Robert De Niro is one of the best actors of all time, but a majority of his best work came during the first few decades of his career. De Niro scored his first two Academy Award wins for The Godfather: Part II and Raging Bull early on in his career and continued to deliver great performances throughout the 20th century. His reputation as an intense, committed actor proceeds him, leading him to start the new millennium widely considered among his generation’s finest actors.
However, there was a slight dip in quality when it came to his 21st-century work. De Niro took what can only be described as several paycheck gigs, but critically panned films like Dirty Grandpa and Righteous Kill aren’t reflective of his entire filmography. Indeed, De Niro’s recent output hasn’t been entirely disappointing. From more collaborations with Martin Scorsese to a few worthy comedies and even some box-office hits, these 21st-century movies prove Robert De Niro is still a titan of the silver screen.
10 ‘Hands of Stone’ (2016)
Director: Joanthan Jakubowicz
The real boxing champion boxer Roberto Duran (Édgar RamÍrez) has a lot in common with De Niro’s Raging Bull character, Jake LaMotta. Perhaps Ramirez drew inspiration from De Niro’s Oscar-winning work for the 2016 biopic Hands of Stone, which focuses on Duran’s rise and fall in the boxing world as his self-destructive habits make him incredibly unstable. It certainly helped that De Niro was personally involved in Hands of Stone; he delivers a powerful supporting performance as Duran’s trainer Ray Arcel, who has connections to the criminal world.
Hands of Stone isn’t among the all-time best sports movies, as it’s guilty of playing into some cliches within the biopic genre, but De Niro elevates the material with his sensitive performance. Arcel often has to put his own family life and career prospects in danger as he trains Duran, but he believes in him so strongly that he’s willing to take the risk. De Niro perfectly conveys the genuine love and admiration of the sport that Arcel has, adding an emotional punch to the film’s epic boxing sequences.
Hands of Stone
9 ‘Limitless’ (2011)
Director: Neil Burger
Does anyone play better antagonists than De Niro? The 2011 science fiction thriller Limitless cast him as Carl Van Loon, a financial tycoon who sees a potential protege in the superpowered genius Eddie Morra (Bradley Cooper). Eddie gains knowledge about financial markets through the use of an experimental drug and leverages it to get into Van Loon’s inner circle. However, Van Loon quickly reveals that he has no interest in Eddie if he doesn’t have his powers. De Niro exemplifies Van Loon’s selfish nature in the film’s shocking ending sequence, in which Eddie reveals the truth to his former boss.
While the science fiction elements of Limitless are entirely ridiculous, De Niro presents a compelling and surprisingly authentic depiction of corporate greed. Van Loon is so intent on using Morra’s powers for personal gain that he never stops to consider the ramifications that using his untapped potential may have. The confrontational scenes between De Niro and Cooper are somehow just as exciting as the film’s action sequences.
8 ‘Joy’ (2015)
Director: David O. Russell
Joy showed that writer/director David O. Russell is one of the few filmmakers who has put De Niro’s Oscar-winning talents to good use in recent years. De Niro plays the key supporting role of Rudy Mangano, whose daughter, Joy (Jennifer Lawrence), becomes an overnight sensation when she invents the “Miracle Mop.” Rudy is both an embarrassing and loving father to Joy; while he seems to genuinely care for her, his poor business practices often give her more problems to solve.
Rudy feels like a maturation of the “embarrassing dad” role that De Niro has often been cast in. Joy examines the uncomfortable side of family relations yet celebrates the importance of sticking together. While Joy is met by many disreputable players who attempt to wrestle her success away from her, Rudy’s intentions are generally pure, even if his past is somewhat checkered. Joy explores the realities of parenthood in a dramatic way, and De Niro adds a touch of his signature humor that gives the film a welcome boost of dark comedy.
7 ‘Stardust’ (2007)
Director: Matthew Vaughn
Stardust features a delightfully comical side to De Niro that he hasn’t gotten the chance to play very often. The film follows the adventures of the romantic adventurer Tristan Thorn (Charlie Cox), who is sent to dispatch a fallen star (Claire Danes) in order to win the love of his longtime crush, Victoria (Sienna Miller). Tristan is met with danger at every turn, but he’s given unexpected help by the jovial pirate Captain Shakespeare (De Niro).
De Niro didn’t seem like an obvious casting choice for a flamboyant flying adventurer, but that only adds to the irresistible charm of his performance. Stardust is a celebration of the absurd side of the fantasy genre, and director Matthew Vaughn deserves praise for treating the story with complete sincerity. Captain Shakespeare is emblematic of the film’s themes; he’s a man who learns to accept his identity when he’s called on to be a hero. And while a sequel to Stardust was never produced, it would’ve been great to see De Niro as Shakespeare again.
Stardust
6 ‘The Score’ (2001)
Director: Frank Oz
The 2001 crime drama The Score featured three generations of great actors, with Edward Norton, De Niro, and Marlon Brando in one of the last performances before his passing. De Niro stars as the aging master thief Nick Wells, who joins forces with the ambitious fellow cat burglar Jack Teller (Norton) to earn one last big “score.” While it doesn’t necessarily do all that much to reinvent the heist movie genre, the chemistry between Norton and De Niro is so electrifying that The Score is entertaining, regardless.
De Niro has played many criminals, con men, and gangsters before, but he brings a greater level of sensitivity to Teller. It’s evident through his performance why Teller wants to retire, as he genuinely believes himself to be better than the lifestyle that he has dedicated so much of his life to. Seeing him fall back into his old ways adds an emotionally compelling touch to The Score’s expertly crafted heist sequences.
5 ‘Being Flynn’ (2012)
Director: Paul Weltz
Being Flynn showed a thoughtful, sensitive side to De Niro. He starred as the aging storyteller Jonathan Flynn, who lives in poverty and increasingly loses grasp of his memories. Jonathan reconnects with his son, Nick (Paul Dano), a writer himself. Jonathan increasingly tries to insert himself into the life of the child he never raised. Jonathan is one of De Niro’s more complex characters; while he claims he wants to help Nick with his writing, his only goal is to be around his son and make up for all the time that he missed.
While the relationship between Jonathan and Nick becomes a contentious one, the two characters are bound by a collective love of storytelling. As Nick begins to spend more time with his father, he realizes that Jonathan aims to mythologize his life in order to avoid the sad reality that he’s unwilling to accept. The chemistry between De Niro and the ever-reliable Paul Dano elevates Being Flynn’s emotional themes into a powerful story of redemption and acceptance.
4 ‘Meet the Parents’ (2000)
Director: Jay Roach
Meet the Parents has one of the scariest movie premises of all time; what if De Niro was your potential father-in-law? De Niro stars as the former CIA agent Jack Byrnes, who’s reluctant when his daughter, Pam (Teri Polo), takes her new fiance, Greg Focker (Ben Stiller), home for Thanksgiving. Greg feels increasingly anxious as Jack makes him feel insecure and weakened.
While the sequels, Meet the Fockers and Little Fockers, opted for more gross-out gags, Meet the Parents showed the best of De Niro’s abilities as a comedic actor. What’s most amusing about Meet the Parents is that De Niro brings the same sense of menace and authority that he does in his gangster movie roles; seeing him bully and intimidate Greg throughout their holiday becomes increasingly hilarious. The role gave De Niro the welcome opportunity to lampoon his image, and he made the best out of every second.
Meet the Parents
3 ‘Silver Linings Playbook’ (2012)
Director: David O. Russell
Silver Linings Playbook was a return to form for De Niro that showed why he has been so great at both comedic and dramatic roles. The film follows the recent divorcee Pat Solitano (Bradley Cooper) as he falls in love with the young widow Tiffany Maxwell (Jennifer Lawrence). De Niro plays Pat Sr., Pat’s father, who uses illegal bookmaking to gather funds and open his restaurant.
Funny but touching and genuinely emotional, Silver Linings Playbook is a film about damaged, uncomfortable characters who struggle to relate their problems. The film has a very aggressive sense of humor, with characters often placed in embarrassing situations for humorous effect. Still, it remains affecting, ranking among the best romance movies of the 21st century. A comeback role of sorts, Silver Linings Playbook earned De Niro a well-deserved Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor.
2 ‘The Irishman’ (2019)
Director: Martin Scorsese
The Irishman might just be the culmination of De Niro’s collaborations with Martin Scorsese. Although the pair had worked on many crime movies together, The Irishman showed how unfulfilling life in the criminal business really is for violent men with no compassion. The film uses inventive computer-generated imagery to show the entire life of the gangster Frank Sheeran (De Niro). Sheeran’s service to the mobster Russell Bufalino (Joe Pesci) forces him to give up a family life; it’s a brilliant examination of aging that features De Niro’s most heartbreaking work.
While The Irishman uses groundbreaking digital effects to show Sheeran’s younger self, this radical technology is never used at the expense of the story. It’s tragic to watch Sheeran lose sight of his priorities over time, as his success in the mob is matched by his failings as a father. While De Niro did not receive the Best Actor nomination that he rightfully deserved, The Irishman earned ten Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture.
1 ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’ (2023)
Director: Martin Scorsese
While De Niro and Scorsese have one of the most acclaimed cinematic partnerships of all time, Killers of the Flower Moon is unlike anything that they have ever done before. The film crafts an in-depth analysis of how the people of the Osage Nation had their land and fortune wrestled away from them by a syndicate of wealthy white power brokers. At the top of the conspiracy is De Niro’s King William Hale, a ruthless crime boss who deceives the native tribes into coming under his protection.
Cruel, manipulative, and entirely selfish, King is one of the most evil characters that De Niro has ever played; the performance earned him a well-deserved Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor. De Niro has played his fair share of villains, but Hale is cut from a different cloth. He presents himself as a figure of authority and reason, managing to convince his gullible nephew Ernest (Leonardo DiCaprio) to help him commit a series of crimes. While Killers of the Flower Moon rightfully puts the story of Mollie Burkhart (Lily Gladstone) at its center, De Niro’s depiction of a real-life monster is essential to the film’s message.
