danny DeVito, featuring diverse roles in popular films like 'Get Shorty,' 'Batman Returns,' and 'The Rainmaker.' This period highlights his range as an actor, balancing comedic, dramatic, and thrilling roles that solidified his status as a versatile Hollywood icon.
- The list focuses on Danny DeVito's most iconic and critically acclaimed roles, so some lesser-known or niche films are omitted to maintain a high standard of recognition. While he has a varied filmography, this selection emphasizes his landmark performances rather than every appearance.
- Danny DeVito excels in both comedic and dramatic roles, as seen with movies like 'Ruthless People' for comedy and 'Hoffa' for drama. His ability to switch seamlessly between humor and gravitas adds complexity to his characters, making his filmography particularly rich and diverse.
- Danny DeVito often portrays characters that combine sharp wit, a hint of menace, and an underdog spirit. Whether playing a scheming detective in 'L.A. Confidential' or a charming criminal in 'Get Shorty,' his roles frequently explore themes of power, survival, and unconventional heroism.
