Born in 1920, Walter Matthau was a celebrated performer on both the stage and screen, known for his gruff, rumpled persona. Let’s take a look back at 15 of his greatest films, ranked worst to best.
Matthau turned to acting after serving in the United States Army Air Force during WWII. He became a frequent presence on the small screen with appearances in “Alfred Hitchcock Presents,” “Goodyear Playhouse,” and “The Du Pont Show of the Week” (which brought him an Emmy bid in 1963), to name a few. During this period he also appeared in several films, few of them comedies, including “A Face in the Crowd” (1957) and “Fail Safe” (1964).
At the same time, he gained increasing respect as a stage actor with Tony Award-winning performances in “A Shot in the Dark” (Featured Actor in a Play in 1962) and “The Odd Couple” (Actor in a Play in 1965). It was in the latter role of Oscar Madison, a slovenly, hedonistic sportswriter sharing an apartment with the fastidious Felix Unger (played onstage by Art Carney, onscreen by Jack Lemmon), that Matthau found the identity that would define him.
Matthau became a movie star with an Oscar-winning turn in Billy Wilder‘s “The Fortune Cookie” (Best Supporting Actor in 1966). In this dark comedy, he plays a shyster lawyer who convinces his brother-in-law (Lemmon) to feign a serious injury to cash in on an insurance claim.
It was the first of several films the comedic duo would make together (including Lemmon’s solo directorial outing “Kotch” and “JFK,” in which they didn’t share scenes). The success of “The Fortune Cookie” led to their reunion for the screen version of “The Odd Couple” (1968), followed by “The Front Page” (1974), “Buddy Buddy” (1981), “Grumpy Old Men” (1993), “The Grass Harp” (1995), “Grumpier Old Men” (1995), “Out to Sea” (1997), and “The Odd Couple II” (1997).
Matthau competed at the Oscars twice more as Best Actor (“Kotch” in 1971 and “The Sunshine Boys” in 1975). He won a Golden Globe for “The Sunshine Boys” and contended for “The Fortune Cookie,” “The Odd Couple,” “Kotch,” “Pete ‘n’ Tillie” (1972), “The Front Page” (1974), “Hopscotch” (1980), and “The First Day in October” (1981).
Tour our photo gallery of Matthau’s 15 greatest films, including a few comedic and dramatic gems that should’ve garnered Oscar attention.
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15. KOTCH (1971)
Image Credit: ABC-Cinerama/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Directed by Jack Lemmon. Screenplay by John Paxton, based on the novel by Katharine Topkins. Starring Deborah Winters, Felicia Farr, Charles Aidman, Ellen Geer.
In his lone directorial outing, Jack Lemmon provides his longtime friend and costar with one hell of a role. Matthau plays Joseph P. Kotcher, a friendly septuagenarian who runs away to avoid a nursing home. On the road he encounters a pregnant teenager (Deborah Winters) and assists in the birth of her child. The film brought Matthau an Oscar nomination as Best Actor, which he lost to Gene Hackman (“The French Connection”).
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14. CALIFORNIA SUITE (1978)
Image Credit: Moviestore/REX/Shutterstock Directed by Herbert Ross. Screenplay by Neil Simon, based on his play. Starring Alan Alda, Michael Caine, Bill Cosby, Jane Fonda, Elaine May, Richard Pryor, Maggie Smith.
The works of Neil Simon provided Matthau with many great sandboxes to play in throughout his career. A quasi-sequel to “Plaza Suite” (which he also appeared in), “California Suite” consists of four skits set at a luxurious Beverly Hills hotel. Matthau stars as a conservative businessman who must get a prostitute (Denise Galik) out of his room before his wife (Elaine May) arrives. Maggie Smith won Best Supporting Actress for playing an Oscar-nominee on her way to the ceremony with her bickering husband (Michael Caine).
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13. CACTUS FLOWER (1969)
Image Credit: Snap Stills/REX/Shutterstock Directed by Gene Saks. Screenplay by I.A.L. Diamond, based on the play by Abe Burrows. Starring Ingrid Bergman, Goldie Hawn, Jack Weston, Rick Lenz, Vito Scotti, Irene Hervey.
In “Cactus Flower,” Matthau plays a dentist who pretends to be married so he can avoid commitment with his much-younger girlfriend (Supporting Actress-winner Goldie Hawn). When she attempts suicide, he pops the question, then recruits his shy nurse (Ingrid Bergman) to pose as his wife. But Bergman isn’t the wallflower she at first appears to be. The performances by Matthau, Bergman, and Hawn help prop up a rather light and airy plot, adapted from the play by Abe Burrows.
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12. PETE ‘N’ TILLIE (1972)
Image Credit: Universal/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Directed by Martin Ritt. Screenplay by Julius J. Epstein, based on the novella by Peter De Vries. Starring Carol Burnett, Geraldine Page, Rene Auberjonois.
“Pete ’n’ Tillie” finds Matthau’s wise-cracking Pete romancing reserved Tillie (Carol Burnett) in this charming comedy from Martin Ritt. Though they don’t immediately click, their friendship soon leads to marriage. Though the midway shift towards tearjerking doesn’t entirely work, the chemistry between the leads is compelling. Supporting player Geraldine Page earned as Oscar nomination, as did screenwriter Julius J. Epstein. Matthau and Burnett were snubbed, despite competing at the Golden Globes in their Comedy/Musical categories.
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11. A NEW LEAF (1971)
Image Credit: Paramount/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Written and directed by Elaine May. Starring May, Jack Weston, George Rose, James Coco.
This seriously dark comedy from writer-director-star Elaine May features Matthau as a playboy who has squandered his fortune and needs to find a new source of income. He decides to romance a rich wallflower (May) and takeover her finances by any means necessary… including murder. May, who reaped a Golden Globe nomination for her performance, was reportedly dissatisfied with the drastically shortened and re-cut version Paramount ultimately released, even trying to remove her name from the credits. That said, the finished product is wacky, hilarious fun.
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10. GRUMPY OLD MEN (1993)
Image Credit: Moviestore/REX/Shutterstock Directed by Donald Petrie. Written by Mark Steven Johnson. Starring Jack Lemmon, Ann-Margret, Burgess Meredith, Kevin Pollack, Ossie Davis, Daryl Hannah.
Matthau and Jack Lemmon collaborated on 11 different films, some brilliant (“The Odd Couple”), some not so much (“The Odd Couple II”). “Grumpy Old Men” falls somewhere in-between, a genially agreeable comedy that would be totally forgettable were it not for these two legends. They play John (Lemmon) and Max (Matthau), neighbors whose lifelong feud intensifies when an attractive woman (Ann-Margret) moves in across the street. She ends up with Lemmon, but have no fear: a sequel (“Grumpier Old Men,” 1995) with Matthau romancing Sophia Loren soon followed.
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9. THE TAKING OF PELHAM ONE TWO THREE (1974)
Image Credit: United Artists/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Directed by Joseph Sargent. Screenplay by Peter Stone, based on the novel by John Godey. Starring Robert Shaw, Martin Balsam, Hector Elizondo.
“The Taking of Pelham One Two Three” is one of those brilliant meat and potatoes thrillers that’s so good at entertaining us it’s easy to overlook how much skill it’s constructed with. Robert Shaw stars as a violent criminal who hijacks a subway train and demands a $1 million ransom for the passengers. It’s up to a grouchy New York Transit Authority police lieutenant (Matthau) to stop him. David Shire’s BAFTA-nominated score is a standout. Tony Scott later directed a remake with Denzel Washington in Matthau’s role and John Travolta in Shaw’s.
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8. FAIL SAFE (1964)
Image Credit: Moviestore/REX/Shutterstock Directed by Sidney Lumet. Screenplay by Walter Bernstein and Peter George, based on the novel by Eugene Burdick and Henry Wheeler. Starring Henry Fonda, Dan O’Herlihy, Frank Overton, Larry Hagman, Edward Binns, Fritz Weaver.
This nail-biter from Sidney Lumet imagines a nightmare scenario in which the U.S. government must scramble when American planes are mistakenly sent to Moscow for a nuclear attack. The all-star cast includes Henry Fonda as the concerned President and Matthau as a professor advising the Department of Defense. “Fail Safe” had the misfortune of coming out months after “Dr. Strangelove” lampooned a similar situation, causing it to bomb (at the box office, that is). Yet both the comedic and dramatic interpretations have stood the test of time. A live TV remake with George Clooney followed in 2000.
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7. A FACE IN THE CROWD (1957)
Image Credit: Warner Bros/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Directed by Elia Kazan. Screenplay by Budd Schulberg, based on his story. Starring Andy Griffith, Patricia Neal, Anthony Franciosa, Lee Remick.
Fans of “The Andy Griffith Show” may be shocked to see the good-hearted sheriff of Mayberry playing such a dastardly character in his film debut. In “A Face in the Crowd,” Griffith is electrifying as Larry “Lonesome” Rhodes, an Arkansas drifter who becomes a media sensation when he’s discovered by a radio producer (Patricia Neal) looking for authentic voices. Matthau plays Mel Miller, a staff writer for the show who becomes increasingly aware that Rhodes isn’t the homespun man of the people he claims to be. Elia Kazan’s satire about a huckster pulling the wool over our eyes seems more prescient today than it did over 60 years ago.
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6. CHARADE (1963)
Image Credit: Universal/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Directed by Stanley Donen. Screenplay by Peter Stone, based on the short story by Stone and Marc Behm. Starring Cary Grant, Audrey Hepburn, James Coburn, George Kennedy, Ned Glass.
In “Charade,” Audrey Hepburn plays an American widow in Paris evading three crooks (James Coburn, George Kennedy, and Ned Glass) who want a fortune stolen by her murdered husband. It’s up to a handsome stranger (Cary Grant) and a C.I.A. agent (Matthau) to save her. But who can she really trust? Director Stanley Donen creates a delicate blend of romance, suspense, and dark humor to stand alongside Hitchcock’s best. Henry Mancini and Johnny Mercer’s title song earned an Oscar nomination.
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5. HOPSCOTCH (1980)
Image Credit: Avco Embassy/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Directed by Ronald Neame. Screenplay by Bryan Forbes and Brian Garfield, story by Garfield. Starring Glenda Jackson, Ned Beatty, Herbert Lom.
Matthau has one of his best starring roles in Ronald Neame’s satirical spy thriller. He plays Miles Kendig, a clever CIA agent confined to a desk who decides to get back at his boss (Ned Beatty) by publishing a explosive tell-all memoir. Of course, that’s easier said than done, and Kendig has the time of his life evading his former employers throughout Europe with the help of an old girlfriend (Glenda Jackson). The film brought Matthau a Golden Globe nomination as Best Comedy/Musical Actor, though the Oscars overlooked him.
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4. THE SUNSHINE BOYS (1975)
Image Credit: Moviestore Collection/REX/Shutterstock Directed by Herbert Ross. Screenplay by Neil Simon, based on his play. Starring George Burns, Richard Benjamin, Lee Meredith.
Matthau reaped his third and final Oscar nomination (this time in the lead category) for yet another Neil Simon adaptation. It centers on two curmudgeonly vaudeville stars (Matthau and Supporting Actor-winner George Burns) who reunite after decades apart for a TV special, only to find out they still can’t stand each other. Director Herbert Ross does little to “open up” the story for the screen, instead allowing the chemistry between his two stars to carry the film. Though he tied Burns for the Golden Globe, Matthau lost his bid at the Academy to Jack Nicholson (“One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest”).
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3. THE BAD NEWS BEARS (1976)
Image Credit: Moviestore Collection/REX/Shutterstock Directed by Michael Ritchie. Written by Bill Lancaster. Starring Tatum O’Neal, Chris Barnes, Vic Morrow, Jackie Earle Haley, Joyce Van Patten, Quinn Smith.
The role of Morris Buttermaker — a cigar-chomping, beer-guzzling ex-ball player coaching a little league team — fits Matthau like a well-worn catcher’s mitt. While the appeal of watching children spew four-letter words has been lost in the age of “South Park,” this underdog sports comedy retains its entertainment value thanks to its star and the “ringers” he brings in to help the talentless tots: tomboy Tatum O’Neal and delinquent Jackie Earle Haley. “The Bad News Bears” brought Matthau a BAFTA nomination (shared with “The Sunshine Boys”), though that failed to translate at the Oscars. Richard Linklater directed a remake with Billy Bob Thornton in 2005.
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2. THE FORTUNE COOKIE (1966)
Image Credit: United Artists/REX/Shutterstock Directed by Billy Wilder. Written by Wilder and I.A.L. Diamond. Starring Jack Lemmon, Ron Rich, Judi West, Cliff Osmond, Lurene Tuttle.
Matthau won the Academy Award as Best Supporting Actor for Billy Wilder’s biting social satire. He plays “Whiplash” Willie Gingrich, an ambulance-chasing attorney who convinces his brother-in-law (Jack Lemmon), a TV news cameraman, to exaggerate an on-the-job injury for insurance purposes. This was the first of 11 films Matthau and Lemmon made together (including Lemmon’s solo directorial outing, “Kotch”), and it’s clear from the get-go why this odd couple belonged together: one’s fastidiousness contrasts beautifully with the other’s scruffiness. Wilder brings out the very best in his two stars, providing them with a dynamite, Oscar-nominated script co-written by I.A.L. Diamond.
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1. THE ODD COUPLE (1968)
Image Credit: Moviestore/REX/Shutterstock Directed by Gene Saks. Screenplay by Neil Simon, based on his play. Starring Jack Lemmon, John Fiedler, Herb Edelman, Monica Evans, Carole Shelley.
Laurel had Hardy, Abbott had Costello, and Matthau had Lemmon. Much like Felix Ungar and Oscar Madison, the characters they play in Neil Simon’s “The Odd Couple,” these two are perfectly suited to bounce off each other: Lemmon tidy and neurotic, Matthau slobbish and mischievous. It’s a dynamic that served them well in multiple outings, none better than in this 1968 film about a pair of divorced men with opposing views on housekeeping and lifestyle sharing an apartment. Sure, Gene Saks’ screen version is little more than a recreation of Mike Nichols’ original Broadway mounting (in which Matthau starred opposite Art Carney), but we wouldn’t have it any other way. Multiple TV versions and a sequel followed, none matching the original. Both Lemmon and Matthau contended at the Golden Globes for these iconic roles, though not at the Oscars.
