My Favorite Ed Harris Performances

This is quite unusual with ordinary folks, much less Hollywood types: Ed Harris has been married to Amy Madigan for 39 years.

15.

Dave Moss, Glengarry Glen Ross



Harris gets credit for not fading into the wallpaper working with the powerhouse ensemble cast crafted for this spectacular film version of David Mamet's play about a group of salesmen who have been put on notice by corporate to improve their sales or pink slips are going to start going out. Things get tense for the salesman when a primary set of leads considered guaranteed sales mysteriously disappear.

Kinda expected this one to be higher, to be honest.

Harris is an actor I always seem to like in a role, but at the same time, he's someone you can count on being the surprise villain 90% of the time.

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14.

Wayne Lomax, Places in the Heart



Harris made the most of his role in this Oscar winning drama playing the married brother of Edna (Sally Field) who initiates a relationship with a lonely teacher (Harris' real life spouse, Amy Madigan).

13.

Seth Frank, Absolute Power




Harris held his own with some Hollywood heavyweights playing a police detective assigned to the case when it comes to light that a career criminal (Cint Eastwood) who has evidence that would incriminate the POTUS (Gene Hackman) in a murder and its cover up by his staff.

12.

Howard Hunt, Nixon



Harris made another thankless shine in this epic look at our 37th president, playing one of the original Watergate burglars. For my money, Harris has the best line in the entire movie.

I'm glad you wanted Nixon, I thought you might like it.

It took me four days to do it, but yes, Citizen, I really enjoyed it...thank you for the nudge to watch it.

I should watch Nixon again, and JFK too. It's been a long time since I seen them.

11.

Wayne Tarrance, The Firm



Harris brought the creepy to this performance playing a federal agent who is pressuring a young hotshot attorney (Tom Cruise) into helping him bring down the firm he works for, who are implicated in the deaths of two other attorneys.

10.

William Walker, Walker



Harris' performance is the best thing about this pretentious and confusing war epic about the legendary mercenary who accepts an assignment to lead a military troop into Nicaragua and take over the country. This movie was so bizarre, but Harris is so good I had to include it on the list.

9.

Dave, Jacknife



Harris offers one of his most explosive performances as an alcoholic Vietnam vet who is having trouble adjusting to life back home while trying to remain friends with a fellow vet (Robert De Niro) who is taking the connection they made back in Nam a lot more seriously than Dave is.

He defo was. He was a perfect match opposite Viggo. I think im gonna watch that movie right now thanks for remind me of this great movie and performance of Ed

8.

Gene Kranz, Apollo 13



Harris earned an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor for his grounded yet vivid performance as the mission control supervisor in charge on ground for the seemingly doomed Apollo 13 passengers.

7.

Carl Fogarty, A History of Violence



Harris was bone-chilling in this movie as a disfigured wiseguy who arrives in a small town to track down the guy who disfigured him (Viggo Mortensen) who has assumed a new identity and started a brand new life.

6.

Charlie Dick, Sweet Dreams



Harris lit up the screen here as the sexy, sexist, and often abusive husband of country music legend Patsy Cline (Jessica Lange)

5.

John Glenn, The Right Stuff



Harris held his own as part of an amazing all-star cast as the emotional heart of the Mercury 7 space team, John Glenn

4.

Jackson Pollack, Pollack



Ed Harris actually made his film directorial debut and earned himself his first Best actor Oscar nomination in the process playing the alcoholic, issue-laden abstract artist of the 1940's.

3.

Richard Brown, The Hours



Harris earned a Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination for this brilliant and theatrical performance as a gay, suicidal writer dying of AIDS, trying to unravel the relationship with his e-lover and with his BFF and caregiver (Meryl Streep). Harris is absolutely heartbreaking in this movie.

2.

Bud Brigman, The Abyss



Harris brought real substance to this near flawless melange of action/adventure and the supernatural playing the leader of a team of divers who, while in the midst of a recue mission, has a close encounter of the supernatural kind.



Well, that' # 2...any true Ed Harris film already knows what # 1 is, so I will dispense with honorable mentions and go ahead with my #1 favorite Ed Harris performance: