Jamie Foxx has often played characters with flair and taken roles that allow for theatricality, and Netflix's They Cloned Tyrone looks to be no different. New images of Foxx in the movie see the actor rocking a purple fur coat and a ton of bling, just like all of his best characters.
Whether it's as a Motown record owner in Dreamgirls or as a vengeful gunslinger in Django Unchained, Foxx's characters are eye-catching, memorable and layered and memorable. He has been a part of so many iconic and Academy Award-winning movies, and that's when the jack of all trades isn't playing music or performing stand-up comedy.
Ali (2001) - 3.39
Ali is more of Will Smith's movie than it is Foxx's, as it follows the titular boxer (Smith) through the 10 years of his life that was most in the public eye. It sees Ali first win the heavyweight title, and convert to Islam, and it shines a spotlight on his hatred of the Vietnam War.
But with the biopic being 165 minutes long, Foxx gets a lot of screentime and often steals the show as Ali's assistant trainer, Drew Bundini Brown. Along with Smith's nomination for Best Actor at the 74th Academy Awards, the film did get a Best ing Actor nomination too. However, it didn't go to Foxx, but Jon Voight, who played the confident sports journalist Howard Cosell.
Jarhead (2005) - 3.45
The mid-2000s was easily Foxx's most prolific and acclaimed era of his acting career, and right in the middle of the decade was Jarhead, a war movie that's more personal than epic. The movie sees Foxx as Staff Sgt. Sykes, who is somewhat of a mentor to Anthony Swofford (Jake Gyllenhall.)
It's rare when actors take ing roles at the point in their careers when they're leading movies. But that's exactly what Foxx did, and Jarhead shows that the actor cares more about what he can bring to a role than being a hero and movie star. The film is an absolute masterclass when it comes to acting, and along with Foxx, the movie features one of Jake Gyllenhaal's best performances.
Dreamgirls (2006) - 3.46
Foxx is so closely tied to music in film, whether he's portraying iconic blues figures in biopics or jazz instrumentalists in wonderful animated movies. And in 2006, he played an instrumental figure in the uprising of Motown, Curtis Taylor Jr., in Dreamgirls.
The movie is about the titular girl group who strive to be pop stars not just within the black community but to become a household name with white audiences too. Dreamgirls again sees Foxx in another ing role and once again he once again steals the show as the ruthless and ambitious record owner.
Ray (2004) - 3.59
While comedy actors and comedians have always attempted to prove themselves as legitimate actors by taking dramatic roles, none have been more successful than Jamie Foxx. Jim Carrey pulled it off with Uncut Gems, But Foxx has regularly starred in dramas, and Ray is the crown jewel in the actor's filmography.
The 2004 movie sees Foxx portraying the titular blind blues singer, Ray Charles, and it's one of the most honest biopics ever. Ray doesn't shy away from the musician's drug habits and failed relationships, and Foxx is so believable in the role that the actor earned his first Oscar at the 77th Academy Awards.
Collateral (2004) - 3.77
It's unbelievable that Ray, the Academy Award-winning and riveting biopic, wasn't even Foxx's best movie of 2004. Along with Ray, Foxx starred in Collateral, a thrilling hitman movie co-starring Tom Cruise. The film follows Vincent (Cruise,) who hires a cabbie (Foxx) for an entire night while he travels around assassinating his targets.
What's more impressive is that thanks to Collateral, Foxx was nominated for two Oscars in one year. Foxx was nominated for Best ing Actor at the 77th Academy Awards, the same year he won Best Actor for Ray. While he lost in the ing category, simply being nominated for two performances in one year is a huge feat that only a handful of actors have ever achieved.
Baby Driver (2017) - 3.77
Throughout his career, Foxx has worked with more visionary auteurs than most other actors. He worked with beloved action director Michael Mann on Collateral, Quentin Tarantino on Baby Driver.
Wright's snappy pacing and his movies' frenetic energy are a perfect fit for the seemingly excitable Foxx, who plays the irritating and sadistic henchman, Bats, in the heist movie. Baby Driver looks like it had a much higher budget, as it was made with just $34 million, but it has huge action sequences, and a massive ensemble cast that features not only Foxx, but Jon Hamm, Lily James, and so many others too.
Just Mercy (2019) - 3.81
Just Mercy has unfortunately gone totally under the radar and has become one of the most overlooked movies of the 2010s. The film is a legal drama and based on a true story, as it follows a prison inmate on death row, Walter McMillian (Foxx,) who was wrongly convicted of murder.
Few other movies released in 2019 are as raw, powerful, or emotional as Just Mercy, those who have seen it love it, and it deserves more attention. How the film underperformed at the box office and hasn't even gained more attention in the years since its release is mind-boggling, as along with Foxx, Just Mercy stars Michael B. Jordan and Brie Larson too.
Soul (2020) - 4.04
Foxx hasn't voiced many animated characters, which is surprising given his distinct voice, his vocal range, and how musical he generally tends to be. But while it'd be great to hear him in more colorful kids' films, his absence from the genre also makes the one animated movie he does lead that much more special.
Even though it's animated, Soul manages to capture what Foxx is all about better than any of his other movies. The film is musical, upbeat, sincere, and hilarious. Soul is one of the best animated musicals, and just like any Pixar movie, it'll have both adults and children in tears.
Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021) - 4.14
Even though it was expected to do well in the first place, Spider-Man: No Way Home still managed to overperform at the box office and become a huge phenomenon. The 2021 multiverse flick achieved the impossible, as it even managed to turn the worst parts of previous movies into the best parts of the Home trilogy.
Electro (Foxx) was heavily criticized in 2014's The Amazing Spider-Man 2, whether it was the blue design or his goofy personality. But both of those things have been flipped on their heads in No Way Home, as he is now the coolest supervillain in the MCU and he has a more exciting and comic-accurate outfit. Though the three Spider-Men appearing on screen together is the movie's big appeal, Foxx deserves a lot of the credit too.
Django Unchained (2012) - 4.16
Django Unchained is Foxx's biggest movie in almost every way. While the film might not touch on the box office gross of the likes of Spider-Man: No Way Home and it didn't get him an Academy Award nomination, it was still a big hit, it sees him at his most heroic and badass, and he has never been more of a leading man.
But it isn't only Foxx's performance that makes the film so great. The actor is armed with an incredible narrative, some classic Tarantino dialogue, which is full of profanities and iconic one-liners, and the film is simply stunning. Few westerns have ever looked like this, and the only other ones that come close are Tarantino's other epics.
