Every Will Smith Movie, Ranked Worst to Best
Updated December 1, 2022 to add Emancipation.
First rising to fame in the 1980s as the non-DJ half of the hip hop duo DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince, Will Smith moved into acting in 1990 as the star of the hit NBC sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (soon to be rebooted as a Peacock drama series). He would make his big-screen debut a few years later in a few indie movies before quickly moving to above-the-title stardom with 1995's Bad Boys. He has been a major presence in film ever since, with roles in over 30 films, a pair of Oscar nominations, and a cumulative box office gross of over $4 billion.
His newest film, King Richard, is headed to theaters and HBO Max on November 19th and is expected to be an Oscar contender in multiple categories. How does it compare to his past work? In the gallery on this page, we rank every one of Will Smith's films in order from worst to best by their Metascores, which represent the consensus opinions of top film critics. Note that we have excluded titles where Smith's role was limited to a brief cameo appearance (such as in Winter's Tale, Jersey Girl, and Anchorman 2).
Smith's first Oscar nomination for best actor came in this 2001 biopic in which he stars as the legendary boxer and activist Muhammad Ali. Michael Mann's film, which also brought co-star Jon Voight an Oscar nomination, received a positive reception from critics—a welcome change for Smith following two poorly reviewed films—but it marked the star's third consecutive money-loser at the box office. That trend would end with Smith's next two films, both sequels to some of his past hits.
“While Smith gets into Ali's head and under his skin, the movie around him has more footwork than punch.” —Carrie Rickey, The Philadelphia Inquirer
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