Forget the Music: Kris Kristofferson’s Top 10 Movie Roles Include Iconic Performances

This film marked Kristofferson’s debut as a leading man, and it certainly did not disappoint!

Kristofferson starred as the titular musician, who was essentially a cinematic version of himself, minus the success that he achieved in real life.

Cisco is a failed country music singer who makes his money from selling marijuana. This leads to trouble for him when a corrupt cop (Gene Hackman) blackmails him into selling a huge batch of weed over the course of a weekend and bringing back $10,000.

While this movie was both a commercial and critical failure at the time, it soon developed a cult following. In the end, it was a solid start to what became a great film career for Kristofferson!

Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid was Kristofferson’s first true success in Hollywood. He once again played one of the titular roles, as he portrayed Billy The Kid.

This revisionist western is a kaleidoscope vision of life on the frontier and the changing nature of friendship. The movie is about the efforts of Pat Garrett (James Coburn) to take down Billy The Kid (Kristofferson). Let’s just say this is not as easy a task as Pat was hoping it would be!

This movie earned Kristofferson a nomination at BAFTA (the British equivalent of the Oscars) for Most Promising Newcomer To Leading Film Roles. He ultimately lost this award to Peter Egan for The Hireling, but it still cemented Kristofferson as a movie star who had great things to come.

Related: Dolly Parton Honors Country Music Legend Kris Kristofferson After His Death At 88 – ‘I Will Always Love You’

This drama stars George Segal as a divorce attorney who cheats on his wife (Susan Anspach), leading to their breakup. He is then upset upon finding out that she’s found new love with a man 12 years her junior, who is played by Kristofferson.

Kristofferson’s character is a free-spirited, unemployed musician. To play this role, Kristofferson relied on his natural charm, and it truly comes through onscreen.

Though Segal’s character ends up getting back with his wife, it’s hard not to root for Kristofferson’s Elmo to win out in the end!

Related: Johnny Cash Pulled Kris Kristofferson on Stage and Gave Him the Best Gift

In Martin Scorsese’s classic drama Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, which won Ellen Burstyn her well-deserved Best Actress Oscar, Kristofferson portrays a sexy divorced rancher named David. He catches the eye of Burstyn’s titular Alice, who is wary of men after being abused by multiple partners.

Thankfully, David is able to win over Alice with the natural charm that Kristofferson brought to most of his roles. By the end of the movie, it’s not only Alice who has fallen in love with David, as the audience has as well!

The movie ends with David delivering a true romantic comedy kiss to Alice as an entire diner applauds. He’s been so charming throughout the movie that you’ll be hard-pressed to not start applauding as well!

This is undoubtedly Kristofferson’s most famous film role, and it does not disappoint!

A Star Is Born had already been previously made as a 1937 drama starring Janet Gaynor and a 1954 musical starring Judy Garland. This version stars Kristofferson as the alcoholic rockstar John. Barbra Streisand plays the ingenue whose star rises as John’s star falls.

Kristofferson adds some much-needed authenticity to this role with his musical talents. It paid off for him in a big way, as he won the Golden Globe for Best Actor in a musical or comedy. When it comes to his film roles, this will undoubtedly be the one that Kristofferson is most remembered for.

Heaven’s Gate is a nearly four hour epic that is widely seen as a hiccup in Kristofferson’s filmography. Despite this, however, Kristofferson always stood by it.

“During the Johnson County War in 1890 Wyoming, a sheriff born into wealth does his best to protect immigrant farmers from rich cattle interests,” the film’s synopsis reads.

Portraying Marshal Jim Averil, Kristofferson is tasked with carrying much of this epic film on his shoulders alone. Whether you like the movie or not, you can’t deny that Kristofferson’s grit, heart, and humanity comes across onscreen. In the end, no list of Kristofferson’s movies would be complete without this one!

Kristofferson finally scored his only Oscar nomination for Songwriter.

While Kristofferson starred in the movie alongside Willie Nelson and Lesley Ann Warren, his Oscar nomination came for Best Music, Original Song Score. He ultimately ended up losing the Oscar to Prince for Purple Rain. While we love Kristofferson, it’s hard to argue with that one!

“Doc Jenkins is a country music star who’s become fed up with the industry,” the film synopsis reads. “With some help from an old friend he attempts to right some wrongs and get back at the ruthless promoter who’s swindled him.”

That “old friend” is Blackie Buck, who is portrayed flawlessly by Kristofferson. Unlike the previous movie on this list, Songwriter is a quick watch at 94 minutes. This is a fun one if you haven’t checked it out!

Speaking of fun, then there’s Big Top Pee-Wee!

In this classic Tim Burton film, Kristofferson plays the ringmaster Mace Montana. Kristofferson clearly understands his assignment as a straight man to Paul Reuben’s zany Pee-Wee Herman. His a character is a warm, constant presence that grounds Reubens’ campiness in something that resembles a believable world.

Kristofferson manages to keep a straight face even when performing gags like being married to a  six-inch-tall woman. He’s the moral spine of a film that is crazy in every other way. In the end, this should be remembered as one of the best performances that Kristofferson ever gave.

For millennials everywhere, Kristofferson is best known for playing Abraham Whistler in three Blade movies.

Whistler is a vampire hunter and the mentor of the trilogy’s titular half-vampire vigilante (Wesley Snipes). This character is clearly modeled after the weary gunslingers that Kristofferson played on the big screen for decades.

Whistler is prickly and outright rude at times, which would make him an unlikable character if the wrong actor was playing him. Luckily, Kristofferson managed to bring the charisma to this role that he brought to all of his characters. This made Whistler a fan favorite that is still beloved by Blade fans to this day.

Related: Kris, Willie, and the Possum’s Tribute To Johnny Cash is Beautiful

Kristofferson’s final role came in the 2018 movie Blaze, which was directed by the Hollywood star Ethan Hawke.

This movie tells the story of the fictional outlaw country singer Blaze Foley (Ben Dickey). Kristofferson only has one scene in this movie playing Blaze’s father, who is facing dementia and lives in an assisted living facility. Despite not having much screen time, Kristofferson leaves quite an impression.

In his scene, Kristofferson’s character is brought to tears as his son and daughter sing him a song. In the end, this is the perfect final screen appearance for a legendary star like Kristofferson.