Playing host to some of thebest movies of all time, the war genre is renowned for producing gripping and nuanced characters of the highest order. Whether these be fictional faces or individuals based on real-life figures, the most memorable characters are usually complemented by the superb quality of the performance coming from the individual playing them. As such, the typical status quo sees the most compelling characters combined with the most talented A-listers' performances to create the genre’s most celebrated and influential roles.
However, while such roles are typically associated with the film in question’s main character, the genre also featuresseveral great supporting war movie rolesfrom A-List actors. From thebest anti-war moviesever made towar films that don’t focus on the USA, these notable supporting roles have featured in some of the most prominent and lauded movies that the genre has to offer, varying in scope from memorable cameo appearances to major supporting roles within the movie’s narrative.
Inglourious Basterds
Cast
Inglourious Basterds is a film set during World War II in Nazi-occupied France. It follows a group of Jewish-American soldiers, known as “The Basterds,” led by Lt. Aldo Raine, who engage in ruthless anti-Nazi efforts. Their actions intersect with a French-Jewish theater owner in a plot against the regime.
2009’sInglourious Basterdsowes a great deal of its considerable success to one of the finest supporting war movie roles of all time. Earning the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor off the back of his acclaimed performance, Christoph Waltz’s bow as SS Colonel Hans Landa is the stuff of legend. One of thebest war movie villainsof all time, Waltz’s charge bears the fearsome moniker of “The Jew Hunter” as a result of his proficiency in locating Jews hiding throughout occupied France.
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A villain who can flip between cordial and merciless at the flip of a switch, Landa is an electric screen presence courtesy of Waltz’s magnificent performance. While the Austrian actor arguably wasn’t an A-Lister until his breakout role as Landa, Waltz certainly was in the aftermath. Earning a second Academy Award for his second Tarantino collaboration in 2012’sDjango Unchained, Waltz has made various blockbuster appearances since, most notably as Ernst Stavro Blofeld in theJames Bondfranchise.
Hacksaw Ridge
Hacksaw Ridge is a historical war film based on the true story of Desmond Doss, a soldier in Okinawa during the bloodiest battle of WWII, who saved 75 men without firing or carrying a gun. He was the only American soldier in WWII to fight on the front lines without a weapon, as he believed that while the war was justified, killing was nevertheless wrong due to his upbringing.
A prominent A-Lister known for his bows in blockbuster franchises likeThe Matrix,The Hobbit, andThe Lord of the Rings, Australian actor Hugo Weaving’s best minor role comes against the backdrop of 2016’sHacksaw Ridge. Mel Gibson’s acclaimed war movie tells the tale of Desmond Doss, a conscientious objector during WWII who carried 75 injured men to safety during the Battle of Okinawa without firing a shot.
Mel Gibson Academy Awards nominations and wins
Best Director
Lost
Weaving plays Desmond’s father, Tom Doss, a veteran of the First World War suffering from PTSD who vehemently opposes his son joining the war effort after the horrors he witnessed during his service. However, while Weaving’s character only features briefly, he turns into agoosebump-inducing war movie momentfor the ages, passionately interrupting his son’s court-martial to protest that his stance of pacifism is protected by the United States Constitution.
Saving Private Ryan
Saving Private Ryan: Directed by Steven Spielberg, this World War II drama follows Captain John Miller, portrayed by Tom Hanks, as he leads a group of U.S. soldiers on a mission to rescue Private James Ryan, the sole surviving brother of four, from behind enemy lines in German-occupied France.
While Barry Pepper isn’t Hollywood’s most prominent A-Lister, the Canadian-American actor has been a staple of cinema since the late 1990s. Appearing in the acclaimed likes ofThe Green MileandTrue Grit, Pepper also boasts one of the war genre’s most memorable supporting roles on his credit list, with said role taking the form ofSaving Private Ryan’sscripture-quoting sniper, Private Daniel Jackson.
In an amazing piece of immersive detail, Jackson can be seen with a bruise on his thumb; a common injury associated with operating a rifle bolt.
A deadly marksman capable of nailing an enemy sniper through the scope of his own rifle in the middle of a rainstorm, Jackson is one of the more memorable characters in Steven Spielberg’s epic war offering, courtesy of a slick performance from Pepper in his first major body of work. An indispensable member of Captain Miller’s squad thanks to his proficient marksmanship, Jackson’s demise in the movie’s epic climactic battle represents one ofSaving Private Ryan’smore gut-wrenching deaths.
Lone Survivor
Lone Survivor is a dramatization of the United States Navy SEALs' Operation Red Wing, an unsuccessful military operation that aimed to track down the leader of the Taliban. The film follows the four-man SEAL team, and the danger and psychological strain they faced on their mission.
A lauded character actor known for his brooding and intense bows in the likes of3:10 to Yuma,Hell or High Water, andKill Your Darlings, Ben Foster continues his usual sterling work with an excellent performance in 2013’s visceral action war drama,Lone Survivor. Foster plays Matthew"Axe"Axelson, a dramatized version of the real-life Navy SEAL sniper killed in action during Operation Red Wings, with theAlpha Dogstar doing justice to his fallen charge with a gritty and rousing performance.
The American’s grounded bow in Peter Berg’s acclaimed movie captures the hell that Axelson must have gone through while simultaneously producing a snapshot of the fallen soldier’s immense fortitude and bravery in the face of insurmountable odds. It speaks volumes to the quality of Foster’s performance that Axelson’s family were among those who lauded his evocative take on the fallen soldier, providing his supporting role with the ultimate seal of approval.
The Hurt Locker
From director Kathryn Bigelow comes The Hurt Locker, the 2008 oscar winning war thriller film that follows Jeremy Renner as Sergeant William James and his bomb disposal team as they navigate beyond enemy lines during the Iraq War. The movie explores the trauma and stresses the soldiers face as they attempt to disarm active explosives on the field, with the repercussions beginning to take their toll on the squadmates.
Earning global recognition for his role as Sam Wilson in theMarvel Cinematic Universe, Anthony Mackie has become one of Hollywood’s foremost A-Listers since debuting in 2002’s8 Mile. In addition to his bow as Wilson, Mackie also boasts one of the best supporting roles in war movie history with his impressive take on Sergeant J.T. Sanborn in Kathryn Bigelow’s 2008 Oscar magnet,The Hurt Locker.
A nuanced individual tormented by the notion of dying needlessly, Sanborn is a considerably more layered character than his tough man exterior would indicate…
ContentiouslyMackie’s best movieperformance, the American’s grounded bow as Sanborn captures the heart-pounding tension of working on an army bomb disposal unit with unflinching clarity. A nuanced individual tormented by the notion of dying needlessly, Sanborn is a considerably more layered character than his tough man exterior would indicate, a worthy foil to Jeremy Renner’s adrenaline junkie William James against the backdrop of one of the finest war films ever conceived.
Dunkirk
This epic tale of World War II tells the story of soldiers from Belgium, Britain, Canada and France, who are surrounded by the German army, and the dangerous operation that evacuated and saved the lives of thousands.
One of Hollywood’s biggest names right now, courtesy of his Academy Award-winning performance as the titular character in Christopher Nolan’sOppenheimer,Peaky Blindersstar Cillian Murphy is as A-List as they came. In addition to his Oscar-winning bow in the 2023 movie, the Irishman’s frequent collaboration with the aforementioned Nolan has seen him produce one of the most memorable minor roles ever seen in a modern war film, with his depiction of an unnamed, shell-shocked soldier in 2017’sDunkirk.
Cillian Murphy and Christopher Nolan film collaborations
2005
2008
2010
2012
2017
Oppenheimer
2023
Capturing a harrowing snapshot of PTSD in his brief time onscreen throughout Nolan’s epic war film, Murphy’s incredible depiction of a soldier frozen rigid with trauma is unnervingly authentic. He’s a deeply conflicting character by the end ofDunkirk,with the audience still feeling incredibly sorry for him even after he inadvertently causes the death of Barry Keoghan’s George Mills in a scuffle.
1917
Set against the backdrop of war-torn France during WWI, 1917 is directed by Sam Mendes and stars George MacKay and Dean-Charles Chapman as two young British soldiers tasked with delivering a dangerous message to stop an attack that could the lives of thousands of other soldiers at risk. The film uses long takes to make it appear that the entire narrative takes place over the course of two continuous shots. Mark Strong, Colin Firth, and Benedict Cumberbatch also star.
A critically acclaimed war outing from director Sam Mendes, 2019’s1917is widely regarded as one of thebest British war moviesever made. While the film primarily follows George Mackay and Dean-Charles Chapman’s characters as they race to call off a doomed offensive, Mendes' movie is littered with minor appearances from British A-Listers. The likes of Mark Strong, Richard Madden, and Benedict Cumberbatch all feature, but the highlight supporting performance comes fromSherlockstar, Andrew Scott.
…Leslie’s laconic gallows humor makes it seem like he takes legitimate pleasure in describing the horrors of no man’s land.
A world-weary army veteran, Scott’s acid-tongued Lieutenant Leslie forms quite the impression in five minutes of screen time. Pulling no punches in describing the duo’s chances of successfully carrying out their mission, Leslie’s laconic gallows humor makes it seem like he takes legitimate pleasure in describing the horrors of no man’s land. Scott signs off a scorching cameo for the ages by blessing the two men with “holy water” from his whiskey flask and asking them to throw their flare gun back over the top when they inevitably catch a German bullet.
Enemy At The Gates
Enemy at the Gates is a war film directed by Jean-Jacques Annaud, set during the Battle of Stalingrad in World War II. It follows a tense confrontation between a Russian sniper, Vassili Zaitsev, and a German sniper, Major König, as they engage in a strategic game of cat-and-mouse.
One of the mostunderrated war movies from the 2000s, 2001’sEnemy at the Gateschronicles a deadly stand-off between two elite snipers during the Battle of Stalingrad. Serving as the antagonistic foil to Jude Law’s Soviet protagonist Vasily Zaitsev, Academy Award-nominated actor Ed Harris takes on the supporting role ofEnemy at the Gates’lead villain; Wehrmacht sniper school instructor, Erwin König.
An ice-cool sharpshooter of near preternatural ability, theWestworldstar’s calculating charge is one of the most merciless villains that the genre has to offer. Willing to stoop to any moral low to force his prey into making a fatal mistake, König acts as the ruthless cat to Zaitsev’s mouse across 131 electrifying minutes. Harris has made a career out of playing first-rate villains and the German sharpshooter stands as one of the most cunning and dangerous antagonists that he has ever brought to life onscreen.
Apocalypse Now
In Francis Ford Coppola’s classic Vietnam War film, loosely based on Joseph Conrad’s novella Heart of Darkness, an army Captain is tasked with assassinating a rogue Colonel who has created a cult-like compound in the Cambodian jungle and is currently waging his own war outside the army’s purview. Martin Sheen and Marlon Brando star as Captain Willard and Colonel Kurtz respectively, with an ensemble cast that includes Robert Duvall, Laurence Fishburne, and Dennis Hopper.
Loosely based on Joseph Conrad’sHeart of Darkness, 1979’sApocalypse Nowis a seminal genre offering fromThe Godfatherdirector Francis Ford Coppola. One of thebest war movies of the 1970s, Coppola’s revered picture also plays host to one of wider cinema’s most iconic supporting characters in Robert Duvall’s surfing fanatic, Lieutenant Colonel William"Bill"Kilgore.
Duvall was beaten to the Academy Award by Melvyn Douglas for his work onBeing There.
A hard-nosed army commander encountered by Martin Sheen’s Captain Willard on his mission to assassinate Marlon Brando’s Colonel Walter Kurtz, Duvall’s masterful take on the instantly quotable Kilgore earned him an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor nomination. A shameless warmonger who gradually reveals himself as the real villain ofApocalypse Nowthrough his legitimate passion for armed conflict, Kilgore stands as one of the more amoral and memorable supporting faces that the genre has to offer.
One ofGladiatordirectorRidley Scott’s best movies, the historical war dramaKingdom of Heavenboasts an enviable all-star cast that features big names like Orlando Bloom, Eva Green, and Jeremy Irons. Accordingly, it comes as little surprise that the 2005 movie also plays host to an array of superb supporting bows from the A-Listers in the vein of Liam Neeson and Brendan Gleeson.
Edward Norton’s Best Movies, Ranked
Between emotionally exhausting character pieces and blockbuster popcorn flicks, Norton’s best movies show how much of a chameleon he really is.
However, the highlight ofKingdom of Heaven’ssupporting A-List roles is undoubtedly the mesmerizing performance turned in by Edward Norton as Baldwin IV, the philosophical Leper King of Jerusalem. Conveying an incredible amount of emotion even though Baldwin always keeps his face hidden behind a mask, theFight Clubstar originally didn’t want to be credited for his role to add an extra layer of mystique to his mysterious character.
