Russell Crowe has been in our lives for more than three decades. For most of that career, he’s been an old Hollywood lead. One of those where the physical presence and the looks he gives, can tell as much as all the dialogue in the world. Maybe that’s why the Australian actor always excelled in action roles. He had the charisma and intensity from the start, but with time, he added a lot more resources to his arsenal: deadpan humor, vulnerability, or an understated intelligence.

Great directors like Ridley Scott, Peter Weir, and Ron Howard have taken advantage of those qualities to build their movies around him, creating unique characters that we still talk about decades later. The Academy Award winner has done all kinds of roles. He’s been a gladiator, a boat captain, a rom-com lead, a boxer, Noah, the bad guy (multiple times), and he’s even going to be a literal God in Thor: Love and Thunder. These are the best performances of the one and only Russell Crowe:

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7 Romper Stomper (1992)

     Roadshow Film Distributors

While still in Australia, this role was when people started to notice Russell Crowe. He plays a white supremacist skinhead who leads a violent group and fights rival gangs. His character is terrifying. He has the charisma to show why he leads the group, while being as aggressive, ruthless, and violent as one could be. Romper Stomper isn’t a fun watch, and that’s in big part to Crowe, who elevates the material with his acting; playing what’s probably his most terrifying role ever as a very believable and evil white nationalist.

MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY

MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY

MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY

6 The Nice Guys (2016)

     Warner Bros. Pictures

This action-comedy is Shane Black’s best since Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang. We’re back to old L.A., where detective Holland March (Ryan Gosling) is hired to investigate an apparent suicide; “apparent” being the keyword. March starts working with Jackson Healy (Crowe) to unmask a huge conspiracy.

In The Nice Guys, Crowe plays the violent private investigator with glee. He’s the brute force while also giving his character understated deadpan humor in a perfect balance to Gosling’s more expressive whackiness. This buddy cop comedy is a lot more fun and interesting than people remember.

5 A Beautiful Mind (2001)

     Universal Pictures

The biopic (inspired by Sylvia Nasar’s book) about mathematician John Nash shows how the character battles his mental illness (paranoid schizophrenia) while trying to keep doing his job that would eventually earn him a Nobel Prize.

A Beautiful Mind showed that Crowe could do neurotic, paranoia, social awkwardness, and weird all in the same character, giving him real personal weight to his interpretation. The role earned Crowe one of his three Best Actor Academy Award nominations.

4 L.A. Confidential (1997)

     Warner Bros.

Based on the bestselling novel by James Ellroy, this Neo-noir movie shows the life of three police officers as they investigate the same case; multiple murders in a coffee shop. Directed by Curtis Hanson, this movie brought back the glamour, the beauty, and essence of old movies while showing a dirtier side of the police.

Using his old Hollywood charisma and physical presence, Crowe looks like a classic movie star in L.A. Confidential. He might look like just the muscle, a brute force without a brain, but Crowe gives his character many more layers. As the movie continues, you start to see how he feels inside; raw, sincere, and emotional, which helps you empathize with him in the surprising ending.

3 Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003)

     20th Century Fox

A British naval officer named Jack Aubrey (Crowe) and his crew, fight a superior vessel during the Napoleonic Wars. From there, many adventures ensued. This nautical movie shows us the intricacies of the naval world in the 19th century.

Crowe plays the captain of the HMS Surprise with his usual charisma and charm. You believe that his crew would do anything for their captain, and that he loves his whole team and, especially, his most trusted friend, Dr. Maturin (Paul Bettany). Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World should have been the start of a franchise, and could have been the winner of many Academy Awards, if it hadn’t been the year that Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King won a record-tying eleven awards. After twenty years, we will finally have a new movie in this universe. Unfortunately, the prequel will not star Russell Crowe.

2 The Insider (1999)

     Buena Vista Pictures Distribution

Based on real events, The Insider is about Jeffrey Wigand (Crowe), a whistle-blower who was fighting for the truth against the cigarette industry. They knew their product was addictive and could create health issues, but kept selling it for a profit, and Wigand wanted the whole world to know. With the help of CBS producer Lowell Bergman (Al Pacino) and against all odds, death threats, and espionage, he succeeds in this marvelous thriller from the mind of Michael Mann.

In one of his most impressive works, Crowe disappears into Wigand. A normal guy; awkward, stressed, neurotic, tired, and not perfect. The Insider is Crowe’s best work as a chameleon. He doesn’t take advantage of his charisma and physique, showing us all the despair, paranoia, and problems that happened to Wigand in his battle against major corporations and American greed.

This movie earned Crowe an Academy Award Nomination (the first in three consecutive years) announcing to Hollywood (and the world) that a new great actor had arrived.

1 Gladiator (2000)

     DreamWorks Distribution 

Maximus was one of the most respected generals of the Roman Empire. When Emperor Marcus Aurelius named him to be his successor, the son of the emperor, Commodus, kills his father and Maximus’ family while imprisoning him and selling him into slavery. Years later, Maximus comes back to Rome as a gladiator and fights for his revenge.

If you asked most people from which movie they know, Russell Crowe, their answer would beGladiator. This movie uses all his better traits to create a unique and uber-charismatic protagonist and hero, whose battle-smart, fierce, loyal, and has all the abilities with a sword. What more could you ask for in a lead role? Although Joaquin Phoenix is as great as the coward Commodus, this movie is Crowe’s through and through. This role won him the Academy Award for Best Actor, and cemented him in our minds forever. 20 years may have passed, but watching him act in this role, we’re still very much entertained.