Want to know the best Michael Douglas movies? How about the worst Michael Douglas movies? Curious about Michael Douglas’s box office grosses or which Michael Douglas movie picked up the most Oscar® nominations? Need to know which Michael Douglas movie got the best reviews from critics and audiences? Well you have come to the right place….because we have all of that information.
When trying to figure which movie page to do next, I was getting numerous suggestions for one of the most famous father/son actors in Hollywood history, Kirk Douglas and Michael Douglas. So I decided to do both of them. You can check out the Kirk Douglas’ page at this link Kirk Douglas Movies. Before doing this page, I was aware that Michael Douglas’ big break was on the television show, The Streets of San Francisco (1972-1976).
Before writing this page I did not know that Michael Douglas (1944-) was nominated for a Golden Globe® as best newcomer in the 1969 movie Hail, Hero! It would be 15 years before he would become a movie star. In 1984, he starred in the box office smash, Romancing the Stone, co-starring Kathleen Turner and Danny DeVito.
From 1984-2000, Douglas would become one of the biggest and most bankable movie stars acting in movies. He would appear in the box office hits like….Fatal Attraction (1987), War of the Roses (1989), Basic Instinct (1992), Disclosure (1994) and A Perfect Murder (1998)….and critically acclaimed movies like Wall Street (he won an Oscar® for his role), The American President, and Traffic (won Oscar® for Best Picture).
It was announced on August 16, 2010, that Douglas was suffering from throat cancer and underwent chemotherapy and radiation treatment. After losing 32 pounds due to the treatment, Douglas went back to work and has been working steadily.
His IMDb page shows 59 acting credits from 1966-2017. This page will rank 42 Michael Douglas movies from Best to Worst in six different sortable columns of information. Television shows, shorts, cameos and movies that were not released in theaters were not included in the rankings.
Michael Douglas 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
2000
Traffic (2000)
AA Best Picture Nom
2019
Avengers: Endgame (2019)
1987
Fatal Attraction (1987)
AA Best Picture Nom
1979
The China Syndrome (1979)
1989
The War of the Roses (1989)
2015
Ant-Man (2015)
2018
Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018)
1984
Romancing the Stone (1984)
1994
Disclosure (1994)
1995
The American President (1995)
1992
Basic Instinct (1992)
1978
Coma (1978)
1985
The Jewel of the Nile (1985)
2023
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023)
1987
Wall Street (1987)
AA Best Actor Win
1997
The Game (1997)
1998
A Perfect Murder (1998)
1993
Falling Down (1993)
1989
Black Rain (1989)
2000
Wonder Boys (2000)
1996
The Ghost and the Darkness (1996)
2010
Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps (2010)
2011
Haywire (2011)
2006
You, Me and Dupree (2006)
2013
Last Vegas (2013)
1980
It's My Turn (1980)
2001
Don't Say a Word (2001)
2009
Solitary Man (2009)
1983
The Star Chamber (1983)
2013
Behind The Candelabra (2013)
HBO Movie
2006
The Sentinel (2006)
2007
King of California (2007)
1971
Summertree (1971)
2009
Ghosts of Girlfriends Past (2009)
1985
A Chorus Line (1985)
1979
Running (1979)
2017
Unlocked (2017)
1992
Shining Through (1992)
1972
Napoleon and Samantha (1972)
1970
Adam At Six A.M. (1970)
2003
The In-Laws (2003)
2001
One Night at McCool's (2001)
2003
It Runs in the Family (2003)
2014
And So It Goes (2014)
2014
Beyond The Reach (2014)
1969
Hail, Hero! (1969)
2009
Beyond a Reasonable Doubt (2009)
Michael Douglas 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 Michael Douglas movies by co-stars of his movies.
- Sort Michael Douglas movies by adjusted domestic box office grosses using current movie ticket cost (in millions)
- Sort Michael Douglas movies by adjusted worldwide box office grosses using current movie ticket cost (in millions)
- Sort Michael Douglas 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 Michael Douglas movie received.
- Sort Michael Douglas 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 sort and search buttons to make this a very interactive table.
| 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 | Traffic (2000) AA Best Picture Nom |
Dennis Quaid & Catherine Zeta-Jones |
124.10 | 248.2 | 415.0 | 15 | 81 | 05 / 04 | 99.2 | |
| 3 | Avengers: Endgame (2019) | Robert Downey Jr. & Chris Evans |
858.40 | 1,010.2 | 3,290.8 | 1 | 89 | 01 / 00 | 98.8 | |
| 2 | Fatal Attraction (1987) AA Best Picture Nom |
Glenn Close | 154.60 | 426.4 | 877.1 | 2 | 74 | 06 / 00 | 98.3 | |
| 5 | The China Syndrome (1979) | Jack Lemmon & Jane Fonda |
51.70 | 222.1 | 222.1 | 15 | 77 | 04 / 00 | 97.5 | |
| 4 | The War of the Roses (1989) | Kathleen Turner & Danny DeVito |
86.90 | 235.9 | 435.0 | 13 | 79 | 00 / 00 | 97.3 | |
| 8 | Ant-Man (2015) | Michael Douglas | 180.20 | 230.4 | 664.0 | 14 | 77 | 00 / 00 | 96.8 | |
| 6 | Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018) | Paul Rudd & Evangeline Lilly |
216.60 | 256.4 | 736.6 | 9 | 76 | 00 / 00 | 96.7 | |
| 6 | Romancing the Stone (1984) | Kathleen Turner & Danny DeVito |
76.60 | 245.7 | 374.0 | 8 | 75 | 01 / 00 | 96.3 | |
| 10 | Disclosure (1994) | Demi Moore | 83.00 | 219.3 | 565.5 | 14 | 62 | 00 / 00 | 93.1 | |
| 11 | The American President (1995) | Annette Bening & Michael J. Fox |
60.10 | 148.9 | 267.3 | 29 | 78 | 01 / 00 | 92.8 | |
| 9 | Basic Instinct (1992) | Sharon Stone | 117.70 | 305.8 | 916.8 | 9 | 59 | 02 / 00 | 92.7 | |
| 13 | Coma (1978) | Richard Widmark & Genevieve Bujold |
32.40 | 149.5 | 149.5 | 18 | 70 | 00 / 00 | 90.5 | |
| 12 | The Jewel of the Nile (1985) | Kathleen Turner & Danny DeVito |
76.00 | 230.7 | 293.9 | 7 | 54 | 00 / 00 | 89.9 | |
| 14 | Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023) | Paul Rudd & Michelle Pfeiffer |
214.50 | 214.5 | 463.6 | 8 | 52 | 00 / 00 | 89.6 | |
| 14 | Wall Street (1987) AA Best Actor Win |
Charlie Sheen | 43.80 | 120.9 | 120.9 | 26 | 71 | 01 / 01 | 88.2 | |
| 15 | The Game (1997) | Sean Penn | 48.30 | 113.5 | 257.0 | 40 | 72 | 00 / 00 | 87.4 | |
| 17 | A Perfect Murder (1998) | Gwyneth Paltrow | 67.60 | 155.5 | 294.3 | 30 | 58 | 00 / 00 | 86.8 | |
| 16 | Falling Down (1993) | Robert Duvall | 40.90 | 106.5 | 106.5 | 36 | 71 | 00 / 00 | 86.4 | |
| 18 | Black Rain (1989) | Andy Garcia | 46.20 | 125.5 | 364.4 | 28 | 62 | 02 / 00 | 85.4 | |
| 19 | Wonder Boys (2000) | Robert Downey Jr. | 19.40 | 38.8 | 66.9 | 97 | 79 | 03 / 01 | 81.1 | |
| 20 | The Ghost and the Darkness (1996) | Val Kilmer | 38.60 | 94.2 | 183.0 | 38 | 59 | 01 / 01 | 78.8 | |
| 21 | Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps (2010) | Shia LaBeouf | 52.50 | 71.7 | 184.1 | 65 | 61 | 00 / 00 | 73.1 | |
| 22 | Haywire (2011) | Ewan McGregor | 18.90 | 25.8 | 45.4 | 120 | 73 | 00 / 00 | 69.3 | |
| 24 | You, Me and Dupree (2006) | Owen Wilson & Matt Dillon |
75.60 | 123.9 | 213.7 | 31 | 43 | 00 / 00 | 69.0 | |
| 24 | Last Vegas (2013) | Robert DeNiro & Morgan Freeman |
63.90 | 84.7 | 178.2 | 56 | 54 | 00 / 00 | 68.0 | |
| 26 | It's My Turn (1980) | Jill Clayburgh | 13.60 | 56.4 | 56.4 | 58 | 59 | 00 / 00 | 63.3 | |
| 29 | Don't Say a Word (2001) | Sean Bean | 55.00 | 104.9 | 190.8 | 46 | 42 | 00 / 00 | 62.4 | |
| 28 | Solitary Man (2009) | Susan Sarandon | 4.40 | 6.3 | 7.4 | 168 | 74 | 00 / 00 | 62.3 | |
| 28 | The Star Chamber (1983) | Hal Holbrook | 5.60 | 19.0 | 19.0 | 88 | 66 | 00 / 00 | 55.3 | |
| 29 | Behind The Candelabra (2013) HBO Movie |
Matt Damon & Rob Lowe |
0.10 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 282 | 72 | 00 / 00 | 54.4 | |
| 31 | The Sentinel (2006) | Keifer Sutherland | 36.30 | 59.4 | 127.9 | 85 | 49 | 00 / 00 | 47.7 | |
| 32 | King of California (2007) | Evan Rachel Wood | 0.30 | 0.4 | 1.6 | 264 | 67 | 00 / 00 | 45.2 | |
| 32 | Summertree (1971) | Jack Warden | 2.10 | 13.9 | 13.9 | 117 | 62 | 00 / 00 | 43.9 | |
| 36 | Ghosts of Girlfriends Past (2009) | Matthew McConaughey | 55.30 | 79.4 | 146.9 | 56 | 41 | 00 / 00 | 43.0 | |
| 35 | A Chorus Line (1985) | Terrence Mann | 14.20 | 43.1 | 43.1 | 62 | 50 | 03 / 00 | 42.0 | |
| 36 | Running (1979) | Susan Anspach | 6.00 | 25.8 | 25.8 | 77 | 57 | 00 / 00 | 41.7 | |
| 35 | Unlocked (2017) | Orlando Bloom & John Malkovich |
0.10 | 0.1 | 8.0 | 402 | 64 | 00 / 00 | 37.7 | |
| 39 | Shining Through (1992) | Liam Neeson | 21.60 | 56.2 | 113.9 | 59 | 45 | 00 / 00 | 36.2 | |
| 38 | Napoleon and Samantha (1972) | Jodie Foster & Johnny Whitaker |
5.20 | 32.7 | 32.7 | 62 | 52 | 01 / 00 | 35.9 | |
| 40 | Adam At Six A.M. (1970) | Lee Purcell | 1.30 | 9.0 | 9.0 | 135 | 60 | 00 / 00 | 34.7 | |
| 40 | The In-Laws (2003) | Albert Brooks | 20.50 | 36.6 | 48.1 | 107 | 47 | 00 / 00 | 27.9 | |
| 42 | One Night at McCool's (2001) | Matt Dillon | 6.30 | 12.0 | 25.7 | 142 | 49 | 00 / 00 | 16.2 | |
| 42 | It Runs in the Family (2003) | Kirk Douglas | 7.50 | 13.4 | 14.7 | 134 | 44 | 00 / 00 | 10.9 | |
| 43 | And So It Goes (2014) | Diane Keaton | 15.20 | 20.0 | 33.4 | 125 | 38 | 00 / 00 | 7.6 | |
| 44 | Beyond The Reach (2014) | Jeremy Irvine | 0.10 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 229 | 42 | 00 / 00 | 5.5 | |
| 44 | Hail, Hero! (1969) | Arthur Kennedy | 1.10 | 8.7 | 8.7 | 130 | 38 | 00 / 00 | 4.6 | |
| 46 | Beyond a Reasonable Doubt (2009) | Jesse Metcalfe | 0.10 | 0.1 | 6.4 | 301 | 34 | 00 / 00 | 1.7 |
10 Possibly Interesting Facts on Michael Douglas
1. Michael Douglas has won two Academy Awards, his first Oscar® came as the producer of the 1975’s One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest, which won the Oscar® for Best Picture. Twelve years later he won the Best Actor Oscar for 1987’s Wall Street.
2. Douglas and his wife Catherine Zeta-Jones both share the same birthday…September 25th……just 25 years apart.
3. Douglas has co-starred with Kathleen Turner in three box office hits…..Romancing the Stone, Jewel of the Nile and The War of the Roses…..Danny Devito costars in all three movies and directed their third and final pairing.
4. He has been a major supporter of gun control since John Lennon was murdered in 1980.
5. Douglas got the part of Jack T. Colton in Romancing the Stone only after Sylvester Stallone and Christopher Reeve passed on the part.
6. His character from Wall Street, Gordon Gekko, is on the list of 50 greatest villians in movie history.
7. Douglas originally declined the role of Robert Wakefield in Traffic, and it was offered to Harrison Ford, who accepted. Ford worked with director to improve the character, but then decided not to do the movie. Douglas liked the change in the character so much, he accepted the revamped part.
8. Robert Redford was originally cast in the lead role in The American President, but was replaced with Douglas after falling out with director Rob Reiner.
9. Michael Douglas turned downed the following roles….Ocean’s Eleven (Clooney part), Sin City (Willis part), Misery (Caan part), Love Story, Yentl, and Starman (Bridges part).
10. Check out Michael Douglas’s career compared to current and classic actors. Most 100 Million Dollar Movies of All-Time.
Steve Lensman’s Michael Douglas You Tube Video
Academy Award® and Oscar® are the registered trademarks of the Academy of Motion Arts and Sciences.
For comments….all you need is a name and a comment….please ignore the rest.
1 When I first saw Mike Douglas in TV’s Streets of San Francisco I regarded him as just “Kirk Douglas’ son” and assumed that he would be confined to TV. I was therefore pleasantly surprised when Mike churned out the big screen hits.
2 Clearly stardom was in his blood but he said that great stars used to come and see his father so that as he was growing up he was able to observe them and some of their influence may have rubbed off. Kirk was a keep-fit fanatic and jogged regularly and once Brando was staying at the Douglas residence and insisted upon accompanying Kirk on a jog but got as far as the Douglas front gate and collapsed!
3 Michael is well up in my list of favourite modern stars and my very favourite among all his films was The American President followed by Disclosure As he must be one of only a handful of actors who were the offspring of famous stars and became highly successful in their own right and were therefore rarities.I feel that this well-researched Cogerson page and update have a special significance.
Hey Bob
1. On his way from tv star to movie star…Michael Douglas….stopped to produce One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest…which got him lots of money and his first Oscar…for some reason I have not included that classic movie here.
2. Having Kirk Douglas as your dad helped him get going…but by the time Michael was at his peak…I wonder how many of his younger fans even realized who Kirk Douglas was.
3. Funny story about Brando and Douglas….thanks for sharing.
4. The American President is WoC’s favorite movie too…it is the movie she watches when she has had a bad day….so she agrees with you 100%
5. Thanks for the kind words on our updated Douglas page.
🙂
Maybe WoC should have married me instead of you. She’s probably fed up having to watch reruns of all those ancient Cary Grant films.
Bruce , great movie page. I love the movie, ‘The Game’ which I think is very clever and he’s really good in it and of course, Romancing the Stone :o)
Hey Jools99….thanks for the visit and the comment…both are greatly appreciated. I have only seen the Game once….but I think it is a movie that I will enjoy much more the second time…especially with knowing the ending….but I thought Sean Penn and Michael Douglas did a very convincing job of playing brothers.
I wonder if they will ever make a third Romancing the Stone movie….it would give Kathleen Turner a chance to return to the limelight…although the last few movies I have seen her in….she was almost unrecognizable.
Michael Douglas is one of my favorite actors. I love all the movies listed here. Kudos to you too, for generating wonderful statistics!! Voted up and sharing.
Hey Michelle….glad you like Michael Douglas and my hub that gives tribute to him and his many movies. Glad you liked the stats as well….I think they judge his movies pretty well…thanks for the visit and the share.
Hi,
I liked Michael in most of his movies and I am so happy he has beat Cancer. However, he seems to be happy and well now and I hope it is true that he is no longer ill.
I have many of his movies and watch my favorites over and over again.
Thanks for this movie page–I may watch some tonight—Thanks.
Bobbi Purvis
Hey PurvisBobbi….glad to see my hub has you motivated to watch some Michael Douglas movies…..my wife loves The American President…when she has a bad day at work…..it seems we end up watching that movie almost every time. Thanks for stopping by and for the comment
Not only is he a great actor, he seems to be great behind the scenes as well. I’ve always respected how he didn’t use his dad’s name to get success but worked hard.
Fatal Attraction just turned 25 but it could’ve been made a year ago- it’s timely and timeless.
Happy Birthday Michael Douglas!
Hey Alecia….thanks for the visit and for the twitter share….it gave the hub a nice little bump. Wow Fatal Attraction was 25 years ago….I was actually married when I saw that at the theater…..where does the time go? I was glad to see he is back to work after his cancer struggles…thanks again for the comment.