Bill Paxtonwas an American actor loved by many. He died in 2017 due to complications after surgery which led to a stroke. While Paxton left us at such an early time, he is still remembered for many of his roles. The Texas-born actor struggled for many years to enter the acting world and launch his career. He even started as a set dresser for New World Pictures.
Luckily for Paxton, his patience and hard work paid off as one of his first roles was in the well-known filmThe Terminator.The Terminatorplayed a big role in Paxton’s career, and it was his first collaboration with director James Cameron. After that, the two of them collaborated once again when Paxton appeared inAliensandTitanic.
Paxton also acted in TV shows like HBO’sBig Love. While there are many important films that Paxton played a role in, there are ones where he was almost one of the cast.According to People, Paxton was almost cast as Dr. Ian Malcolm inJurassic Park. Whether this is true or not, one thing for sure is that Paxton didn’t appear in any of the films. He was simply part of the actors whoalmost acted in the films.
Paxton was the kind of actor who you enjoyed watching even if he mostly appeared in supporting roles; he was good at any role he played whether it was big or small. To remember Paxton, here are his 15 best movies, ranked by Rotten Tomatoes.
15Tombstone – 72%
Tombstoneis a western drama that was released in 1993. It follows lawman Wyatt Earp (Kurt Russell) who goes to Tombstone, Arizona with his brothers and their friend Doc Holliday (Val Kilmer), who was a gambler, after her retires. T
he only thing they want is to have a peaceful life there, but this isn’t possible due to the “Cowboys” who are a group of outlaws. The leader of the group was William Brocius who was more known as “Curly Bill” Brocius (Powers Boothe). This started a conflict between the two groups. From gunfights to confrontations,Tombstonehas a lot to offer.
InTombstone, Paxton plays the role of Morgan Earp who was one of Wyatt’s brothers. Despite it being a supporting role, Paxton’s appearance in the film was considered one of his best. It still remains one of his underrated roles and an emotional one too as he died tragically before the end of the film.
Tombstone’s characters are actually based on some real characters who are known in history under the same names. However, the film isn’t an entirely true depiction of the historical events that took place. Despite this, some would still call itthe best Western film ever made.
14Spy Kids 2: The Island of Lost Dreams – 75%
Spy Kids 2: The Island of Lost Dreamsmarked the second film of the franchise where Carmen Cortez (Alexa Vega) and Juni Cortez (Daryl Sabara) have another adventure to follow. The Spy Kids siblings go to a distant island where they have to meeta lunatic scientistnamed Dr. Romero (Steve Buscemi) and his mysterious creatures. This time, the Spy Kids have formed a new competition with Gary Giggles (Matt O’Leary) and Gerti Giggles (Emily Osment).
InSpy Kids 2: The Island of Lost Dreams, Paxton plays the role of Dinky Winks. Winks is the owner of the Troublemaker Theme Park, and we see him giving the daughter of the president, Alexandra (Taylor Momsen), a tour of his park. He interacts with the Spy Kids when Alexandra sabotages one of the rides at the park and they come to the rescue.
While Paxton’s role was a small one, it still made an impact. People loved his character which made him return once again inSpy Kids 3-D: Game Over.
13Frailty – 75%
Frailty,the psychological thriller, was Paxton’s directorial debut where he also acted. Luckily for Paxton, the film was praised by critics and while it isn’t at the top of the list of his best films, it is part of it. The film follows the Meiks family which includes a fanatically religious father. Dad Meiks (Paxton), the father, has this belief that God chose him to destroy demons disguised as people. He doesn’t take part in his mission on his own, but instead, he involves his sons, Fenton (Matthew McConaughey) and Adam (Jeremy Sumpter).
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While Meiks believes that he is taking part in a divine mission, it becomes clear that he is close to insanity rather than divinity.Frailtyis a unique film that has a great script and even greater actors. It explored the themes of faith, insanity, and morality too. Paxton did a great job in portraying this loving father whose character completely changes due to what he believes in. Now, he wields an axe and kills several people and along the way, he affects both of his kids.
12Mean Dreams – 78%
Mean Dreamswas one of Paxton’s last films before his sudden death. The thriller follows Casey (Sophie Nelisse) whom she and her father, police Sergeant Wayne Caraway (Paxton), has just moved to a new town. A love story forms between her and their neighbor’s teenage boy Jonas Ford (Josh Wiggins). Both Casey and Jonas are looking for a way to escape their lives. On one hand, Jonas works on his family’s farm and he is tired of all the tasks he has to do. While Casey wants to run away from her father’s abuse.
The film makes your heart race as we discover howcorrupt and evilis Wayne. He is responsible for killings in a suspicious money deal. While Paxton’s character isn’t favorable or kind, it proves that he can play both the protagonist and the antagonist as well.
Mean Dreamsmay not be a fan favorite, but Paxton’s role in it was one of the few good things about the film. Some would describe it as a cliché story, but it was still a good film that didn’t go to the zone where one would call it terrible; we mostly have Paxton to thank for that.
11Traveller – 79%
Travelleris one of Paxton’s underrated films. The 1997 crime drama focuses on two men. One of them is Pat (Mark Wahlberg) who goes to rural North Carolina to meet a clan which he descends from. This clan belongs to a nomadic ethnic group known as Irish Travellers. While this may seem at first a lovely family reunion story, it is far from that.Pat’s cousins are con artistsand they reject him at first rather than welcoming him to their group.
The other man the film focuses on is Bokky (Paxton), Pat’s cousin and part of the clan, who decides to help Pat and become his mentor. The events inTravellerescalate when Bokky wants to leave the clan and start a new life. The film wasn’t nominated for a lot of rewards, but that didn’t stop it from becoming one of Paxton’s best roles. Other than Paxton and Wahlberg,Traveller’s cast includes Julianna Margulies, James Gammon, Luke Askew, Nikki Deloach, Danielle Keaton, and more.
10Haywire – 80%
Haywiremarked another role for Paxton although it was a small one. In the film, we get to see Mallory Kane (Gina Carano), a covert operative, as she has to deal with several enemies at once. She works for a firm that the American government hires for assignments that no one should know about. At first, we see her rescuing people and accepting new missions, but things change when she agrees to take an assignment in Dublin.
What was described by the firm’s director and also Mallory’s ex-boyfriend Kenneth (Ewan McGregor) as an easy mission turns out to be onewhere she is double-crossed. She now wants revenge.
InHaywire, Paxton plays the role of John Kane who is Mallory’s father. It was a small role for someone with Paxton’s talent, but it was still one in a good movie which is all that counts. The film’s cast included many great actors like Michael Fassbender, Michael Angarano, Channing Tatum, Michael Douglas, Antonio Banderas, and more.
9Near Dark – 83%
Near Darkwas a unique mix between genres as it isa vampire horror filmthat is also inspired by the Western genre. The film was directed by Kathryn Bigelow who did an amazing job in creating a film that became a cult classic since its release in 1987.
Near Darkfollows Caleb Colton (Adrian Pasdar) who meets with Mae (Jenny Wright) not knowing at first that all the surrounding mystery is due to her being a vampire. We later find out that Mae is part of a gang of vampires led by Jesse Hooker (Lance Henriksen). They recruit Caleb which completely changes his life which used to be normal. Now, he has to decide which life he wants to pick.
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InNear Dark, Paxton plays the role of Severen who is part of the vampire gang. The only fit description for his character would be how unhinged he is. While Severen was considered to be a supporting character, Paxton easily stole the show. His bloody grin was enough to make him the main focus of many people’s eyes. This tells you the amount of talent that Paxton had and you can’t help but love Severen with all his craziness. Paxton ownedNear Darkwith his sociopathic character.
8Titanic – 88%
Titanicis one of Paxton’s most memorable films even after so many years since the film aired. We all knowthe romantic and heartbreaking storywhere Brock Lovett (Paxton), a treasure hunter, wants to find the “heart of the ocean” necklace and the Titanic wreckage as well. While Brock is on his mission to find what he is looking for, we see the doomed love story that took place years ago between Jack Dawson (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Rose Dewitt-Bukater (Kate Winslet).
The film marked another collaboration between Paxton and James Cameron; a collaboration that would repeat itself again in other films. Paxton’s role inTitanictook place in the present day during the film and he, like always, was charismatic. Not to mention that his mission is what started the entire story.Titanicwon 11 Oscars which is a jaw-dropping number nowadays.
7A Simple Plan – 90%
A Simple Planis a crime thriller film and it was released in 1998. In the film, Hank Mitchell (Paxton), his brother (Billy Bob Thornton), and their friend Lou (Brent Briscoe) found $4 million in cash, and they decided to keep it a secret. We see their attempts to make sure no one knows about the money and how that affects them. There are many obstacles in their way as several people want to take the money including the criminals who originally owned it.
The film was directed by Sam Raimi, it isone of his underrated filmsand written by Scott B. Smith.A Simple Planshowed us how money can change people as their greed leads them to do unthinkable things.
Paxton’s role as Hank is considered one of his best due to the complexity of the character. He started out as a loving family man, but then, he was completely changed by money when it came into the picture. He portrayed that shift perfectly and this was enough to make many critics praise him.
6Edge of Tomorrow – 91%
Edge of Tomorrowis an action sci-fi film where U.S. Soldier Bill Cage (Tom Cruise) isstuck in a time loop. This time loop keeps repeating every time Cage dies in a battleduring an alien invasion. This forces him to relive the day he dies several times until he can figure out how to stop the time loop plus how to defeat his enemy. He tries to learn a new thing every time he dies so that he can become better the next time. We also see Rita Vrataski (Emily Blunt) helping him in this battle.
InEdge of Tomorrow, Paxton plays the role of Master Sergeant Farell, and it was the role of a lifetime. Almost everyone agreed that Paxton took a supporting role and made it a lead one. He competed with Cruise and at many times you would find yourself favoring Paxton’s character due to his performance.
