Arnold Schwarzenegger went from a relative nobody to one of Hollywood's most recognizable stars over the course of the 1980s and the actor successfully parlayed that popularity into a still-ongoing career as an action hero, fitness icon and politician.
With so many of his movies from that time period becoming known as cult classics, it can leave fans wondering what the best 80s Schwarzenegger movies really are and how they were perceived by critics on their release. With that in mind, this list will look at every movie the actor starred in from the 1980s as well as their score on Metacritic to help create a better understanding of his impressive career.
Red Sonja (1985) - 35
Released in the wake of the success of Schwarzenegger's success with Red Sonja takes a similar approach to the genre but with a greatly reduced degree of success.
The revenge story was–and very much still is–seen as problematic yet talk of a remake has circulated Hollywood for quite some time and continually rears its head.
Conan the Barbarian (1982) - 43
John Milius' fittingly over-the-top adaptation of Robert E. Howard's popular title character is the movie that sold Schwarzenegger to mainstream audiences as a lead actor, years before even The Terminator.
Despite this, and its only increased cult status over the decades, the movie is still relatively low down in the critical rankings but has been no less of an iconic force on popular culture as a result.
Raw Deal (1986) - 44
One of the more conventional shoot-em-up thrillers of Schwarzenegger's career, Raw Deal sees the actor play a lowly Sherrif who's given the opportunity to fake his death and infiltrate a criminal organization to destroy it from the inside.
Though it ranks with some of Schwarzenegger's more beloved movies, Raw Deal is relatively unremarkable and wasn't successful on release but still offers a pleasantly generic example of the formula that originally made the actor a star.
The Running Man (1987) - 45
One of Schwarzenegger's more widely-known and quoted movies from his overall filmography, Stephen King.
The movie follows Schwarzenegger's character as they're thrust into the televised dystopian nightmare gladiator games of the movie's vision of the future. The gauntlet of his adventure producing some of the most memorable villains that Schwarzenegger has ever squared off against.
Predator (1987) - 45
Surprisingly low in critical rankings, still to this day, John McTiernan's simple-but-smart- sci-fi action horror movie birthed a certifiable franchise in its own right that's Alien movie series in comics and on the big screen.
Predator remains a wildly entertaining action movie that gave movie history one of its best monsters and Schwarzenegger some of his most enduring lines.
Commando (1985) - 51
Perhaps the most typical example of a standalone Schwarzenegger action movie from that time period, or perhaps ever, Commando features some of the actor's most quotable one-liners ever.
The movie's high kill count is often touted as its defining quality and the explosive finale secured it as one of the bloodiest and most iconic action movies of the decade.
Conan the Destroyer (1984) - 53
Though not as big a hit as Conan the Barbarian, the movie's sequel proved more palatable to critics perhaps due to an all-round lighter and more adventurous tone.
Though this was the last time that Schwarzenegger has played Conan onscreen (the conclusive part of Conan's story is another long-delayed project from the actor that remains at the top of fans' wishlists) he would reteam with director Richard Fleisher soon after for his similar role in Red Sonja.
Twins (1988) - 53
The only out and out comedy that Schwarzenegger starred in during the 80s, Danny DeVito as mismatched brothers and the movie gave an early demonstration of the comedic chops that would carry Schwarzenegger's movie career through the following decade.
The talent of the two lead actors, in conjunction with the sharp eye of veteran comedy director Ivan Reitman, made the movie a huge hit, with talk of a belated sequel perpetually swirling ever since.
Red Heat (1988) - 61
Similar to Twins, Red Heat was a more comedic venture for Schwarzenegger that fell in line with the more family-friendly approach that the actor would cultivate over the course of the next decade.
Also a buddy cop movie, the story follows Schwarzenegger's Russian cop as he tracks down a criminal to Chicago and is forced to team up with Jim Belushi's slobby detective.
The Terminator (1984) - 84
James Cameron's sci-fi classic would begin Schwarzenegger down his road to superstardom in Hollywood and beyond in earnest and gave the actor his most long-lasting, and well-known, movie franchise.
Though the villain of the original movie, Schwarzenegger made a huge impact with audiences and the iconic line "I'll be back" has served as his de facto catchphrase ever since.
