Jack Nicholson

Born 1937 • Manhattan, New York, USA

John Joseph "Jack" Nicholson (born April 22, 1937) is a retired American actor, film director, producer and writer. He is renowned for his often dark-themed portrayals of neurotic characters. Nicholson has been nominated for Academy Awards 12 times, winning Best Actor for One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and for As Good as It Gets, and Best Supporting Actor for Terms of Endearment. He is tied with Walter Brennan for most acting wins by a male actor (three), and second to Katharine Hepburn for most acting wins overall (four). He is also one of only two actors nominated for an Academy Award for acting (either lead or supporting) in every decade from the 1960s to 2000s (the other one being Michael Caine). He has won seven Golden Globe Awards, and received a Kennedy Center Honor in 2001. In 1994, he became one of the youngest actors to be awarded the American Film Institute's Life Achievement Award. Notable films in which he has starred include, Easy Rider, Chinatown, The Shining, Reds, Batman, A Few Good Men, About Schmidt, Something's Gotta Give, and The Departed.

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Filmography

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2025

John Candy: I Like Me

as Self - Actor (archive footage)

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2025

SNL50: The Homecoming Concert

as Self

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2025

Breakdown: 1975

Directed by Morgan Neville

as Self (archive footage)

Jack of Three Trades: In Focus on Nicholson the Director

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2024

Jack of Three Trades: In Focus on Nicholson the Director

as Self (archive footage)

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2022

Clint Eastwood: The Last Legend

as Self (archive footage)

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2021

Untold: Deal with the Devil

as Self (archive footage)

40 Years of Rocky: The Birth of a Classic

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2020

40 Years of Rocky: The Birth of a Classic

as Self (archive footage)

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2020

Joker: Put on a Happy Face

as Self

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2020

Kubrick by Kubrick

as Self (archive footage)

Jack Nicholson - The Devilish Smile of Hollywood

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2017

Jack Nicholson - The Devilish Smile of Hollywood

as Self

The Rolling Stones: From the Vault - Sticky Fingers Live at the Fonda Theatre 2015

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2017

The Rolling Stones: From the Vault - Sticky Fingers Live at the Fonda Theatre 2015

as Self - Audience Member

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2012

Roman Polanski: A Film Memoir

as Self (archive footage)

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2012

Close Up

as Self (archive footage)

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2011

Corman's World

as Self - Actor

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2010

BBStory: An American Film Renaissance

as Self

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2010

America Lost and Found: The BBS Story

as Self

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2010

Mulholland Drive - Ein Hollywood-Mythos

as Self

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2010

Soul Searching in 'Five Easy Pieces'

as Self

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2010

How Do You Know

as Charles Madison

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2010

I'm Still Here

as Jack Nicholson

Shadows of the Bat: The Cinematic Saga of the Dark Knight

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2008

Shadows of the Bat: The Cinematic Saga of the Dark Knight

as Self

Notes on an American Film Director at Work

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2008

Notes on an American Film Director at Work

as Self

View from the Overlook: Crafting 'The Shining'

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2007

View from the Overlook: Crafting 'The Shining'

as Self

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2007

The Bucket List

as Edward Periman Cole

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2007

The Visions of Stanley Kubrick

as Self

Lost Kubrick: The Unfinished Films of Stanley Kubrick

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2007

Lost Kubrick: The Unfinished Films of Stanley Kubrick

as Self

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2006

Witness to 'Reds'

as Self

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2006

The Departed

as Costello

Shelter from the Storm: A Concert for the Gulf Coast

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2005

Shelter from the Storm: A Concert for the Gulf Coast

as Self - Presenter

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2004

Jack Nicholson: The Joker Is Wild

as Self(archive footage)

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2003

Something's Gotta Give

as Harry Sanborn

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2003

Anger Management

as Dr. Buddy Rydell

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2002

Paul McCartney: Back in the U.S.

as Self

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2002

About Schmidt

as Warren Schmidt

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2001

The Pledge

as Jerry Black

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2001

Stanley Kubrick: A Life in Pictures

as Self

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2001

America | A Tribute to Heroes

as Self

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1999

Velocity

as Johnny Varron (young) (archive footage)

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1998

Junket Whore

as Self

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1997

As Good as It Gets

as Melvin Udall

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1996

Shirley Maclaine: Kicking Up Her Heels

as Self (archive footage)

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1996

Blood and Wine

as Alex

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1996

Mars Attacks!

as President Dale / Art Land

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1996

The Evening Star

as Garrett Breedlove

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1995

The Rolling Stones: Totally Stripped

as Self

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1995

The Crossing Guard

as Freddy Gale

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1995

The Rolling Stones: Stripped

as Self

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1994

Wolf

as Will Randall

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1994

The Making of '...And God Spoke'

Directed by Arthur Borman

as Self - Academy Awards (archive footage)

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1992

Hoffa

as James R. 'Jimmy' Hoffa

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1992

A Few Good Men

as Col. Nathan R. Jessep

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1992

Man Trouble

as Harry Bliss

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1990

The Two Jakes

as J.J. "Jake" Gittes

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1989

Batman

as Jack Napier / The Joker

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1988

On the tracks of a filmmaker

as Jack Nicholson

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1987

Broadcast News

as Bill Rorich

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1987

The Witches of Eastwick

as Daryl Van Horne

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1987

Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories

as Narrator (voice)

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1987

Ironweed

as Francis Phelan

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1987

Rabbit Ears - How the Rhinoceros Got His Skin/How the Camel Got His Hump

as Narrator (voice)

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1986

The Elephant's Child

as Narrator (voice)

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1986

Heartburn

as Mark

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1985

Prizzi's Honor

as Charley Partanna

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1985

Live Aid

as Self

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1983

Terms of Endearment

as Garrett Breedlove

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1982

The Border

as Charlie Smith

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1981

Reds

as Eugene O'Neill

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1981

The Postman Always Rings Twice

as Frank Chambers

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1980

The Shining

as Jack Torrance

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1980

Making 'The Shining'

as Self

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1978

Goin' South

as Henry Moon

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1976

The Missouri Breaks

as Tom Logan

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1976

The Last Tycoon

as Brimmer

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1976

TVTV Looks at the Oscars

as Self

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1975

The Passenger

as David Locke

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1975

Tommy

as The Specialist

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1975

The Fortune

as Oscar 'Dix' Sullivan

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1975

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

as Randle Patrick McMurphy

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1974

Chinatown

as J.J. 'Jake' Gittes

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1973

The Last Detail

as Buddusky

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1972

The King of Marvin Gardens

as David Staebler

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1972

Yoko Ono: This Is Not Here

as Self

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1971

Drive, He Said

as Annoyed Bearded Guy

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1971

Carnal Knowledge

as Jonathan

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1971

A Safe Place

as Mitch

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1971

Walt Whitman: Poet for a New Age

as Narrator

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1970

On a Clear Day You Can See Forever

as Tad Pringle

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1970

Five Easy Pieces

as Robert Eroica Dupea

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1970

Rebel Rousers

as Bunny

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1969

Easy Rider

as George Hanson

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1968

Psych-Out

as Stoney

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1968

The Movie Orgy

as Self (archive footage)

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1968

Targets

as Lt. Andre Duvalier (archive footage) (uncredited)

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1967

Hells Angels on Wheels

as Poet

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1967

The St. Valentine's Day Massacre

as Gino, Hit Man (uncredited)

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1966

Ride in the Whirlwind

as Wes

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1966

The Shooting

as Billy Spear

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1964

Flight to Fury

as Jay Wickham

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1964

Ensign Pulver

as Yeoman Dolan

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1964

Back Door to Hell

as Burnett

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1963

The Raven

as Rexford Bedlo

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1963

The Terror

as Lt. Andre Duvalier

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1962

The Hour of St. Francis

as Jim Evans

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1962

The Broken Land

as Will

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1962

Little Amy

as Jefferson City Coach

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1960

The Little Shop of Horrors

as Wilbur Force

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1960

The Wild Ride

as Johnny Varron

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1960

Studs Lonigan

as Weary Reilly

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1960

Too Soon to Love

as Buddy

N/A

1958

The Cry Baby Killer

as Jimmy Wallace