Want to know the best Bette Davis movies? How about the worst Bette Davis movies? Curious about Bette Davis’s box office grosses or which Bette Davis movie picked up the most Oscar® nominations? Need to know which Bette Davis movie got the best reviews from critics and audiences and which one got the worst reviews? Well you have come to the right place…. because we have all of that information and much more.
Bette Davis (1908-1989), a two time Oscar® winning actress. She was voted as the second greatest actress of all-time according to the American Film Institute. Her movie career started in 1931 and ended only months before her death in 1989. According to IMDB, she had 122 television and movie credits over her career.
Her IMDb page shows 123 acting credits from 1931-1989. This page ranks Bette Davis movies from Best to Worst in six different sortable columns of information. Television shows, shorts, cameos, some early 1930 Davis movies and movies that were not released in North American theaters were not included in the rankings.
Bette Davis Movies Ranked In Chronological Order With Ultimate Movie Rankings Score (1 to 5 UMR Tickets) *Best combo of box office, reviews and awards.
79 Bette Davis Movies Can Be Ranked 6 Ways In This Table
The really cool thing about this table is that it is “user-sortable”. Rank the movies anyway you want.
- Blue Movie Title is a link that will take to that movie’s trailer
- Sort Bette Davis movies by co-stars of her movies
- Sort Bette Davis movies by adjusted domestic box office grosses using current movie ticket cost (in millions)
- Sort Bette Davis movies by adjusted worldwide box office grosses using current movie ticket cost (in millions) *** if domestic and worldwide box office are the same…then worldwide is unknown
- Sort Bette Davis movies by how they were received by critics and audiences. 60% rating or higher should indicate a good movie.
- Sort by how many Oscar® nominations and how many Oscar® wins each Bette Davis movie received.
- Sort Bette Davis movies by Ultimate Movie Rankings (UMR) Score. UMR Score puts box office, reviews and awards into a mathematical equation and gives each movie a score.
- Use the search and sort buttons to make this page very interactive….for example type Bogart in the search box and all 6 Bogart/Davis movies will pop up or type in *** in the search box and all of Davis Oscar® nominated performances will pop up.
| CreditRank | Movie (Year) | UMR Co-Star Links | Review % | Oscar Nom / Win | S | UMR Score | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CreditRank | Movie (Year) | UMR Co-Star Links | Actual B.O. Domestic (mil) | Adj. B.O. Domestic (mil) | Adj. B.O. Worldwide (mil) | B.O. Rank by Year | Review % | Oscar Nom / Win | S | UMR Score |
| 1 | All About Eve (1950) AA Best Picture Win AA Best Actress Nom |
George Sanders & Marilyn Monroe |
8.90 | 198.9 | 282.3 | 9 | 92 | 14 / 06 | 100.0 | |
| 2 | The Little Foxes (1941) AA Best Picture Nom AA Best Actress Nom |
Teresa Wright & Directed by William Wyler |
4.40 | 168.5 | 274.0 | 39 | 87 | 09 / 00 | 98.9 | |
| 3 | Now, Voyager (1942) AA Best Actress Nom |
Claude Rains & Paul Henreid |
6.10 | 226.2 | 443.6 | 25 | 84 | 03 / 01 | 98.7 | |
| 4 | Jezebel (1938) AA Best Picture Nom AA Best Actress Win |
Henry Fonda & Donald Crisp |
4.30 | 170.2 | 233.2 | 36 | 84 | 05 / 02 | 98.6 | |
| 5 | Dark Victory (1939) AA Best Picture Nom AA Best Actress Nom |
Humphrey Bogart | 4.70 | 179.4 | 262.3 | 41 | 80 | 03 / 00 | 97.8 | |
| 6 | Watch on the Rhine (1943) AA Best Picture Nom |
Paul Lukas | 6.10 | 220.6 | 348.2 | 41 | 69 | 04 / 01 | 97.3 | |
| 7 | The Old Maid (1939) | Miriam Hopkins | 5.70 | 220.5 | 310.3 | 24 | 76 | 00 / 00 | 96.6 | |
| 8 | Old Acquaintance (1943) | Miriam Hopkins | 6.50 | 234.0 | 373.6 | 35 | 75 | 00 / 00 | 96.4 | |
| 10 | All This, and Heaven Too (1940) AA Best Picture Nom |
Barbara O'Neil | 4.20 | 161.3 | 271.4 | 29 | 78 | 03 / 00 | 96.3 | |
| 9 | The Letter (1940) AA Best Picture Nom AA Best Actress Nom |
Directed by William Wyler | 3.50 | 133.1 | 211.6 | 42 | 84 | 07 / 00 | 96.2 | |
| 12 | What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962) AA Best Actress Nom |
Joan Crawford | 10.20 | 147.3 | 212.2 | 20 | 84 | 05 / 01 | 95.9 | |
| 11 | A Stolen Life (1946) | Glenn Ford | 8.70 | 268.2 | 398.3 | 29 | 72 | 01 / 00 | 95.8 | |
| 13 | The Man Who Came To Dinner (1942) | Monty Woolley | 4.80 | 176.9 | 272.4 | 52 | 78 | 00 / 00 | 95.3 | |
| 14 | The Corn Is Green (1945) | John Dall & Joan Lorring |
6.10 | 193.9 | 321.4 | 53 | 70 | 02 / 00 | 95.1 | |
| 15 | Mr. Skeffington (1944) AA Best Actress Nom |
Claude Rains | 7.90 | 266.9 | 415.2 | 24 | 66 | 02 / 00 | 94.6 | |
| 16 | In This Our Life (1942) | Olivia de Havilland & Directed by John Huston |
4.70 | 175.3 | 296.7 | 54 | 72 | 00 / 00 | 93.7 | |
| 17 | Deception (1946) | Claude Rains & Paul Henreid |
5.80 | 177.5 | 271.5 | 60 | 69 | 00 / 00 | 92.9 | |
| 18 | Hush... Hush, Sweet Charlotte (1964) | Olivia de Havilland & Agnes Moorehead |
10.70 | 122.9 | 122.9 | 24 | 80 | 07 / 00 | 92.7 | |
| 19 | The Bride Came C.O.D. (1941) | James Cagney | 4.70 | 180.8 | 265.4 | 33 | 66 | 00 / 00 | 92.4 | |
| 20 | The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex (1939) | Errol Flynn & Olivia de Havilland |
3.80 | 147.1 | 248.4 | 50 | 71 | 05 / 00 | 91.8 | |
| 21 | Juarez (1939) | John Garfield | 4.70 | 180.0 | 251.3 | 39 | 61 | 02 / 00 | 91.1 | |
| 22 | The Great Lie (1941) | Mary Astor | 3.90 | 150.4 | 248.6 | 54 | 69 | 01 / 01 | 90.7 | |
| 23 | Kid Galahad (1937) | Humphrey Bogart & Edward G. Robinson |
4.10 | 172.0 | 251.6 | 38 | 64 | 00 / 00 | 90.7 | |
| 24 | Marked Woman (1937) | Humphrey Bogart | 3.10 | 128.4 | 190.9 | 70 | 70 | 00 / 00 | 87.9 | |
| 25 | The Petrified Forest (1936) | Humphrey Bogart & Leslie Howard |
1.90 | 83.8 | 119.3 | 102 | 82 | 00 / 00 | 87.3 | |
| 26 | It's Love I'm After (1937) | Olivia de Havilland | 2.30 | 95.9 | 156.9 | 101 | 76 | 00 / 00 | 86.4 | |
| 27 | The Sisters (1938) | Errol Flynn | 3.70 | 147.1 | 214.8 | 46 | 58 | 00 / 00 | 85.6 | |
| 28 | Pocketful of Miracles (1961) | Glenn Ford & Directed by Frank Capra |
7.00 | 101.9 | 101.9 | 33 | 67 | 03 / 00 | 84.6 | |
| 30 | June Bride (1948) | Robert Montgomery | 5.00 | 133.5 | 172.6 | 71 | 58 | 00 / 00 | 84.0 | |
| 29 | Dead Ringer (1964) | Karl Malden & Peter Lawford |
5.70 | 65.5 | 95.0 | 52 | 79 | 00 / 00 | 83.7 | |
| 31 | Of Human Bondage (1934) AA Best Actress Nom |
Leslie Howard | 1.50 | 72.3 | 90.7 | 73 | 75 | 01 / 00 | 82.9 | |
| 32 | Beyond the Forest (1949) | Joseph Cotten | 3.70 | 92.7 | 121.0 | 95 | 68 | 01 / 00 | 82.9 | |
| 33 | Seed (1931) | Zasu Pitts | 1.70 | 89.3 | 89.3 | 69 | 69 | 00 / 00 | 82.1 | |
| 34 | Death on the Nile (1978) | Peter Ustinov & Mia Farrow |
14.60 | 67.1 | 67.1 | 49 | 72 | 01 / 01 | 81.0 | |
| 35 | Phone Call From a Stranger (1952) | Shelley Winters | 3.80 | 73.5 | 73.5 | 92 | 69 | 00 / 00 | 79.0 | |
| 36 | Fashions of 1934 (1934) | William Powell | 1.60 | 76.3 | 129.2 | 70 | 67 | 00 / 00 | 78.3 | |
| 37 | The Nanny (1965) | Wendy Craig | 3.50 | 37.1 | 37.1 | 72 | 77 | 00 / 00 | 76.9 | |
| 38 | Dangerous (1935) AA Best Actress Win |
Franchot Tone | 1.30 | 59.8 | 92.9 | 101 | 68 | 01 / 01 | 76.6 | |
| 39 | That Certain Woman (1937) | Henry Fonda | 3.00 | 124.2 | 165.2 | 73 | 49 | 00 / 00 | 76.6 | |
| 40 | Front Page Woman (1935) | George Brent | 1.00 | 46.1 | 65.2 | 126 | 73 | 00 / 00 | 75.8 | |
| 41 | Jimmy The Gent (1934) | James Cagney | 0.90 | 44.5 | 62.5 | 116 | 72 | 00 / 00 | 74.3 | |
| 42 | Three on a Match (1932) | Humphrey Bogart | 1.00 | 47.3 | 62.2 | 119 | 71 | 00 / 00 | 74.2 | |
| 43 | 20,000 Years in Sing Sing (1932) | Spencer Tracy | 1.40 | 70.6 | 130.9 | 68 | 63 | 00 / 00 | 73.2 | |
| 44 | The Rich Are Always with Us (1932) | George Brent | 1.10 | 54.9 | 54.9 | 107 | 66 | 00 / 00 | 71.6 | |
| 45 | Another Man's Poison (1951) | Gary Merrill | 2.40 | 52.1 | 52.1 | 140 | 67 | 00 / 00 | 71.1 | |
| 46 | Special Agent (1935) | George Brent | 1.40 | 62.9 | 62.9 | 95 | 63 | 00 / 00 | 71.0 | |
| 47 | Winter Meeting (1948) | Janis Paige | 2.30 | 62.4 | 76.8 | 130 | 63 | 00 / 00 | 70.4 | |
| 50 | Payment on Demand (1951) | Barry Sullivan | 4.40 | 93.9 | 143.2 | 79 | 52 | 00 / 00 | 69.1 | |
| 48 | The Virgin Queen (1955) | Richard Todd & Joan Collins |
2.70 | 56.3 | 56.3 | 119 | 63 | 01 / 00 | 69.1 | |
| 49 | The Man Who Played God (1932) | George Arliss | 1.50 | 75.0 | 116.9 | 56 | 58 | 00 / 00 | 69.0 | |
| 51 | The Anniversary (1968) | Sheila Hancock | 3.90 | 31.8 | 31.8 | 78 | 70 | 00 / 00 | 66.8 | |
| 52 | The Catered Affair (1956) | Ernest Borgnine & Debbie Reynolds |
2.70 | 53.0 | 82.2 | 120 | 63 | 00 / 00 | 66.5 | |
| 53 | Bordertown (1935) | Paul Muni | 2.50 | 114.3 | 158.7 | 49 | 43 | 00 / 00 | 66.2 | |
| 54 | The Bad Sister (1931) | Humphrey Bogart | 0.80 | 42.9 | 42.9 | 161 | 65 | 00 / 00 | 65.5 | |
| 55 | The Golden Arrow (1936) | George Brent | 1.30 | 56.2 | 79.6 | 128 | 60 | 00 / 00 | 63.8 | |
| 56 | Where Love Has Gone (1964) | Susan Hayward | 8.30 | 95.0 | 95.0 | 31 | 45 | 01 / 00 | 61.6 | |
| 57 | Right of Way (1983) HBO Movie |
James Stewart | 0.10 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 175 | 75 | 00 / 00 | 60.4 | |
| 58 | Parachute Jumper (1933) | Douglas Fairbanks Jr. | 0.70 | 31.9 | 52.8 | 147 | 65 | 00 / 00 | 59.4 | |
| 60 | The Cabin in the Cotton (1932) | Richard Barthelmess | 1.20 | 60.1 | 60.1 | 94 | 56 | 00 / 00 | 59.4 | |
| 59 | The Dark Horse (1932) | Warren William | 0.90 | 42.3 | 51.2 | 126 | 61 | 00 / 00 | 59.2 | |
| 61 | Return from Witch Mountain (1978) | Christopher Lee | 16.40 | 75.7 | 75.7 | 42 | 50 | 00 / 00 | 57.7 | |
| 62 | The Working Man (1933) | George Arliss | 1.10 | 53.7 | 110.1 | 80 | 56 | 00 / 00 | 56.9 | |
| 64 | So Big! (1932) | Barbara Stanwyck | 1.10 | 55.2 | 66.2 | 105 | 56 | 00 / 00 | 56.7 | |
| 63 | Housewife (1934) | George Brent | 0.70 | 34.0 | 43.5 | 146 | 62 | 00 / 00 | 56.4 | |
| 65 | Connecting Rooms (1970) | Michael Redgrave | 2.40 | 16.9 | 16.9 | 96 | 67 | 00 / 00 | 55.9 | |
| 66 | The Star (1952) AA Best Actress Nom |
Sterling Hayden | 2.80 | 54.4 | 54.4 | 121 | 52 | 01 / 00 | 51.5 | |
| 67 | The Whales of August (1987) | Lillian Gish & Vincent Price |
1.30 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 158 | 68 | 01 / 00 | 50.1 | |
| 68 | The Girl From 10th Avenue (1935) | Ian Hunter | 0.90 | 41.3 | 54.9 | 141 | 56 | 00 / 00 | 48.2 | |
| 69 | The Empty Canvas (1963) | Horst Buchholz | 1.40 | 17.9 | 17.9 | 112 | 63 | 00 / 00 | 47.7 | |
| 70 | Ex-Lady (1933) | Gene Raymond | 0.70 | 30.5 | 37.9 | 152 | 58 | 00 / 00 | 46.8 | |
| 71 | Fog Over Frisco (1934) | Margaret Lindsay | 0.70 | 34.8 | 52.1 | 142 | 55 | 00 / 00 | 42.6 | |
| 72 | John Paul Jones (1959) | Robert Stack | 2.40 | 43.5 | 91.9 | 95 | 52 | 00 / 00 | 41.8 | |
| 73 | Bureau of Missing Persons (1933) | Lewis Stone | 1.00 | 45.3 | 45.3 | 108 | 50 | 00 / 00 | 39.3 | |
| 74 | Bunny O'Hare (1971) | Ernest Borgnine | 2.60 | 16.7 | 16.7 | 102 | 57 | 00 / 00 | 33.5 | |
| 75 | The Watcher in the Woods (1980) | Lynn-Holly Johnson | 5.00 | 20.7 | 20.7 | 102 | 53 | 00 / 00 | 28.8 | |
| 76 | The Scapegoat (1959) | Alec Guinness | 1.60 | 29.3 | 61.3 | 125 | 50 | 00 / 00 | 28.4 | |
| 77 | The Big Shakedown (1934) | Charles Farrell | 0.60 | 26.0 | 26.0 | 171 | 50 | 00 / 00 | 25.9 | |
| 78 | Satan Met a Lady (1936) | Warren William | 0.90 | 38.2 | 45.1 | 155 | 45 | 00 / 00 | 23.2 | |
| 79 | Burnt Offerings (1976) | Karen Black & Oliver Reed |
4.70 | 23.9 | 23.9 | 85 | 49 | 00 / 00 | 22.3 | |
| 80 | Storm Center (1956) | Brian Keith | 1.50 | 28.8 | 28.8 | 156 | 44 | 00 / 00 | 17.6 | |
| 81 | Wicked Stepmother (1989) | Barbara Carrera | 0.00 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 231 | 27 | 00 / 00 | 0.4 |
Possibly Interesting Facts About Bette Davis
1. Bette Davis made her movie debut in 1931’s The Bad Sister. The movie also starred another newcomer, Humphrey Bogart. Davis and Bogart would appear in 6 movies together from 1931 to 1939.
2. Bette Davis was nominated 11 times for a Best Actress Oscar®. She won twice…..1935’s Dangerous and 1938’s Jezebel. Only one of her films won the Best Picture Oscar®….1950’s All About Eve.
3. Bette Davis holds the record with Greer Garson for most years in a row to receive an Oscar® nomination…..5 years in a row. Davis was nominated every year from 1938-1942. Garson did the same accomplishment 1941-1945.
4. Bette Davis was married four times in her life. Her marriages to Harmon Nelson (1932-1939) and Arthur Farnsworth (1940-till his death in 1943) produced no children. She had one daughter with her third husband William Sherry(1945-1950) and two adopted children(boy and a girl) with fourth husband Gary Merrill(1950-1960).
5. Roles Bette Davis turned down or was seriously considered for during her career: Cool Hand Luke, The African Queen, Come Back Little Sheba, 1931’s Frankenstein, Mary Poppins and Gone With The Wind. Davis really wanted the Scarlett O’Hara role but her studio would not allow her to work for another studio.
6. Bette Davis and Lucille Ball both attended the John Murray Anderson Dramatic School. Davis was the star of the school, while Ball was sent home because she was too shy to become an actress.
7. Bette Davis was one of the founders of the Hollywood Canteen in 1942. The Hollywood Canteen was a nightclub where soldiers passing through Los Angeles during World War II got to see Hollywood stars perform live on stage. Often Davis would spend all day making a movie and all night performing for soldiers at the Hollywood Canteen. She felt that the Hollywood Canteen was one of her greatest accomplishments.
8. Bette Davis once sold over two million dollars worth of war bonds for the troops during World War II in only two days.
9. In 1981 Kim Carnes released the song “Bette Davis Eyes”. The song would reach number one and earn gold and platinum record status. Bette Davis Eyes helped Davis be discovered by a new generation.
10. One of the best collection of Bette Davis fans can be found on Facebook at Bette Davis Babylon. If you are a Bette Davis you have to join this group….it is easily the best movie group on Facebook that I have come across….and I am in many Facebook movie groups.
Check out Bette Davis‘s career compared to current and classic actors. Most 100 Million Dollar Movies of All-Time.
Steve Lensman’s Bette Davis You Tube Video
For comments….all you need is a name and a comment….please ignore the rest.
Bette Davis has always been one of my top favorites. Thank you for this hub and all the wonderful information you gave. Leave Her To Heaven was one of my favorite movies, along with Little Foxes.
Hey Phyllis Doyle….thanks for stopping by and checking out my Bette Davis page. I am glad to see that your two favorite Davis movies both ended up being ranked in the Top Ten of all her movies…with Little Foxes coming in at #6 and Leave Her To Heaven coming in at #8. I have not seen either but I have added them to my list of movies to watch.
I have yet to see Dark Victory because it is a tragedy and I’m rarely in a mood for a tragedy. As for naming three Davis films, that would depends upon the age group. Maybe not for our age, certainly, but people old enough to remember her later career when the movies were actually released (like Baby Jane and Death on the Nile).
Hey Flora….I would not put Dark Victory in my personal Top 5 Bette Davis movies…but it was interesting seeing her and Bogart playing off each other for the final time….excluding the two movies were they did cameos together. The ending is sad but not too bad of a tearjerker at least from me.
I agree with you about your comments about who could name 3 Bette Davis movies…I think the younger crowd has sadly forgotten all about her
Cogerson, another enjoyable, interesting page. My favourite Bette Davis movie is All About Eve which I also have the script for on a pdf. I read it in complete awe and imagine how the lead actors must have felt to get a chance to act out its dialogue – it is so, so good. I also like her in a movie called ‘The Anniversary’ which always makes me laugh, she’s so mean in it!
Hey Jools99….thanks for checking out my Bette Davis hub…that is cool that you have the script for All About Eve…lots of great lines in that movie. I have not seen The Anniversary but I know she wears a patch and it is from Hammer films….I can easily see her playing somebody that is mean….I will have to check that one out in the future. Thanks for the comments and the compliment they are greatly appreciated.
IMO one of Bette’s best performances was Whatever Happened to Baby Jane. She should have won her third Oscar for the role of Jane Hudson. Margo Channing (in All About Eve) has become a caricaturized version of the real life actress, Bette Davis. I think that is why it is one of her more popular films.
Hey John…very good assessment on Whatever Happened to Baby Jane….it has been years since I have seen that movie although I am thinking it is about time to rewatch that classic movie. Thanks for finding my Davis movie page and for the comment.
Hi, Cogerson – I’ve loved Bette Davis since I was a kid, so I really enjoyed this one. Of course, All About Eve is my favorite, but any Davis movie will do. Just saw The Big Lie not long ago.
I am looking forward to both your Greta Garbo page and the Henry Fonda page. I remember back during the US Bicentenial (can’t spell, won’t look up), Henry Fonda performed a short segment that was run like a commercial. In it, he merely recited the names of American cities and towns. That’s it. Just a list. But even remembering it brings tears to my eyes – it was so beautiful.
Hey Dolores Monet…thanks for stopping by and for the comment. Bette Davis was the biggest star for a very long time. Her record run of 5 years in a row with an Oscar nomination has never been bean beaten and has lasted 71 years.
As for Henry Fonda and Greta Garbo hubs…..both will be done soon…I thought the Greta Garbo hub was going to be very hard to do…but I think the information I need to do the hub is much easier to find than I thought it would be…..I am actually working on her hub now.
I will have to check out You Tube and see if that Henry Fonda commercial is available.