Ving Rhames is widely recognized as one of the coolest and busiest actors to work in Hollywood over the past three decades. Since making his big-screen debut in Go Tell It On The Mountain in 1984, Rhames has appeared in more than 130 film and TV projects. During that span, Rhames has worked with such iconic filmmakers as Quentin Tarantino, Steven Soderbergh, Brian De Palma, Martin Scorsese, Wes Craven, David Mamet, and many more.
In 1997, Rhames earned a Golden Globe for his portrayal of Don King in the made-for-television production of Don King: Only in America. Although he hasn't appeared on-screen since 2018, here are Ving Rhames's 10 Best Movies, According to Rotten Tomatoes.
Lilo & Stitch (2002) 86%
While Rhames isn't typically known for his voice-over roles in animated features, he struck a chord with audiences as Cobra Bubbles in the beloved kid's movie Lilo & Stitch.
From directors Dean DeBlois and Chris Sanders, the film follows Lilo (Daveigh Chase), a young Hawaiian girl who unwittingly adopts a top-secret science experiment known as 626 (Sanders) after it crashes down in the country from outer space. Lilo dubs 626 "Stitch," and the two end up on an epic journey of survival when the mad scientist Dr. Jookiba (David Ogden Stiers) comes looking for him. Rhames plays a social worker who advises Lilo to put Stitch into foster care.
The Long Walk Home (1990) 87%
The Long Walk Home chronicles the 1955 bus boycott in Alabama led by Civil Rights icon Martin Luther King Jr. Sissy Spacek and Whoopi Goldberg star as a pair of women from radically different backgrounds who must decide how to respond to the event.
Odessa Carter (Goldberg) is a black woman who works as a maid for the white Miriam Thompson (Spacek) in Montgomery, Alabama in 1955. Determined to join the city-wide boycott of the busing system, Odessa is forced to make long-walks to and from the protest. As the boycotts intensify, Miriam offers to give Odessa rides twice a week so that she doesn't have to walk.
Rosewood (1997) 87%
Rhames gives one of the few lead performances of his career as Mann in Rosewood, a movie that recounts the horrors of a 1923 lynch-mob against African American citizens.
Directed b John Singelton, the film is named for the historical 1923 massacre in Rosewood, Florida in which violent white mobs murdered innocent black people and destroyed their property. Rhames plays Mann, a drifter who comes to town and empowers the local black population to rise up and fight back. With the help of white store owner John Wright (Jon Voight) and local Sheriff Carrier (Don Cheadle), Mann incites widespread change in the south.
Homicide (1991) 91%
In David Mamet's Homicide, Rhames plays a drug-dealing cop-killer named Robert Randolph who is put on the FBI's 10 Most Wanted List. Hot on his tail is Detective Bobby Gold (Joe Mantegna), a Jewish cop who runs into an antisemitic hate group that derails his pursuit of Randolph.
Upon being reassigned to the murder of an elderly Jewish woman, Gold falls in with a Zionist sect that promotes the creation of a Jewish state. However, the more aligned with the group he becomes, the bigger the target he finds himself.
Pulp Fiction (1994) 91%
One of Rhames' most iconic roles to date is that of Marcellus Wallace in Pulp Fiction, Quentin Tarantino's indie crime blockbuster. In addition to its Rotten Tomatoes rating, the film currently ranks #8 on IMDB's Top 250 and boasts a 94/100 Metascore.
Part of the movie's plotline derives from Vincent Vega (John Travolta) looking after Marcellus' wife, Mia (Uma Thurman), while he's out of town. When Marcellus's business associate Butch Coolidge (Bruce Willis) refuses to throw a boxing match as planned, Wallace immediately puts a hit out on the fighter.
Out Of Sight (1998) 93%
Based on the Elmore Leonard novel, Out of Sight exists in the same universe as Quentin Tarantino's Jackie Brown. Directed by Steven Soderbergh, the former follows bank robber Jack Foley (George Clooney) who, upon his escape from prison, kidnaps a U.S Marshall en route to pulling off one last heist.
Upon capturing agent Karen Sisco (Jennifer Lopez), Foley sparks a heated romance with the woman as he evades the law on his way to Detroit. Rhames plays one of Foley's right-hand man and longtime criminal accomplice Buddy Bragg.
Mission: Impossible Rogue Nation (2015) 93%
As Luther Stickell in the multi-decade franchise, Rhames is one of the few actors other than Tom Cruise to appear in every Mission: Impossible movie since 1996.
In the fifth franchise entry, Rogue Nation, Rhames reprises his role as one of Ethan Hunt's closest allies. However, this time out the IMF Agent and computer expert is forced to track Hunt at the behest of the CIA following the death of the Austrian Chancellor. Along with Agent Brandt (Jeremy Renner), Stickell tracks Hunt down in Casablanca.
Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol (2011) 94%
While Rhames is uncredited for the small reprisal of his role as Luther Sticklell, the fourth entry in the Mission: Impossible franchise still ranks among his top three highest-rated movies, according to Rotten Tomatoes.
Directed by Brad Bird, Ghost Protocol concerns Hendricks (Michael Nyqvst), a Russian terrorist who gets his hands on the nuclear launch codes with lethal intent towards the United States. Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his crack-team are given the mission to stop Hendricks before he inflicts global harm.
Dave (1993) 95%
In Ivan Reitman's fish-out-of-water comedy Dave, Kevin Kline plays a presidential impersonator thrust into action when the real leader of the U.S. falls into a medical coma following a sexual affair.
When President Bill Mitchell (also played by Kline) slips into a coma, Secret Service Agent Duane Stevenson (Rhames) recruits Dave Kovic, an unassuming temp agency manager, to fill his place. Things go smoothly at first until Dave becomes romantically involved with Ellen Mitchell (Sigourney Weaver), First Lady of the United State.
Mission: Impossible - Fallout (2018) 97%
According to Rotten Tomatoes, the most recent release of Rhames' career currently ranks as his highest-rated movie to date.
Directed by Christopher McQuarrie, Mission: Impossible - Fallout concerns Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his crack team of fellow IMF agents out to thwart a fundamentalist terrorist group known as The Apostles. Rhames once again reprises his role as Luther Stickell, a computer specialist and close confidant of Ethan's. As the team sets out to locate the mysterious mastermind, John Lark, one near-fatal surprise after another follows suit.