The term “character actor” can often be seen as a pejorative that refers to performers who don’t have traditional leading qualities. However, character actors often have a greater diversity within their performances than most traditional movie stars, and that’s certainly true of the greatWillem Dafoe. In fact, his filmography is so jam-packed with classics that some ofDafoe’s best work has gone unnoticedby many moviegoers. A great cinephile in his own right,often recommending films by other actors,Dafoe is often drawn to strange and singular projects.
Some actors may look at these peculiar films with trepidation, but Dafoe has certainly committed himself to films that may not have earned the same respect otherwise. Between arthouse mind-benders, offbeat horror films, disturbing character dramas, and a few of the biggest comic book films of all time, the four-time Oscar nominee has appeared in his fair share of bizarre movies.These are Willem Dafoe’s weirdest movies, projects that will leave audiences unsettled, confused, and scratching their heads at what they just witnessed.
10‘Streets of Fire’ (1984)
Directed by Walter Hill
Walter Hillhas directed a few cult classics.Streets of Fireis an inventive mashup of rock music, dystopian science fiction, 1950s teen films, and steampunk action sequences. Set in a vaguely dystopian future where motorcycle gangs run rampant throughout a crime-ridden version of Richmond,Streets of Firefeatures one of Dafoe’s most menacing performances as the malevolent biker Raven.
A breakout performance that signified his ability to portray unusual characters, it’s a scenery-chewing role that Dafoe makes the most of.Streets of Firecombines so many genres that it should be a mess, but somehow, Hill was able to pool his influences into something comprehensible. While there is an element of the film’s hyper-sincere approach to adolescent relationships that borders on being too saccharine, Dafoe’s terrifying role ensures that the stakes never feel superfluous.
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9‘Wild at Heart’ (1990)
Directed by David Lynch
David Lynchis arguably the most instrumental figure in the American surrealist filmmaking movement, as he often conjures up startling stories that deal with dreams and nightmares. WhileLynch’s films are weird to a certain degree,Wild at Heartis the most startling and disturbing of Lynch’s cinematic work. The dark take on a road trip love story focuses on the lovers Sailor (Nicolas Cage) and Lula (Laura Dern) as they avoid malicious criminals like Dafoe’s Bobby Peru.
With allusions toThe Wizard of OzandElvis Presley’s music,Wild at Heartweaponizes American iconography to analyze the cyclical nature of evilwithin the nation’s heartland.Dafoe’s bizarre, surrealist performance wouldn’t have fit within a standard crime thriller, but his eccentricity is appropriate given the tremendous ambition of Lynch’s project. Peru is perhaps the most detestable villain of his entire career.
Wild at Heart
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8‘The Boondock Saints’ (1999)
Directed by Troy Duffy
While it’s been accepted as a cult classic by generations of young male film fans,The Boondock Saintsis a complete tonal mess that does little more than lionize gun violence and absurdly masculine archetypes. Nonetheless, Dafoe gives the film’s most entertaining performanceas the FBI Agent Paul Smecker, who is tasked with tracking down the brothers Murphy (Norman Reedus) and Connor MacManus (Sean Patrick Flannery).
Dafoe shows extraordinary commitment to the absurd material; one scene involves Smeck dramatically reenacting a chaotic firefight. WhileThe Boondock Saintsled to an uninspired sequel andwill return for a third installment, it’s hard to imagine the series without Dafoe’s direct involvement. His work single handedly turnsThe Boondock Saintsinto somewhat of an entertaining guilty pleasure watch for action movie buffs.
The Boondock Saints
7‘Dog Eat Dog’ (2016)
Directed by Paul Schrader
Dafoe has worked with filmmakerPaul Schradermultiple times, as his eccentricities as an actor fit perfectly within Schrader’s cynical take on humanity. While it’s rarelyranked among Schrader’s best work, 2016’sDog Eat Dogfeatures a thoroughly upsetting yet darkly amusing performance by Dafoe. He appears as a violent criminal known only as “Mad Dog,” who works alongside the ex-con Roy (Nicolas Cage) as they search for ransom money.
Dog Eat Dogcontains prolonged surrealist sequencesand often features its main characters acting in an intentionally off-putting manner. It’s hard to overact in a movie that co-stars Cage, but Dafoe commits to Schrader’s warped slant on reality, turning Mad Dog into a character beyond reason.Dog Eat Doggoes out of its way to shock the audience, yet Dafoe’s performance is so absurd that it’s hard not to laugh at its sheer audacity.
6‘Vox Lux’ (2018)
Directed by Brady Corbet
A compelling analysis of the mythology of pop music and stardom,Vox Luxexamines the power that art has to heal during times of tragedy.Brady Corbet’s bifurcated film centers on the rise and fall of the pop star Celeste, played in two separate segments byRafey CassidyandNatalie Portman. After an experience with gun violence in her community, the young artist becomes a pop sensation.
Dafoe ties the movie together via voiceovers, offering valuable interpretations of Celeste’s career.Dafoe’s voiceovers giveimportant context toVox Lux, allowing the viewer to latch on to the somewhat existential themes that Corbet is addressing. Dafoe’s terrific delivery of the strange dialogue certainly gives an off-putting quality to the film, which goes between completely realistic and utterly fantastical on a scene-to-scene basis.
5‘At Eternity’s Gate’ (2018)
Directed by Julian Schnabel
Earning his first Academy Award nomination in the Best Actor category, Dafoe gives a very unusual biopic performance as Vincent Van Gogh inAt Eternity’s Gate. Rather than tracking Van Gogh’s achievements traditionally, directorJulian Schnabeltakesa slice-of-life approachto the great artist’s life, exploring how his experiences shaped his painting.
While the cinema verite camerawork is at odds with the period aesthetic,At Eternity’s Gatesucceeds in showing Van Gogh at his most naturalistic. It’s fitting that an actor of Dafoe’s experience was cast as a great artist, as there is a somewhat reflective quality to the way he characterizes Van Gogh’s musings on his achievements.A more traditional approach to his story may have yielded a less interesting film, so it’s to Dafoe’s credit that he manages to give a modern slant to this classical period of history.
At Eternity’s Gate
4‘The Lighthouse’ (2019)
Directed by Robert Eggers
Unnerving, hilarious, and oddly existential at times,The Lighthouseis one of themost psychedelic horror moviesever made. Set on an isolated island off the coast of New England in the 1890s, the film tracks the unusual relationship between the lighthouse’s longtime caretaker (Dafoe) and his young new assistant (Robert Pattinson).
What begins as a straightforward character study emerges as a surrealist work of body horror once fantastical creatures begin to emerge beneath the surface. It quickly becomes clear that Dafoe’s character has only a loose grip on his reality, and may not be all that he seems. DirectorRobert Eggersincorporates no shortage of surrealist imagery, andDafoe and Pattinson’s excellent chemistry givesThe Lighthousea dark sense of humor. It’s impressive that the film provokes such heightened discussion about how it should be interpreted yet remains an entertaining showcase of its stars' aptitude for absurdism.
The Lighthouse
3‘Siberia’ (2021)
Directed by Abel Ferrara
Easily one of the most overlooked and undervalued films of his entire career,Siberiaonly works thanks to Dafoe’s idiosyncratic performance.Abel Ferrara’s surrealist horror film centers on the loner Clint (Dafoe), who reflects upon the totality of his experience while in an isolated cabin in the middle of the winter. Segments of the film provide contextual information about Clint’s past through flashbacks, but a majority ofSiberiarests upon Dafoe’s internalized performance.
While it goes to some disturbing places with its characterization of body horror,Siberiais quite emotional, thanks to Dafoe’s role. He generates sympathy for Clint despite his backstory being relatively ambiguous and a lack of strong characterization.Siberiaoccasionally gets too ambitious for its own good, but Dafoe has a consistency to his performance that justifies the film’s more absurd qualities.It’s an underrated gem that fans of Dafoe shouldn’t overlook.
2’Inside' (2023)
Directed by Vasilis Katsoupis
Dafoe is the only main actor in the psychological thrillerInside.Set within the confines of an extravagant Manhattan high-rise apartment,Insidestars Dafoe as a talented thief who becomes trapped after his attempted burglary goes awry. What begins as a fairly straightforward heist thriller becomes a more sinister project entirely onceDafoe’s character loses sight of his reality.
It’s a testament to Dafoe’s unique charisma thatInsideis as entertaining as it is, as his attempts at survival are intertwined with flashes that reveal intimate details about his childhood and upbringing.Dafoe’s unique performance allowsInsideto lean into surrealism, blurring the lines between reality and dreams as the penthouse begins to feel like a prison. While it’s an unusual premise that requires some patience on the part of the viewer, Dafoe’s commitment to mapping a consistent character arc makesInsidea worthwhile commitment.
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1‘Poor Things’ (2023)
Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos
It remains shocking that a film as bizarre and irreverent asPoor Thingswon multiple Academy Awards andcrossed box office milestones. WhileEmma Stone’s performance as the childlike woman Bella Baxter scored her an Oscar win for Best Actress, Dafoe’s emotional performance is the true heart ofPoor Things. He plays Dr. Godwin Baxter, the genius scientist who serves as a paternal figure in Bella’s life.
Adorned with heavy makeup and placed between surrealist imagery, Dafoe conveys the genuine love that Godwin has for Bella and why he takes so much pride in her development of a singular consciousness.Poor Thingsis satirical and, at times, quite disturbing, but Dafoe ensures that there is an emotional center to the story, keeping it grounded and emotionally resonant. It speaks to his incredible range that he helps turn something as odd asPoor Thingsinto a heartwarming modern classic.
