Want to know the best Christian Bale movies? How about the worst Christian Bale movies? Curious about Christian Bale’s box office grosses or which Christian Bale movie picked up the most Oscar® nominations? Need to know which Christian Bale movie got the best reviews from critics and audiences? Well you have come to the right place….because we have all of that information and much much more.
I have been a huge Christian Bale fan ever since I saw him in Steven Spielberg’s Empire of the Sun. The first time I saw Empire of the Sun, I thought it was two child actors playing the role of Jamie Graham. It was just Bale. The movie covers World War II over the years 1937 to 1945. In my opinion it is one of the best performances from a child actor ever
As he got older, Bale graduated from mostly supporting roles to lead actor by 2000’s American Psycho. In 2005 he was cast as Bruce Wayne in the Batman reboot. This reboot has produced monster hits in Batman Begins and The Dark Knight. He played Bruce Wayne/Batman three times in The Dark Knight trilogy. Since becoming Batman, Bale has also managed to star in the hits The Prestige, 3:10 to Yuma, and Terminator Salvation. Christian Bale’s The Fighter won him the Academy Award® and Golden Globe® as Best Supporting Actor for The Fighter. About the only bad thing to happen to Bale in the last few years is the release of his infamous rant on the set of Terminator Salvation.
His IMDb page shows over 50 acting credits since 1986. This page will rank Christian Bale movies from Best to Worst in six different sortable columns of information. Television appearances, shorts, cameos and movies that were not released in theaters were not included in the rankings.
Christian Bale Movies Ranked In Chronological Order With Ultimate Movie Rankings Score (1 to 5 UMR Tickets) *Best combo of box office, reviews and awards.
Year
Movie (Year)
Rating
S
Year Movie (Year) Rating S
2008
The Dark Knight (2008)
2013
American Hustle (2013)
AA Best Picture Nom
AA Best Actor Nom
2012
The Dark Knight Rises (2012)
2005
Batman Begins (2005)
2010
The Fighter (2010)
AA Best Picture Nom
AA Best Supp Actor Win
2019
Ford v Ferrari (2019)
AA Best Picture Nom
2022
Thor: Love and Thunder (2022)
1995
Pocahontas (1995)
1994
Little Women (1994)
2015
The Big Short (2015)
AA Best Picture Nom
AA Best Supp Actor Nom
2009
Public Enemies (2009)
2006
The Prestige (2006)
2009
Terminator Salvation (2009)
2007
3:10 to Yuma (2007)
2000
Shaft (2000)
1989
Henry V (1989)
2023
The Boy and the Heron (2023)
Voice Only
1987
Empire of the Sun (1987)
2018
Vice (2018)
AA Best Picture Nom
AA Best Actor Nom
2004
Howl's Moving Castle (2004)
Voice Only
2017
Hostiles (2017)
2006
Rescue Dawn (2006)
2000
American Psycho (2000)
2014
Exodus: Gods and Kings (2014)
2007
I'm Not There. (2007)
2004
The Machinist (2004)
2002
Reign of Fire (2002)
1999
A Midsummer Night's Dream (1999)
2005
The New World (2005)
2013
Out of the Furnace (2013)
1998
Velvet Goldmine (1998)
2022
The Pale Blue Eye (2022)
Netflix
2002
Laurel Canyon (2002)
1987
Mio in the Land of Faraway (1987)
1998
All the Little Animals (1998)
2016
The Promise (2016)
1997
Metroland (1999)
2018
Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle (2018)
2022
Amsterdam (2022)
2011
The Flowers of War (2011)
2005
Harsh Times (2005)
1992
Newsies (1992)
1996
The Portrait of a Lady (1996)
1993
Swing Kids (1993)
2002
Equilibrium (2002)
2001
Captain Corelli's Mandolin (2001)
2015
Knight of Cups (2015)
1996
The Secret Agent (1996)
Christian Bale 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.
- Sort Christian Bale movies by titles and that movie’s trailers
- Sort Christian Bale movies by co-stars of his movies
- Sort Christian Bale movies by adjusted domestic box office grosses using current movie ticket cost
- Sort Christian Bale movies by yearly domestic box office rank
- Sort Christian Bale movies 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 Christian Bale movie received.
- Sort Christian Bale 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.
- If Co-Star has a link…it will take you to that person’s UMR page
| R | Movie (Year) | UMR Co-Star Links | Adj. B.O. Worldwide (mil) | Review | Oscar Nom / Win | UMR Score | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R | 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 | UMR Score | S |
| 1 | The Dark Knight (2008) | Heath Ledger & Michael Caine |
533.30 | 800.8 | 1,506.00 | 1 | 95 | 08 / 02 | 99.7 | |
| 2 | American Hustle (2013) AA Best Picture Nom AA Best Actor Nom |
Bradley Cooper & Jennifer Lawrence |
150.10 | 199.0 | 333.00 | 17 | 76 | 10 / 00 | 98.8 | |
| 2 | The Dark Knight Rises (2012) | Morgan Freeman & Tom Hardy |
458.10 | 620.4 | 1,482.20 | 2 | 88 | 00 / 00 | 98.7 | |
| 3 | Batman Begins (2005) | Michael Caine & Liam Neeson |
205.30 | 345.9 | 627.80 | 8 | 82 | 01 / 00 | 97.9 | |
| 3 | The Fighter (2010) AA Best Picture Nom AA Best Supp Actor Win |
Mark Wahlberg & Amy Adams |
93.60 | 127.8 | 176.40 | 35 | 88 | 07 / 02 | 97.1 | |
| 4 | Ford v Ferrari (2019) AA Best Picture Nom |
Matt Damon | 117.60 | 138.4 | 264.40 | 22 | 86 | 04 / 02 | 97.0 | |
| 8 | Thor: Love and Thunder (2022) | Chris Hemsworth & Bradley Cooper |
343.30 | 351.4 | 779.00 | 8 | 70 | 00 / 00 | 95.1 | |
| 9 | Pocahontas (1995) | Mel Gibson | 141.60 | 350.9 | 857.60 | 4 | 61 | 02 / 02 | 93.8 | |
| 10 | Little Women (1994) | Winona Ryder & Susan Sarandon |
50.10 | 132.3 | 251.20 | 27 | 84 | 03 / 00 | 93.6 | |
| 10 | The Big Short (2015) AA Best Picture Nom AA Best Supp Actor Nom |
Brad Pitt & Steve Carell |
70.30 | 89.8 | 170.60 | 41 | 84 | 05 / 01 | 92.4 | |
| 12 | Public Enemies (2009) | Johnny Depp & Channing Tatum |
97.10 | 139.6 | 307.70 | 31 | 70 | 00 / 00 | 89.2 | |
| 13 | The Prestige (2006) | Hugh Jackman & Scarlett Johansson |
53.10 | 87.0 | 179.70 | 61 | 81 | 02 / 00 | 88.2 | |
| 15 | Terminator Salvation (2009) | Sam Worthington | 125.30 | 180.1 | 533.80 | 22 | 55 | 00 / 00 | 88.2 | |
| 14 | 3:10 to Yuma (2007) | Russell Crowe | 53.60 | 84.0 | 109.70 | 48 | 79 | 02 / 00 | 87.4 | |
| 15 | Shaft (2000) | Samuel L. Jackson | 70.30 | 140.7 | 214.40 | 33 | 57 | 00 / 00 | 84.6 | |
| 16 | Henry V (1989) | Kenneth Branagh | 10.20 | 27.6 | 27.60 | 82 | 89 | 03 / 01 | 84.4 | |
| 16 | The Boy and the Heron (2023) Voice Only |
Willem Dafoe | 46.80 | 46.8 | 294.20 | 53 | 84 | 01 / 01 | 84.2 | |
| 17 | Empire of the Sun (1987) | Directed by Steven Spielberg | 22.20 | 61.3 | 182.60 | 52 | 76 | 06 / 00 | 83.5 | |
| 17 | Vice (2018) AA Best Picture Nom AA Best Actor Nom |
Amy Adams & Steve Carell |
47.80 | 56.6 | 87.10 | 60 | 67 | 08 / 01 | 82.8 | |
| 20 | Howl's Moving Castle (2004) Voice Only |
Lauren Bacall | 4.70 | 8.2 | 408.30 | 167 | 87 | 01 / 00 | 77.8 | |
| 21 | Hostiles (2017) | Rosamund Pike | 29.80 | 35.8 | 42.90 | 82 | 73 | 00 / 00 | 72.6 | |
| 22 | Rescue Dawn (2006) | Steve Zahn | 5.50 | 9.0 | 11.80 | 185 | 81 | 00 / 00 | 71.9 | |
| 22 | American Psycho (2000) | Reese Witherspoon | 15.10 | 30.1 | 68.50 | 112 | 74 | 00 / 00 | 71.7 | |
| 25 | Exodus: Gods and Kings (2014) | Directed by Ridley Scott | 65.00 | 85.8 | 353.80 | 53 | 49 | 00 / 00 | 63.7 | |
| 23 | I'm Not There. (2007) | Cate Blanchett & Heath Ledger |
4.00 | 6.3 | 18.30 | 177 | 74 | 01 / 00 | 63.2 | |
| 24 | The Machinist (2004) | Jennifer Jason Leigh | 1.10 | 1.9 | 14.20 | 202 | 76 | 00 / 00 | 61.9 | |
| 27 | Reign of Fire (2002) | Matthew McConaughey & Gerard Butler |
43.10 | 80.0 | 152.70 | 56 | 49 | 00 / 00 | 59.1 | |
| 26 | A Midsummer Night's Dream (1999) | Kevin Kline | 16.10 | 34.2 | 53.30 | 97 | 63 | 00 / 00 | 57.7 | |
| 28 | The New World (2005) | Colin Farrell | 12.70 | 21.4 | 51.40 | 139 | 64 | 01 / 00 | 54.3 | |
| 31 | Out of the Furnace (2013) | Woody Harrelson & Casey Affleck |
11.30 | 15.0 | 20.80 | 126 | 65 | 00 / 00 | 52.3 | |
| 29 | Velvet Goldmine (1998) | Ewan McGregor | 1.10 | 2.4 | 2.40 | 194 | 69 | 01 / 00 | 51.8 | |
| 30 | The Pale Blue Eye (2022) Netflix |
Robert Duvall | 0.10 | 0.1 | 0.10 | 285 | 70 | 00 / 00 | 51.3 | |
| 32 | Laurel Canyon (2002) | Frances McDormand | 3.70 | 6.8 | 8.20 | 171 | 67 | 00 / 00 | 49.4 | |
| 33 | Mio in the Land of Faraway (1987) | Christopher Lee | 0.00 | 0.1 | 0.10 | 285 | 66 | 00 / 00 | 42.3 | |
| 34 | All the Little Animals (1998) | John Hurt | 0.10 | 0.2 | 0.20 | 250 | 65 | 00 / 00 | 40.3 | |
| 36 | The Promise (2016) | Oscar Isaac | 8.20 | 10.2 | 13.10 | 149 | 61 | 00 / 00 | 38.5 | |
| 35 | Metroland (1999) | Lee Ross | 0.10 | 0.2 | 0.20 | 255 | 64 | 00 / 00 | 38.0 | |
| 37 | Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle (2018) | Benedict Cumberbatch & Cate Blanchett |
0.10 | 0.1 | 0.10 | 409 | 63 | 00 / 00 | 36.5 | |
| 38 | Amsterdam (2022) | Margot Robbie & Robert DeNiro |
14.90 | 15.3 | 30.00 | 60 | 57 | 00 / 00 | 33.7 | |
| 39 | The Flowers of War (2011) | Ni Ni | 0.40 | 0.6 | 129.70 | 209 | 61 | 00 / 00 | 32.2 | |
| 40 | Harsh Times (2005) | Eva Longoria | 3.30 | 5.6 | 10.10 | 170 | 59 | 00 / 00 | 31.9 | |
| 41 | Newsies (1992) | Robert Duvall | 2.80 | 7.3 | 7.30 | 141 | 58 | 00 / 00 | 30.6 | |
| 42 | The Portrait of a Lady (1996) | Nicole Kidman | 3.70 | 9.0 | 9.00 | 164 | 55 | 02 / 00 | 28.8 | |
| 44 | Swing Kids (1993) | Robert Sean Leonard | 5.60 | 14.7 | 14.70 | 136 | 55 | 00 / 00 | 28.5 | |
| 43 | Equilibrium (2002) | Sean Bean | 1.20 | 2.2 | 10.00 | 199 | 58 | 00 / 00 | 27.9 | |
| 46 | Captain Corelli's Mandolin (2001) | Nicolas Cage | 25.50 | 48.7 | 118.50 | 88 | 42 | 00 / 00 | 25.0 | |
| 45 | Knight of Cups (2015) | Cate Blanchett & Natalie Portman |
0.60 | 0.7 | 1.30 | 188 | 55 | 00 / 00 | 21.6 | |
| 47 | The Secret Agent (1996) | Bob Hoskins & Robin Williams |
0.10 | 0.3 | 0.90 | 250 | 54 | 00 / 00 | 18.4 |
Christian Bale Adjusted World Wide Box Office Grosses
| Movie (Year) | UMR Co-Star Links | World-Wide Box Office Adjusted (mil) | S |
|---|---|---|---|
| Movie (Year) | UMR Co-Star Links | World-Wide Box Office Adjusted (mil) | S |
| The Dark Knight (2008) | Heath Ledger & Michael Caine |
1,506.00 | |
| The Dark Knight Rises (2012) | Morgan Freeman & Tom Hardy |
1,482.20 | |
| Pocahontas (1995) | Mel Gibson | 857.60 | |
| Thor: Love and Thunder (2022) | Chris Hemsworth & Bradley Cooper |
779.00 | |
| Batman Begins (2005) | Michael Caine & Liam Neeson |
627.80 | |
| Terminator Salvation (2009) | Sam Worthington | 533.80 | |
| Howl's Moving Castle (2004) Voice Only |
Lauren Bacall | 408.30 | |
| Exodus: Gods and Kings (2014) | Directed by Ridley Scott | 353.80 | |
| American Hustle (2013) AA Best Picture Nom AA Best Actor Nom |
Bradley Cooper & Jennifer Lawrence |
333.00 | |
| Public Enemies (2009) | Johnny Depp & Channing Tatum |
307.70 | |
| The Boy and the Heron (2023) Voice Only |
Willem Dafoe | 294.20 | |
| Ford v Ferrari (2019) AA Best Picture Nom |
Matt Damon | 264.40 | |
| Little Women (1994) | Winona Ryder & Susan Sarandon |
251.20 | |
| Shaft (2000) | Samuel L. Jackson | 214.40 | |
| Empire of the Sun (1987) | Directed by Steven Spielberg | 182.60 | |
| The Prestige (2006) | Hugh Jackman & Scarlett Johansson |
179.70 | |
| The Fighter (2010) AA Best Picture Nom AA Best Supp Actor Win |
Mark Wahlberg & Amy Adams |
176.40 | |
| The Big Short (2015) AA Best Picture Nom AA Best Supp Actor Nom |
Brad Pitt & Steve Carell |
170.60 | |
| Reign of Fire (2002) | Matthew McConaughey & Gerard Butler |
152.70 | |
| The Flowers of War (2011) | Ni Ni | 129.70 | |
| Captain Corelli's Mandolin (2001) | Nicolas Cage | 118.50 | |
| 3:10 to Yuma (2007) | Russell Crowe | 109.70 | |
| Vice (2018) AA Best Picture Nom AA Best Actor Nom |
Amy Adams & Steve Carell |
87.10 | |
| American Psycho (2000) | Reese Witherspoon | 68.50 | |
| A Midsummer Night's Dream (1999) | Kevin Kline | 53.30 | |
| The New World (2005) | Colin Farrell | 51.40 | |
| Hostiles (2017) | Rosamund Pike | 42.90 | |
| Amsterdam (2022) | Margot Robbie & Robert DeNiro |
30.00 | |
| Out of the Furnace (2013) | Woody Harrelson & Casey Affleck |
20.80 | |
| I'm Not There. (2007) | Cate Blanchett & Heath Ledger |
18.30 | |
| The Machinist (2004) | Jennifer Jason Leigh | 14.20 | |
| The Promise (2016) | Oscar Isaac | 13.10 | |
| Rescue Dawn (2006) | Steve Zahn | 11.80 | |
| Harsh Times (2005) | Eva Longoria | 10.10 | |
| Equilibrium (2002) | Sean Bean | 10.00 | |
| Laurel Canyon (2002) | Frances McDormand | 8.20 | |
| Knight of Cups (2015) | Cate Blanchett & Natalie Portman |
1.30 | |
| The Secret Agent (1996) | Bob Hoskins & Robin Williams |
0.90 |
Steve’s Christian Bale YouTube Video
Check out Christian Bale‘s career compared to current and classic actors. Most 100 Million Dollar Movies of All-Time.
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If you do a comment….please ignore the email address request.
HI STEVE:
Thanks for the feedback and the interesting quotes.
And the good news is that we agree about one thing in respect of action/super heroes – I too thought Michael Keaton was the best Batman. Whilst I never paid much attention to the Bale outings I have seen snatches from them. For my money Kilmer had the best Batman JAW though as defined in the comic books!
Hope you have been having an enjoyable weekend. Continue to keep safe please.
Added Steve’s Christian Bale YouTube video to this page….our thoughts on the video and Bale’s movies found on Steve’s channel found below.
“One of my favorites. Overall seen 35 of the 40. Including the Top 28. I will eventually see the rest of the missing 5. Thoughts on rankings and the movies. I love Reign Of Fire….and seems many others do too…so 34th seems pretty low. Another of his lesser known movies that I really like is #18 Equilibrium….fun movie. #10 Empire of the Sun is the movie that I first noticed him. I actually thought two diifferent child actors played the part…one of the greatest performances by a child actor. #9 The Prestige….love this one….a movie like the director’s cut of Kingdom of Heaven seems to get more prestigous with each passing year. #5 Ford v Ferrari…was my favorite movie of 2019. His Batman movies were top notch…though I am not as big of fan of Rises as the first two.”
Hi Bruce, 35 seen out of 40 is impressive, I managed 26. Agreed on Equilibrium, I’ve probably watched that more than his Batman movies. I bought Ford v Ferrari recently on blu-ray, enjoyable bio.
Thanks for the vote, share and comment, much appreciated.
I used to confuse Chris Bale with Chris Slater though I never had any great interest in either of them especially Chris Bale’s Batman films. However as you will see from my listings I do greatly admire YOUR Batman material in its entirety for all 3*** movies and the overall video is splendid to the tune of 98.5% for my personal satisfaction. You and Bruce agree on 3 of thet Top 5 best reviewed Bale films. BEST STILLS IN MY OPINION ARE:
1/Exodus
2/2nd one for Reign of Fire
3/Midsummer Night
4/Newsies
5/Shaft – had forgotten that Samuel L had done Shaft
6/Terminator Salvation – what a rip-off movie though!
7/Out of the Furnace
8/New World
9/Equilibrium
10/US Hustle
11/US Psycho
12/Little Women – failed attempt to turn Winona Ryder int a major star
13/Empire of the Sun
14/Prestige
15/3.10 to Manchester
16/Le Mans 66 aka Ford v Ferrari- WH uses that title.
17/and once again ALL the iconic material for the 3 Batman films -*** I mentioned just two in Part Two but I meant all 3. Among those little treasures I especially liked-
1/The one with Sir Maurice looking all dignified as Alfred.
2/The one where the Caped Crusader carries a half naked female. It reminded me of a similar scene from Creature from The Black Lagoon and we all know now what HE had in mind whereas horror fan guys like you have probably thought that he just wanted to EAT her!!!
Hi Bob, thanks for the review, generous rating, info and trivia, it is appreciated.
Glad you liked the posters and stills.
Christian Bale was a good solid Batman but I have to confess to preferring Michael Keaton. I thought Bale was a little too serious in the role.
4 Christian Bale films scored 10 out of 10 from my sources – Henry V, Little Women, The Fighter and The Dark Knight.
2 films scored 9 out of 10 – Howl’s Moving Castle and 3:10 to Yuma,.
The Dark Knight tops all the charts including Bruce’s UMR and critics charts.
“I’ve never felt like the Batman character in the films was given as much time as any of the villains. The villains were always the most interesting characters, too. Batman has always been this very bizarre, almost blind character running through the middle of the story. Our film is different.”
“I’ve never felt Welsh. I was just born there and I don’t remember it. In terms of growing up, it was completely English.”
“You look back at the history of the Oscars – some of the best movies never got sh*t.”
“I only sound intelligent when there’s a good scriptwriter around.”