Special Report

Christian Bale’s Best Movies, According to Fans

Jason Merritt/TERM / Getty Images

Oftentimes, even actors with the longest careers in Hollywood get to be forever known  for the one iconic role they played. Christian Bale, however, is perhaps one of few who doesn’t fit in such a category because he played more than one emblematic role. Can you imagine another American psycho or a more sensitive and intelligent portrayal of Bruce Wayne?

Based on Rotten Tomatoes movie ratings, 24/7 Tempo assembled a list of the best movies starring Christian Bale. We ranked the films based on their Rotten Tomatoes audience score. Foreign movies in which Bale starred were excluded due to missing data.

The British actor has become one of the most sought-after actors in Hollywood over the last two decades. Many people may forget that he actually started as a child actor — Bale is a rare example of one becoming a strong leading man.

Bale’s first appearance in a major feature film was in 1987, when he was 13 years old, in Steven Spielberg’s “Empire of the Sun.” He played a boy who was separated from his parents and taken to a confinement camp after the Japanese invasion of Shanghai in 1941.

Over the years, Bale has become known for his work ethic and the intensity with which he prepares for and plays his characters, dedicating himself so much that he even gained and lost a lot of weight for various roles.

Bale has been nominated for an Oscar four times, twice in the leading actor category and twice in the supporting actor category. His sole win so far was in 2011 for playing a troubled boxing trainer for his half-brother in “The Fighter.”

Whether it’s a superhero flick or a biography drama, Bale has starred in some of Hollywood’s top grossing films. These are the most bankable actors of the 21st century.

Click here to see fan-favorite movies starring Christian Bale

Courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox

33. Exodus: Gods and Kings (2014)
> RT audience score: 35%
> Tomatometer: 31%
> Fellow leads: Joel Edgerton, Ben Kingsley
> Director: Ridley Scott
> Domestic box office: $65,000,000

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Courtesy of Broad Green Pictures

32. Knight of Cups (2015)
> RT audience score: 37%
> Tomatometer: 47%
> Fellow leads: Cate Blanchett, Natalie Portman
> Director: Terrence Malick
> Domestic box office: $566,000

Courtesy of Paramount Pictures

31. Shaft (2000)
> RT audience score: 41%
> Tomatometer: 67%
> Fellow leads: Samuel L. Jackson, Vanessa Williams
> Director: John Singleton
> Domestic box office: $70,300,000

Courtesy of Buena Vista Pictures

30. Reign of Fire (2002)
> RT audience score: 49%
> Tomatometer: 42%
> Fellow leads: Matthew McConaughey, Izabella Scorupco
> Director: Rob Bowman
> Domestic box office: $43,100,000

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Courtesy of Universal Pictures

29. Captain Corelli’s Mandolin (2001)
> RT audience score: 50%
> Tomatometer: 28%
> Fellow leads: Nicolas Cage, Penélope Cruz, John Hurt
> Director: John Madden
> Domestic box office: $25,500,000

Courtesy of Netflix

28. Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle (2018)
> RT audience score: 51%
> Tomatometer: 52%
> Fellow leads: Cate Blanchett, Benedict Cumberbatch
> Director: Andy Serkis
> Domestic box office: N/A

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Courtesy of Relativity Media

27. Out of the Furnace (2013)
> RT audience score: 52%
> Tomatometer: 54%
> Fellow leads: Casey Affleck, Zoe Saldana
> Director: Scott Cooper
> Domestic box office: $11,300,000

Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics

26. Laurel Canyon (2002)
> RT audience score: 52%
> Tomatometer: 68%
> Fellow leads: Frances McDormand, Alessandro Nivola
> Director: Lisa Cholodenko
> Domestic box office: $3,700,000

Courtesy of Warner Bros.

25. Terminator Salvation (2009)
> RT audience score: 54%
> Tomatometer: 33%
> Fellow leads: Sam Worthington, Anton Yelchin
> Director: McG
> Domestic box office: $125,300,000

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Courtesy of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

24. Harsh Times (2005)
> RT audience score: 55%
> Tomatometer: 48%
> Fellow leads: Freddy Rodrí­guez, Eva Longoria
> Director: David Ayer
> Domestic box office: $3,300,000

Courtesy of New Line Cinema

23. The New World (2005)
> RT audience score: 58%
> Tomatometer: 62%
> Fellow leads: Colin Farrell, Q’orianka Kilcher, Christopher Plummer
> Director: Terrence Malick
> Domestic box office: $12,700,000

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Courtesy of Universal Pictures

22. Public Enemies (2009)
> RT audience score: 59%
> Tomatometer: 68%
> Fellow leads: Johnny Depp, Christian Stolte
> Director: Michael Mann
> Domestic box office: $97,000,000

Courtesy of Annapurna Distribution

21. Vice (2018)
> RT audience score: 60%
> Tomatometer: 65%
> Fellow leads: Amy Adams, Steve Carell
> Director: Adam McKay
> Domestic box office: $47,800,000

Courtesy of Buena Vista Pictures

20. Pocahontas (1995)
> RT audience score: 64%
> Tomatometer: 55%
> Fellow leads: Mel Gibson, Linda Hunt
> Director: Mike Gabriel
> Domestic box office: $141,600,000

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Courtesy of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

19. I’m Not There (2007)
> RT audience score: 69%
> Tomatometer: 77%
> Fellow leads: Cate Blanchett, Heath Ledger
> Director: Todd Haynes
> Domestic box office: $4,000,000

Courtesy of Sony Pictures Releasing

18. American Hustle (2013)
> RT audience score: 74%
> Tomatometer: 92%
> Fellow leads: Amy Adams, Bradley Cooper
> Director: David O. Russell
> Domestic box office: $150,100,000

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Courtesy of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

17. Rescue Dawn (2006)
> RT audience score: 75%
> Tomatometer: 90%
> Fellow leads: Steve Zahn, Jeremy Davies
> Director: Werner Herzog
> Domestic box office: $5,500,000

Courtesy of Buena Vista Pictures

16. Swing Kids (1993)
> RT audience score: 79%
> Tomatometer: 56%
> Fellow leads: Robert Sean Leonard, Frank Whaley
> Director: Thomas Carter
> Domestic box office: $5,600,000

Courtesy of Miramax

15. Velvet Goldmine (1998)
> RT audience score: 80%
> Tomatometer: 58%
> Fellow leads: Ewan McGregor, Jonathan Rhys Meyers
> Director: Todd Haynes
> Domestic box office: $1,000,000

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Courtesy of Miramax Films

14. Equilibrium (2002)
> RT audience score: 81%
> Tomatometer: 41%
> Fellow leads: Sean Bean, Emily Watson
> Director: Kurt Wimmer
> Domestic box office: $1,200,000

Courtesy of Paramount Classics

13. The Machinist (2004)
> RT audience score: 83%
> Tomatometer: 77%
> Fellow leads: Jennifer Jason Leigh, Aitana Sánchez-Gijón
> Director: Brad Anderson
> Domestic box office: $1,100,000

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Courtesy of Lions Gate Films

12. American Psycho (2000)
> RT audience score: 85%
> Tomatometer: 70%
> Fellow leads: Justin Theroux, Josh Lucas
> Director: Mary Harron
> Domestic box office: $15,000,000

Courtesy of Lionsgate

11. 3:10 to Yuma (2007)
> RT audience score: 86%
> Tomatometer: 89%
> Fellow leads: Russell Crowe, Ben Foster
> Director: James Mangold
> Domestic box office: $53,600,000

Courtesy of Buena Vista Pictures

10. Newsies (1992)
> RT audience score: 88%
> Tomatometer: 39%
> Fellow leads: Bill Pullman, Robert Duvall
> Director: Kenny Ortega
> Domestic box office: $2,700,000

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Courtesy of Paramount Pictures

9. The Big Short (2015)
> RT audience score: 88%
> Tomatometer: 89%
> Fellow leads: Steve Carell, Ryan Gosling
> Director: Adam McKay
> Domestic box office: $70,200,000

Courtesy of Paramount Pictures

8. The Fighter (2010)
> RT audience score: 89%
> Tomatometer: 90%
> Fellow leads: Mark Wahlberg, Amy Adams
> Director: David O. Russell
> Domestic box office: $93,600,000

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Courtesy of Warner Bros.

7. Empire of the Sun (1987)
> RT audience score: 90%
> Tomatometer: 75%
> Fellow leads: John Malkovich, Miranda Richardson
> Director: Steven Spielberg
> Domestic box office: $22,000,000

Courtesy of Warner Bros.

6. The Dark Knight Rises (2012)
> RT audience score: 90%
> Tomatometer: 87%
> Fellow leads: Tom Hardy, Anne Hathaway
> Director: Christopher Nolan
> Domestic box office: $448,100,000

Courtesy of Open Road Films

5. The Promise (2016)
> RT audience score: 92%
> Tomatometer: 51%
> Fellow leads: Oscar Isaac, Charlotte Le Bon
> Director: Terry George
> Domestic box office: $8,000,000

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Courtesy of Buena Vista Pictures

4. The Prestige (2006)
> RT audience score: 92%
> Tomatometer: 76%
> Fellow leads: Hugh Jackman, Scarlett Johansson
> Director: Christopher Nolan
> Domestic box office: $53,100,000

Courtesy of Warner Bros.

3. Batman Begins (2005)
> RT audience score: 94%
> Tomatometer: 84%
> Fellow leads: Michael Caine, Ken Watanabe
> Director: Christopher Nolan
> Domestic box office: $206,900,000

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Courtesy of Warner Bros.

2. The Dark Knight (2008)
> RT audience score: 94%
> Tomatometer: 94%
> Fellow leads: Heath Ledger, Aaron Eckhart
> Director: Christopher Nolan
> Domestic box office: $534,900,000 million

Courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox

1. Ford v Ferrari (2019)
> RT audience score: 98%
> Tomatometer: 92%
> Fellow leads: Matt Damon, Jon Bernthal
> Director: James Mangold
> Domestic box office: $117,600,000

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