Christopher Walken, who was born in Astoria, Queens, has been acting for over 60 years, having started out as a child performer on various television shows. He would attend one year of college at Hofstra University but then would drop out when he was cast in his first off-Broadway show. Considering Walken’s serious career as an actor, it is probably surprising to learn that this first show was a frothy musical comedy which also launched the career of another young performer named Liza Minnelli.
Walken would then go on to a quite prolific stage career appearing on and off-Broadway in all sorts of productions in everything from Shakespeare to Chekov. Eventually he would begin working in film and began to reappear on television. A scene stealing role in 1977’s Best Picture Oscar winner “Annie Hall” would then lead him to a central supporting role in the following year’s Best Picture winner, “The Deer Hunter.” The film would also win Walken a Best Supporting Actor Oscar as a soldier so scarred by his experience on the battlefields of Vietnam that he chooses to stay in the country and participate in suicidal games of Russian Roulette.
Walken would earn a second Oscar nomination plus a SAG and BAFTA Award as the father of Leonardo DiCaprio for 2002’s “Catch Me if You Can,” and Emmy nominations for his performances in the TV movie “Sarah Plain and Tall” and drama series “Severance.”
Tour our photo gallery of Walken’s 16 greatest film performances, ranked worst to best. In addition to the movies mentioned above, our list also includes “The Dead Zone,” “Biloxi Blues,” “Batman Returns,” “Dune: Part Two” and more.
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16. THE STEPFORD WIVES (2004)
Image Credit: Andrew Schwartz/Paramount/Dreamworks/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Director: Frank Oz. Writer: Paul Rudnick. Starring Nicole Kidman, Bette Midler, Matthew Broderick.
The original “The Stepford Wives” from 1975 was a taut thriller about man’s fearful reaction to the feminist movement. The men literally turn their wives into robots who cater to their every need. This remake made the story a comedic one and feels somewhat flat. Walken and Glenn Close as one of the original Stepford couples steal the film and are the brightest spot among a starry cast not really able to rise above their material.
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15. DUNE: PART TWO (2024)
Image Credit: Warner Bros. Director: Denis Villeneuve. Writers: Denis Villeneuve, Jon Spaihts, based on the novel by Frank Herbert. Starring Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, Javier Bardem, Josh Brolin, Austin Butler, Christopher Walken, Florence Pugh.
Walken’s work as Emperor Shaddam IV, the emperor of the Known Universe, is less of a showstopping performance than it is one of quiet malevolence. As Paul (Timothée Chalamet) rises up as the leader of the Fremen, Shaddam sends in Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen (Austin Butler) to kill Paul in combat. When that fails, Shaddam is humbled and forced to kiss Paul’s ring. Walken’s Shaddam is a brooding man, anxious to hold on to power and terrified of losing it. While Shaddam may be a comparatively small role in the world of “Dune,” Walken’s artistry makes sure that it’s a key one.
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14. HAIRSPRAY (2007)
Image Credit: David James/New Line/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Director: Adam Shankman. Writer: Leslie Dixon. Starring Nikki Blonsky, John Travolta, Michelle Pfeiffer.
“Hairspray” tells the story of an overweight girl trying to gain acceptance on a local teen dance show for both herself and African Americans who are banned from the show. It was first a non-musical movie, then a Broadway show, then this film musical. Walken plays the loving dad of the teenage girl and the husband of John Travolta (in drag). Walken, who began his career in musical theater, gets a chance to show off his musical talents here.
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13. TRUE ROMANCE (1993)
Image Credit: Moviestore/REX/Shutterstock Director: Tony Scott. Writer: Quentin Tarantino. Starring Christian Slater, Patricia Arquette, Dennis Hopper.
“True Romance” was beloved by some and hated by others for its violence. Christian Slater marries a hooker played by Patricia Arquette and gets involved with stealing and selling cocaine. Walken plays a top man in the mafia who becomes involved in the drug deal. James Gandolfini, who would later gain fame as Tony Soprano on “The Sopranos,” has a small role as another mafia member.
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12. THE ANDERSON TAPES (1971)
Image Credit: Moviestore/REX/Shutterstock Director: Sidney Lumet. Writer: Frank Pierson. Starring Sean Connery, Dyan Cannon, Martin Balsam.
Walken’s first prominent film role came in this Sidney Lumet film which starred Sean Connery as an ex-con trying to pull off a heist. The caper gets out of control due to the new concept high rise building they choose to rob, where everything is taped and under surveillance.
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11. KING OF NEW YORK (1990)
Image Credit: Moviestore/REX/Shutterstock Director: Abel Ferrera. Writer: Nicholas St. John. Starring Laurence Fishburne, David Caruso, Wesley Snipes.
This crime drama from cult director favorite Abel Ferrera casts Walken as a gangster (a role he would frequently appear in) who is released from prison and wants to turn his life, as well as his neighborhood’s life, around.
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10. SEVEN PSYCHOPATHS (2012)
Image Credit: Blueprint Pictures/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Director and writer: Martin McDonagh. Starring Colin Farrell, Sam Rockwell, Woody Harrelson.
After scoring a success on Broadway and a Tony nomination for Martin McDonagh’s play “A Behanding in Spokane,” the two reunited for this film whose title basically explains its plot. McDonagh’s typical mayhem explodes on the screen as Walken steals a dog that unknowingly is the beloved pet of a major crime figure.
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9. PULP FICTION (1994)
Image Credit: Linda R Chen/Miramax/Buena Vista/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Director and writer: Quentin Tarantino. Starring John Travolta, Bruce Willis, Samuel L. Jackson.
“Pulp Fiction” caused a bit of a sensation on its release in 1994 and would go on to influence many films made in that era. Walken has a central supporting role and a long monologue where he delivers the character played by Bruce Willis his father’s watch, setting in motion a series of events that would play out in the rest of the film.
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8. BATMAN RETURNS (1992)
Image Credit: Warner Bros/Dc Comics/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Director: Tim Burton. Writer: Daniel Waters. Starring Michael Keaton, Michelle Pfeiffer, Danny DeVito.
Walken plays a business tycoon with evil intentions in Tim Burton’s sequel to his original “Batman” film. His character is the employer of Michelle Pfeiffer’s Catwoman’s alter ego Selina Kyle. He is quite the abusive boss to her (she memorably asks him how he can be so cruel to someone so insignificant.) He ends up pushing Kyle out a window sending her into her next life as Catwoman.
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7. AT CLOSE RANGE (1986)
Image Credit: Orion/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Director: James Foley. Writer: Nicholas Kazan. Starring Sean Penn, Mary Stuart Masterson, Crispin Glover.
Walken plays a small-time crook in rural Pennsylvania who reunites with his sons. The intense drama sees the boys (including Sean Penn in one of his early starring roles) become enamored of their father’s criminal life only to have it backfire on them in a disturbing way.
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6. BILOXI BLUES (1986)
Image Credit: Universal/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Director: Mike Nichols. Writer: Neil Simon. Starring Matthew Broderick, Penelope Ann Miller, Corey Parker.
It is a bit surprising to see the usually intense Walken in a Neil Simon comedy, but he gives one of his best performances as the drill sergeant who makes life hell for a bunch of new army recruits, including Matthew Broderick recreating his Broadway role as Eugene Morris Jerome, an alter ego for Simon. Broderick had first played the role of Eugene in the Broadway play “Brighton Beach Memoirs,” for which he won a Tony Award.
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5. PENNIES FROM HEAVEN (1981)
Image Credit: Moviestore/REX/Shutterstock Director: Herbert Ross. Writer: Dennis Potter. Starring Steve Martin, Bernadette Peters, Jessica Harper.
This complex film alternates between the grim reality of depression era Chicago and lavish musical fantasy sequences. Steve Martin stars as a sheet music salesman with an unhappy professional and personal life who imagines his life could be like the movie musicals he loves. Walken shocked audiences with his amazing dance movies, which were quite unexpected coming from this actor more known for his intense dramatic work.
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4. THE DEAD ZONE (1983)
Image Credit: Paramount/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Director: David Cronenberg. Writer: Jeffrey Boam. Starring Brooke Adams, Tom Skerritt, Collen Dewhust.
“The Dead Zone” was the fifth film to be adapted from the work of Steven King. It received quite positive reviews on its initial release but didn’t become the smash hit many thought it deserved to be. After a car crash that leaves him in a coma for five years Walken awakens with psychic powers. His powers lead him to see the true colors of a presidential candidate and he is driven to take action to prevent his election.
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3. ANNIE HALL (1977)
Image Credit: Rollins-Joffe / United Artists/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Director and writer: Woody Allen. Starring Diane Keaton, Tony Roberts, Carol Kane.
Proving the old adage that there are no small parts just small actors, Walken had one of his most memorable roles as Duane, Diane Keaton’s odd brother in the Oscar winning Best Picture of 1977. He really only has a few scenes but his memorable speech about wanting to drive into the other cars coming the opposite way on the freeway and Woody Allen’s terrified reactions as Walken drives him to the airport are a part of film history.
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2. CATCH ME IF YOU CAN (2002)
Image Credit: Andrew Cooper/Dreamworks/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Director: Steven Spielberg. Writer: Jeff Nathanson. Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hanks, Martin Sheen.
Walken won the SAG and BAFTA awards as Best Supporting Actor and earned an Oscar nomination for this true story of a young man who pretends he is capable of various jobs for which he has no training and the FBI agent who pursues him. Walken plays the boys father, who can’t help but be amused by his son’s antics. He and Leonardo DiCaprio have wonderful chemistry, especially in a scene where DiCaprio has pretended to be a school teacher and Walken can’t help but busting into a bemused smile after his son is found out to be an imposter.
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1. THE DEER HUNTER (1978)
Image Credit: Moviestore Collection/REX/Shutterstock Director: Michael Cimmino. Writer: Deric Washburn. Starring Robert De Niro, John Savage, Meryl Streep.
1978 was the year that Hollywood finally dealt with the Vietnam war, seeing two films released simultaneously that explored the war and its after effects on those involved. Both those films would dominate that year’s Oscars. “Coming Home” won the Oscars for Best Actor and Actress for Jon Voight and Jane Fonda, while this film took home five Oscars including Best Picture, Director and Supporting Actor for Walken. The film traces the lives of a group of small-town Pennsylvanians who fight in the war. Walken plays the man who refuses to come home despite having a loving fiancée waiting for him (Meryl Streep in her first Oscar nominated role) and instead drifts into the desperate world of back room Russian Roulette games.
