Want to know the best Gloria Swanson movies? How about the worst Gloria Swanson movies? Curious about Gloria Swanson box office grosses or which Gloria Swanson movie picked up the most Oscar® nominations? Need to know which Gloria Swanson movie got the best reviews from critics and audiences? Well, you have come to the right place….because we have all of that information.
Gloria Swanson (1899-1993) was an Oscar® nominated American actress. Swanson was the silent screen’s most successful and highest-paid actress. She appeared in numerous early Cecil B. DeMille directed movies. In 1950, after an absence from the screen for several years, Swanson achieved widespread critical acclaim and recognition for her role as Norma Desmond, a reclusive silent film star, in the critically acclaimed 1950 film Sunset Boulevard. Her IMDb page shows 82 acting credits from 1914 to 1974. This page will rank Gloria Swanson movies from Best to Worst in six different sortable columns of information. Television shows, shorts and some of her early silent movies were not included in the rankings. To do well in our overall rankings a movie has to do well at the box office, get good reviews by critics, be liked by audiences and get some award recognition. This page was requested by UMR Hall of Famer, bob cox and Me (not Cogerson).
Gloria Swanson 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 |
| 1950 | Sunset Blvd. (1950) AA Best Picture Nom AA Best Actress Nom |
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| 1920 | Something To Think About (1920) | |
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| 1920 | Why Change Your Wife? (1920) |  |
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| 1919 | Male and Female (1919) | |
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| 1921 | The Affairs of Avatol (1921) | |
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| 1929 | The Trespasser (1929) AA Best Actress Nom |
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| 1928 | Sadie Thompson (1928) AA Best Actress Nom |
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| 1974 | Airport 1975 (1974) | |
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| 1919 | Don't Change Your Husband (1919) | |
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| 1919 | For Better, for Worse (1919) | |
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| 1922 | Beyond The Rocks (1922) |  |
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| 1924 | The Humming Bird (1924) | |
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| 1925 | The Coast of Folly (1925) | |
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| 1925 | Stage Struck (1925) | |
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| 1925 | Madame Sans-Gêne (1925) | |
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| 1931 | Tonight or Never (1931) | |
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| 1923 | Bluebeard's 8th Wife (1923) |  |
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| 1926 | The Untamed Lady (1926) | |
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| 1923 | Prodigal Daughters (1923) | |
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| 1924 | A Society Scandal (1924) | |
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| 1924 | Manhandled (1924) | |
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| 1922 | The Impossible Mrs. Bellew (1922) | |
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| 1927 | The Love of Sunya (1927) | |
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| 1922 | My American Wife (1922) | |
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| 1930 | What A Widow! (1930) | |
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| 1932 | Queen Kelly (1932) | |
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| 1924 | Wages of Virtue (1924) | |
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| 1922 | Her Husband's Trademark (1922) | |
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| 1931 | Indiscreet (1931) | |
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| 1924 | Her Love Story (1924) | |
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| 1921 | Under The Lash (1921) | |
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| 1941 | Father Takes a Wife (1941) | |
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| 1923 | Zaza (1923) | |
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| 1934 | Music in the Air (1934) |  |
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| 1922 | Her Gilded Cage (1922) | |
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| 1926 | Fine Manners (1926) | |
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| 1952 | Three for Bedroom C (1952) |  |
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| 1933 | Perfect Understanding (1933) |  |
Gloria Swanson 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 Gloria Swanson movies by her co-stars
- Sort Gloria Swanson movies by adjusted domestic box office grosses using current movie ticket cost (in millions)
- Sort Gloria Swanson movies by yearly domestic box office rank
- Sort Gloria Swanson 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 Gloria Swanson movie received.
- Sort Gloria Swanson movies by Ultimate Movie Rankings (UMR) Score. UMR puts box office, reviews and awards into a mathematical equation and gives each movie a score.
| 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 | Sunset Blvd. (1950) AA Best Picture Nom AA Best Actress Nom |
William Holden & Directed by Billy Wilder |
6.70 | 150.8 | 150.80 | 24 | 90 | 11 / 03 | 99.0 | |
| 2 | Something To Think About (1920) | Directed by Cecil B. DeMille | 4.60 | 246.8 | 246.80 | 5 | 87 | 00 / 00 | 98.6 | |
| 4 | Why Change Your Wife? (1920) | Directed by Cecil B. DeMille | 3.80 | 204.6 | 272.00 | 8 | 76 | 00 / 00 | 96.5 | |
| 3 | Male and Female (1919) | Directed by Cecil B. DeMille | 6.70 | 379.1 | 379.10 | 1 | 68 | 00 / 00 | 94.6 | |
| 5 | The Affairs of Avatol (1921) | Directed by Cecil B. DeMille | 5.30 | 273.5 | 273.50 | 5 | 67 | 00 / 00 | 94.3 | |
| 6 | The Trespasser (1929) AA Best Actress Nom |
Robert Ames | 4.00 | 122.1 | 122.10 | 18 | 76 | 01 / 00 | 89.6 | |
| 8 | Sadie Thompson (1928) AA Best Actress Nom |
Lionel Barrymore | 3.30 | 105.7 | 105.70 | 15 | 77 | 02 / 00 | 88.5 | |
| 7 | Airport 1975 (1974) | Charlton Heston & Karen Black |
76.70 | 442.1 | 442.10 | 5 | 43 | 00 / 00 | 86.4 | |
| 9 | Don't Change Your Husband (1919) | Directed by Cecil B. DeMille | 1.60 | 88.8 | 88.80 | 7 | 70 | 00 / 00 | 82.5 | |
| 10 | For Better, for Worse (1919) | Directed by Cecil B. DeMille | 1.40 | 77.3 | 77.30 | 8 | 72 | 00 / 00 | 81.7 | |
| 11 | Beyond The Rocks (1922) | Rudolph Valentino | 1.50 | 73.3 | 73.30 | 10 | 70 | 00 / 00 | 79.6 | |
| 13 | The Humming Bird (1924) | Edmund Burns | 1.20 | 50.4 | 50.40 | 20 | 75 | 00 / 00 | 78.3 | |
| 13 | The Coast of Folly (1925) | Anthony Jowitt | 1.90 | 76.2 | 76.20 | 17 | 62 | 00 / 00 | 74.3 | |
| 14 | Stage Struck (1925) | Lawrence Gray | 1.50 | 58.5 | 58.50 | 20 | 68 | 00 / 00 | 74.3 | |
| 17 | Madame Sans-Gêne (1925) | Charles de Rochefort | 2.40 | 94.6 | 94.60 | 13 | 56 | 00 / 00 | 73.7 | |
| 15 | Tonight or Never (1931) | Melvyn Douglas & Boris Karloff |
1.10 | 55.6 | 55.60 | 141 | 68 | 00 / 00 | 73.4 | |
| 18 | Bluebeard's 8th Wife (1923) | Huntley Gordon | 0.20 | 9.9 | 9.90 | 44 | 79 | 00 / 00 | 69.5 | |
| 20 | The Untamed Lady (1926) | Lawrence Gray | 1.00 | 34.7 | 34.70 | 45 | 70 | 00 / 00 | 68.1 | |
| 19 | Prodigal Daughters (1923) | Ralph Graves | 0.20 | 9.0 | 9.00 | 47 | 78 | 00 / 00 | 67.9 | |
| 21 | A Society Scandal (1924) | Rod La Rocque | 0.90 | 36.8 | 36.80 | 25 | 69 | 00 / 00 | 67.6 | |
| 22 | Manhandled (1924) | Tom Moore | 0.90 | 39.9 | 39.90 | 23 | 68 | 00 / 00 | 67.5 | |
| 23 | The Impossible Mrs. Bellew (1922) | Robert Cain | 0.70 | 34.1 | 34.10 | 21 | 68 | 00 / 00 | 65.1 | |
| 24 | The Love of Sunya (1927) | John Boles | 1.40 | 48.3 | 48.30 | 45 | 63 | 00 / 00 | 65.1 | |
| 25 | My American Wife (1922) | Antonio Moreno | 1.20 | 57.8 | 57.80 | 12 | 60 | 00 / 00 | 64.6 | |
| 26 | What A Widow! (1930) | Owen Moore | 0.90 | 50.8 | 50.80 | 127 | 62 | 00 / 00 | 64.3 | |
| 24 | Queen Kelly (1932) | Walter Byron | 0.40 | 17.5 | 17.50 | 177 | 72 | 00 / 00 | 63.5 | |
| 27 | Wages of Virtue (1924) | Ben Lyon | 1.00 | 43.1 | 43.10 | 21 | 62 | 00 / 00 | 60.6 | |
| 28 | Her Husband's Trademark (1922) | Richard Wayne | 0.80 | 37.7 | 37.70 | 19 | 63 | 00 / 00 | 59.4 | |
| 29 | Indiscreet (1931) | Directed by Leo McCarey | 0.80 | 42.0 | 42.00 | 163 | 61 | 00 / 00 | 58.3 | |
| 31 | Her Love Story (1924) | Ian Keith | 0.80 | 34.8 | 34.80 | 28 | 62 | 00 / 00 | 56.1 | |
| 30 | Under The Lash (1921) | Mahlon Hamilton | 0.40 | 22.3 | 22.30 | 14 | 65 | 00 / 00 | 55.4 | |
| 32 | Father Takes a Wife (1941) | Adolphe Menjou | 1.30 | 49.8 | 49.80 | 155 | 56 | 00 / 00 | 53.8 | |
| 33 | Zaza (1923) | H.B. Warner | 0.80 | 35.8 | 35.80 | 23 | 59 | 00 / 00 | 51.0 | |
| 35 | Music in the Air (1934) | Marjorie Main | 0.90 | 44.5 | 44.50 | 115 | 54 | 00 / 00 | 46.7 | |
| 34 | Her Gilded Cage (1922) | David Powell | 0.80 | 38.5 | 38.50 | 17 | 56 | 00 / 00 | 46.6 | |
| 36 | Fine Manners (1926) | Eugene O'Brien | 1.00 | 37.2 | 37.20 | 39 | 54 | 00 / 00 | 42.8 | |
| 37 | Three for Bedroom C (1952) | James Warren | 0.90 | 17.4 | 19.30 | 206 | 57 | 00 / 00 | 33.8 | |
| 38 | Perfect Understanding (1933) | Laurence Olivier | 0.40 | 16.7 | 16.70 | 174 | 46 | 00 / 00 | 14.6 |
Best IMDb Trivia On Gloria Swanson
1.Gloria May Josephine Swanson was born in Chicago, Illnois in 1899.
2. Gloria Swanson made her movie debut in 1914 as an extra in The Song of Soul. She moved to California in 1916 to appear in Mack Sennett’s Keystone Studios comedies opposite Bobby Vernon. With their great screen chemistry, the pair became popular.
3. Gloria Swanson was the visual inspiration for the original illustrations of Morticia Addams in The Addams Family, when were published in The New Yorker in 1938. Swanson was 39 years old at the point.
4. Gloria Swanson’s performance as Norma Desmond in Sunset Blvd. (1950) is ranked #31 on Premiere Magazine’s 100 Greatest Movie Characters of All Time.
5. Gloria Swanson was known for her extravagant lifestyle, it was reported that she earned $8,000,000 between 1918 and 1929 and spent nearly all of it. By the time of her death in 1983, her gross estate was valued at just over $1,440,000.
Check out Gloria Swanson’s career compared to current and classic actors. Most 100 Million Dollar Movies of All-Time.
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Hello Bruce,
How are you ? Been a long time !
Gloria Swanson was a major star of the silent area. I knew that before, but I was still amazed, when I established the annual top 50 for my friend’s blog, to see the number of films with her that appeared in these rankings each year. No less than 21 films classified among the 50 biggest successes of each year, just between 1922 and 1929!
An unmissable actress of the time, with an equally extraordinary life. For example, during the shooting of the film Madame Sans Gene, shot in France where Miss Swanson was extremely popular, several national monuments were made available for filming for the first time, such as the castle of Fontainebleau.
For a practical question, Paramount hired Leonce Perret, then considered one of our best directors. The studio also hired Marquis Henri de La Falaise as the star’s translator. This is how he became the third husband of Gloria Swanson. Having become a marquise after four months on French soil (!), She made a triumphant return to the United States as a European nobleman, even having the right to parades in New York and Los Angeles.
It remained the actress’ favorite film.
As always, good job Bruce.
Good to hear from you Laurent. Just seeing your name in the comment box brought me a smile. Yes indeed it has been a very long time. I was recently doing some research on The Box Office Story and I thought about you. Hope you and your family are surviving in these pandemic days.
Your Top 50 entry for your friend’s blog sounds interesting. I know her movies with DeMille were monster hits here and around the world. Cool story about her time in France when she was filming Madame Sans Gene. Currently Madame Sans Gene almost in our Top 10 when looking at top hits of 1925. I knew Marquis Henri de La Falaise was one of her husband, but I did not know about him being her translator. Good information. Your thoughts have been missed. Hope to hear from you again in the near future. Stay safe and healthy.
Thank you for your kind words, Bruce. Take care of yourself and your family as well.
As for Gimme More she had in reality just four really big stand-out hits where she was the leading lady:
1/Ghost with Patrick Swayze still for a brief time hot because of the massive box office of Dirty Dancing.
2/A Few Good Men with Cruise and Nicholson then at their peak and she was 3rd billed
3/indecent Proposal where the then box office clout of Redford would have helped considerably as would have the ‘kinky’ sex theme and
4/Disclosure co-starring Michael Douglas then in his heyday and churning out a string of big hits.
The OTHER movie’s in Demi’s Cogerson charts have a combined adjusted domestic gross of just $1.4 billion – a paltry $40 million average per movie.
For me the celebrity and enormous wealth that Gimme More acquired conclusively demonstrate how low the bar generally has been in the modern era for a performer to be credited with super stardom. As I abhor over-hype I have always been pleased that your site has never gone overboard about Greta.
For example neither she nor Gimme are included in the top 50 stars listed in your book nor have they ever been awarded vertiginous places in any of your ranking lists. For example in your new Top 100 stars Garbo is listed way down at 50 and Gimme is not mentioned at all; and in your recent longer list of 564 stars Greta is 246th and Gimme 486th. Certainly I could never accuse YOU of over-hyping the pair!
Hey Bob. Not thinking Demi Moore had nearly the celebrity clout of Garbo, Swanson and Jolie. Moore had a great run….but it was pretty short….starting in 1990 and ending in 1994. Since then her successes have been in supporting roles or providing a voice in the Disney smash Hunchback of Notre Dame. Some of Moore’s clout came from husband 2 and husband 3. Good to see you using some of these reports I put out there. Greta in 246th? Demi in 486th? So Jolie is sitting in 441st place. Good comment.
Hey Bob…..looking at my 564 ranking actor massive list….I think if Gloria was on that list….she would be in about 330rd place. Sadly…..that list is not dynamic. So just added one person would take hours and hours. I figure to outdate that list every couple of years.
HI BRUCE: Thanks for the feedback. Yes: I too noticed that Gloria’s grosses dropped lower as the years went on [with the exception of Airport 75 which was a Chuck led ensemble picture.] At least though Gloria did have 3 mega hits in her heyday [ie ones that crashed the Cogerson TWO HUNDRED MILLION barrier in adjusted domestic grosses] whereas Garbo had none in that range her highest grossing movie in your charts being Camille with $176 million.
The beauty of your site’s broad statistical approach to ranking movie stars is that it highlights BOTH the strengths AND the weaknesses of the individual thespians. In my opinion within the context of the Bette Davis axiom that “to be regarded as a true star” a performer must demonstrate box office clout the most overvalued star of the classic era was Greta Garbo and the most over-price star of the modern era has been Gimme More.
Even Greta’s worldwide grosses [which pleasingly you have been able to provide for us on her page] do not match the domestic grosses ALONE of any of the Legends in whose league she is supposed to be.
Hey Bob. Good points. I think both Garbo and Swanson had the same image. Glamour and beauty and were massive celebrities. I think that celebrity status painted over the fact that their films were not massive box office successes. They were good…..but if you take away Swanson’s DeMille movies she does not have any massive successes left. I think Angelina Jolie has the same image now. Thanks for the kind words. I was not able to secure many of Swanson’s worldwide totals out there…..though there are some interesting books out there that seem to offer up some box office information. Sadly, those books only offer up a small amount of page previews. In the pre-coronavirus days….I would have gotten into the car….driven to William and Mary College library and done the research with the actual book. Good stuff as always.
That is a lot of movies I have never heard of before.
Hey Taylor…..I admit, there are many I had never heard of before either.
Well this is a micro list. These are the only people on the current Oracle of Bacon list that have appeared with Ms. Swanson in a film.
193 WILLIAM HOLDEN Sunset Blvd. (1950)
380 LAURENCE OLIVIER Perfect Understanding (1933)
682 JOHN HOWARD Father Takes a Wife (1941)
805 CHARLES LANE Three for Bedroom C (1952)
Gloria has actually appeared with more Oscar winners than connections, she has 5.
LAURENCE OLIVIER Perfect Understanding (1933)
LIONEL BARRYMORE Sadie Thompson (1928)
MELVYN DOUGLAS Tonight or Never (1931)
WALLACE BEERY Teddy at the Throttle (1917)
WILLIAM HOLDEN Sunset Blvd. (1950)
Hey Dan. This might be one of your smallest lists you have ever shared. Interesting that she has more Oscar co-stars than Oracle co-stars. I am sure the next UMR subject will have bigger lists from you. I actually guarantee it. As this 5 time Oscar nominated actor appeared in movies for 6 decades. Stay safe and healthy.