James McAvoy is a brilliant Scottish actor who has proven himself to be a chameleon on screen, famously starring in films like Atonement and Split. Since his cinematic debut in 1995’s The Near Room, the lauded performer has captivated audiences with his riveting performances and has appeared in roles of all shapes and sizes, first gaining prominence on television as Steve McBride in Britain’s Shameless and as Mr. Tumnus in The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.
From portraying a disturbed man with 23 personalities to the personal physician of a ruthless dictator to bringing to life a beloved Marvel Comics character, McAvoy is without-a-doubt one of Hollywood’s most diverse and fascinating actors. The recipient of prestigious accolades like a British Academy Film Award and two Empire Awards (among countless others and impressive nominations), the actor continues to dominate the big screen and will appear in the upcoming films The Book of Clarence and Speak No Evil. These are James McAvoy’s 12 best movies, according to Rotten Tomatoes.
12 Wanted - 71%
Touting a stellar ensemble cast including James McAvoy, Angelina Jolie, and Morgan Freeman, the 2008 action thriller Wanted centers on down-on-his-luck office worker Wesley Gibson as he finds his world turned upside down when he discovers that his father was a lethal assassin, and he is the killer's rightful heir and can follow in the man's footsteps. Wesley learns his estranged father was a member of the Fraternity, a secret society of skilled assassins, and he is trained by the group's top members and is taught superhuman murdering skills.
Wanted dazzled moviegoers with its spellbinding storyline and thrilling special effects, with Wesley famously being shown how to "curve the bullet" in his riveting training by the Fraternity. It was a departure from the usual films McAvoy appeared in, and the actor rightfully believed it would help make him more versatile as a performer. The thriller earned additional praise for its fast pace and dynamic portrayals.
11 Bollywood Queen - 71%
In one of McAvoy's earliest leading roles, the diverse actor appeared in the 2002 romantic comedy Bollywood Queen, a mix between Romeo and Juliet and West Side Story that follows the unlikely romance between a young Indian woman and Scottish man as they meet and fall in love in London's East End. The star-crossed lovers are faced with both an intense culture clash and their overbearing parents, who are sworn professional rivals, with the bold and vibrant film depicting their blossoming relationship despite the many hurdles standing in their way.
Bollywood Queen had its worldwide premiere at the Sundance Film Festival, where it earned mainly glowing reviews, with Empire Magazine writing, "In his debut feature, James Wooding has combined a troubled romance with shades of mysticism and the kitschy, over-the-top glamour of a Bollywood musical to come up with a pleasantly original mix."
10 The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe - 76%
C.S. Lewis' beloved children's novel was brought to life in spectacular fashion in the 2005 high fantasy film The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, telling the engrossing tale of four English siblings during the Blitz in World War II who are sent to the countryside for safety. They make the wondrous discovery of an enchanted wardrobe that leads them to the magical eponymous world. McAvoy was just 26 years old when he portrayed the prominent role of Mr. Tumnus, a faun whom Lucy Pevensie (Georgie Henley) first meets in Narnia and who helps the young girl and her siblings navigate the fascinating kingdom.
The character was extremely important to cast, as he served as the initial inspiration for the entire Narnia book series after Lewis first had a vision in his head of the mythical creature and McAvoy earned widespread recognition for the part. The Chronicles of Narnia went on to earn a whopping $745 million at the box office and won the Academy Award for Best Makeup, and spawned two additional sequels in 2008 and 2010.
9 Split - 78%
In arguably one of the finest and most buzzed about performances of his career, McAvoy headlined M. Night Shyamalan's 2016 psychological thriller Split, brilliantly appearing as a man with dissociative identity disorder who has 23 alternate personalities, and who kidnaps three teenage girls and imprisons them in an underground lair beneath the Philadelphia Zoo. The girls must race against time to find a way to escape their confines, as the disturbed man will eventually release his 24th and most terrifying personality that would spell certain doom for the adolescents.
Split serves as the sequel to the 2000 film Unbreakablestarring Bruce Willis, and McAvoy's phenomenal portrayal of the dangerous Kevin Wendell Crumb was singled out by critics as one of the best in his illustrious career. He went on to win the San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Male Actor and would reprise the spine-tingling role for the conclusion of the superhero series, 2019's Glass.
8 Atomic Blonde - 79%
Charlize Theron became a bona fide action star when she portrayed the butt-kicking MI6 agent Lorraine Broughton in the 2017 action thriller Atomic Blonde, focusing on the elite spy as she is tasked with retrieving a valuable dossier and investigating the murder of a colleague in Berlin during the Cold War. McAvoy appears as Lorraine's fellow agent David Percival, who is assigned to help her get to the bottom of the killing but harbors his own secret agenda in the process.
Theron's performance as the resilient Lorraine was lauded by critics, and the thriller's epic fight scenes and many twists and turns helped establish it as both a box office hit and a success with critics. Atomic Blonde has been favorably compared to the John Wick franchise, with fans calling for a crossover project for both films. A sequel is currently in the works at Netflix, with Theron set to reprise her role.
7 Strings - 80%
In the English-dubbed version of the Danish 2004 animated fantasy Strings, McAvoy voices Prince Hal, the son of a seemingly assassinated ruler who sets out to avenge the murder of his father, not realizing that the guilty king actually took his own life and his death was staged to look like an attack by the man's calculating and power-hungry brother. While on his mission for revenge against the opposing rebel tribe, he believes is at fault, Hal discovers the truth about not only his father's death but also his people and his deceitful uncle, and the young man must make things right before it's too late.
Set in a breathtaking alternative world where the marionettes are directly connected to a greater power via their strings, the animated picture features stunning visuals, an engrossing premise, and clever characters, and is an often overlooked film in McAvoy's impressive repertoire. It went on to win the Best Children's Film at the Robert Awards, a prestigious cinema prize awarded by the Danish Film Academy.
6 Atonement - 83%
Based on the Ian McEwan novel of the same name, the 2007 romantic war drama Atonement stars James McAvoy and Keira Knightley as lovers Robbie Turner and Cecilia Tallis, whose blossoming relationship is torn apart after the young woman's envious 13-year-old sister Briony (Saoirse Ronan) accuses Robbie of a crime he didn't commit, causing a devastating chain of events that profoundly affect the course of each other their lives. McAvoy's role in the critically-lauded picture was his breakthrough role, and he was director Joe Wright's first choice to portray the lead character in the drama.
Wright wanted someone who "had the acting ability to take the audience with him on his personal and physical journey" and felt that "there is something undeniably charming about McAvoy." Atonement premiered to rave reviews from critics and was one of the most lauded releases at the Toronto International Film Festival, and both McAvoy and Knightley earned Golden Globe nominations for their poignant portrayals.
5 X-Men: First Class - 86%
McAvoy followed in Patrick Stewart's footsteps when he took on the celebrated role of the telepathic mutant leader Charles Xavier in the 2011 superhero flick X-Men: First Class, which provides passionate fans of the Marvel Comics hit a look at how both the X-Men and the Brotherhood of Mutants first came to be, with Michael Fassbender appearing as Xavier's friend-turned-nemesis Erik Lehnsherr also known as Magneto. Set during the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962, the exciting flick details the opposing groups as they attempt to deal with the nefarious Hellfire Club and their mutant supremacist leader Sebastian Shaw (Kevin Bacon).
The talented actor specifically avoided creating any parallels between his version of the character and Stewart's, and though he never read the comics as a child, McAvoy enjoyed the '90s X-Men animates series. X-Men: First Class went on to become a box office success and was a knockout with critics and audiences, leading to three electrifying sequels centering on the younger iterations of the characters.
4 The Last King of Scotland - 87%
With a gifted ensemble cast led by Forest Whitaker, James McAvoy, and Kerry Washington, the 2006 historical drama The Last King of Scotland chronicles the reign of Ugandan President Idi Amina, a ruthless military dictator who served as the country's leader from 1971 to 1979 and was regarded as one of the most vicious tyrants in modern day history. In the riveting picture, McAvoy stars as the fictional Scottish doctor Nicholas Garrigan, who witnesses the many atrocities Amina commits and finds himself desperately trying to evade the cruel ruler's grasp.
The Last King of Scotland earned Whitaker the Academy Award for Best Actor and McAvoy himself was named Best Actor of the Year by BAFTA in Scotland, and the duo's captivating chemistry was singled out by critics. Whitaker's performance as the merciless dictator remains one of his finest and the film powerfully captures his eight-year reign of terror.
3 Starter for 10 - 90%
Adapted from the David Nichols novel of the same name, the 2006 British dramedy Starter for 10 follows the brilliant Bristol University student Brian Jackson (McAvoy) as he wins a highly coveted spot on the television quiz program University Challenge in 1985 while juggling the affections of two beautiful fellow students. Then up-and-coming stars like Benedict Cumberbatch, Rebecca Hall, and Dominic Cooper co-star in the endearing film, with McAvoy once again proving his skills as a leading man and his ability to headline any genre.
Despite earning widespread acclaim from critics, Starter for 10 failed to make a splash at the box office and proved to be a flop, but McAvoy's performance nonetheless was singled out; Bay Area Reporter wrote at the time, "McAvoy is piling up an impressive resume of leading-guy roles for an actor who doesn't at first glance possess leading-guy looks."
2 X-Men: Days of Future Past - 90%
McAvoy once again portrayed the founder of Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters Professor X in the 2014 superhero flick X-Men: Days of Future Past, this time sharing the epic role with Patrick Stewart in a sensational installment that depicts two time periods in a dystopian 2023 and 1973, focusing on Logan (Hugh Jackman) as he travels back in time in hopes of preventing a devastating event that would lead to the demise of both mutants and humans.
Director Bryan Singer noted that the younger Professor X is "a very different beast from First Class's feckless playboy. He's a wounded animal, bearded, long-haired, filled with rage at the way the world has treated him." The highly-anticipated sequel featured a blending of both the original franchise's cast and its new one and raked in a whopping $746 million at the box office while being lauded for its thrilling action sequences, riveting storyline, and commanding performances.
1 Arthur Christmas - 92%
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In the 2011 animated holiday comedy Arthur Christmas, James McAvoy provides his vocal talent as the lead character Arthur Claus, the bumbling but kind-hearted son of Santa Claus who sets out on a courageous mission to deliver a present to a young girl after her gift was accidentally overlooked and failed to be delivered via old Saint Nick's complex delivery operation system. Arthur teams up with his ornery grandpa Grandsanta (Bill Nighy), his trusted reindeer, and passionate young elf Bryony Shelfley (Ashley Jenson) on his noble quest to bring joy to every child in the world on the holly jolly holiday.
Arthur Christmas was a hit with both audiences and critics, grossing over $147 million while garnering appreciation for its wholesome story and beautiful 3-D animation. Moviegoers awarded the film an A- CinemaScore and in their glowing review of the comedy, MovieFreak.com declared, "Original and inspired, this joyful animated frolic is seriously entertaining, audiences of all ages sure to eat up its heartwarming Yule-tied message of family, resilience and togetherness that's as touching as it is wonderful."
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