The 80 Best William Forsythe Movies

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Updated April 12, 2024 80 items
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List of the best William Forsythe movies, ranked best to worst with movie trailers when available. William Forsythe's highest grossing movies have received a lot of accolades over the years, earning millions upon millions around the world. The order of these top William Forsythe movies is decided by how many votes they receive, so only highly rated William Forsythe movies will be at the top of the list. William Forsythe has been in a lot of films, so people often debate each other over what the greatest William Forsythe movie of all time is. If you and a friend are arguing about this then use this list of the most entertaining William Forsythe films to end the squabble once and for all.

If you think the best William Forsythe role isn't at the top, then upvote it so it has the chance to become number one. The greatest William Forsythe performances didn't necessarily come from the best movies, but in most cases they go hand in hand.

This list contains films like Born to Ride and Once Upon a Time in America.

"This list answers the questions, "What are the best William Forsythe movies?" and "What are the greatest William Forsythe roles of all time?"

Michael Bay and Rob Zombie are among those who have directed William Forsythe at one point or another during their careers in the film industry.

Most divisive: Hammerhead: Shark Frenzy
Over 100 Ranker voters have come together to rank this list of The 80 Best William Forsythe Movies
  • Once Upon a Time in America
    1
    Robert De Niro, James Woods, Elizabeth McGovern
    24 votes
    Sweeping across decades, Once Upon a Time in America is a crime drama that explores the lives of Jewish ghetto youths who rise to prominence in New York's world of organized crime. The narrative oscillates between the 1920s, 1930s, and 1960s, focusing on David 'Noodles' Aaronson (Robert De Niro) and his lifelong friend-cum-rival, Maximilian 'Max' Bercovicz (James Woods). Directed by Sergio Leone, this film weaves a complex tapestry of friendship, betrayal, and regret. It is an epic saga of time's inexorable march, set against the backdrop of violent criminal underworld. This movie was nominated for two Golden Globe Awards.
  • The Devil's Rejects
    2
    Sid Haig, Bill Moseley, Sheri Moon Zombie
    21 votes
    In The Devil's Rejects, Rob Zombie thrusts us into a visceral, violent world. The story follows the murderous Firefly family - Otis (Bill Moseley), Baby (Sheri Moon Zombie), and Captain Spaulding (Sid Haig) - as they evade a vengeful sheriff (William Forsythe). This 2005 horror film is not for the faint-hearted, with its raw brutality and relentless pursuit of terror. It's a grimy road trip through America's underbelly, filled with macabre humor and chilling scenes that have garnered it cult status in the horror genre. The movie won Best Horror Film at the Scream Awards.
  • Out for Justice
    3
    Steven Seagal, William Forsythe, Jerry Orbach
    16 votes
    Gino Felino (Steven Seagal) is a Brooklyn police detective whose partner and longtime friend is shot down in the street in front of his wife and children. The culprit is Richie Madano (William Forsythe), a drug lord in the neighborhood who has known Gino since they were kids. With the blessing of his captain (Jerry Orbach), Gino is sent alone into the drug underground to find Richie by any means necessary. Along the way, Gino uncovers secrets about his deceased partner that he never suspected.
  • American Me
    4
    Edward James Olmos, William Forsythe, Pepe Serna
    16 votes
    As a young man, Montoya Santana (Edward James Olmos) is introduced to gang life on the tough streets of Los Angeles after spending his youth in reform school. Soon Santana finds himself facing an 18-year prison sentence. In jail, he works his way to the top of the institution's violent drug trade, but, on his release from prison, he opts for a redemptive, family-centered lifestyle. However, his gangster friends (Pepe Serna, William Forsythe) try to force him back into illegal activities.
  • Raising Arizona
    5
    Nicolas Cage, Holly Hunter, Trey Wilson
    18 votes
    In the offbeat comedy Raising Arizona, H.I. McDunnough (Nicolas Cage), a repeat offender, falls for prison officer Edwina (Holly Hunter). Their longing for a child leads them to kidnap one of a wealthy businessman's quintuplets, setting off a chain of wild and wacky events. This quirky blend of crime, humor, and farce is directed by the Coen Brothers, known for their unique storytelling style. The film's eccentric characters and unpredictable plot twists make it an unforgettable entry in the landscape of American cinema. Despite its madcap premise, at its heart, it explores themes of love, family, and morality.
  • Gotti
    6
    Anthony Quinn, William Forsythe, Frank Vincent
    11 votes
    Gotti: The Rise and Fall of a Real Life Mafia Don is a 1996 HBO original crime drama movie made for television directed by Robert Harmon. The film stars Armand Assante, in the title role as infamous Gambino crime family boss John Gotti, William Forsythe, and Anthony Quinn. The film was the highest rated original telefilm in HBO history at that time, according to IMDB. Assante won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or Special, for his performance. Assante also received a Golden Globe nomination the same year.
  • Dick Tracy
    7
    Warren Beatty, Madonna, Charlie Korsmo
    15 votes
    In the 1990 film, Dick Tracy, we follow the titular character, Dick Tracy (Warren Beatty), a hard-boiled detective with a heart of gold. Amidst the crime-ridden cityscape, he's on a mission to bring down the notorious mob boss, Big Boy Caprice (Al Pacino). The movie, bathed in vibrant colors and imbued with comic strip aesthetics, is an action-packed adventure that also features Madonna as sultry lounge singer Breathless Mahoney. With its unique visual style and compelling narrative, Dick Tracy won three Academy Awards including Best Art Direction.
  • Halloween
    8
    Malcolm McDowell, Scout Taylor-Compton, Tyler Mane
    18 votes
    Nearly two decades after being committed to a mental institution for killing his stepfather and older sister, Michael Myers breaks out, intent on returning to the town of Haddonfield, Ill. He arrives in his hometown on Halloween with the indomitable purpose of hunting down his younger sister, Laurie. The only thing standing between Michael and a Halloween night of bloody carnage is psychologist Dr. Samuel Loomis.
  • The Rock
    9
    Sean Connery, Nicolas Cage, Ed Harris
    13 votes
    In the thrilling action-adventure The Rock, hardened FBI chemical weapons expert Stanley Goodspeed (Nicolas Cage) is paired with the only man to have ever escaped Alcatraz, former British spy John Patrick Mason (Sean Connery). Their mission? To thwart a rogue group of US Marines, led by disillusioned General Francis Hummel (Ed Harris), who've seized control of Alcatraz Island and threatened San Francisco with deadly nerve gas. Directed by Michael Bay, this high-stakes thriller combines an intriguing plot with intense action sequences, making it a notable entry in the 90s action cinema.
  • The Man Who Wasn't There
    10
    Billy Bob Thornton, Frances McDormand, Michael Badalucco
    10 votes
    A dark tale of infidelity and murder, crime and punishment. Set in a small northern California town of the late 40s, the film portrays Ed Crane (Billy Bob Thornton), a barber dissatisfied with his life. His wife Doris' (Frances McDormand) infidelity presents Ed with an opportunity for blackmail that he thinks will help him to change it. However, Ed's scheme unravels and lays bare even darker secrets...
  • Hard Cash
    11
    Val Kilmer, Daryl Hannah, Christian Slater
    5 votes
    Hard Cash is an action and adventure film released in 2002.
  • Blue Streak
    12
    Martin Lawrence, Luke Wilson, Peter Greene
    12 votes
    When a heist goes wrong, thief Miles (Martin Lawrence) hides a diamond at a construction site before he's arrested. After serving two years, Miles returns to the location of his treasure and finds it is now a police station. Disguising himself as a recently transferred officer to infiltrate the building, Miles stops an escaping thief while trying to retrieve the jewel. Impressed by his quick action, superior Rizzo (Graham Beckel) partners him with the bumbling detective Casey (Luke Wilson).
  • Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead
    13
    Andy Garcia, Christopher Lloyd, William Forsythe
    14 votes
    Ex-crook Jimmy "The Saint" Tosnia (Andy Garcia) is trying his best to go legitimate until he's dragged back into the world of crime for one last, seemingly simple mission. All Jimmy and his eccentric cronies have to do is intimidate their target. But they make a disastrous series of mistakes that result in the death of a woman connected to a powerful gangster. Before long, Mr. Shhh (Steve Buscemi), a notorious assassin who never slips up, is sent to take down Jimmy and his partners.
  • Blue Hill Avenue
    14
    Allen Payne, Angelle Brooks, Aaron D. Spears
    7 votes
    Four friends enter the drug trade in Boston in the late 1970s: Tristan (Allen Payne), Money (Aaron D. Spears), E-Bone and Simon. With the consent of a South End crime boss, Benny (Clarence Williams III), they quickly rise in the drug game, while the leader of the group, Tristan, keeps his double life a secret from his clueless parents. However, as the 1970s pass to the 2000s, a police investigation threatens to ignite a violent feud among the tight-knit friends.
  • Extreme Prejudice
    15
    Nick Nolte, Powers Boothe, Michael Ironside
    9 votes
    Jack Benteen (Nick Nolte) is a Texas Ranger who has taken a very different path than his childhood buddy, Cash Bailey (Powers Boothe), a ruthless drug lord. While Benteen and Bailey are on opposites sides of the law, they share a common interest in the lovely Sarita Cisneros (Maria Conchita Alonso), who has been involved with both men. The tension between Benteen and Bailey gets further heightened when the lawman plays a key role in a major narcotics bust, resulting in a fierce showdown.
  • 88 Minutes
    16
    Al Pacino, Alicia Witt, Leelee Sobieski
    9 votes
    Famed forensic psychiatrist Dr. Jack Gramm (Al Pacino) enjoys a reputation as one of the most sought-after profilers around. His expert testimony has resulted in the conviction of many criminals, including serial killer Jon Forster. On the eve of Forster's execution, one of Gramm's students is murdered in a vicious copycat crime, and Gramm himself receives an ominous message informing him that he has less than 90 minutes to live.
  • Virtuosity
    17
    Denzel Washington, Kelly Lynch, Russell Crowe
    9 votes
    A former cop who has been imprisoned for murdering the psychopath who killed his family, Parker Barnes (Denzel Washington) is recruited to test out a new virtual-reality program where the goal is to apprehend a computer-generated being called SID 6.7 (Russell Crowe), who has been modeled on hundreds of deranged criminals. When SID manages to escape into the real world, Barnes must capture or destroy him before the soulless entity can go on a killing spree.
  • Stone Cold
    18
    Brian Bosworth, Lance Henriksen, William Forsythe
    9 votes
    An unorthodox policeman (Brian Bosworth) joins and then destroys a crazed biker's (Lance Henriksen) gang for the FBI.
  • Freedomland
    19
    Samuel L. Jackson, Julianne Moore, Edie Falco
    9 votes
    A mother blames the disappearance of her child on a black man from the projects after she reports a carjacking. A detective (Samuel L. Jackson) suspects the woman is hiding something, and he enlists the aid of a missing-child activist (Edie Falco). While the investigation continues, the media amplifies the case's notoriety, bringing up some tough racial issues.
  • Dead Bang
    20
    Don Johnson, Penelope Ann Miller, William Forsythe
    6 votes
    Los Angeles homicide detective Jerry Beck (Don Johnson) searches for the murderer who killed a police officer on Christmas Eve. The investigation takes Beck inside the violent world of hate groups and white supremacists, who are hatching a deadly plot to attack even more innocent people. Beck must also confront his own personal demons, including his growing problem with alcohol, if he wants to track down and stop the violent neo-Nazis before it is too late.
  • The Gun in Betty Lou's Handbag
    21
    Julianne Moore, Stanley Tucci, Alfre Woodard
    6 votes
    The Gun in Betty Lou's Handbag is a 1992 American screwball comedy film written by Grace Cary Bickley and directed by Allan Moyle. The film stars Penelope Ann Miller, Eric Thal, Julianne Moore, William Forsythe, Cathy Moriarty and Alfre Woodard. Rock and roll recording pioneer Cordell Jackson played a bit part as "Bathroom Woman." The film was distributed by Touchstone Pictures for Interscope Communications.
  • Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo
    22
    Rob Schneider, William Forsythe, Eddie Griffin
    8 votes
    Deuce Bigalow (Rob Schneider) is a less than attractive, down on his luck aquarium cleaner. One day he wrecks the house of a gigolo and needs quick money to repair it. The only way he can make it is to become a gigolo himself, taking on an unusual mix of female clients. He encounters a couple of problems, though. He falls in love with one of his unusual clients, and a sleazy police officer is hot on his trail.
  • Palookaville
    23
    William Forsythe, Vincent Gallo, Adam Trese
    8 votes
    Sid (William Forsythe), Russell (Vincent Gallo) and Jerry (Adam Trese) are three friends in New Jersey who are struggling for money. After deciding that crime is the answer to their problems, they plan a jewelry store theft -- only to mistakenly break into a bakery next door. The three men go straight, believing they are not suited to crime. As their financial woes continue, however, they eventually agree on what they feel is a flawless scheme to rob an armored car.
  • Relentless 3
    24
    William Forsythe, Leo Rossi
    8 votes
    Relentless 3 is a 1993 crime thriller film directed by James Lemmo. The tagline for the movie was: When the fear stops...you're dead! Relentless 3 was filmed in Los Angeles, California, USA. It is the third installment in the Relentless series. The film was referenced twice on Saturday Night Live. The first time in 1993 Jeff Goldblum / Aerosmith #19.3 as a poster on the counter in ‘Karl’s Video Store’ and again on The Best of David Spade in 1995, again a poster on the counter in ‘Karl’s Video Store’.
  • City by the Sea
    25
    Robert De Niro, Frances McDormand, James Franco
    8 votes
    When a respected New York homicide detective (Robert De Niro) discovers the prime suspect in a murder case is his estranged son (James Franco), he is forced to return home to the decaying boardwalks of Long Beach, Long Island to confront the darkness of his past. During the course of the investigation, he realizes that his failures as a father - and his unresolved anguish about the painful estrangement - have deeply influenced his son's life.
  • The Substitute
    26
    Tom Berenger, Ernie Hudson, Diane Venora
    8 votes
    Inner-city Miami schoolteacher Jane Hetzko (Diane Venora) gets her knee broken when she stands up to the school's gang leader, Juan Lacas (Marc Anthony). Her boyfriend, mercenary combat specialist Jonathan Shale (Tom Berenger), goes undercover as a substitute teacher to take down the punk, but soon discovers that Lacas is merely an underling for the real criminal mastermind. Assembling the team from his last jungle raid, led by his right-hand man, Joey Six (Raymond Cruz), Shale declares war.
  • Hell's Kitchen
    27
    Stanley Fields, Ronald Reagan, Margaret Lindsay
    8 votes
    The Dead End Kids, a group of young actors who debuted on Broadway, then transitioned to film, appear here as a cadre of unruly orphans who find an unlikely ally in an ex-convict at their reform school. Buck Caesar (Stanley Fields) gets out of jail early after his lawyer (Margaret Lindsay) arranges for him to work at a school for wayward boys. At the school, Buck discovers the headmaster (Frederic Tozere) is cruel and crooked, and works on a scheme to reveal the situation.
  • Cloak & Dagger
    28
    Dabney Coleman, Louie Anderson, William Forsythe
    11 votes
    Cloak & Dagger is a 1984 spy adventure film directed by Richard Franklin starring Henry Thomas, Dabney Coleman and Michael Murphy. It is a remake of the 1949 film The Window. It was originally released in a double feature with The Last Starfighter on July 13, 1984 and then released separately on August 10, 1984.
  • Dollar for the Dead
    29
    Emilio Estevez, Howie Long, Jonathan Banks
    5 votes
    Dollar for the Dead is a 1998 TNT western television film. Film directed and written by Gene Quintano and starring Emilio Estevez. It is the third western film which Estevez stars. Film also stars William Forsythe, Joaquim de Almeida, Jonathan Banks, Ed Lauter and Howie Long. Actor Jordi Mollà nominated for Fotogramas de Plata award. Dollar for the Dead is often perceived as a tribute to the 1960s spaghetti westerns, with a liberal dose of modern Hong Kong film-making thrown in. Emilio Estevez portrays a "man with no name" role, stylistically akin to Clint Eastwood's 1960s westerns. The film also portrays an atmosphere similar to those of the 60s, with numerous visual and character references to Sergio Leone's Clint Eastwood films Per un pugno di dollari, The Good, The Bad And The Ugly, as well as non-Eastwood movies like Once Upon a Time in the West, The Wild Bunch and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, and so on.
  • Career Opportunities
    30
    Frank Whaley, Jennifer Connelly, Dermot Mulroney
    5 votes
    When night-shift custodian Jim (Frank Whaley) is accidentally locked up alone in the store he cleans, he realizes he has access to the entire building and decides to indulge in the abundance of free food and merchandise at his fingertips. Surprisingly, he bumps into local rich girl Josie (Jennifer Connelly), who is also imprisoned in the store for the night, and they quickly bond. But, just as romantic sparks fly, Josie and Jim are interrupted by two small-time robbers.