Special Report

The Best and Worst Brendan Fraser Movies

After spending over a decade in the abyss, Indiana-born actor Brendan Fraser has mounted a potential career comeback with his role in the 2022 drama “The Whale.” Playing an obese man with mounting struggles, Fraser has arguably turned in the most acclaimed performance of his long-running career. It already earned a standing ovation at the Venice Film Festival and a Golden Globe nomination, among other accolades. Many are predicting an Academy Award nomination as well.

To call Fraser’s journey back into the limelight an epic feat would be selling it short, as his descent from fame was famously swift. After starring in the 2010 fiasco “Furry Vengeance,” the actor switched agencies and practically disappeared from public view. (He did not turn out to be, however, one of the actors who retired far earlier than anyone expected.)

Fraser did land occasional voice work as well as roles in low budget films or episodic TV shows over the decade that followed, but never came close to his former success. Behind the scenes, he continued to deal with a costly divorce and assorted health problems. He was also the victim of an alleged sexual assault in 2003, which led to an ongoing depression.

With Fraser occupying headlines once again, there’s no better time to review his history on the big screen. As one will soon discover, the actor’s career never really found its groove even when he was at the height of his fame. Well-known titles such as “School Ties” or “Blast from the Past” weren’t big hits in their day, while blockbusters like “George of the Jungle” have been all but forgotten. He remains best-known for “The Mummy” trilogy, which played to all his strengths as a leading man (though the original is counted among the movies with the highest body count).

Click here for a ranking of the best and worst Brendan Fraser movies

To determine the best and worst Brendan Fraser movies, 24/7 Tempo developed an index of movies starring Brendan Fraser using average ratings on IMDb, an online movie database owned by Amazon, and a combination of audience scores and Tomatometer scores on Rotten Tomatoes, an online movie and TV review aggregator, as of January 2023, weighting all ratings equally. Only movies in which Brendan Fraser was among the top three billed actors were considered. Directorial and cast credits are from IMDb.
Watch a handful of these titles and then catch Fraser in “The Whale” to see just how far he’s come as an actor.

Courtesy of Prism Entertainment Corporation

36. Younger and Younger (1993)
> IMDb user rating: 5.0/10 (585 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: N/A
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: N/A
> Directed by: Percy Adlon

Shortly after breaking out in “Encino Man,” Fraser starred in this direct-to-video comedy. It tells the story of a storage facility owner (Donald Sutherland), who must cope with the sudden death of his wife. At home for the funeral, the man’s college-age son (Fraser) helps run the family business.

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Frazer Harrison / Staff / Getty Images

35. Breakout (2013)
> IMDb user rating: 4.2/10 (2,949 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 16% (100 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: N/A
> Directed by: Damian Lee

Fraser’s career was at an early nadir when he appeared in this Canadian thriller, which went straight onto DVD in the United States. Two children witness a murder and become the killers’ next target, and their father (Fraser) must escape from prison in order to save them.

Courtesy of Summit Entertainment

34. Furry Vengeance (2010)
> IMDb user rating: 3.8/10 (17,410 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 32% (89,901 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 7% (95 reviews)
> Directed by: Roger Kumble

A real estate developer (Fraser) squares off against woodland creatures in this much-maligned fantasy comedy. Fraser makes additional appearances in a number of uncredited roles. He was already rethinking his career choices during production.

Courtesy of Universal Pictures
33. Dudley Do-Right (1999)
> IMDb user rating: 3.9/10 (10,892 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 23% (40,188 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 16% (45 reviews)
> Directed by: Hugh Wilson

Directly after starring in “The Mummy,” Fraser played the title role in this slapstick dud. It adapts a cartoon character of the same name, who made up part of the Rocky and Bullwinkle franchise. Critics were largely unimpressed with the movie’s series of tasteless sight gags.

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Gareth Cattermole / Staff / Getty Images

32. Sinbad: Beyond the Veil of Mists (2000)
> IMDb user rating: 4.5/10 (665 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 40% (2,500 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: N/A
> Directed by: Evan Ricks, Alan Jacobs

History’s first animated feature-length film to make full use of motion capture technology is also one of the worst. Follow the titular hero (voiced by Fraser) across a perilous sea as he searches for a mystical potion. Or don’t.

Alberto E. Rodriguez / Staff / Getty Images

31. Stand Off (2011)
> IMDb user rating: 5.5/10 (2,308 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 34% (50 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: N/A
> Directed by: Terry George

Alternately known as “Whole Lotta Sole,” this Irish crime comedy kicks off with the botched robbery of a Belfast fish market. Fraser stars as an American shopkeeper who gets mixed up in the chaos that ensues.

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Courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox

30. Monkeybone (2001)
> IMDb user rating: 4.8/10 (18,326 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 27% (47,283 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 19% (114 reviews)
> Directed by: Henry Selick

This fantasy comedy, culled from the graphic novel “Dark Town” mixes live-action and stop-motion animation. Upon falling into a coma, a cartoonist (Fraser) finds himself trapped in a world of his own creation. Shot on a reported budget of $75 million, it made only $7.6 million at the worldwide box office.

Courtesy of Universal Pictures

29. The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (2008)
> IMDb user rating: 5.2/10 (163,055 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 30% (340,665 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 12% (177 reviews)
> Directed by: Rob Cohen

The final installment of “The Mummy” film series was also the original trilogy’s biggest disappointment. Brought out of retirement, adventurer Rick O’Connell (Fraser) and his family must send a resurrected Chinese emperor (Jet Li) back to the grave.

Courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox

28. The Scout (1994)
> IMDb user rating: 5.4/10 (6,616 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 22% (7,510 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 22% (23 reviews)
> Directed by: Michael Ritchie

Fraser was making a name for himself in Hollywood even as he appeared in a string of box office failures, including this 1994 sports dramedy. It follows a struggling baseball scout (Albert Brooks) down to Mexico, where he discovers a talented but psychologically troubled pitcher (Fraser).

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Courtesy of Vertical Entertainment

27. Hair Brained (2013)
> IMDb user rating: 5.3/10 (2,234 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 25% (100 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 22% (100 reviews)
> Directed by: Billy Kent

This poorly reviewed fantasy dramedy premiered at the Brooklyn International Film Festival and then presumably went straight onto the home rental market. Fraser plays middle-aged gambling addict Leo Searly, who enrolls in college and forges an unlikely friendship with a 14-year-old Harvard reject (Alex Wolff).

Paul Hawthorne / Staff / Getty Images

26. Journey to the End of the Night (2006)
> IMDb user rating: 5.7/10 (2,625 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 43% (2,495 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 0% (1 review)
> Directed by: Eric Eason

Living on the fringes of Brazilian society, a brothel owner (Scott Glenn) and his son (Fraser) come upon a suitcase full of drugs in this lurid thriller. Their subsequent scheme quickly unravels due to unforeseen obstacles and bad choices. According to legend, director Darren Aronofsky cast Fraser in “The Whale” after seeing a trailer for this film.

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Courtesy of Open Road Films

25. The Nut Job (2014)
> IMDb user rating: 5.7/10 (28,999 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 43% (38,882 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 12% (97 reviews)
> Directed by: Peter Lepeniotis

This computer-animated comedy rolled out to largely negative reviews but nevertheless made enough profit to warrant a sequel. It tells the story of a devious squirrel (voiced by Will Arnett) and his team of misfits, who plan to rob a local nut shop. Fraser provides the voice of a rival squirrel named Grayson.

Courtesy of Buena Vista Pictures

24. Encino Man (1992)
> IMDb user rating: 5.8/10 (41,706 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 56% (124,843 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 17% (35 reviews)
> Directed by: Les Mayfield

This sophomoric comedy helped launch the respective movie careers of both Fraser and co-star Pauly Shore. Two stoners (Shore and Sean Astin) unthaw a caveman (Fraser) and bring him to high school under the guise of a foreign exchange student. It made just over $40 million at the worldwide box office against a reported budget of $7 million.

Courtesy of Element Films

23. The Last Time (2006)
> IMDb user rating: 6.0/10 (3,879 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 39% (4,693 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 35% (17 reviews)
> Directed by: Michael Caleo

This dark indie dramedy tells the story of New York businessman Ted Ryker (Michael Keaton), who’s tasked with mentoring new hire Jamie Bashant (Fraser). Things dial up a notch when Ryker starts sleeping with Bashant’s wife (Amber Valletta). Is it unbridled lust or is there more to this affair than first meets the eye?

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Courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox

22. Airheads (1994)
> IMDb user rating: 6.1/10 (52,785 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 50% (126,210 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 23% (35 reviews)
> Directed by: Michael Lehmann

While not a theatrical box office success, this satirical comedy has earned a loyal cult following over time. Fraser and co-stars Adam Sandler and Steve Buscemi play the members of a struggling rock band, who hijack a Los Angeles radio station in vying for airplay.

Courtesy of TriStar Pictures

21. Mrs. Winterbourne (1996)
> IMDb user rating: 6.2/10 (7,976 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 64% (17,702 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 10% (30 reviews)
> Directed by: Richard Benjamin

This romantic dramedy draws loose inspiration from a 1948 novel, which had been previously adapted both in Hollywood and elsewhere. In the wake of a train crash, a young woman (Ricki Lake) takes on the mistaken identity of a wealthy counterpart. Fraser plays the love interest.

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Courtesy of Inferno Distribution

20. The Air I Breathe (2007)
> IMDb user rating: 6.7/10 (34,426 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 61% (22,835 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 10% (40 reviews)
> Directed by: Jieho Lee

This ambitious crime drama takes cues from an ancient Chinese proverb and tells four different interconnected stories. Fraser’s character embodies the concept of pleasure (or lack thereof) and has the unique ability to see people’s futures. “Pretentious at best, risible for the rest of the time,” wrote critic Catherine Shoard for the Daily Telegraph (UK).

Courtesy of ZEE5

19. Line of Descent (2019)
> IMDb user rating: 4.7/10 (578 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 98% (50 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: N/A
> Directed by: Rohit Karn Batra

This Indian crime drama centers on a powerful mob family and the undercover cop (Fraser) tasked with bringing it down. It takes a few pages from the “King Lear” playbook, as three brothers quarrel over the future of their empire.

Courtesy of Warner Bros.

18. Inkheart (2008)
> IMDb user rating: 6.1/10 (79,148 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 45% (166,730 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 39% (145 reviews)
> Directed by: Iain Softley

In this fantasy adventure, a man (Fraser) and his daughter have the unique ability to bring storybook characters into the real world. When they read from a book called “Inkheart,” it unleashes an evil villain named Capricorn (Andy Serkis). Reviews were mixed.

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Courtesy of CBS Films

17. Extraordinary Measures (2010)
> IMDb user rating: 6.4/10 (17,177 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 53% (74,349 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 28% (144 reviews)
> Directed by: Tom Vaughan

The first film produced by CBS Studios tells the story of a married couple (Fraser and Keri Russell), who may have found the cure to their childrens’ fatal disease. With help from a researcher (Harrison Ford), they take on the medical establishment in a race against the clock.

Alberto E. Rodriguez / Staff / Getty Images

16. Escape from Planet Earth (2012)
> IMDb user rating: 5.8/10 (26,034 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 54% (35,350 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 35% (43 reviews)
> Directed by: Cal Brunker

This computer-animated sci-fi adventure follows blue alien astronaut Scorch Supernova (voiced by Fraser) and his crew to our hostile planet. Soon trapped by the U.S. Army, the aliens must plot their escape from Area 51.

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Courtesy of Buena Vista Pictures

15. George of the Jungle (1997)
> IMDb user rating: 5.5/10 (79,634 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 41% (545,897 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 56% (54 reviews)
> Directed by: Sam Weisman

Fraser found his earliest blockbuster success with the title role in this comedy adventure, based on an animated series of the same name. Raised in the jungle, George rescues a human woman (Leslie Mann) and experiences first love. Neither Fraser nor Mann reprised their roles for a 2003 direct-to-video sequel.

Courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox

14. Bedazzled (2000)
> IMDb user rating: 6.1/10 (106,263 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 42% (371,243 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 50% (115 reviews)
> Directed by: Harold Ramis

Hoping to get the girl of his dreams, an awkward man (Fraser) makes a deal with the devil (Elizabeth Hurley) in this remake of a 1967 British movie. Both versions offer comedy-based adaptations of the tragic play “Faust” by Goethe.

Courtesy of Arrow Video

13. The Passion of Darkly Noon (1995)
> IMDb user rating: 5.8/10 (4,006 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 55% (1,000 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 44% (9 reviews)
> Directed by: Philip Ridley

An international production, this psychological thriller follows a former cult member (Fraser) into the home of a mysterious woman (Ashley Judd). The title makes reference to a biblical passage while the movie itself imparts a surrealist tone.

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Courtesy of Warner Bros.

12. With Honors (1994)
> IMDb user rating: 6.7/10 (14,794 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 73% (20,998 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 16% (25 reviews)
> Directed by: Alek Keshishian

Actor Joe Pesci’s career was on a downward trajectory when he co-starred with Fraser in this sentimental dramedy. Witness the unlikely friendship between a Harvard University student (Fraser) and a local homeless man (Pesci). It spent a weekend on top of the domestic box office but was only the 69th highest-grossing film of the year.

Courtesy of Warner Bros.

11. Looney Tunes: Back in Action (2003)
> IMDb user rating: 5.8/10 (38,290 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 50% (63,624 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 56% (139 reviews)
> Directed by: Joe Dante, Eric Goldberg

From “Gremlins” director Joe Dante came this unsuccessful update to the Looney Tunes franchise. It mixes live action with animation and draws clear influence from previous films such as 1988’s “Who Framed Roger Rabbit?” Fraser plays wannabe stuntman DJ Drake, who pairs up with Daffy Duck for a zany adventure.

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Courtesy of Warner Bros.

10. Journey to the Center of the Earth (2008)
> IMDb user rating: 5.8/10 (124,603 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 51% (254,185 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 61% (161 reviews)
> Directed by: Eric Brevig

One among many films to adapt the classic Jules Verne novel, this modern retelling was theatrically released in 3-D and was relatively successful at the box office. Professor Trevor Anderson (Fraser) and his peers plunge deep into the earth and confront outrageous obstacles along the way. It was followed by a 2012 sequel starring Dwayne Johnson in the lead role.

Courtesy of Universal Pictures

9. The Mummy Returns (2001)
> IMDb user rating: 6.4/10 (328,770 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 63% (748,564 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 47% (141 reviews)
> Directed by: Stephen Sommers

Fraser and co-star Rachel Weisz reunited with director Stephen Sommers for this blockbuster sequel. It takes place in 1933 and resurrects the powerful mummy Imhotep once again, setting him loose upon the world. Dwayne Johnson is introduced as the Scorpion King, who received his own 2003 prequel movie.

Courtesy of New Line Cinema

8. Blast from the Past (1999)
> IMDb user rating: 6.7/10 (66,819 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 56% (214,708 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 58% (81 reviews)
> Directed by: Hugh Wilson

This romantic comedy plays upon a similar trope as “Encino Man” and pairs Frasier with 1990s movie star Alicia Silverstone. Raised in a nuclear fallout shelter for 35 years, a naive man (Frasier) enters the real world and soon finds himself a fish out of water. While not without its charms, the movie opened to mixed reviews and underwhelming box office numbers.

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Courtesy of Paramount Pictures

7. School Ties (1992)
> IMDb user rating: 6.9/10 (25,294 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 68% (34,584 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 60% (40 reviews)
> Directed by: Robert Mandel

A young Fraser brought his dramatic chops to this historical drama, in which a Jewish quarterback (Fraser) enters a Catholic boarding school. The story takes place in 1959 and explores themes of both religious bigotry and class division. Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, and Chris O’Donnell co-star as fellow prep students.

Courtesy of Triton Pictures

6. Twenty Bucks (1993)
> IMDb user rating: 6.3/10 (4,003 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 63% (2,283 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 75% (8 reviews)
> Directed by: Keva Rosenfeld

This obscure dramedy follows a $20 bill as it migrates from one person and story to the next, cultivating plenty of subtext. “The very lightness of the premise gives the film a kind of freedom,” wrote critic Roger Ebert for the Chicago Sun-Times.

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Courtesy of DEJ Productions

5. Still Breathing (1997)
> IMDb user rating: 6.5/10 (2,858 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 78% (3,075 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 62% (13 reviews)
> Directed by: James F. Robinson

This romantic comedy stars Fraser as a Texas-based puppeteer who travels to Los Angeles to find the woman he’s been literally dreaming about. Her name is Joanna Going and she’s a savvy con artist who’s been having some visions of her own. It made just over $228,000 at the domestic box office.

Courtesy of Universal Pictures

4. The Mummy (1999)
> IMDb user rating: 7.1/10 (433,803 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 75% (947,034 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 61% (101 reviews)
> Directed by: Stephen Sommers

The film that put Fraser on top of the world pits adventurer Rick O’Connell (Fraser) against a resurrected mummy on a destructive warpath. A remake of the 1932 monster classic, it made a killing at the box office and spawned a lucrative franchise. “I loved making that movie,” the actor later said of the experience.

Courtesy of Miramax

3. The Quiet American (2002)
> IMDb user rating: 7.0/10 (28,711 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 72% (10,692 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 87% (156 reviews)
> Directed by: Phillip Noyce

The second (and more faithful) film adaptation of Graham Greene’s bestselling novel takes place in 1952 Vietnam toward the end of the First Indochina War. Fraser plays a young doctor, who squares off against a British journalist (Michael Caine) over the affections of a local woman.

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Courtesy of Elevation Pictures

2. The Whale (2022)
> IMDb user rating: 8.1/10 (12,899 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 91% (500 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 65% (252 reviews)
> Directed by: Darren Aronofsky

Fraser’s recent performance in this sobering drama is earning him the highest accolades of his career. He plays an obese and reclusive teacher named Charlie, who tries to reconnect with his estranged daughter from the confines of his home. “Fraser’s choices are so subtly intelligent that we barely notice what amounts to his costume, so attuned are we to the way his Charlie teeters on the brink of life and death,” wrote critic Chris Hewitt for the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

Courtesy of Lions Gate Films

1. Gods and Monsters (1998)
> IMDb user rating: 7.3/10 (31,409 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 83% (13,129 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 96% (67 reviews)
> Directed by: Bill Condon

This acclaimed period drama examines and imagines the final days of “Frankenstein” helmer James Whale (played by Ian McKellen). While grappling with physical and mental decline, the openly gay director sets his sights on a young gardener (Fraser). Based on a 1995 novel, it won an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay.

 

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