# What are the best Joaquin Phoenix performances of all time?

> From swaggering villains to desperate misfits, Phoenix brings an almost terrifying intensity to every character he inhabits. Where do you rank his best work?

*By YPB Team · Published April 11, 2026 · https://youpick.best/ranking/what-are-the-best-joaquin-phoenix-performances-of-all-time*

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## Current results (no votes yet)

1. **Joker**
   A 2019 psychological thriller in which Phoenix plays Arthur Fleck, a failed comedian who becomes the iconic DC villain, winning him the Academy Award.
2. **Her**
   A 2013 Spike Jonze sci-fi romance in which Phoenix plays a lonely writer who falls in love with an AI operating system.
3. **The Master**
   A 2012 Paul Thomas Anderson drama in which Phoenix plays a volatile drifter who falls under the influence of a cult leader.
4. **Walk the Line**
   A 2005 biopic in which Phoenix plays Johnny Cash, from his troubled youth to his legendary career, earning an Oscar nomination.
5. **Gladiator**
   A 2000 Ridley Scott epic in which Phoenix plays the treacherous Roman Emperor Commodus, a role of simmering menace.
6. **Inherent Vice**
   A 2014 Paul Thomas Anderson noir comedy in which Phoenix plays perpetually stoned private detective Doc Sportello.
7. **You Were Never Really Here**
   A 2017 Lynne Ramsay thriller in which Phoenix plays a traumatized hit man who rescues trafficking victims.
8. **Signs**
   A 2002 M. Night Shyamalan thriller in which Phoenix plays Mel Gibson's brother bracing for an alien invasion.
9. **We Own the Night**
   A 2007 crime drama in which Phoenix plays a nightclub manager whose world collides with his brother's work as a detective.
10. **To Die For**
   A 1995 Gus Van Sant black comedy in which Phoenix plays a gullible teen manipulated by an ambitious TV personality.
11. **Don't Worry, He Won't Get Far on Foot**
   A 2018 Gus Van Sant biopic in which Phoenix plays cartoonist John Callahan recovering from a paralyzing accident.
12. **Beau Is Afraid**
   A 2023 surreal Ari Aster odyssey in which Phoenix plays a paranoid, anxiety-ridden man on a traumatic journey home.
13. **Joker: Folie a Deux**
   A 2024 musical crime drama sequel in which Phoenix reprises the Joker role, adding song and dance to the character's madness.
14. **Buffalo Soldiers**
   A 2001 dark comedy in which Phoenix plays a resourceful U.S. Army soldier in Cold War Germany running illegal schemes.

Tags: movies, actors, performances, joaquin phoenix