Guy Pearce movies: 10 greatest films ranked worst to best
In an industry that likes to pigeonhole actors into particular roles, Guy Pearce has proven himself equally adept as a leading man or as a supporting character in a variety of films. Scroll through our photo gallery above (or click here for direct access) as Gold Derby reexamines the 10 best Guy Pearce movies, ranked.
Born in England on October 5, 1967, his family relocated to Australia when Pearce was 3 years old, and he became a competitive bodybuilder as a teen. His acting career began when he was cast in the Australian soap opera “Neighbours” in 1986.
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Pearce’s breakout film role was as drag queen Felicia Jollygoodfellow in the surprise hit Australian film “The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert” in 1994; just three years later he found success in American films with the Oscar-nominated “L.A. Confidential,” and has built an impressive resume of diverse films and television series in the nearly three decades since.
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His most definitive role to date is Leonard Shelby, a man with short-term memory loss determined to find his wife’s killer, in Christopher Nolan’s “Memento,” which earned worldwide acclaim. In 2009 and 2010, he appeared in back-to-back Best Picture Oscar winners “The Hurt Locker” and “The King’s Speech,” while continuing to act in Australian features, such as “Animal Kingdom” (2010), which received numerous accolades. He also took time to star as the villain in the Marvel blockbuster “Iron Man 3” (2013).
In 2011, he was honored with a Primetime Emmy for Best Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Movie for his performance as Monty Beragon in “Mildred Pierce.” Since 2012, he has starred in the popular Australian series “Jack Irish” as the titular character, a criminal lawyer turned private investigator and debt collector.
Despite receiving praise and critics’ recognition for several of his film roles, Pearce has yet to be honored with an Academy Award nomination. That might very well change this year, with his role as the complex typhoon Harrison Lee Van Buren in “The Brutalist,” in which he co-stars alongside Oscar winner Adrien Brody. Both actors, as well as filmmaker Brady Corbet, are receiving recognition, with Pearce and Brody receiving the Cinema Vanguard Award at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival.
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