Arriving on the heels of the duo’s breathtaking crime thriller Fargo, the Coen brothers’ stoner noir The Big Lebowski wasn’t appreciated in its time. Two years after Marge Gunderson caught a kidnapper shoving a dead body into a wood chipper in the snowy wilderness, a nihilist peeing on a pothead’s rug felt like a step down for the pair. Of course, in the years since its release, a cult audience has come to recognize The Big Lebowski for the comedy masterpiece that it is.
The movie’s colorful cast of characters was deftly brought to life by a talented ensemble cast made up of regular Coen brothers collaborators and fresh faces.
Tara Reid As Bunny Lebowski
Sharknado star Tara Reid stands out in a cast of well-respected actors in the role of Bunny Lebowski, the more affluent Jeffrey Lebowski’s young wife. Her abduction kicks off the plot, but she doesn’t make much of an impression in her short appearances.
The most memorable moment involving the character is the revelation about her toe, which has nothing to do with Reid’s performance.
John Turturro As Jesus Quintana
John Turturro directed himself in a Big Lebowski spin-off recently called The Jesus Rolls, but it was nowhere near as well-reviewed as the original movie. Jesus Quintana only appears in a couple of scenes, but he makes a lasting impression.
The Coens gave Turturro a lot of freedom in developing the character and he clearly had a lot of fun coming up with the dance moves.
Sam Elliott As The Stranger
When the Coen brothers put out a casting call for a Sam Elliott type to do the voiceover narration for The Big Lebowski, the real Sam Elliott got in touch and offered to do it. Elliott’s deep, soothing voice was perfect for the role of the Stranger.
Whereas the Dude represents modern attitudes leading society into the future, the Stranger embodies traditional values in a world moving beyond them.
Philip Seymour Hoffman As Brandt
Before his tragic and untimely passing, Philip Seymour Hoffman was one of the greatest actors in the world. From Capote to The Master, he knocked every role he ever played out of the park.
His portrayal of the title character’s put-upon assistant Brandt in The Big Lebowski was no different. Hoffman was given less to do than he was in starring roles, but he still brought a handful of big laughs to each scene, like the dramatic way he would open a door.
Steve Buscemi As Donny Kerabatsos
After playing a career criminal with a short temper and a hair trigger in the Coens’ previous movie, Steve Buscemi played a passive loser in The Big Lebowski.
Most of Donny’s scenes boil down to being told to “shut the f**k up” by Walter whenever he tries to contribute to the conversation, but Buscemi brought a sympathetic quality to the role.
David Huddleston As Jeffrey “The Big” Lebowski
The title character in The Big Lebowski is a counterpoint to the Dude. Whereas the Dude is an unemployed stoner coasting from day to day, “the Big” Lebowski is wealthy and self-made.
David Huddleston hilariously encapsulates the stuffed-shirt, business-savvy alternative to the Dude opposite Jeff Bridges’ definitive portrait of a dope-smoking slacker.
Julianne Moore As Maude Lebowski
Julianne Moore commands the screen whenever she shows up in The Big Lebowski, challenging gender norms and creating bold art inspired by the female form. Her deadpan delivery of Maude’s lines makes the character iconic.
Maude Lebowski is a hilarious inversion of a femme fatale. She has all the answers, but isn’t interested in getting involved in the criminal plot. She sleeps with the hero, but only because she wants to get impregnated by a guy who will gladly relinquish his rights as the kid’s father.
Jeff Bridges As Jeff “The Dude” Lebowski
Jeff Bridges was so captivating in the role of the Dude that he spawned a whole religion. He rubbed his eyes before every take to make them look glassy, but his embodiment of his pot-addled character goes far beyond that. Rather than leaning into stoner stereotypes, Bridges plays the Dude as laid-back and passive.
This made him the perfect “wrong man” protagonist for the Coens’ Chandleresque detective story. He’s the last guy you’d expect to get embroiled in a hard-boiled crime plot, and Bridges plays that beautifully.
John Goodman As Walter Sobchak
While the Dude is undeniably the heart and soul of The Big Lebowski, the movie’s greatest performance is delivered by John Goodman in the role of hot-tempered Vietnam veteran Walter Sobchak, who was based on Apocalypse Now screenwriter John Milius.
Goodman nails every scene. Moments like Walter making a scene at a coffee shop about his rights as an American or pulling a gun on Smokey after his foot goes over the line or bashing up the sports car that he thinks belongs to Larry will never not be funny.