Welcome to our Screen Legends 1950-2010 page. In 1999 the AFI (American Film Insitute) listed their top 50 greatest screen legends in American film history, included 25 male and 25 female stars. The AFI defined an “American screen legend” as an actor or a team of actors during the classic film era with a significant screen presence in American feature-length films whose screen debut occurred in or before 1950, or whose screen debut occurred after 1950 but whose death has marked a completed body of work.  It has been almost 20 years since that list…and we here at UMR.com thought it was time to revisit that list….only this time…looking at the stars that came after 1950.  Due to space concerns…we have decided to have an actor page and an actress page.  We call this one our Screen Legends 1950-2010 Actor page.

To be considered for our Top 50, an actor/actress needed to make their American film debut between 1950 and 2010 and they could not have appeared on the AFI list (sorry Marlon Brando & James Dean).  Factors we used in determining our Top 50 included:  (1) Box office success – namely the number of $100 million adjusted domestic gross movies.  (2) Critical & audience approval – namely the number of movies that were above a 60% approval rating.  (3) The amount of times they appeared on the yearly Quigley’s Top Stars list.  (4) Oscar® love.  Including personal nominations and wins and times they starred in a Best Picture Oscar® nominated movie.  (5) Cultural…very subjective…but needed in picking these stars.  Due to space concerns…we have decided to have an actor page and an actress page.

The following actors were given serious consideration…but in the end they fell just a little bit short:  Woody Allen, Christian Bale, Warren Beatty, Jeff Bridges, James Caan, George Clooney, Russell Crowe, Matt Damon, Johnny Depp, Robert Downey, Jr., Robert Duvall, James Garner, Charlton Heston, Anthony Hopkins, Lee Marvin, Walter Matthau, Eddie Murphy, Bill Murray, Burt Reynolds, Martin Sheen, Sylvester Stallone, John Travolta, Christopher Walken, Bruce Willis.  But enough exposition…let’s take a look at our Top 25 Actors 1950-2010.

25th place Daniel Day-Lewis (1957-) Box Office highlights: DDL has starred in 4 movies that grossed over $100 million in adjusted box office.  He was named as one of Quigley’s Top Box Office Stars 1 time. Critic and audience highlights: He has starred in 14 movies with a 60% or higher rating.  Oscar® love:  DDL has received 6 acting Oscar® nominations…winning a record three Best Actor awards.  He has starred in 9 movies that earned a Best Picture nomination…1 won. Overall he starred in 13 movies that got at least one Oscar® nomination….with 8 winning movies at least one Oscar®. UMR Must See Movies: My Left Foot, In the Name of the Father, There Will Be Blood, Lincoln, The Last of the Mohicans, The Gangs of New York Our thoughts:  In the history of movies only one actor has won 3 Best Actor Oscars®….and that is Daniel Day-Lewis.  That stat alone earns him a spot on our list.  He could still pick up a 4th Oscar® in the future.

24th place Peter O’Toole (1932-2013) Box Office highlights: O’Toole starred in 7 movies that grossed over $100 million in adjusted box office. His Lawrence of Arabia is still the 75th biggest hit of all-time. Critic and audience highlights: He had 26 movies with a 60% or higher rating.  Oscar® love:  O’Toole was nominated for a Best Actor Oscar® 8 times.  He starred in 7 movies that earned a Best Picture nomination….Lawrence of Arabia & The Last Emperor won.  Overall he had 13 movies that got at least one Oscar® nomination….with 5 movies winning at least one Oscar®.  UMR Must See Movies: Lawrence of Arabia, Beckett, Lion in Winter, The Stunt Man, My Favorite Year  Our thoughts:  You gotta have talent to receive 8 Oscar® nominations (all losses…a record)….but he did get a Honorary Oscar® in 2003.

23rd place Mel Gibson (1956-) Box Office highlights: Gibson has starred in 18 movies that grossed over $100 million in adjusted box office. He was named as one of Quigley’s Top Box Office Stars 14 times. Critic and audience highlights: He has 22 movies with a 60% or higher rating.  Oscar® love:  Gibson was nominated for a Best Actor Oscar® 1 time…but won a Best Director Oscar® for Braveheart.  He starred in 2 movies that earned a Best Picture nomination….Braveheart won.  Overall he had 12 movies that got at least one Oscar® nomination….with 3 movies winning at least one Oscar®.  UMR Must See Movies: The Road Warrior, Lethal Weapon, Braveheart, What Women Want  Our thoughts:  Yes he has some off camera issues….but for over 20 years he was one of the most popular actors in the entire world.

22nd place Richard Burton (1925-1984) Box Office highlights: Burton starred in 15 movies that grossed over $100 million in adjusted box office. He was named as one of Quigley’s Top Box Office Stars 4 times. Critic and audience highlights: He had 22 movies with a 60% or higher rating.  Oscar® love:  Burton was nominated for a Best Actor Oscar® 8 times.  He starred in 6 movies that earned a Best Picture nomination.  Overall he had 15 movies that got at least one Oscar® nomination….with 9 movies winning at least one Oscar®.  UMR Must See Movies: Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, Beckett, The Spy Who Came In from the Cold, Anne of the Thousand Days  Our thoughts:  Shares the record with Peter O’Toole for most Oscar® nominations (8) without a win.  To bad he passed away before receiving a Honorary Oscar®.

21st place Will Smith (1968-) Box Office highlights: Smith has starred in 14 movies that grossed over $100 million in adjusted box office. He was named as one of Quigley’s Top Box Office Stars 9 times. Critic and audience highlights: He had 13 movies with a 60% or higher rating.  Oscar® love:  Smith has been nominated for a Best Actor Oscar® 2 times.  He starred in 7 movies that got at least one Oscar® nomination….with 2 movies winning at least one Oscar®.  UMR Must See Movies: The Pursuit of Happyness, Independence Day, Hitch, I Am Legend, Men In Black  Our thoughts: From 1995 to 2007 there was nobody more popular in movies than Will Smith.

20th place Sean Connery (1930-) Box Office highlights: Connery starred in 20 movies that grossed over $100 million in adjusted box office. He was named as one of Quigley’s Top Box Office Stars 7 times. Critic and audience highlights: He had 32 movies with a 60% or higher rating.  Oscar® love:  Connery won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar®.  He starred in 1 movie that earned a Best Picture nomination.  Overall he had 13 movies that got at least one Oscar® nomination….with 5 movies winning at least one Oscar®. UMR Must See Movies: From Russia With Love, Goldfinger, The Man Who Would Be King, The Untouchables, The Hunt For Red October, The Untouchables, Indian Jones and the Last Crusade, The Rock  Our thoughts:  Connery, Sean Connery.  When you think about it….. only one actor managed to have a very successful post James Bond career…and that was Mr. Connery. Maybe Daniel Craig can join Connery on that very short list.

19th place Brad Pitt (1968-) Box Office highlights: Pitt has starred in 14 movies that grossed over $100 million in adjusted box office. He was named as one of Quigley’s Top Box Office Stars 8 times. Critic and audience highlights: He had 30 movies with a 60% or higher rating.  Oscar® love:  Pitt has received 3 acting Oscar® nominations. He has starred in 8 movies that earned a Best Picture nomination….12 Years A Slave won.  Overall he has had 17 movies that got at least one Oscar® nomination….with 8 movies winning at least one Oscar®. UMR Must See Movies: Seven, Fight Club, Moneyball, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Legends of the Fall, Inglourious Bastards, 12 Monkeys  Our thoughts:  About the only thing Brad Pitt needs to make his movie career complete is an Oscar® win.  We see that coming in the near future.

18th place Morgan Freeman (1937-) Box Office highlights: Freeman has starred in 23 movies that grossed over $100 million in adjusted box office.  Critic and audience highlights: He has 36 movies with a 60% or higher rating.  Oscar® love:  Freeman has received 5 acting Oscar® nominations…winning a Best Supporting Actor for Million Dollar Baby. He has starred in 7 movies that earned a Best Picture nomination….3 won…Unforgiven, Million Dollar Baby &  Driving Miss Daisy.   Overall he has had 17 movies that got at least one Oscar® nomination….with 6 movies winning at least one Oscar®. UMR Must See Movies: Seven, Shawshank Redemption, Glory, Unforgiven, Million Dollar Baby, Driving Miss Daisy  Our thoughts:  The Spencer Tracy of our time.  Morgan Freeman makes every performance seem so natural.  Not bad for an actor that was already over 50 when he became a star.

17th place Michael Caine (1933-) Box Office highlights: Caine has starred in 17 movies that grossed over $100 million in adjusted box office.  Critic and audience highlights: He has 48 movies with a 60% or higher rating.  Oscar® love:  Caine has received 6 acting Oscar® nominations…winning twice. He has starred in 4 movies that earned a Best Picture nomination. Overall he has had 21 movies that got at least one Oscar® nomination….with 6 movies winning at least one Oscar®. UMR Must See Movies: Zulu, Alfie, Sleuth, The Italian Job, Get Carter, The Man Who Would Be King, Educating Rita, Hannah and Her Sisters, The Quiet American, Batman Begins, The Presitge  Our thoughts:  Ok we admit it….Sir Michael is one of our favorite actors…but he has the numbers to back up his case to make this page.  Now if we had included our other favorite actor, Bruce Willis, would could not make that same claim.

16th place Gene Hackman (1930-) Box Office highlights: Hackman starred in 17 movies that grossed over $100 million in adjusted box office.  He was named as one of Quigley’s Top Box Office Stars 2 times. Critic and audience highlights: He starred in 44 movies with a 60% or higher rating.  Oscar® love:  Hackman received 5 acting Oscar® nominations…winning twice. He has starred in 8 movies that earned a Best Picture nomination…2 won: The French Connection & Unforgiven. Overall he starred in 23 movies that got at least one Oscar® nomination….with 7 movies winning at least one Oscar®. UMR Must See Movies: Bonnie and Clyde, The French Connection, The Conversation, Superman, Reds, Unforgiven, Hoosiers, The Royal Tenenbaums  Our thoughts:  We miss seeing a new Gene Hackman movie.  Growing up, it seemed there was a new Hackman movie every 4 or 5 months.  All of his movies had one common denominator…a good to great performance from Hackman.

15th place Robert DeNiro (1943-) Box Office highlights: DeNiro has starred in 16 movies that grossed over $100 million in adjusted box office.  He was named as one of Quigley’s Top Box Office Stars 2 times. Critic and audience highlights: He has starred in 47 movies with a 60% or higher rating.  Oscar® love:  DeNiro has received 7 acting Oscar® nominations…winning twice.  He has starred in 10 movies that earned a Best Picture nomination…2 won: The Godfather Part II & The Deer Hunter. Overall he starred in 22 movies that got at least one Oscar® nomination….with 7 movies winning at least one Oscar®. UMR Must See Movies: The Godfather Part II, Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, Heat, The Deer Hunter, Midnight Run, Cape Fear, Goodfellas, Silver Linings Playbook  Our thoughts:  The first third (1970s to mid 1980s) of DeNiro’s career earned him a spot on this list.  The last third (1995-2016) of his career dropped him from a spot near the Top 5 to 15th place.  As DeNiro has gotten older he has become a machine (20 movies since 2010)  when it comes to making movies…thus making it harder to find a great DeNiro performance…but if you look hard enough you can still find classic Bob in movies like Silver Linings Playbook.

 

14th place Robert Redford (1936-) Box Office highlights: Redford has starred in 22 movies that grossed over $100 million in adjusted box office.  He was named as one of Quigley’s Top Box Office Stars 7 times. Critic and audience highlights: He has starred in 33 movies with a 60% or higher rating.  Oscar® love:  Redford has received 1 Best Actor and 2 Best Director Oscar® nominations…he won for Ordinary People. He has starred or directed 9 movies that earned a Best Picture nomination…3 won: The Sting, Ordinary People & Out of Africa. Overall he starred in 23 movies that got at least one Oscar® nomination….with 10 winning movies at least one Oscar®. UMR Must See Movies: Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, The Sting, The Way We Were, Three Days of the Condor, All the President’s Men, The Natural, The Horse Whisperer  Our thoughts:  Redford has been a movie superstar for almost 50 years now.  It looks like good guys can finish first.

13th place Robin Williams (1951-2014) Box Office highlights: Williams starred in 17 movies that grossed over $100 million in adjusted box office.  He was named as one of Quigley’s Top Box Office Stars 9 times. Critic and audience highlights: He starred in 18 movies with a 60% or higher rating.  Oscar® love:  Williams received 4 acting Oscar® nominations…winning Best Supporting Actor for Good Will Hunting. He starred in 3 movies that earned a Best Picture nomination. Overall he starred in 17 movies that got at least one Oscar® nomination….with 5 movies winning at least one Oscar®. UMR Must See Movies: Good Morning Vietnam, Dead Poet’s Society, The Fisher King, Mrs. Doubtfire, The World According to Garp, Good Will Hunting, Insomnia  Our thoughts:  It still saddens us that Robin Williams is no longer with us.  We miss one of the funniest people in the history of people every day.

12th place Al Pacino (1940-) Box Office highlights: Pacino has starred in 14 movies that grossed over $100 million in adjusted box office.  He was named as one of Quigley’s Top Box Office Stars 4 times. Critic and audience highlights: He has starred in 25 movies with a 60% or higher rating.  Oscar® love:  Pacino has received 8 acting Oscar® nominations…winning Best Actor for Scent of a Woman. He has starred in 8 movies that earned a Best Picture nomination…2 won: The Godfather Part 1 & 2. Overall he has starred in 10 movies that got at least one Oscar® nomination….with 5 movies winning at least one Oscar®. UMR Must See Movies: The Godfather, Dog Day Afternoon, Serpico, The Godfather II, Heat, Scarface, Donnie Brasco, Dick Tracy   Our thoughts:   Ok we admit we are not the biggest Al Pacino fans. But when we thought of not including him on our list…Michael Corleone visited us and gave us ” an offer we could not refuse”…so Al gets the 12th spot.

11th place Leonardo DiCaprio (1970-) Box Office highlights: DiCaprio has starred in 12 movies that grossed over $100 million in adjusted box office.  He was named as one of Quigley’s Top Box Office Stars 9 times. Critic and audience highlights: He has starred in 18 movies with a 60% or higher rating.  Oscar® love:  DiCaprio has received 5 acting Oscar® nominations…winning Best Actor for The Revenant. He starred in 10 movies that earned a Best Picture nomination…2 won: Titanic & The Departed. Overall he has starred in 15 movies that got at least one Oscar® nomination….with 6 movies winning at least one Oscar®. UMR Must See Movies: Titanic, The Revenant , Catch Me If You Can, The Aviator, The Wolf of Wall Street, The Departed, Inception   Our thoughts:  When we started putting this page together….our initial thought was Leo would not make the Top 25.  Turns out he not only made the page, but it could be argued he is ranked too low.  Watch out Tom Hanks here comes Leo.

10th place Tom Cruise (1962-) Box Office highlights: Cruise has starred in 25 movies that grossed over $100 million in adjusted box office.  He was named as one of Quigley’s Top Box Office Stars 21 times. Critic and audience highlights: He has starred in 25 movies with a 60% or higher rating.  Oscar® love:  Cruise has received 3 acting Oscar® nominations and starred in 5 movies that earned a Best Picture nomination…Rain Man won. Overall he has starred in 18 movies that got at least one Oscar® nomination….with 5 movies winning at least one Oscar®. UMR Must See Movies: Risky Business, Top Gun, Rain Man, Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol, Jerry Maguire, Tropic Thunder, A Few Good Men Our thoughts: There seems to be no middle ground on Tom Cruise…people either love him or hate him…..but all have to acknowledge that his movie career is pretty impressive….and long….his first starring role was over 35 years ago…and he is still going strong.

9th place Harrison Ford (1942-) Box Office highlights: Ford has starred in 24 movies that grossed over $100 million in adjusted box office.  He was named as one of Quigley’s Top Box Office Stars 13 times. Critic and audience highlights: He has starred in 29 movies with a 60% or higher rating.  Oscar® love:  Ford only has 1 acting Oscar® nomination but has starred in 8 movies that earned a Best Picture nomination. Overall he has starred in 17 movies that got at least one Oscar® nomination….with 9 movies winning at least one Oscar®. UMR Must See Movies: Star Wars, Raiders of the Lost Art, The Empire Strikes Back, Blade Runner, Witness, Air Force One, The Fugitive, American Graffiti, Working Girl  Our thoughts:  Han Solo and Indiana Jones….the greatest combination of two roles any actor has ever played.

8th place Denzel Washington (1954-) Box Office highlights: Washington has starred in 14 movies that grossed over $100 million in adjusted box office.  He was named as one of Quigley’s Top Box Office Stars 9 times. Critic and audience highlights: He has starred in 29 movies with a 60% or higher rating.  Oscar® love:  Washington has 6 acting Oscar® nomination…winning twice: Glory & Training Day.  Overall he has starred in 11 movies that got at least one Oscar® nomination….with 3 movies winning at least one Oscar®. UMR Must See Movies: Glory, Philadelphia, Crimson Tide, Training Day, Malcolm X, Unstoppable, Remember the Titans   Our thoughts:  You know you are a star when….just the mention of your first name lets everybody know who is being talked about…well Denzel is owned by Denzel Washington…..yes we stole this idea from Tom Hanks’ Golden Globe® speech about Denzel.

7th place Steve McQueen (1930-1980) Box Office highlights: McQueen starred in 10 movies that grossed over $100 million in adjusted box office.  He was named as one of Quigley’s Top Box Office Stars 9 times. Critic and audience highlights: He starred in 24 movies with a 60% or higher rating.  Oscar® love:  McQueen had 1 acting Oscar® nomination and starred in 2 movies that earned a Best Picture nomination. Overall he starred in 9 movies that got at least one Oscar® nomination….with 3 movies winning at least one Oscar®. UMR Must See Movies: The Magnificent Seven, The Great Escape, Bullitt, The Sand Pebbles, Papillon, The Towering Inferno , The Thomas Crown Affair  Our thoughts:  The King of Cool probably has the least productive career of the 25 actors listed….but McQueen’s cultural impact is still being felt 36 years after his passing.

6th place Jack Lemmon (1925-2001) Box Office highlights: Lemmon starred in 15 movies that grossed over $100 million in adjusted box office.  He was named as one of Quigley’s Top Box Office Stars 8 times. Critic and audience highlights: He starred in 37 movies with a 60% or higher rating.  Oscar® love:  Lemmon received 8 acting Oscar® nominations…winning twice: Mister Roberts and Save the Tiger.  He has starred in 5 movies that earned a Best Picture nomination…The Apartment won. Overall he starred in 21 movies that got at least one Oscar® nomination….with 10 movies winning at least one Oscar®. UMR Must See Movies: Mister Roberts, Some Like It Hot, The Apartment, Days of Wine and Roses, The Odd Couple, The China Syndrome, Missing, Glengarry Glen Ross  Our thoughts:  Lemmon just barely missed making AFI’s Top 50 Screen Legends list….but he has a nice spot in the Top 10 in our list.

5th place Dustin Hoffman (1937-) Box Office highlights: Hoffman has starred in 19 movies that grossed over $100 million in adjusted box office.  He was named as one of Quigley’s Top Box Office Stars 9 times. Critic and audience highlights: He has starred in 34 movies with a 60% or higher rating.  Oscar® love:  Hoffman has 7 acting Oscar® nomination…winning twice: Kramer vs Kramer & Rain Man.  He has starred in 11 movies that earned a Best Picture nomination…three won: Midnight Cowboy, Kramer vs Kramer & Rain Man  . Overall he has starred in 21 movies that got at least one Oscar® nomination….with 9 movies winning at least one Oscar®. UMR Must See Movies: The Graduate, Midnight Cowboy, All The President’s Men, Kramer vs Kramer, Tootsie, Papillon, Rain Man  Our thoughts:  So many great performances in so many great movies.  Maybe if had not taken off most of the 1980s (he only appeared in 2 movies from 1980 to 1987) he would have challenged for the Top Spot in our rankings.

4th place Clint Eastwood (1930-) Box Office highlights: Eastwood starred or directed 31 movies that grossed over $100 million in adjusted box office.  He was named as one of Quigley’s Top Box Office Stars 21 times. Critic and audience highlights: He starred or directed in 42 movies with a 60% or higher rating.  Oscar® love:  Eastwood received 2 acting and 4 directing Oscar® nominations…winning twice: Unforgiven and Million Dollar Baby.  He has starred or directed 7 movies that earned a Best Picture nomination.  Overall he starred or directed in 17 movies that got at least one Oscar® nomination….with 6 movies winning at least one Oscar®. UMR Must See Movies: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly, Dirty Harry, Play Misty For Me, Unforgiven, Million Dollar Baby, In the Line of Fire, Paint Your Wagon (hey we love this movie), Gran Torino  Our thoughts:  From spaghetti westerns, to Dirty Harry, to hanging out with an orangutan to becoming one of the greatest directors of all-time….Clint Eastwood has been successful every step of the way.

3rd place Tom Hanks (1956-) Box Office highlights: Hanks has starred in 23 movies that grossed over $100 million in adjusted box office.  He was named as one of Quigley’s Top Box Office Stars 18 times. Critic and audience highlights: He has starred in 26 movies with a 60% or higher rating.  Oscar® love:  Hanks has 5 acting Oscar® nomination…winning twice: Philadelphia & Forrest Gump.  He has starred in 9 movies that earned a Best Picture nomination…Forrest Gump won. Overall he has starred in 20 movies that got at least one Oscar® nomination….with 6 movies winning at least one Oscar®. UMR Must See Movies: A League of Their Own, Big, Cast Away, The Green Mile, Forrest Gump, Captain Phillips, Apollo 13, Saving Private Ryan   Our thoughts:  The greatest stat we realized while putting this page together?  It has been 15 years since Tom Hanks got an Oscar® nomination.  Did the voters not see his performance in Captain Phillips, Saving Mr. Banks or Bridge of Spies?

2nd place Paul Newman (1925-2008) Box Office highlights: Newman starred in 25 movies that grossed over $100 million in adjusted box office.  He was named as one of Quigley’s Top Box Office Stars 14 times. Critic and audience highlights: He starred in 38 movies with a 60% or higher rating.  Oscar® love:  Newman received 9 acting Oscar® nominations…he won Best Actor for The Color of Money.  He starred in 7 movies that earned a Best Picture nomination…The Sting won. Overall he starred in 26 movies that got at least one Oscar® nomination….with 11 movies winning at least one Oscar®. UMR Must See Movies: Cat on a Hot Tin Roof , The Hustler, Hud, Cool Hand Luke, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, The Sting, Slap Shot, The Verdict, Nobody’s Fool, Road to Perdition  Our thoughts:  Like Jack Lemmon, Newman barely missed making AFI’s Top 50 Screen Legends.  At one point, Newman, was ranked number one.  But in the end Newman dropped to 2nd place….which is still pretty darn good.

1st place Jack Nicholson (1937-) Box Office highlights: Nicholson starred in 19 movies that grossed over $100 million in adjusted box office.  He was named as one of Quigley’s Top Box Office Stars 6 times. Critic and audience highlights: He starred in 36 movies with a 60% or higher rating.  Oscar® love:  Nicholson received 12 acting Oscar® nominations…he won 3 times: One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Terms of Endearment & As Good As It Gets.  He starred in 13 movies that earned a Best Picture nomination…3 won: One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Terms of Endearment & The Departed . Overall he starred in 20 movies that got at least one Oscar® nomination….with 8 movies winning at least one Oscar®. UMR Must See Movies: Five Easy Pieces , Chinatown, One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest, Terms of Endearment, Batman, The Shining, A Few Good Men, Prizzi’s Honor, Witches of Eastwick, The Departed  Our thoughts:  What a career!  Sadly it looks like Jack has retired from acting.  But he has left behind so many great movies.  We think it is hard to argue that anybody has had a better movie career than Jack Nicholson between 1950 and 2010.  Which is why he is ranked as our number one our UMR Screen Legend page

So what do you think of our rankings?  Look good? Think we are crazy? Left somebody out?  Look forward to some feedback.

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Top 25 Screen Legend Actresses – Coming Soon!