John Lithgow
Best known as a Supporting Actor based on credits in that role in 26 films, with $3,342,019,503 worldwide aggregate box office (rank #345) |
Best-known acting roles: Donald (Interstellar), Charles Rodman (Rise of the Planet of the Apes), Lord Farquaad (Shrek), Mr. Whitaker (Daddy’s Home 2), Fergus (Pitch Perfect 3) |
Most productive collaborators: James Franco, Rupert Wyatt, Matthew McConaughey, Christopher Nolan, Freida Pinto |
Born: October 19, 1945 (78 years old) |
Career Summary
Movies | Domestic Box Office | International Box Office | Worldwide Box Office | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
As an Actor | Supporting | 26 | $1,681,612,254 | $1,660,407,249 | $3,342,019,503 |
Leading | 6 | $135,556,628 | $72,618,584 | $208,175,212 | |
Lead Ensemble Member | 1 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
(Unclassified) | 21 | $470,877,509 | $32,242,643 | $503,120,152 |
Career Trend
This graph shows John Lithgow’s score on our annual analysis of leading stars at the box office. The Star Score represents points assigned to each of the leading stars of the top 100 movies (based on box office) in the current year and two preceding years. For appearing in the number one movie in a year a star gets 100 points, the number two movie 99 points and so on..
Latest Ranking on Selected Box Office Record Lists
Record | Rank | Amount |
---|---|---|
Top 100 Stars in Leading Roles at the Domestic Box Office (Rank 1,301-1,400) | 1,304 | $135,556,628 |
Top Stars at the Domestic Box Office (Rank 201-300) | 284 | $2,288,046,391 |
Top 100 Stars in Leading Roles at the International Box Office (Rank 1,901-2,000) | 1,922 | $72,618,584 |
Top Stars at the International Box Office (Rank 701-800) | 761 | $1,765,268,476 |
Top 100 Stars in Leading Roles at the Worldwide Box Office (Rank 1,501-1,600) | 1,569 | $208,175,212 |
Top Stars at the Worldwide Box Office (Rank 401-500) | 481 | $4,053,314,867 |
See the Acting Credits tab for all Acting Box Office Records and the Technical Credits tab for all Technical Box Office Records.
2019 Preview: December
December 1st, 2019
Frozen II wasn’t the only box office hit to debut in November, but it was by far the largest. It helped save November and kept 2019 from turning completely sour at the last minute. As for December, we have several potential $100 million hits, plus a couple of monster hits. There are some who think Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker will be the biggest domestic hit released in 2019, but most think it will have to settle for second place. Jumanji: The Next Level should also be a monster hit, even if it doesn’t come really close to its predecessor. As for last December, Aquaman was the undisputed champion, earning almost as much as the next two films combined. Jumanji could top Aquaman at the box office, while we could also have more $100 million films than we had last year. Add in Star Wars and the year should end on a really positive note, making up for the extended slumps we had to deal with through a lot of the year. 2019 won’t be able to close the gap entirely, but it will do enough that we will be able to celebrate.
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Bombshell Trailer
August 22nd, 2019
Real-life drama starring Charlize Theron, Nicole Kidman, Margot Robbie, and John Lithgow opens December 20 ... Full Movie Details.
A revealing look inside the most powerful and controversial media empire of all time; Fox News, and the explosive story of the women who brought down the infamous man who created it.
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Limited and VOD Releases: Documenting the History of Art
May 24th, 2019
Documentaries dominate this week’s list of limited releases with five such films appearing below. All of them are about an artist, music, or fashion, so if you are into those, you are in luck. Of these, I think Woodstock: Three Days That Defined a Generation will do the best. Meanwhile, there are a couple of VOD titles that are also worth checking out: Avengement and Funny Story.
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2017 - Holiday Gift Guide - Part III - Limited Releases, Classics, Foreign Imports
December 16th, 2017
Both the first installment First-run Releases and the second installment, TV on DVD releases, were shorter than I would have liked, as this hasn’t been a great year for either wide releases or TV on DVD releases. That said, the third installment of our Holiday Gift Guide deals with limited releases, classics, and foreign imports and this list can get out of hand rather quickly. There will more releases on this list than the previous two, starting with...
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2017 Preview: November
November 1st, 2017
October wasn’t a good month; then again, outside of a few bright spots, the overall box office has been a disaster since early summer. I would love to say November will turn things around, but, while it should be better, in this case “better” is a relative term. There are two films on this list with a chance at $300 million, Thor: Ragnarok and Justice League, while Coco is nearly a guarantee for $200 million. By comparison, last November had a similar result with three films earning between $200 million and $300 million, but none topping that figure. This means, if Thor: Ragnarok and Justice League both get to that milestone, then 2017 could cut into 2016’s lead during the month. It will still take a minor miracle for 2017 to catch up in the end, but just cutting the lead in half by the end of December would be a reason to celebrate at this point.
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Featured DVD Review: Beatriz at Dinner
September 11th, 2017
Beatriz at Dinner came out in limited release this past summer earning reviews that are good, but not great. Its box office results were very good for a limited release earning just over $7 million, but it never quite cracked the top ten. Does the film’s quality match this result? Is it good, but not great? Or did it deserve breakout success?
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Daddy’s Home 2 Trailer
September 6th, 2017
Comedy starring Will Ferrell, Mark Wahlberg, Mel Gibson, and John Lithgow opens November 10 ... Full Movie Details.
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Limited and VOD Releases: Dinner and a Movie
June 9th, 2017
It is not a particularly busy week as far as limited releases are concerned. However, there are a few that have a shot at earning some mainstream success: Beatriz at Dinner, I, Daniel Blake, and My Cousin Rachel. There’s a chance none of them will do well this weekend, but hopefully they can all find an audience.
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Beatriz at Dinner Trailer
April 17th, 2017
Drama starring Salma Hayek and John Lithgow opens June 9 ... Full Movie Details.
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Featured Blu-ray / DVD Review: Interstellar
March 30th, 2015
Interstellar is the latest film from Christopher Nolan, a director who has performed amazingly well at the box office. He's also never directed a film that earned bad reviews. Is this film as good as his past record? Or are there flaws starting to show in his directing style?
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2014 - Holiday Gift Guide - Part IV
December 20th, 2014
The final installment of our annual Holiday Gift Guide involves books, music, and whatever DVD and Blu-rays I forgot the first time around. Also, like every year, I use this as an opportunity do go over some screeners that arrived late and that I didn't have time to go through in-depth. Like I've said the first three times, I didn't feel like there was a huge amount of DVDs and Blu-ray that came out this year, so I really hope I didn't miss out much. We can start out with...
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2014 - Awards Season: Independent Spirit Awards - Nominations
December 6th, 2014
The Independent Spirit Awards nominations were announced last week and I'm getting to them a little late, because I needed to organize the whole Awards Season stories. Firstly, I've decided to use the year the movies were released not the year the awards are handed out, unlike what we did last year. This means both will have 2014 as the year. Not ideal, but it is better to fix the mistake now than carry on making it. Secondly, the headlines are just going to be the name of the Awards and either nominations or winners. This will make it easier for readers to find later on. As for the Independent Spirit Awards nominations, Birdman led the way with 6 nods, while Boyhood, Nightcrawler, and Selma were right behind with 5 each.
Limited Releases are Strange
August 22nd, 2014
It's a short list this week with only a handful of films. Fortunately, there are two films opening in limited release that are earning strong buzz and great reviews: Love is Strange and The One I Love. Both should find audiences in theaters. Another film, To Be Takei, is also earning great reviews and could do better than most documentaries.
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Featured TV on DVD Review: Dexter: Season Seven
May 13th, 2013
During the first five seasons of Dexter, there was only one season that I didn't think was amazing. Season four had the best John Lithgow guest star in the show's run. Season five shook things up, as the main guest star wasn't the big bad for the season. As a result, expectations for season six were incredibly high. The season didn't live up to them. In fact, I thought season six was the weakest season in the show's run so far. The only part that really worked was the cliffhanger finale. Because of this, expectations for season seven are mixed. Will the show live up to the cliffhanger ending? Or is the show on a downward slope in terms of quality?
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Featured Blu-ray / DVD Review: This is 40
March 19th, 2013
This is 40 is a spin-off from Knocked-Up, which remains Judd Apatow's biggest hit and one of his most loved films. It had high expectations associated with it, but it failed to live up to them. Is it a case of the expectations being just too high? Or did it struggle because it is a flawed film?
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2012 Preview: December
December 1st, 2012
November was a strong month and left 2012 with a very easy path to a new all time record. There was only one major miss the entire month, Rise of the Guardians, while The Silver Linings Playbook was pulled from wide release at the last minute, so it is a little hard to judge its box office performance. On the positive side, Skyfall might top original expectations by $100 million. All this December has to do is maintain pace with last December to ensure 2012 sets the new record. I would like to say that will be easy to do, but I really don't know. Last year, there was only one $200 million hit, Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol, plus a few others that reached $100 million, so the bar isn't set too high. This year, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is expected to at least come close to $300 million. Some think it will earn more than $400 million. However, it could also be the last film to make $100 million till February. December is normally a very good month to release a film, but the release schedule is so messed up that it makes it very hard to predict what will happen. There appears to be just ten films opening truly wide this month (I'm getting mixed signals on a few of them). That's a really light schedule for a month and a light schedule tends to help maximize the box office potential for individual films. However, eight of these films open wide within a seven-day period. That's insane. There's no way all of those films will find an audience and there's a chance that due to the competition, none of them will. Let's hope the situation isn't as bad as that, but there are some serious reasons to be concerned for most new releases coming out this month.
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All Acting Credits
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Release Date | Title | Role | Domestic Box Office | International Box Office | Worldwide Box Office |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2024 | Spellbound | Minister Bolinar | |||
Nov 1, 2024 | Conclave | Cardinal Tremblay | |||
Mar 8, 2024 | Cabrini | Mayor Gould | $19,413,718 | $747,125 | $20,160,843 |
Feb 10, 2023 | Sharper | Richard Hobbes | |||
May 7, 2021 | Emily @ The Edge of Chaos | Sir Isaac Newton | |||
Dec 13, 2019 | Bombshell | Roger Ailes | $31,762,808 | $29,641,586 | $61,404,394 |
Jun 7, 2019 | Late Night | Walter Lovell | $15,500,045 | $6,873,333 | $22,373,378 |
May 22, 2019 | The Tomorrow Man | Ed Hemsler | $354,103 | $354,103 | |
Apr 5, 2019 | Pet Sematary | Jud Creed | $54,724,696 | $57,085,036 | $111,809,732 |
Dec 7, 2018 | Divide and Conquer: Th… | Roger Ailes | $38,510 | $38,510 | |
Dec 22, 2017 | Pitch Perfect 3 | Fergus | $104,897,530 | $80,838,882 | $185,736,412 |
Nov 10, 2017 | Daddy’s Home 2 | Mr. Whitaker | $104,029,443 | $71,777,740 | $175,807,183 |
Jun 9, 2017 | Beatriz at Dinner | Doug Strutt | $7,115,854 | $178,182 | $7,294,036 |
Nov 25, 2016 | Miss Sloane | Senator Ronald Sp… | $3,500,605 | $4,267,654 | $7,768,259 |
Oct 14, 2016 | The Accountant | Lamar Blackburn | $86,260,045 | $66,702,038 | $152,962,083 |
Nov 14, 2014 | The Homesman | Reverend Alfred Dowd | $2,429,989 | $5,787,582 | $8,217,571 |
Nov 5, 2014 | Interstellar | Donald | $188,017,894 | $459,033,388 | $647,051,282 |
Aug 22, 2014 | Love is Strange | Ben | $2,262,555 | $662,662 | $2,925,217 |
Dec 21, 2012 | This is 40 | Oliver | $67,544,505 | $22,676,677 | $90,221,182 |
Aug 10, 2012 | The Campaign | Glenn Motch | $86,907,746 | $18,000,000 | $104,907,746 |
Aug 5, 2011 | Rise of the Planet of … | Charles Rodman | $176,760,185 | $294,226,015 | $470,986,200 |
Jan 8, 2010 | Leap Year | Jack | $25,918,920 | $6,700,000 | $32,618,920 |
Feb 13, 2009 | Confessions of a Shopa… | Edgar West | $44,277,350 | $63,750,351 | $108,027,701 |
Dec 15, 2006 | Dreamgirls | Jerry Harris | $103,365,956 | $52,254,394 | $155,620,350 |
Dec 5, 2004 | The Life and Death of … | $2,539,827 | $2,539,827 | ||
Nov 12, 2004 | Kinsey | Alfred Seguine Ki… | $10,214,647 | $7,228,882 | $17,443,529 |
Jan 11, 2002 | Orange County | Bud Brumder | $41,059,716 | $2,248,991 | $43,308,707 |
May 18, 2001 | Shrek | Lord Farquaad | $268,028,651 | $224,157,783 | $492,186,434 |
Nov 17, 2000 | Rugrats in Paris | Jean-Claude | $76,501,438 | $26,783,375 | $103,284,813 |
Dec 25, 1998 | A Civil Action | Judge Skinner | $56,709,981 | $56,709,981 | |
Apr 17, 1998 | Homegrown | Malcolm/Robert St… | $215,553 | $215,553 | |
Oct 28, 1994 | Silent Fall | Dr. Harlinger | $3,180,000 | $3,180,000 | |
Sep 16, 1994 | Princess Caraboo | Professor Wilkinson | $2,984,777 | $92,578 | $3,077,355 |
Sep 9, 1994 | A Good Man in Africa | Arthur Fanshawe | $2,308,390 | $2,308,390 | |
Dec 17, 1993 | The Pelican Brief | Smith Keen | $100,768,056 | $87,227,803 | $187,995,859 |
May 28, 1993 | Cliffhanger | Eric Qualen | $84,049,211 | $170,950,789 | $255,000,000 |
Aug 7, 1992 | Raising Cain | Carter/Cain/Docto… | $21,171,695 | $21,171,695 | |
Dec 6, 1991 | At Play in the Fields … | Leslie Huben | $1,342,903 | $1,342,903 | |
Oct 4, 1991 | Ricochet | Earl Talbott Blake | $21,756,163 | $21,756,163 | |
Feb 8, 1991 | L.A. Story | Harry Zell (scene… | $28,854,480 | $28,854,480 | |
Oct 12, 1990 | Memphis Belle | Col. Bruce Derringer | $27,385,582 | $27,385,582 | |
Jun 5, 1987 | Harry and the Hendersons | George Henderson | $29,760,613 | $2,800,000 | $32,560,613 |
Jun 13, 1986 | The Manhattan Project | Dr. John Mathewson | $3,900,000 | $3,900,000 | |
Nov 29, 1985 | Santa Claus | B.Z. | $23,717,291 | $25,849 | $23,743,140 |
Dec 7, 1984 | 2010 | Walter Curnow | $41,000,000 | $41,000,000 | |
Aug 10, 1984 | The Adventures of Buck… | Doctor Emilio Liz… | $6,300,000 | $6,300,000 | |
Feb 17, 1984 | Footloose | Reverend Shaw Moore | $80,000,000 | $8,940 | $80,008,940 |
Nov 23, 1983 | Terms of Endearment | Sam Burns | $108,423,489 | $260 | $108,423,749 |
Jun 24, 1983 | Twilight Zone: The Movie | John Valentine (S… | $29,500,000 | $29,500,000 | |
Jul 23, 1982 | The World According to… | Roberta Muldoon | $30,207,324 | $30,207,324 | |
Jul 24, 1981 | Blow Out | Burke | $13,747,234 | $754 | $13,747,988 |
Dec 20, 1979 | All That Jazz | Lucas Sergeant | $37,823,676 | $37,823,676 | |
Aug 17, 1979 | Rich Kids | Paul Philips | $53,064 | $53,064 | |
1978 | The Big Fix | Sam Sebastian/Osc… | $12,000,000 | $12,000,000 | |
Averages | $46,694,824 | $56,944,144 | $81,066,297 | ||
Totals | 54 | $2,288,046,391 | $1,765,268,476 | $4,053,314,867 |
Leading or Lead Ensemble Roles
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Release Date | Title | Opening Weekend | Maximum Theaters | Domestic Box Office | Worldwide Box Office | Domestic Share |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Feb 10, 2023 | Sharper | |||||
May 22, 2019 | The Tomorrow Man | $18,281 | 211 | $354,103 | $354,103 | 100.0% |
Dec 7, 2018 | Divide and Conquer: Th… | $18,833 | 16 | $38,510 | $38,510 | 100.0% |
Nov 10, 2017 | Daddy’s Home 2 | $29,651,193 | 3,575 | $104,029,443 | $175,807,183 | 59.2% |
Jun 9, 2017 | Beatriz at Dinner | $141,959 | 683 | $7,115,854 | $7,294,036 | 97.6% |
Aug 22, 2014 | Love is Strange | $117,276 | 138 | $2,262,555 | $2,925,217 | 77.3% |
Oct 4, 1991 | Ricochet | $4,831,181 | 1,560 | $21,756,163 | $21,756,163 | 100.0% |
Averages | $5,796,454 | 1,031 | $22,592,771 | $34,695,869 | 89.0% | |
Totals | 7 | $135,556,628 | $208,175,212 |
Supporting Roles
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Release Date | Title | Opening Weekend | Maximum Theaters | Domestic Box Office | Worldwide Box Office | Domestic Share |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2024 | Spellbound | |||||
Nov 1, 2024 | Conclave | |||||
Mar 8, 2024 | Cabrini | $7,168,520 | 2,850 | $19,413,718 | $20,160,843 | 96.3% |
May 7, 2021 | Emily @ The Edge of Chaos | |||||
Dec 13, 2019 | Bombshell | $319,157 | 1,721 | $31,762,808 | $61,404,394 | 51.7% |
Jun 7, 2019 | Late Night | $246,305 | 2,220 | $15,500,045 | $22,373,378 | 69.3% |
Apr 5, 2019 | Pet Sematary | $24,502,775 | 3,585 | $54,724,696 | $111,809,732 | 48.9% |
Dec 22, 2017 | Pitch Perfect 3 | $19,928,525 | 3,468 | $104,897,530 | $185,736,412 | 56.5% |
Nov 25, 2016 | Miss Sloane | $59,797 | 1,648 | $3,500,605 | $7,768,259 | 45.1% |
Oct 14, 2016 | The Accountant | $24,710,273 | 3,402 | $86,260,045 | $152,962,083 | 56.4% |
Nov 14, 2014 | The Homesman | $45,433 | 222 | $2,429,989 | $8,217,571 | 29.6% |
Nov 5, 2014 | Interstellar | $47,510,360 | 3,561 | $188,017,894 | $647,051,282 | 29.1% |
Dec 21, 2012 | This is 40 | $11,579,175 | 2,931 | $67,544,505 | $90,221,182 | 74.9% |
Aug 10, 2012 | The Campaign | $26,588,460 | 3,302 | $86,907,746 | $104,907,746 | 82.8% |
Aug 5, 2011 | Rise of the Planet of … | $54,806,191 | 3,691 | $176,760,185 | $470,986,200 | 37.5% |
Jan 8, 2010 | Leap Year | $9,202,815 | 2,512 | $25,918,920 | $32,618,920 | 79.5% |
Feb 13, 2009 | Confessions of a Shopa… | $15,066,360 | 2,534 | $44,277,350 | $108,027,701 | 41.0% |
Dec 15, 2006 | Dreamgirls | $378,950 | 2,797 | $103,365,956 | $155,620,350 | 66.4% |
Nov 12, 2004 | Kinsey | $169,038 | 588 | $10,214,647 | $17,443,529 | 58.6% |
Jan 11, 2002 | Orange County | $15,053,226 | 2,317 | $41,059,716 | $43,308,707 | 94.8% |
May 18, 2001 | Shrek | $42,347,760 | 3,715 | $268,028,651 | $492,186,434 | 54.5% |
Dec 25, 1998 | A Civil Action | $70,079 | 2,069 | $56,709,981 | $56,709,981 | 100.0% |
Dec 17, 1993 | The Pelican Brief | $16,864,404 | 2,022 | $100,768,056 | $187,995,859 | 53.6% |
May 28, 1993 | Cliffhanger | $20,458,022 | 2,431 | $84,049,211 | $255,000,000 | 33.0% |
Feb 17, 1984 | Footloose | $8,556,935 | 1,384 | $80,000,000 | $80,008,940 | 100.0% |
Jun 24, 1983 | Twilight Zone: The Movie | $6,614,366 | 1,288 | $29,500,000 | $29,500,000 | 100.0% |
Averages | $15,315,084 | 2,446 | $73,113,576 | $145,305,196 | 63.4% | |
Totals | 26 | $1,681,612,254 | $3,342,019,503 |