10 Best Burt Reynolds Movies, According To IMDb

Burt Reynolds is a film legend. His range from serious to slapstick was amazing, and he made generations of audiences laugh with his antics and wisecracking quotes. Smokey and the Bandit may be his best-known work, but he’s got other films to speak of that outline his charismatic nature.

Whether you’re a lifelong fan or are just now hearing about Burt Reynolds, you’ve come to the right place. We’ve compiled a list of 10 of his best movies, according to IMDb, for you to start binge-watching. With Christmas now come and gone, we need something to watch in the New Year.

10 Best Friends (5.4)

Though not the highest-rated film in the list, it deserves an honorable mention if only because it features the fun pairing of legends Burt Reynolds and Goldie Hawn. Richard (Reynolds) and Paula (Hawn) are screenwriting partners that have lived together for years, simultaneously as best friends and lovers.

Buying a home leads to marriage, which they find changes their relationship significantly from what it was. Adding to the chaos is a script that requires work and the first meetings of both Richard’s and Paula’s parents, as if marriage weren’t already stressful enough!

9 The End (6.2)

When Wendell “Sonny” Lawson (Reynolds) discovers he has a fatal disease and only has a few months to live, he decides to take his fate in his own hands. Rather than endure a prolonged death, he decides to commit suicide. He goes around saying his goodbyes, but after an initial attempt finds himself in an asylum, where he befriends a schizophrenic murderer that he recruits to help him conduct his suicide.

Though featuring a dark premise, Reynolds turns it into a comedy in only the way that he could by featuring his unique humor, failed attempts and perfectly wacky characters.

8 Hooper (6.3)

Reynolds is aging stuntman Sonny Hooper in this 1978 classic. Hooper’s career as a stuntman is quickly catching up with him and he indulges in alcohol and painkillers to subside the aches and pains brought on by years of hard work. Still, he is determined to do one last stunt that may or may not leave him alive.

Faced with a concerned girlfriend and a reminder of his own mortality, Sonny promises to quit the business after the stunt is complete. Sonny’s wit and determination are a great part of his character, and if nothing else, this movie will leave you appreciating stuntmen that much more.

7 The Cannonball Run (6.3)

Reynolds plays JJ McClure, a racer that engages in an illegal cross-country race from Connecticut to California. His partner has an identity crisis that adds to the humor in which they play off each other, making for a great comedic pairing. JJ and his partner, Victor/”Captain Chaos”, acquire an ambulance, snatch a beautiful girl to act as their patient and a doctor resembling Frankenstein to “treat” her.

They, alongside equally eccentric racers with fabricated stories of their own, embark on the illegal road race, each breaking laws and trying to deter their fellow racers (JJ notably so with Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Jr’s characters), much to our amusement.

6 All Dogs Go To Heaven (6.8)

Reynolds provides the voice for Charlie, a dog recently murdered by his former business partner that cheats death and returns to Earth. Intending to rebuild his business and use it as revenge against his murderer, Charlie’s plans change when he meets a little girl named Anne-Marie, who has the ability to speak to animals.

Initially recruiting her for his business, Charlie grows to care for the little orphan girl and he becomes less selfish, learning from her and becoming a real friend to her. He goes as far as to sacrifice his life for Anne-Marie, rendering him worthy of Heaven once again despite his previous escape.

5 Smokey and the Bandit (7.0)

Reynolds stars in this classic film as The Bandit, a trucker hired to bootleg Coors beer over state lines (with only 28 hours to do so) that’s intended for a party to be thrown by the affluent Big Enos Burdette and his son, Little Enos. The Bandit recruits his partner, fellow trucker Cledus Snow (“Snowman”) and the two have a mostly uneventful journey from Atlanta to Texarkana.

The road trip back, however, finds them chased by the crazed Buford T. Justice and his slow-witted son, plus a barrage of “smokeys” (cops) . Not to mention, a chatty runaway bride named Carrie that’s joined Bandit in his Pontiac Trans Am for the ride. Clever and funny, this is probably our favorite Burt Reynolds film.

4 The Longest Yard (7.1)

The Longest Yard sees Reynolds as Paul “Wrecking” Crewe, a former professional quarterback that’s landed in jail after taking his girlfriend’s car and ending up in a police chase. Prison is no slice of pie, but it’s even worse for Crewe, being a disgraced football player due to point shaving.

Most of his fellow inmates are cruel to Crewe, and Crewe is coerced into a makeshift prison football team of inmates versus guards. He faces plenty of obstacles, but when it comes down to it, Crewe does the right thing for himself and his fellow inmates. Reynolds also returned as a different character in the 2005 remake of this film.

3 The Bandit (7.3)

If you like documentaries that revisit your favorite films, then this is for you. This documentary examines the experiences of those involved in the making of Smokey and the Bandit coming together to recall their director Hal Needham.

If Smokey and the Bandit had any kind of impact upon you, this will take you behind-the-scenes to get up close and personal with not only the details but also the people that contributed to the film, including Reynolds himself, of course.

2 Deliverance (7.7)

Burt Reynolds is part of a group of businessmen that go out in the wilderness for a good time out in nature and receive a disastrous and tragic experience instead. Covered murders, stalking, rape, survival skills, terrible losses and lying to the police…this film covers just about everything, and leaves little to the imagination.

You think you’ve had a bad trip outdoors? Few compare to the experience shared by Reynolds’ character and the characters of his co-stars.

1 Boogie Nights (7.9)

Reynolds takes on a different role in Boogie Nights as adult filmmaker Jack Horner, who recruits Mark Wahlberg’s character into the business in the 1970s disco era. While Wahlberg’s character spirals out of control, we get to see Reynolds in a non-comedic role, a different setting for this actor.

It outlines Reynolds’ capabilities as an actor, enough to earn him numerous awards and a Golden Globe award win, which was well-deserved for his performance.

About The Author

Kacie Lillejord
(373 Articles Published)

A Seattle native, Kacie has loved entertainment in the forms of books, films, television and music since day one. Inspired by a filmmaker relative, Kacie has been pursuing a career in the film and television industry in Los Angeles ever since. A graduate of The University of Arizona, Kacie has written for her college newspaper The Daily Wildcat, Harness Magazine, 25YL, and now has added Screen Rant to her resume. She loves writing and all things pop culture.

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