Paul Newman is among Hollywood’s most revered heavyweight actors of all time. After a half-decade spent cutting his teeth on television, Newman made his big-screen debut in the 1954 film The Silver Chalice. Over the next five decades, Newman earned a staggering 10 Oscar nominations, winning one for his acting talent, one honorary Oscar for his cinematic contributions, and another Humanitarian Oscar for his charitable work outside of the industry.
Newman also scored a whopping 16 Golden Globe nominations from 1957 t0 2006, winning six of them in the process. For a better idea of the man’s invaluable contributions to the world of film, join us as we check out his best movie roles.
10 Lew Harper – Harper/The Drowning Pool (1966-1975)
One of the few times Newman wasn’t nominated for his excellent onscreen performances was as the character of Lew Harper, an unbelievably cool private-eye he played in two separate films over the course of a decade.
Both films were directed by Stuart Rosenberg, lending for a consistent tone across both films. In Harper, Lew gets hired by a wealthy California woman to find her kidnapped husband. In The Drowning Pool, Harper is summoned to the deep American south to help cover up a friend’s marital infidelity. Newman soars in both films.
9 Gallagher – Absence Of Malice (1981)
Newman earned the sixth Oscar nomination of his hall-of-fame career for his work as Gallagher, a shady Miami rum-runner in Sydney Pollack’s first-rate thriller, Absence of Malice.
When a false news story comes out accusing Gallagher (Newman) of being involved with the murder of a local union boss, the liquor salesman’s life begins to disintegrate. Gallagher finds it extra hard to clear his name due to the fact his deceased father was a crooked mafioso. Despite having a solid alibi, Gallagher must keep his mouth shut to protect his close friend, Teresa (Melinda Dillon).
8 Brick Pollitt – Cat On A Hot Tin Roof (1958)
Newman scored the very first Oscar nomination of his stellar career starring opposite Elizabeth Taylor in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Richard Brooks’ sublime adaptation of the classic Tennesee Williams play.
Newman sinks his teeth into the juicy role of Brick Pollitt, a boozy ex-football star who drinks his days away while ignoring his beautiful wife, Maggie (Taylor). When Brick reunites with his larger-than-life, cancer-stricken father, Big Daddy (Burl Ives), an emotional rollercoaster of old wounds and golden memories are conjured.
7 Donald Sullivan – Nobody’s Fool (1994)
Newman gives one of his most subtle, nuanced, and deeply profound performances as Sully, a cranky and obstinate small-town hustler combating age and attrition in Nobody’s Fool. As a result, Newman tallied his ninth and penultimate Oscar nomination.
Adapted by Robert Benton from the Richard Russo novel, Nobody’s Fool is an honest and at times unflattering character portrait of a stubborn older man, Donald Sullivan, who is deadset in his ways in upstate New York. When his estranged family moves back in town, Sully must confront his past in order to move forward.
6 Henry Gondorff – The Sting (1982)
Newman has rarely been cooler and more commanding onscreen than as Harry Gondorf, the wily conman and elderly statesman in George Roy Hill’s classic comedic caper, The Sting.
With unmatched screen chemistry with pal Robert Redford, the film follows the elaborate con-job between Henry Gondorff (Newman) and Johnny Hooker (Redford), who plot and scheme a way to pilfer stacks of cash from a high-stakes poker game. The wisdom Gondorff exudes is only outmatched by his unflappable demeanor.
5 Frank Galvin – The Verdict (1982)
Truth be told, critics and cineastes around the globe often point to Newman’s work in The Verdict as his finest performance of all time. With Sidney Lumet directing from a screenplay by David Mamet, it’s hard to argue against such an assertion.
Newman plays Frank Galvin in the film, a high-functioning alcoholic litigator spending most of his time in pubs. With his career disgraced by drink, Galvin finds a shot at redemption by taking on medical malpractice coverup. Galvin must exorcise his own inner-demons in order to help a victimized family earn justice.
4 Hud Bannon – Hud (1963)
Here’s a trivial tidbit for all you film buffs out there. Following the success of The Hustler and Hud, Newman became superstitious about film titles beginning with the letter H. He then made Harper and Hombre in the next few years.
As for Hud, Newman has rarely inhabited a character so thoroughly and believably as he did with Hud Bannon, a wayward, cocksure, amoral, and self-centered young rancher desperate to get out of his father’s shadow. After accidentally killing his brother in a car wreck, Hud turns to booze to numb the pain. A deeply heartbreaking and well-deserved Oscar-nominated performance.
3 Luke Jackson – Cool Hand Luke (1967)
Newman landed his fourth Oscar nod in nine years as the title character in Cool Hand Luke, the iconic countercultural rebel unwilling to conform to the laws of the U.S. penal code.
Following a two-year prison sentence, Luke Jackson is sent to serve time in southern U.S. prison. Upon arrival, Newman oozes an unparalleled level of coolness as he refuses to abide by the lawful strictures of the prison industrial complex. Luke’s indomitable spirit is threatened to be crushed under the oppressive prison regime.
2 Butch Cassidy – Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid (1969)
It’s hard to believe that Newman was neither nominated for The Sting nor Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Not an Oscar or Golden Globe. Nothing!
And yet, we all know deep down that Butch Cassidy is among the most iconic characters Newman has ever had the fortune of portraying. The droll interplay between Butch and Sundance is second-to-none, rendering the Newman/Redford pairing among the best pieces of casting ever achieved. It’s a monumental classic.
1 Eddie Felson – The Hustler/The Color Of Money (1961-1986)
For his excellent turn as Fast Eddie Felson in The Hustler, Newman scored the second Academy Award nod of his career. Twenty-five years later, Newman finally won the elusive Best Actor Oscar for playing the exact same role in The Color of Money.
In The Hustler, Felson is a fresh-faced poolhall junky trying to make a fortune by conning less-skilled players. In The Color of Money, Felson is a tired, world-weary hustling vet who takes a young hotshot pool player (Tom Cruise) under his wing to teach him all the lessons he’s learned over the last 25 years.
