Paul Rudd has been in more than 60 movies over the past 30 years, making the most of both his humorous and dramatic talents. In the same year that Rudd played Tommy Doyle in Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers, Alicia Silverstone starred in Clueless, which featured Rudd. The role of Brian Fantana in the Anchorman movies cemented his reputation as one of the finest comic actors in American history.
Rudd has recently made appearances in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Scott Lang/Ant-Man, Ghostbusters: Afterlife, and Netflix’s Living With Yourself. He has built up a sizable fan base for himself, and it has been demonstrated that it will only continue to expand over time. We wanted to take the opportunity to reflect on Rudd’s recent filmography while we wait for his upcoming projects. Listed in order of their Rotten Tomatoes rating are Paul Rudd’s top motion pictures.
Ant-Man (2015) — 83%
Rudd makes his MCU debut in 2015’s Ant-Man, released soon after Avengers: Age of Ultron by Marvel Studios. Unbeknownst to the public at the time, Ant-Man set the stage for much bigger things to come while crafting a condensed narrative that felt much more intimate. The movie had a fantastic ensemble, lots of eye-catching CG moments, an excellent father-daughter dynamic, and Scott Lang, who was a likeable hero and embodied the common guy. It was the ideal approach to conclude Phase 2 and gave fans a peek at an unexplored aspect of the MCU.
Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018) — 87%
The critics gave Ant-Man and the Wasp a 4% higher score than their predecessor. Hope finally put on her own suit, as was hinted at at the conclusion of the first Ant-Man, joining Scott as a superhero team. Once Janet van Dyne’s survival was verified in the sequel, our heroes were dispatched on a rescue mission in the Quantum Realm. Because Ghost, a.k.a. Ava Starr, required energy from the Quantum Realm to survive, their goal brought them into conflict with her.
Avengers: Endgame (2019) — 94%
Of of all of Rudd’s films, Avengers: Endgame has the highest Rotten Tomatoes score. It’s not difficult to understand why the movie was such a hit with audiences given how skillfully it resolved story arcs, balanced its many characters, and performed fan service. It was the result of 11 years of meticulous organisation and story-telling; it was a rare instance of an event movie that lived up to the expectations. Of course, Scott’s original notion for a time heist to steal the Infinity Stones became the main plot of the movie. Rudd’s MCU character has in many ways evolved into one of cinema’s most significant figures.
Captain America: Civil War (2016) — 90%
Rudd had his second MCU movie appearance through Marvel Studios, but it wasn’t in Ant-Man 2; it was in Captain America: Civil War from 2016. Scott was enlisted into Team Captain America after the Sokovia Accords caused the Avengers to split apart. He participated in battles against superheroes like War Machine and Spider-Man, taking up the alias “Giant-Man” for the first time. Scott had a huge presence despite having little screen time because of Rudd’s charm, which added a lot of welcome energy to the movie. On Rotten Tomatoes, Captain America: Civil War scored a 90% score from critics, which is comparable to the 89% score it received from the general public.
Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008) — 83%
In order to forget about his ex, Peter Bretter (Segel) chose the Turtle Bay resort in Hawaii as the setting for the events of Forgetting Sarah Marshall. Unknown to Peter, Sarah Marshall, his ex-girlfriend, was a resort guest at Turtle Bay. Even worse, Sarah was there with her new flame rather than just by herself. Peter, however, was adamant about getting over Sarah, and while at the resort, he started dating someone new. Of course, that’s when Sarah realised she hadn’t moved on from Peter, which made his effort to let go of the past more difficult. Rudd played Chuck / Kunu in the movie, a surf instructor who didn’t know his own age but was nonetheless able to impart wise life lessons.
I Love You, Man (2009) — 83%
Jason Segel and Rudd previously worked together on the films Knocked Up (2007) and Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008). With the film I Love You, Man (2009), they again teamed together. The movie follows Peter Klaven (Rudd), a Los Angeles real estate agent who gets engaged to Zooey (Rashida Jones). Although Peter was looking forward to being married, he was unfortunate in that he lacked any close male friends who could serve as his best man. Fortunately for Peter, he met Sydney (Segel), who ended up being the best buddy he could have ever hoped for. In addition to celebrating romantic love, I Love You, Man served as a reminder of the value of platonic relationships. I Love You, Man was the ideal bromance film in that sense.
Knocked Up (2007) — 89%
On 2007’s Knocked Up, directed by Judd Apatow of The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Rudd and Apatow continued to collaborate. In the movie, Seth Rogen played the irresponsible slacker Ben Stone, and Katherine Heigl played media celebrity Alison Scott. Alison became pregnant after a one-night affair between the two, causing Ben to quickly mature and demonstrate his ability to be a caring father. In the movie, Rudd played Pete, Alison’s brother-in-law, who needed to work on his own relationship issues. Knocked Up has the highest critics’ rating of any romantic comedy in Rudd’s filmography, at 89%.
Prince Avalanche (2013) — 82%
Rudd starred in the 2013 comedy-drama Prince Avalanche, directed by Pineapple Express, alongside Emile Hirsch. The movie didn’t really have a plot; instead, it focused on the relationship between two blue-collar employees who have quite different outlooks on life. Prince Avalanche received a Tomatometer score of 82%, which is much higher than the general audience score of 53%.
The 40-Year-Old Virgin (2005) — 85%
The 40-Year-Old Virgin was about a man who had never had sex, as the title suggested. Steve Carell portrayed Andy Stitzer, a shy employee of an electronics store who concealed his virginity from everyone around him. Andy’s friend David (Rudd) decided to assist him remove his V-card after learning of his secret. When David eventually met Trish (Catherine Keener), he was fortunate to find someone with whom he truly connected. One of the most enduring romantic comedies from the 2000s is The 40-Year-Old Virgin, which is likely a result of the persistent social pressure to lose your virginity by a particular age.
The Little Prince (2015) — 92%
The Little Prince was a stop-motion and computer-animated film that chronicled an aviator’s meeting with the titular “Little Prince” in the Sahara desert. It’s difficult to discuss The Little Prince without giving away significant plot points, but it dealt extensively with issues of loneliness as well as human nature, love, and camaraderie. In case you didn’t know, the movie was based on a French novella that was released in the 1940s. The novella is the second most translated book in history, according to statistics. In the movie adaption, Rudd provided the voice for Mr. Prince, an adult version of the Little Prince who had forgotten his background.
The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012) — 85%
The Perks of Being a Wallflower, which was one of the most popular coming-of-age movies of the early 2010s, is based on the 1999 novel of the same name. Charlie Kelmeckis (Logan Lerman), a wallflower who viewed things from the outside but wasn’t actually a part of them, was the main character of the movie. At least, that was the case until he met Emma Watson’s (Emma Watson) free-spirited Sam and her stepbrother, Patrick (Ezra Miller). Charlie also forged a bond with his English instructor, Mr. Anderson (Rudd), who recognised his talents and assisted him on his quest for self-expression and self-awareness. A good novel to movie adaption, The Perks of Being a Wallflower is still spoken about today.
This Is the End (2013) — 83%
The Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg film This Is the End, which was written, produced, and directed by them, depicted a fictitious, over-the-top version of its cast attempting to survive the end of the world. James Franco, Jonah Hill, Seth Rogen, Jay Baruchel, Danny McBride, and Craig Robinson made up the majority of the cast. Rudd only had a short part in the movie, which had him treading on someone and accidently killing them before being taken into hell. The entertaining value and lack of self-importance of This Is the End earned it praise from critics. But, perhaps more Paul Rudd would have made the movie better.
