Iconic Roles is a look at some of the best performances in film and television by actors and actresses.
The Jurassic World Dominion release is upon us, and so is Jeff Goldblum’s return as Dr. Ian Malcolm. For the fourth time, the actor will reprise his role as the adventurous mathematician following his debut in Jurassic Park and subsequent appearances in Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom and The Lost World: Jurassic Park. At 69, Goldblum has had a successful career that featured several huge box-office successes in the nineties.
Here are five of the best movie performances Jeff Goldblum delivered in his long career.
Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)
One of the first times that Goldblum showcased his full potential was in Philip Kaufman’s remake of the 1956 film of the same name. Based on the novel by Jack Finney, Invasion of the Body Snatchers follows an alien race that lands in San Francisco and plans to take over the planet by duplicating the human shapes. Jack Bellicec (Goldblum) is an aspiring writer who’s investigating what is going on. On that occasion, Goldblum worked side-by-side with Donald Sutherland, Brooke Adams, Leonard Nimoy, and Veronica Cartwright, among others. The sci-fi horror story is still highly regarded by critics, with many believing that it is one of the most excellent remakes ever.
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The Fly (1986)
Goldblum proved that he could be quite the leading man when he joined forces with David Cronenberg in one of the most appreciated works by the visionary Canadian director. Goldblum portrayed Seth Brundle, an unconventional scientist who works on teleporting objects. Brundle is helped by his love-interest Veronica Quaife (Geena Davis), but things go out of control when a housefly interferes with Brundle’s experiments. Goldblum and Davis showed great chemistry, bringing their real-life relationship on screen. While fans and critics alike praised Goldblum’s performance in the unsettling horror story, the Academy snubbed it as The Fly only took home a Best Makeup Award.
Deep Cover (1992)
While movie fans were used to seeing Goldblum portraying eccentric scientists, the Pennsylvania-born actor proved that he can be more than that. In the film directed by Bill Duke and written by Michael Tolkin and Henry Bean, Goldblum acted as Los Angeles attorney David Jason. Still, DEA Agent Russell Stevens Jr. (Larry Fishbourne) suspects there might be more than what meets the eye in that so ordinary-looking man. Deep Cover was generally warmly welcomed by critics but only grossed around $16 million at the box office. The film is also known for featuring Dr. Dre’s debut solo single as its theme song.
Jurassic Park (1993)
Dr. Ian Malcolm is undoubtedly Goldblum’s most iconic role in his career. When Steven Spielberg was looking for someone to portray the gifted mathematician penned by prolific sci-fi author Michael Crichton, there were no doubts that Goldblum would be the perfect fit. The fan-favorite story follows the attempts of Malcolm and his fellow adventurers to save their lives while crossing an island full of living and quite angry dinosaurs. The ensemble also features Sam Neill, Laura Dern, and Richard Attenborough as the main characters. Jurassic Park is one of the highest-grossing stories of all time, with more than $1 billion at the box office. Goldblum reprised his character in two out of the four already-released Jurassic Park sequels.
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Independence Day (1996)
When you mix up the unpredictability of Will Smith with Goldblum’s likeability in the same movie, the results can only be excellent. Director Roland Emmerich had the intuition to do it in his apocalyptic film, and it paid off. Briefly, the story follows humankind’s attempt to save itself from an alien attack led by a gigantic extraterrestrial mothership. In the span of a few months, Goldblum worked in two of the highest-grossing films at the time, as both Independence Day and Jurassic Park were an all-time box office smash. The Academy rewarded Emmerich’s effort with the award for Best Visual Effects.
Which are Jeff Goldblum’s best movie performances? Let us know in the comments section below.
