This actor could do it all! For this list, we’ll be looking at the filmography of the late great Robin Williams and looking at the best comedies and dramas of his decades-long career.
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00:00I don't think you quite realize what you've got there,
00:03so why don't you just ruminate whilst I illuminate the possibilities."
00:08Welcome to Ms. Mojo,
00:09and today we're counting down our picks for the Top 20 Robin Williams Movies.
00:17Oh, I'm sorry to frighten you dear, I must look like a yeti in this getup.
00:22For this list, we're looking at the filmography of the late, great Robin Williams,
00:26and looking at the best comedies and dramas of his decades-long career.
00:30Please say HELLO in the comments below!
00:36Robin Williams transitioned from stand-up comedian to Morgan Mindy TV star in 1978.
00:42Two years later, he made his feature film debut in Popeye.
00:56Hollywood icon Robert Altman helmed the live-action adaptation of the famous cartoon.
01:02Juxtaposing musical numbers with slapstick comedy,
01:05Popeye is a rather uneven effort by Altman.
01:08But there are few actors in movie history with the comic chops of Robin Williams.
01:13I'm one tough gazooka that hates all polonka,
01:16that ain't on the up and square.
01:18I biff some and buff some and always out-ruff some,
01:22and none of them gets nowhere.
01:25He made absolute mincemeat of the physical comedy,
01:28and the film did well at the box office,
01:30even though it wasn't a blockbuster.
01:32To this day, its decades-long home video run has made it a cult classic.
01:42Imagine if the actors on Sesame Street went to war with Barney the Dinosaur.
01:55That essentially is the plot of the 2002 comedy Death to Smoochie.
01:59Williams' Rainbow Randolph is a children's television star who misuses alcohol
02:04and falls from grace after taking a bribe.
02:06When he spirals and loses it all,
02:08he blames his replacement Smoochie for ruining his life.
02:13Williams is at his most hilariously deranged in this revenge comedy.
02:25Death to Smoochie's great sin is that it was probably made a decade too early.
02:30The clever, acerbic, cynical comedy that was slammed by critics at the time
02:35has become a staple of modern comedy.
02:38What would happen if Peter Pan gave up on Neverland and decided to grow up?
02:44Well, you might end up with Robin Williams as the portrayal of his grown-up self for one.
02:49We'll take it.
02:50Steven Spielberg directs an all-star cast with Dustin Hoffman as Captain Hook
02:54and Julia Roberts as Tinkerbell.
02:57Even Glenn Close got an uncredited cameo as a bearded pirate.
03:08Williams is in his sweet spot in Hook,
03:12with fast-talking humor, physical comedy, and a ton of heart.
03:16His Peter Pan is a victim of modern adulthood.
03:19He's fallen prey to the grind at the expense of his own family and happiness.
03:24It's a sweet story about Peter rediscovering his inner child
03:27to save his son from generational trauma.
03:38Mommy!
03:40My dad.
03:43Peter Pan.
03:44Number 17.
03:45What Dreams May Come
03:58What Dreams May Come is an intensely emotional adaptation of the Richard Matheson novel.
04:03Robin Williams plays Chris Nielsen,
04:05a pediatrician who meets artist Annie Collins and falls in love.
04:09Years later, the couple lose their son and daughter in a tragic car accident.
04:13Chris, too, eventually dies in another accident.
04:16His confused spirit lingers, accidentally tormenting Annie with his presence.
04:21Eventually, Chris reaches his own personal heaven.
04:24But when he discovers that Annie has also died and is suffering from her guilt,
04:28he descends like Dante to save her.
04:36It was our heaven, see?
04:39There's lots of things to miss.
04:41The film is a visually stunning masterpiece.
04:44Williams handles the dark subject matter with heartbreaking sincerity.
04:48If you want to catch up on what dreams may come, do not forget the tissues.
04:53Number 16.
04:54Night at the Museum
04:55While the Night at the Museum franchise continues to grow,
04:58the original featured Ben Stiller as a late-night security guard
05:02in a history museum magically come to life.
05:04Robin Williams plays his sidekick and mentor, the statue of Teddy Roosevelt.
05:19Night at the Museum is a solid family comedy.
05:22While it wasn't a big hit with critics,
05:24it's hard to find fault whenever Teddy appears to help.
05:28Williams tackled the role with his typical brand of straight laughs tinged with pathos.
05:32And there are real layers to a character that anyone else could have easily written off.
05:48Teddy centered the film,
05:49and Williams' rapport with Ben Stiller kept the franchise going for a full trilogy.
05:54Number 15.
05:56Happy Feet
05:57Since his time as a student at Juilliard,
05:59people were blown away by Robin Williams' accents and voice work.
06:02Luckily, his multiple turns in animation allowed him to go nuts with wild voices.
06:19Happy Feet is a great example of this,
06:21with Williams playing a slew of characters,
06:24namely Ramon, Cletus, Lovelace, and the narrator.
06:28The joy he gets from doing voices is clear in every frame.
06:33His characters are equally ridiculous despite really feeling like different people.
06:38It's a great coming-of-age film for young kids,
06:40with plenty of laughs for their parents.
06:53Number 14.
06:54Jumanji
06:5520 years before The Rock tackled the dangers of Jumanji with big grins and bigger muscles,
07:00Robin Williams did it with a cape made of leaves and one heck of a beard.
07:04Jumanji was a big deal for 90s kids.
07:16It was an adventure story,
07:18one that felt like it had never been done before and quickly cemented itself as a classic.
07:23With his typical blend of laughs and real emotion,
07:25Williams' genuine vibe helps audiences tap into their own fear centers.
07:29Whether running from animatronic lions or CGI monkeys,
07:33Williams' Alan Parrish acts and reacts totally genuinely in every situation.
07:38He isn't an action star,
07:40he is a relatable everyman in a crazy situation,
07:43a feat that really set this fantasy adventure apart.
07:53Okay, come here, I'm sorry.
07:54Hey, it's alright.
07:56Number 13.
07:57The World According to Garp
07:59After doing Popeye,
08:01Williams decided to pivot and take on the titular role in the drama The World According to Garp.
08:06It's a satirical melodrama that covers a man's entire life,
08:09from his unusual beginnings to his bittersweet end.
08:13Remember?
08:15What, my love?
08:18Everything, Helen.
08:21Yes, my love.
08:22Garp is the son of Jenny Fields,
08:25a feminist icon played by Glenn Close in her feature debut.
08:28The film is a fascinating window into modern American history,
08:32taking on politics, gender and gender identity.
08:36Unlike many films of the era,
08:37it actually holds up really well years later.
08:40Both Garp and his mother face violent political radicalization,
08:44a theme that resonates even more in the age of social media.
08:58Number 12.
08:58Moscow on the Hudson
09:00In Moscow on the Hudson,
09:02Williams plays Vladimir Ivanov,
09:03a musician with the Moscow Circus who defects on a trip to New York City.
09:11The film is an earnest examination of immigration,
09:21politics and loneliness.
09:23Vlad struggles to survive in the Soviet Union,
09:26so when his circus performs in New York,
09:28he takes the opportunity to escape.
09:30But life in New York in the 1980s wasn't so easy.
09:34Vlad grapples with the language barrier and tries to find work and love.
09:38He's even at one point violently mugged.
09:41Moscow on the Hudson is a very particular slice of life,
09:44but its story is universal.
09:55Number 11.
09:56One Hour Photo
09:57In One Hour Photo,
09:59Robin Williams cranks the creep factor up to 11.
10:08Before the age of digital photography,
10:14almost every strip mall in America had a one-hour photo.
10:18Williams is Psy,
10:19a photo lab technician who becomes obsessed with the lives of his customers.
10:23He lives vicariously through their photos,
10:26fantasizing that he's a part of their lives.
10:28Psy's obsession takes a dark turn as he begins to stalk the Yorkin family.
10:32The Chicago Sun-Times praised Williams' ability to portray such a
10:39Things that children shouldn't do.
10:43You would never take disgusting,
10:46sex-degrading pictures of your children doing these things.
10:51Though he's played villains before and since,
10:54One Hour Photo is arguably Robin's darkest character.
10:57Number 10.
10:58Awakenings
11:00Unlike many Robin Williams characters,
11:02Dr. Sayre in Awakenings isn't particularly funny.
11:05He's a shy doctor utterly dedicated to helping catatonic patients.
11:09You think these are signs of normal behavior?
11:11Because he's in that place.
11:13Oh, is that it?
11:14Yes.
11:14We wake him up and then we lock him up in a cage.
11:17That's not paranoia.
11:18That's a fact.
11:19His fellow doctors and nurses, though,
11:21treat patients as little more than furniture.
11:23Sayre tests an exciting new drug on one of his patients,
11:26Robert De Niro's Lenard.
11:28When Lenard wakes up from his catatonia,
11:30the test is expanded to other patients.
11:33The results are temporary,
11:35and each patient eventually falls back into their original state.
11:38It's a sad ending,
11:39but Sayre manages to find the silver lining.
11:42He teaches his colleagues and the audience
11:44to remember to see the humanity in everyone.
11:47With work, play, friendship, family,
11:56these are the things that matter.
11:58Number 9.
11:59World's Greatest Dad
12:00World's Greatest Dad is a unique comedy in Robin Williams' filmography.
12:05Similar to Dear Evan Hansen,
12:07his character stumbles into fame through the death of another.
12:10When his son dies in an embarrassing accident,
12:12he stages the body and writes a note.
12:14In the aftermath, he and his son receive the attention
12:17he's always desired as a struggling writer.
12:19You know, I'm not going to pretend that I know
12:22what's going on in the mind of a teenager.
12:25All I'm saying is Kyle made a mistake.
12:28If you're that depressed, reach out to someone.
12:31The film was Robin Williams' first collaboration
12:34with his longtime friend,
12:35director Bobcat Goldthwait.
12:37Goldthwait was initially worried about the awkwardness
12:39of directing one of his best friends,
12:41but as it turned out,
12:42they worked well together in a professional setting too.
12:45Though the film flopped at the box office,
12:48it was well-reviewed by critics.
12:50I liked it.
12:52Really?
12:53You're a good writer.
12:54I think you should keep writing.
12:57Thanks, Andrew, I will.
12:59Number 8.
12:59The Fisher King
13:01The Fisher King begins with a focus on Jeff Bridges' character,
13:04a radio shock jock.
13:06His careless words inspire real-life violence.
13:09One night, he faces a truly dark night of the soul
13:12walking the streets of New York City,
13:14where he's mugged and then saved by Robin Williams Perry,
13:18a person living with a mental health condition on the streets.
13:21Respect for all kinds of life,
13:23a nice bowel movement on a regular basis,
13:26and a navy blazer.
13:27Oh, one more thing.
13:29Never take your eye off the ball!
13:33Perry believes he is a knight on a quest for the Holy Grail.
13:36The two strike up an unlikely friendship,
13:38helping each other climb out of a pit of grief and guilt.
13:42At the end, their bond allows them each to find forgiveness.
13:45While the subject matter is dark,
13:47the film is a meditation on hope and redemption.
13:50When her robe is unfurled, she will show you the world
13:53if you step up and tell her where.
13:56For a dime, you can see Kankakee or Perry
13:59or Washington crossing the Delaware.
14:02Robin Williams received his third Oscar nomination for Perry.
14:08It's hard to argue that any Robin Williams film
14:11had more long-term impact than The Birdcage.
14:14The movie is a remake of the French and Italian classic La Cage Aux Folles.
14:18Armand is a gay drag club owner in South Beach.
14:21His son returns home to tell his dad that he's engaged.
14:23Tell me it's all right.
14:26It's all right.
14:29I always dreamed you'd do this, it's just not so soon.
14:32Unfortunately, his fiancée is the daughter of a conservative senator.
14:36Before hosting the senator,
14:37Armand must learn to pretend to be a heteronormative family.
14:41Comedy gold ensues.
14:43The Birdcage was one of the first major films
14:45to help normalize gay relationships and families in America.
14:49We lied to you.
14:50Barbara and I and everybody lied for us.
14:54These are my parents.
14:57This is my wife.
14:58It tells us that being macho is not the only way to be a good man,
15:02and that love is love.
15:04The ripples of that impact still resonate today.
15:10Insomnia is another film where Williams gets to show off his bad guy bona fides.
15:14Directed by Christopher Nolan,
15:16Insomnia is a remake of a Norwegian thriller.
15:19Williams plays Finch, a murderous crime writer
15:22in a game of cat and mouse with Al Pacino, an LAPD detective.
15:26I'm not a murderer any more than you are.
15:29Well, then why don't we get together, you know?
15:30Just talk, have a few beers, whatever.
15:33Yeah, throw a little gas on the fire, huh?
15:36Yeah.
15:37The two circle and chase each other,
15:39neither entirely good or bad.
15:41The backdrop is a land of midnight sun in a remote Alaskan town.
15:45Critics were impressed by how well Williams held his own
15:48across from a heavyweight like Al Pacino.
15:51I knew they'd connect me to Kay eventually.
15:53I could handle them.
15:54They never look in the eyes of a killer.
15:58Killing changes you, you know that.
16:01It's not guilt.
16:02It's clear where Chris Nolan learned to cast actors against type.
16:06It's a skill he would employ again six years later
16:09with Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight.
16:14Good morning, Vietnam!
16:18Hey, this is not a test.
16:20This is rock and roll.
16:22Time to rock it from the Delta to the DMZ.
16:24Thanks to MASH, Good Morning, Vietnam!
16:26found a receptive audience for an irreverent military comedy.
16:29Williams stars as Adrian Cronauer,
16:32an airman who wins over American troops as a disc jockey
16:35during the Vietnam War.
16:36Beloved by enlisted men and despised by his superiors,
16:40Cronauer makes a big splash.
16:42His superiors eventually try to get him killed
16:44by routing him through a hot zone.
16:46Good Morning, Vietnam! explores how to maintain personal integrity
16:49and real friendship during war.
16:51The army knows about your brother.
16:53I have to leave the country because of my association with him.
16:56They have pictures of him.
16:58If they find him, they will shoot him.
17:00If you want to continue to have a brother, you take me to him now!
17:02Williams was universally praised
17:04and received his first ever Oscar nomination.
17:08Plus, the movie has a stellar soundtrack.
17:13Mrs. Doubtfire is one of several of Williams' movies
17:16to get turned into hit theater adaptations.
17:19It's no wonder why.
17:20The film is classic Robin Williams.
17:23If you've been living under a rock for the past 30 years,
17:26the movie follows a down-on-his-luck voice actor
17:28desperate to reconnect with his family.
17:30Mrs. Hillard, I presume?
17:32Yes, I'm Miranda Hillard.
17:34Eugenia Doubtfire.
17:36Oh, yes.
17:37Won't you please come in?
17:38Using his industry connections to give him professional prosthetic makeup,
17:42Daniel Hillard manages to pose as a Scottish-ish nanny for his own children.
17:47As with many of the performer's endeavors,
17:49Mrs. Doubtfire is a comedy with real pain and conflict at its center.
17:53It's a story about missing what you've got once it's gone.
17:57Williams' character goes to absurd but endearing lengths to get his family back.
18:01I love them with all my heart.
18:03And the idea of someone telling me I can't be with them,
18:05I can't see them every day,
18:08it's like someone saying I can't have air.
18:11I can't live without air and I can't live without them.
18:17We don't read and write poetry because it's cute.
18:21We read and write poetry because we are members of the human race,
18:25and the human race is filled with passion.
18:29In the late 1980s and early 1990s,
18:31Hollywood seemed to have a miniature obsession with movies
18:34about boys boarding schools.
18:36Before Scent of a Woman, School Ties, and Toy Soldiers,
18:39it was 1989's Dead Poets Society that seemed to kickstart
18:42the trend of prep school backdrops.
18:44Williams stars as Mr. Keating,
18:46an English teacher who uses poetry to inspire his students.
18:50We're going to talk about Shakespeare as someone who writes something very interesting.
18:54Now many of you have seen Shakespeare done very much like this.
18:57Oh Titus, bring your friend hither.
19:00Through Mr. Keating, we see the importance of the arts and self-expression.
19:05They are tools that can help young people learn who they are meant to be
19:08in an otherwise cold, unfeeling world.
19:11Mr. Keating ultimately pays for his insight with his job,
19:14but we bet his students never forgot the lesson.
19:18Thank you, boys.
19:23Number 2.
19:24Aladdin
19:26Ten thousand years will give you such a crick in the neck.
19:31Before Aladdin, voice acting in kids' cartoons was typically left to voice actors.
19:37Big-name Hollywood stars stayed away.
19:39But this role changed everything.
19:42Aladdin made hundreds of millions at the box office,
19:46and Disney continued to rake in the big bucks with home video,
19:49toys, video games, and even a Tony-winning Broadway musical.
20:04The film itself is the pinnacle of 1990s Disney,
20:07and William's Genie was beloved by multiple generations.
20:11His popularity led to a real shift in the industry,
20:14finally solidified by Tim Allen and Tom Hanks in Toy Story a few years later.
20:19Big names in animated films are now the norm,
20:21though it's difficult to hold a candle to William's performance as Genie.
20:37Go into your settings and switch on notifications.
20:42Number 1.
20:43Good Will Hunting
20:44Good Will Hunting is a hardscrabble drama about a math genius from South Boston,
20:49which catapulted writers and stars Matt Damon and Ben Affleck to superstardom.
20:53Still, it wasn't an easy road to get there.
20:56The film went through development hell for years.
21:08Feeling like God put an angel on Earth just for you.
21:11It cycled through multiple production companies before getting made.
21:14When casting, they wanted a major talent to play Sean,
21:17the moral heart of the film, and the script eventually made its way to Williams.
21:22He loved it so much that he agreed to a massive multi-million dollar pay cut.
21:27When asked about it, he said,
21:28quote,
21:29I had to.
21:30They would have made this movie without me.
21:31It's too good not to be made.
21:33His instincts paid off.
21:35After four nominations in the span of a decade,
21:38Robin Williams finally won his Oscar.
21:41Just tell him I'm sorry.
21:43I had to go see about a girl.
21:45Will.
21:48Son of a bitch.
21:50He stole my life.
21:52Do you agree with our picks?
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