Bad Times At The El Royale: Every Major Performance, Ranked

Bad Times At The El Royale is one of those sleeper gems which many viewers had no idea what they were in for going into it. Directed by Drew Goddard, who was previously lauded for his horror film Cabin In The Woods, is an ensemble thriller about seven shady strangers with dark pasts who meet at a mysterious hotel.

The film stars notable Hollywood heavy-hitters, including Chris Hemsworth (Thor), Dakota Johnson (50 Shades Of Grey), Cynthia Erivo (The Outsider), Jon Hamm (Mad Men, Baby Driver), and Jeff Bridges (True Grit, Tron). It’s a film which surprised many, with its many twists and stellar performances, but who truly shone in this ensemble thriller?

10 William B. Davis As Judge Gordon Hoffman

Let’s get one thing straight, no performance in Bad Times At The El Royale is terrible, regardless of how little or how much time each actor spends on screen. One such actor is William B. Davis ( The X-Files), who has less than a minute on screen as Judge Gordon Hoffman.

He might deliver one line, sentencing Jeff Bridge’s character to imprisonment. Still, he delivers it with solid conviction and gravitas, making his appearance a worthy cameo in this star-studded thriller.

9 Nick Offerman As Felix O’Kelly

Nick Offerman, the beloved Ron Swanson from Parks And Recreation, plays a tiny yet memorable performance in Bad Times At The El Royale. The actor’s character only spends about four minutes onscreen without as much as a mumble of dialogue.

Felix enters a motel room clad in a suit, and his presence on screen is a far cry from his character Ron Swanson. He delivers a performance solely through some grunts, and his movements through the room as he pulls up the floorboards to stash a bag before meeting his end before the title rolls.

8 Xavier Dolan As Buddy Sunday

Xavier Dolan is a Canadian actor and writer known for his work in Tom at The Farm, and I Killed My Mother.

He plays a small role in Bad Times as Buddy Sunday, a seedy music producer. No performance, no matter how small in this film, is short of awe-inspiring, and Dolan’s portrayal of a lecherous, sarcastic and condescending jerk, albeit limited, is almost flawless.

7 Cailee Spaeny As Ruth Summerspring

Spaeny was a relatively green actress when she stepped into the role of Ruth Summerspring. By no means is her performance the worst, but, instead, her’s is one that is perhaps the short straw of the bunch of talented performances in Bad Times. She gets the least amount of screentime or character development of the major characters. This is perhaps because Ruth’s character is beta to two different alphas in Goddard’s narrative.

Spaeny plays Emily Summerspring’s baby sister, with Emily often acting in a paternal role in her attempts to save her younger sister. The other alpha role is filled by Billy Lee (Hemsworth), who is the leader of the cult that Ruth and Emily are a part of, and Ruth spends most of her runtime obeying all of his commands with unbridled loyalty. Spaeny, albeit with very little screentime to do so, is exceptional in her dedication to her role, offering frenetic energy and ferocity to her portrayal of Ruth.

6 Lewis Pullman As Miles Miller

Another standout and surprising performance in Bad Times At The El Royale belongs to Lewis Pullman as Miles Miller, the busboy working at the El Royale. The actor takes what could easily have been a weaker point of the film and delivers a stellar performance.

When Miller is first introduced to the other characters, his facade is little more than that of an addicted busboy who appears to single-handedly run the motel, despite not really doing a good job. Yet, as the film progresses, the other characters and the audience quickly learn that there is much more to Miller and his shady past.

Pullman truly shines in the latter half of the film when it’s revealed that he has PTSD after having served as a sniper in the Vietnam war. Miller’s scenes that he shares with Jeff Bridges’ Father Daniel Flynn are some of the best dialogue-driven scenes of the film.

5 Jon Hamm As Dwight Broadbeck

Jon Hamm, known for his role in Mad Men, plays Dwight Broadbeck, a secret intelligence agent. His on-screen time is notably limited compared to other major cast members; however, Hamm basically gets the chance to play two roles in one. When his character is introduced to the rest of the cast, he’s posing as one Laramie Seymore Sullivan, an obnoxious vacuum-cleaner salesman.

Goddard’s script allows Hamm to play with the character’s motor-mouth, and Hamm uses this to chomp into dialogue while gleefully chewing the scenery. Later, when he reveals his true identity, it’s his previous performance as Sullivan that allows him to shine yet again in his portrayal of Dwight Broadbeck.

4 Dakota Johnson As Emily Summerspring

Many people view Dakota Johnson as the Fifty Shades Of Grey girl, much like Kristen Steward is viewed as the Twilight saga girl. However, this approach to her is seriously narrow-minded. Johnson’s performance as Emily Summerspring is a clear indication that she has all the chops to deliver stellar performances in any role. She brings a reserved, under-the-surface power to her role, and, when she’s first introduced to the other characters, on the run from Billy Lee with Ruth in her trunk, it’s clear that she’s a total badass with bucket loads of attitude.

Johnson truly shines in her role in the latter half of the film when she shares more screentime with Ruth. She placidly plays each beat, allowing for her character’s true feelings and motivations to shine through the subtext of her performance and her deliberate choices in body language and on-screen movement.

3 Jeff Bridges As Father Daniel Flynn

For most of his career, Jeff Bridges has been praised as one of the most gifted performers in Hollywood. However, even with this reputation, the actor on occasion still manages to shock one with how astonishing he is at his craft. His role in Bad Times At The El Royale as Father Daniel Flynn is one such “cat-out-the-bag” performance.

From the second he makes a screen appearance, it’s clear that there is something amiss about his character. Of course, it’s not long before viewers learn that he’s there to retrieve a sum of money, which his brother hid under the motel years ago. However, Bridges’ performance really shines when he reveals his debilitating disease. Bridge’s character struggles with his memory, often to the point where he totally forgets what he’s doing or even who he is. One scene that stands out is when she first admits this problem to Darlene in the motel lobby while sharing some pie. Jeff Bridges delivers a performance that is unexpectedly touching and proves that the actor still approaches every role with the gravitas of an actor of his caliber.

2 Chris Hemsworth As Billy Lee

While Hemsworth only gets his time to shine in the third act, the Thor actor truly shines in his performance as cult-leader Billy Lee. Billy Lee is essentially a fictionalized version of Charles Manson, and this allows Hemsworth to truly showcase his range than what most audiences have to come to know him for. When Hemsworth plays Thor, he’s able to use his charm and charisma for good. However, as Billy Lee, he’s able to use it for much, much more sinister purposes.

During the flashback in which Billy Lee speaks to his followers, it becomes clear why he’s such a beloved leader. Hemsworth’s portrayal of Lee is notably passionate and charismatic, even during the instances when he nearly forces his followers to murder each other.

1 Cynthia Erivo As Darlene Sweet

Most recently lauded for her role in The Outsider as the eccentric Holly Gibney, Cynthia Erivo made her cinematic debut in Bad Times at The El Royale. While sharing screentime with heavy hitters such as Bridges and Hemsworth, Erivo steals every scene she’s in and makes it look easy.

Her character, Darlene Sweet, is a struggling singer who, on her way to Reno to perform, makes a pitstop at the El Royale. Every scene where Erivo sings is an absolute treat, as her voice is stunning. But, more importantly, it’s how the actress allows Darlene to come to life in her scenes which is memorable.

During her exchanges with other characters, Darlene is often quiet, stoic, and visibly reserved, delivering every line of script delicately. She plays her character during these moments with precise calculation, and it’s indisputable that Darlene is constantly studying the other characters.

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