Jack Nicholson
Acting • Born 1937-04-22
Biography
John Joseph "Jack" Nicholson (born April 22, 1937) is a retired American actor, film director, producer and writer. He is renowned for his often dark-themed portrayals of neurotic characters. Nicholson has been nominated for Academy Awards 12 times, winning Best Actor for One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and for As Good as It Gets, and Best Supporting Actor for Terms of Endearment. He is tied with Walter Brennan for most acting wins by a male actor (three), and second to Katharine Hepburn for most acting wins overall (four). He is also one of only two actors nominated for an Academy Award for acting (either lead or supporting) in every decade from the 1960s to 2000s (the other one being Michael Caine). He has won seven Golden Globe Awards, and received a Kennedy Center Honor in 2001. In 1994, he became one of the youngest actors to be awarded the American Film Institute's Life Achievement Award. Notable films in which he has starred include, Easy Rider, Chinatown, The Shining, Reds, Batman, A Few Good Men, About Schmidt, Something's Gotta Give, and The Departed.
Filmography
142 credits
Mars Attacks!
Movie • 1996
President Dale / Art Land
Batman
Movie • 1989
Jack Napier / The Joker
A Few Good Men
Movie • 1992
Col. Nathan R. Jessep
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
Movie • 1975
Randle Patrick McMurphy
Prizzi's Honor
Movie • 1985
Charley Partanna
The Departed
Movie • 2006
Costello
Easy Rider
Movie • 1969
George Hanson
The Shining
Movie • 1980
Jack Torrance
The Movie Orgy
Movie • 1968
Self (archive footage)
Chinatown
Movie • 1974
J.J. 'Jake' Gittes
Wolf
Movie • 1994
Will Randall
Hoffa
Movie • 1992
James R. 'Jimmy' Hoffa
About Schmidt
Movie • 2002
Warren Schmidt
As Good as It Gets
Movie • 1997
Melvin Udall
The Postman Always Rings Twice
Movie • 1981
Frank Chambers
Terms of Endearment
Movie • 1983
Garrett Breedlove
The Evening Star
Movie • 1996
Garrett Breedlove
The Border
Movie • 1982
Charlie Smith
The Pledge
Movie • 2001
Jerry Black
The Witches of Eastwick
Movie • 1987
Daryl Van Horne
Tommy
Movie • 1975
The Specialist
The Bucket List
Movie • 2007
Edward Periman Cole
Something's Gotta Give
Movie • 2003
Harry Sanborn
Blood and Wine
Movie • 1996
Alex
The Terror
Movie • 1963
Lt. Andre Duvalier
The Little Shop of Horrors
Movie • 1960
Wilbur Force
Shelter from the Storm: A Concert for the Gulf Coast
Movie • 2005
Self - Presenter
Anger Management
Movie • 2003
Dr. Buddy Rydell
The Two Jakes
Movie • 1990
J.J. "Jake" Gittes
Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories
Movie • 1987
Narrator (voice)
Broadcast News
Movie • 1987
Bill Rorich
Hells Angels on Wheels
Movie • 1967
Poet
Five Easy Pieces
Movie • 1970
Robert Eroica Dupea
The Crossing Guard
Movie • 1995
Freddy Gale
Goin' South
Movie • 1978
Henry Moon
The Passenger
Movie • 1975
David Locke
Untold: Deal with the Devil
Movie • 2021
Self (archive footage)
Heartburn
Movie • 1986
Mark
Ironweed
Movie • 1987
Francis Phelan
Carnal Knowledge
Movie • 1971
Jonathan
The Raven
Movie • 1963
Rexford Bedlo
The Missouri Breaks
Movie • 1976
Tom Logan
TVTV Looks at the Oscars
Movie • 1976
Self
Rebel Rousers
Movie • 1970
Bunny
Paul McCartney: Back in the U.S.
Movie • 2002
Self
The Shooting
Movie • 1966
Billy Spear
Ensign Pulver
Movie • 1964
Yeoman Dolan
Mulholland Drive - Ein Hollywood-Mythos
Movie • 2010
Self
How Do You Know
Movie • 2010
Charles Madison
The Last Detail
Movie • 1973
Buddusky
Ride in the Whirlwind
Movie • 1966
Wes
Back Door to Hell
Movie • 1964
Burnett
The Last Tycoon
Movie • 1976
Brimmer
Psych-Out
Movie • 1968
Stoney
On a Clear Day You Can See Forever
Movie • 1970
Tad Pringle
Close Up
Movie • 2012
Self (archive footage)
Man Trouble
Movie • 1992
Harry Bliss
Yoko Ono: This Is Not Here
Movie • 1972
Self
Reds
Movie • 1981
Eugene O'Neill
Making 'The Shining'
Movie • 1980
Self
The Fortune
Movie • 1975
Oscar 'Dix' Sullivan
The King of Marvin Gardens
Movie • 1972
David Staebler
A Safe Place
Movie • 1971
Mitch
Creepy Classics
Movie • 1987
Rexford Bedlo - (archive footage)
The Wild Ride
Movie • 1960
Johnny Varron
Corman's World
Movie • 2011
Self - Actor
The Rolling Stones: Stripped
Movie • 1995
Self
Shirley Maclaine: Kicking Up Her Heels
Movie • 1996
Self (archive footage)
Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired
Movie • 2008
Self / Jake Gittes (archive footage)
Cry Baby Killer
Movie • 1958
Jimmy Wallace
40 Years of Rocky: The Birth of a Classic
Movie • 2020
Self (archive footage)
Studs Lonigan
Movie • 1960
Weary Reilly
Too Soon to Love
Movie • 1960
Buddy
The Broken Land
Movie • 1962
Will
The Elephant's Child
Movie • 1986
Narrator (voice)
The Rolling Stones: Totally Stripped
Movie • 1995
Self
Head
Movie • 1968
Self (uncredited)
Flight to Fury
Movie • 1964
Jay Wickham
Clint Eastwood: The Last Legend
Movie • 2022
Self (archive footage)
Barbra Streisand: One Voice
Movie • 1986
Self - Audience Member (uncredited)
View from the Overlook: Crafting 'The Shining'
Movie • 2007
Self
The Visions of Stanley Kubrick
Movie • 2007
Self
On the tracks of a filmmaker
Movie • 1988
Jack Nicholson
BBStory: An American Film Renaissance
Movie • 2010
Self
Jack of Three Trades: In Focus on Nicholson the Director
Movie • 2024
Self (archive footage)
Junket Whore
Movie • 1998
Self
Targets
Movie • 1968
Lt. Andre Duvalier (archive footage) (uncredited)
I'm Still Here
Movie • 2010
Jack Nicholson
The St. Valentine's Day Massacre
Movie • 1967
Gino, Hit Man (uncredited)
Jack Nicholson - The Devilish Smile of Hollywood
Movie • 2017
Self
Stardust
Movie • 2010
Self (uncredited)
Live Aid
Movie • 1985
Self
Lost Kubrick: The Unfinished Films of Stanley Kubrick
Movie • 2007
Self
Stanley Kubrick: A Life in Pictures
Movie • 2001
Self
Drive, He Said: A Cautionary Tale of Campus Revolution and Sexual Freedom
Movie • 2010
Self
America Lost and Found: The BBS Story
Movie • 2010
Self
Notes on an American Film Director at Work
Movie • 2008
Self
America | A Tribute to Heroes
Movie • 2001
Self
Joker: Put on a Happy Face
Movie • 2020
Self
Soul Searching in 'Five Easy Pieces'
Movie • 2010
Self
Drive, He Said
Movie • 1971
Annoyed Bearded Guy
Velocity
Movie • 1999
Johnny Varron (young) (archive footage)
Witness to 'Reds'
Movie • 2006
Self
Rabbit Ears - How the Rhinoceros Got His Skin/How the Camel Got His Hump
Movie • 1987
Narrator (voice)
Walt Whitman: Poet for a New Age
Movie • 1971
Narrator
Shadows of the Bat: The Cinematic Saga of the Dark Knight
Movie • 2008
Self
SNL50: The Homecoming Concert
Movie • 2025
Self
The Hour of St. Francis
Movie • 1962
Jim Evans
Little Amy
Movie • 1962
Jefferson City Coach
Jack Nicholson: The Joker Is Wild
Movie • 2004
Self(archive footage)
Roman Polanski: A Film Memoir
Movie • 2012
Self (archive footage)
The Rolling Stones: From the Vault - Sticky Fingers Live at the Fonda Theatre 2015
Movie • 2017
Self - Audience Member
Films to Die For
Movie • 2025
(archive footage) (uncredited)
Easy Riders, Raging Bulls: How the Sex 'n' Drugs 'n' Rock 'n' Roll Generation Saved Hollywood
Movie • 2003
Self
Breakdown: 1975
Movie • 2025
Self (archive footage)
John Candy: I Like Me
Movie • 2025
Self - Actor (archive footage)
The Making of '...And God Spoke'
Movie • 1994
Self - Academy Awards (archive footage)
Kubrick by Kubrick
Movie • 2020
Self (archive footage)
Playboy: Playmate Pajama Party
Movie • 1999
The Andy Griffith Show
TV • 1960
Mr. Garland
Mr. Lucky
TV • 1959
Martin
Hawaiian Eye
TV • 1959
Tony Morgan
Sea Hunt
TV • 1958
John Stark
Celebrities Uncensored
TV • 2003
Self
Bronco
TV • 1958
Bob Doolin
Matinee Theater
TV • 1955
Musician's Son
The Guns of Will Sonnett
TV • 1967
Tom Murdock
Dr. Kildare
TV • 1961
Jaime Angel
The Oscars
TV • 1953
Self
The Kennedy Center Honors
TV • 1978
Self
Basketball: A Love Story
TV • 2018
Self (archive footage)
Saturday Night Live
TV • 1975
Self - Cameo (uncredited)
The Barbara Stanwyck Show
TV • 1960
Bud
The Andy Griffith Show
TV • 1960
Marvin Jenkins
Little Amy
TV • 1962
Jefferson City Coach
Goldene Kamera
TV • 1984
Self
Nudes in the News
TV • 2002
Warren Schmidt (archive footage)
My Spy Family
TV • 2007
Saturday Night Live
TV • 1975
Self
Golden Globe Awards
TV • 1944
Self - Cecil B. DeMille Award Recipient
Golden Globe Awards
TV • 1944
Self - Nominee / Presenter
Golden Globe Awards
TV • 1944
Self - Nominee