Beloved actor William Hurt recently ed away at the age of 71, and Redditors are hopping on threads to cite their favorite of his many excellent performances. From his dramatic portrayals to his time in the MCU, Hurt accrued many fans.
There are a few select roles that large groupings of Reddit s champion, but there are also the more niche roles that general audiences may not have gotten a chance to experience. Regardless, with 40-plus years of filmography, Hurt made some movies that Redditors think are well worth watching.
Nick Carlton - The Big Chill (1983)
Easily one of William Hurt's best movies, Lawrence Kasdan's The Big Chill is a coming-of-age film for those who've already come of age. It's a brilliant retrospective ensemble piece with reverence for love, growth, mistakes, and forgiveness.
Redditor TinFoilRobotProphet gave Hurt some high praise about his role in the ensemble film, writing, "Way too soon. He stole the entire The Big Chill movie in my opinion." Lou__Vegas added a specific scene of his from the film: "His rant at the end of The Big Chill was intense. He put everybody in their place so well."
Luis Molina - Kiss Of The Spider Woman (1985)
Kiss of the Spider Woman is a gripping, very hard-to-watch film that stands as Hurt's sole Oscar win. It follows Hurt and Raul Julia as two prisoners who develop an unlikely bond. Julia is a political activist in store for a line of torture and Hurt is a man incarcerated for sexually assaulting a child.
Reddit duskrat mentioned Hurt's Oscar-winning work: "He was wonderful in Kiss of the Spider Woman. Such a moving performance."
Tom Grunick - Broadcast News (1987)
Arguably Hurt's best film, Broadcast News is a charming and consistently rewatchable newsroom romantic drama that showcases the actor's talents alongside other greats such as Holly Hunter, Albert Brooks, and Jack Nicholson.
Reddit mrnicegy26 brought up his role in the James L. Brooks film, saying, "Man he was so good in Broadcast News. The tension between him and Albert Brooks's character in regards to charisma vs intelligence being the most important factor for a TV reporter and his amazing romantic chemistry with Holly Hunter."
Jack - The Doctor (1991)
The Doctor is an early '90s drama fronted by Hurt, who plays Jack McKee, a doctor who learns how to incorporate humanity into treating patients in a way he never assumed possible.
Redditor Ritaredditonce put it simply with, "He was amazing in The Doctor." whydoiIuvwolves then added, "I love that movie. He was so good in it. What a talented actor." Shanda_Lear also added, "He was great in The Doctor. It should be required viewing for all actual doctors."
Sam Farber - Until The End Of The World (1991)
Until the End of the World is a four-plus hour epic featuring Hurt as a man losing his vision as it nears the end of the world. However, he has a camera that takes pictures that people with blindness can see.
Reddit oh_orpheus brought up the epic film and Hurt's role in it: "Until the End of the World is one of my favorite films of all time, and he's part of the reason why." NewlyNerfed then cheekily corroborated the sentiment with, "So you're the other person who loves that movie. Nice to meet you!" joebigdeal then hopped onto the thread to champion the film's definitive director's cut: "Count me in too. The Director's Cut is worth spending half a day watching."
Inspector Frank Bumstead - Dark City (1998)
Dark City is an underseen sci-fi noir not all that dissimilar from Blade Runner and The Matrix. It follows Rufus Sewell's John Murdoch, a man who awakens from a long sleep to find he's the prime suspect for a series of murders. Hurt plays Inspector Frank Bumstead, the cop on Murdoch's tail.
Redditor BuccoFever412 wrote of the actor: "Was great in 'Dark City'. Def a great actor." Reddit mneptok also mentioned both the movie and the performance, "Dark City is probably my favorite movie of all time. William Hurt's performance as Inspector Bumstead was fantastic."
Duke Leto - Dune (2000)
Frank Herbert's ranks well among the other Dune movie verions. In it, he played Duke Leto, the role eventually inhabited by Oscar Isaac.
Several Redditors championed Hurt's performance in the miniseries, but it was perhaps iralRed13 who put it best with, "He was an excellent Duke Leto. That miniseries had pretty great casting actually."
Richie Cusack - A History Of Violence (2005)
David Cronenberg's A History of Violence is a masterpiece of a graphic novel adaptation that features Hurt in a very brief, but very memorable, performance.
Reddit watchingsongsDL put the impact of Hurt's portrayal very well, writing, "Got an Oscar nomination for Best ing Actor for an 8-minute role in A History of Violence. He plays a Philly mob boss. Of course, he’s done a ton of great work in his career I just love that movie and his role in it."
Marshall - Mr. Brooks (2007)
Mr. Brooks follows Kevin Costner's titular serial killer protagonist as he tries to stifle his deepest impulses. Pushing him in the wrong direction is his id, Marshall (Hurt).
Redditor Kevin Costner's best movies: "LOVED him in Mr. Brooks. Great movie." doublesailorsandcola also brought up the movie, writing, "He was so amazing in Mr. Brooks." It is clear that his portrayal left a massive impact on many audience .
Donald Cooperman - Goliath (2016 - 2021)
Two Redditors were effusive with their praise and grief for Hurt and his time on one of the best original drama shows on Amazon Prime, Goliath. He portrayed Donald Cooperman, both a partner and an adversary to series protagonist Billy McBride (Billy Bob Thornton).
First, SsurebreC wrote, "He was AMAZING in Goliath...Still, I hoped they would have used him more but perhaps he wasn't feeling well. He was a terrific villain in the first season, top-notch!" gmaOH then came in with a sad reply many film fans can agree with: "I have been watching Season 1 of Goliath all day today. You are right, he is carrying his villain role to a "T". So this is shocking news to me right now."
