Steve McQueen filmography explained

Steve McQueen (March 24, 1930 – November 7, 1980) was an American actor who had an extensive career in film and television.[1] Popularly known as the "King of Cool",[2] McQueen's screen persona was that of portraying cool, reticent antihero roles, which appealed strongly to the masses. This led him to cement his status as one of the most famous celebrities in Hollywood during the counterculture of the 1960s.[3]

After making his debut appearing in an uncredited role in the crime drama Girl on the Run (1953),[4] McQueen featured in the Paul Newman starrer Somebody Up There Likes Me (1956), in which he played the uncredited role of Fidel, a member of the protagonist's gang.[5] In 1958, he appeared in the science fiction film The Blob, which was his first film as a lead actor. It proved to be commercially successful at the box office, grossing $4 million ($ in 2022) against a budget of $110,000 ($ in 2022). McQueen became known for portraying bounty hunter Josh Randall in the CBS television series Wanted Dead or Alive (1958–1961).[3] [6] [7] He continued to act in films, playing the lead in The Great St. Louis Bank Robbery (1959), and in a supporting role as a corporal in Never So Few (1959), his first of three films with John Sturges.

In 1960, McQueen achieved stardom when he co-starred alongside Yul Brynner in Sturges' Western, The Magnificent Seven, which was based on Akira Kurosawa's 1954 film Seven Samurai.[1] [3] After a series of unsuccessful films over the next two years, McQueen teamed up with Sturges again in the war drama The Great Escape (1963), in which he played Virgil Hilts, a World War II prisoner of war who, along with fellow Allied POWs, makes an escape from a high security prisoner-of-war camp.[8] It emerged as one of the highest-grossing films of the year, winning McQueen the award for Best Actor at the Moscow International Film Festival.[9] In The Great Escape, a shot of Hilts riding a motorcycle and jumping a series of barbed-wire fences (performed by a stuntman) to escape from German soldiers is considered one of the best stunts ever made.[8] [10] [11]

McQueen received his first Golden Globe Award for Best Actor nomination for his role of a musician in Love with the Proper Stranger (1963),[12] [13] in which he was paired opposite Natalie Wood. He achieved critical and commercial success with The Cincinnati Kid (1965) and The Sand Pebbles (1966),[14] the latter garnering him the only Academy Award for Best Actor nomination of his career.[15] [16] In 1968, McQueen appeared as millionaire Thomas Crown in the crime film The Thomas Crown Affair,[17] and in the thriller Bullitt as the eponymous police detective Frank Bullitt.[18] These films fared well at the box office, the latter garnering acclaim for its stunt sequences, particularly the car chase. For his performance in The Reivers (1969), McQueen earned a third Golden Globe Award nomination.[19]

McQueen began the 1970s with the sports drama Le Mans (1971), a fictional take on the annual 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance races. The film was a critical and commercial disappointment, leaving him almost bankrupt. He followed it by starring in two back-to-back films under Sam Peckinpah: the Western Junior Bonner (1972), in which he featured as the titular character, a rodeo rider,[20] and the action film The Getaway (1972), in which he appears as an ex-conman who flees to Mexico with his wife after being double-crossed by his partners-in-crime.[21] In the latter, he was paired opposite his second wife, Ali MacGraw. Both films were critically acclaimed. While Junior Bonner did not enjoy box office success, The Getaway went on to become one of the highest-grossing films of the year, marking a comeback for McQueen.

In 1973, he featured alongside Dustin Hoffman in the prison film Papillon playing Henri Charrière, a prisoner convicted of murder who makes an escape attempt with fellow convict Louis Dega (Hoffman).[22] McQueen's performance earned him his fourth and final Golden Globe Award nomination in the Best Actor category.[23] He then starred alongside Paul Newman as a SFFD chief in the disaster drama The Towering Inferno (1974).[24] McQueen received $12 million for acting in the film, making him the highest-paid actor in the world up to that point.[25] The film was commercially successful, grossing $139 million ($ in 2022) against a $14 million ($ in 2022) budget.[26] After a four-year hiatus during which he focused on his motorcycle racing career, McQueen returned to acting when he was cast against type as a scientist in An Enemy of the People.[27] He completed two more films before his death: Tom Horn and The Hunter (both released in 1980).

Film

FilmYearRole(s)Notes
Girl on the Run1953Young Man Trying to Ring the BellUncredited extra
Somebody Up There Likes Me1956FidelUncredited role
[28]
Never Love a Stranger1958
1958Credited as Steven McQueen
1959
Never So Few1959
1960[29]
1961[30]
Hell Is for Heroes1962[31]
1962
1963 (The Cooler King)Moscow International Film Festival Silver Prize Award for Best Actor
Soldier in the Rain1963
Love with the Proper Stranger1963Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama
Baby the Rain Must Fall1965
1965 (The Cincinnati Kid)
Nevada Smith1966 (Nevada Smith)
1966Nominated – Academy Award for Best Actor
Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama

1968
Bullitt1968
1969Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
Le Mans1971
On Any Sunday1971HimselfDocumentary film
Junior Bonner1972[32]
1972
Papillon1973 (Papillon)Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama
1974
1978Also executive producer
Tom Horn1980Also executive producer
1980[33]

Television

TitleYearRole(s)Notes
Goodyear Television Playhouse1955Guest appearanceEpisode: "The Chivington Raid"[34]
1956BushyEpisode: "Bring Me a Dream"
Westinghouse Studio One1957Episode: "The Defender": Part 1[35]
Westinghouse Studio One1957Episode: "The Defender": Part 2[36]
1957RickEpisode: "Ambush"[37]
1957KinsellaEpisode: "Deep Water"[38]
1957Episode: "Car 83"[39]
Climax!1958, Henry ReevesEpisode: "Four Hours in White"
Tales of Wells Fargo1958Episode: "Bill Longley"[40]
Trackdown1958Episode: "The Bounty Hunter"[41]
Trackdown1958, Wes CodyEpisode: "The Brothers"
Wanted Dead or Alive1958–1961Main role: 94 episodes

[42]
Alfred Hitchcock Presents1959Season 4 Episode 32: "Human Interest Story"[43]
Alfred Hitchcock Presents1960GamblerSeason 5 Episode 15: "Man from the South"[44]

Bibliography

Notes and References

  1. News: Steve McQueen, 50, Is Dead Of A Heart Attack After Surgery For Cancer . . B. Flint . Peter . November 8, 1980 . December 3, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171203143128/http://alt.obituaries.narkive.com/W4489EaG/archive-obituaries-steve-mcqueen-november-7th-1980 . December 3, 2017 . live.
  2. News: How Steve McQueen became the ultimate Hollywood man's man . . Borrows . Bill . May 31, 2015 . December 3, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171203115136/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/men/the-filter/11635578/How-Steve-McQueen-became-the-ultimate-Hollywood-mans-man.html . December 3, 2017 . live.
    Life With Steve McQueen: Photos of the King of Cool in 1963 . . Cosgrove . Ben . November 5, 2014 . December 3, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171203115135/http://time.com/3490078/life-with-steve-mcqueen-photos-of-the-king-of-cool-in-1963/ . December 3, 2017 . dead.
    Web site: The Case For Steve McQueen, Icon . . Rogersby . Sterling . October 20, 2014 . December 3, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171203115142/https://www.maxim.com/maxim-man/case-steve-mcqueen-icon . December 3, 2017 . live.
    Web site: Steve McQueen: The Cars Of The King of Cool . . June 28, 2017 . December 3, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171203115147/https://drivetribe.com/p/steve-mcqueen-the-cars-of-the-king-V5ZVkjOXQ9S1vUvCZmqS7Q?iid=Js6IsFgsSe2owEG340Dtwg . December 3, 2017 . live.
  3. News: From the Archives: Actor Steve McQueen Dies in Juarez Hospital . . Seiler . Michael . Warga . Wayne . November 8, 1980 . December 3, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171108023304/http://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-me-steve-mcqueen-19801108-story.html . November 8, 2017 . live .
  4. Web site: Girl on the Run (1953) . . December 2, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171202173150/https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/51121 . December 2, 2017 . live.
  5. Web site: Somebody Up There Likes Me (1956) . AFI Catalog of Feature Films . December 3, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171203135116/https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/52009 . December 3, 2017 . live.
  6. Web site: Remembering Steve McQueen . . Ebert . Roger . Roger Ebert . November 8, 1980 . December 3, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171203143135/https://www.rogerebert.com/interviews/remembering-steve-mcqueen . December 3, 2017 . live.
  7. Web site: "King of Cool" Steve McQueen dies . . November 7, 1980 . December 3, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171203143104/http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/king-of-cool-steve-mcqueen-dies/print . December 3, 2017 . dead .
  8. Web site: The Great Escape . . Adams . Derek . September 11, 2012 . December 3, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171203154014/https://www.timeout.com/london/film/the-great-escape-1962 . December 3, 2017 . live.
  9. Web site: 1963 year . . December 3, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171203101051/http://39.moscowfilmfestival.ru/miff39/eng/archives/?year=1963 . December 3, 2017 . live.
  10. Top 10 Memorable Movie Motorcycles – The Great Escape . Time . Kim . Wook . February 16, 2012 . December 3, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171203153619/http://entertainment.time.com/2012/02/17/top-10-memorable-movie-motorcycles/slide/the-great-escape/ . December 3, 2017 . live.
  11. News: The Great Escape: 50th anniversary . The Daily Telegraph . McKay . Sinclair . December 24, 2014 . December 3, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171203153722/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/9853745/The-Great-Escape-50th-anniversary.html . December 3, 2017 . live.
  12. Web site: Winners & Nominees 1964 . . December 3, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171203074903/https://www.goldenglobes.com/winners-nominees/1964/all . December 3, 2017 . live.
  13. News: Screen: Eight New Movies Arrive for the Holidays: Natalie Wood Starred as a Salesgirl Doris Day Is in 'Move Over, Darling' 'Move Over, Darling' 'Sleeping in My Bed' 'The Best of Cinerama' 'Sword in the Stone' '4 for Texas' of 1870 'Kings of the Sun' '30 Years of Fun' . The New York Times . Crowther . Bosley . Bosley Crowther . December 26, 1963 . December 3, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171203155225/http://www.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9B04E6DF1531E73BBC4E51DFB4678388679EDE . December 3, 2017 . live.
  14. Web site: The Sand Pebbles (1966) . . December 3, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171203161501/http://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Sand-Pebbles-The#tab=summary . December 3, 2017 . live.
  15. Web site: Winners & Nominees 1967 . Hollywood Foreign Press Association . December 3, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171203080244/https://www.goldenglobes.com/winners-nominees/1967/all . December 3, 2017 . live.
  16. Web site: The 39th Academy Awards . . April 10, 1967 . December 3, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171203083024/https://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1967 . December 3, 2017 . live.
  17. Web site: The Thomas Crown Affair (1968) . . December 4, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171204111949/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/thomas_crown_affair/ . December 4, 2017 . live.
  18. Web site: Bullitt (1968) . Rotten Tomatoes . December 4, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171204111811/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/bullitt/ . December 4, 2017 . live.
  19. Web site: Winners & Nominees 1970 . Hollywood Foreign Press Association . December 3, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171203080545/https://www.goldenglobes.com/winners-nominees/1970/all . December 3, 2017 . live.
  20. Web site: Junior Bonner (1972) . Rotten Tomatoes . December 4, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171204115435/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/junior_bonner . December 4, 2017 . live.
  21. Web site: The Getaway (1972) . Rotten Tomatoes . December 4, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171204115425/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1008243_getaway . December 4, 2017 . live .
  22. Web site: Papillon . RogerEbert.com . Ebert . Roger . December 16, 1973 . December 3, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171203082917/https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/papillon-1973 . December 3, 2017 . live.
  23. Web site: Winners & Nominees 1974 . Hollywood Foreign Press Association . December 3, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171203082734/https://www.goldenglobes.com/winners-nominees/1974/all . December 3, 2017 . live.
  24. News: 'The Towering Inferno' First-Rate Visual Spectacle . The New York Times . Canby . Vincent . Vincent Canby . December 20, 1974 . December 4, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171204122602/http://www.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9907E2D91E31EF34BC4851DFB467838F669EDE . December 4, 2017 . live.
  25. News: Steve McQueen would have made a Great Escape from being an actor . . Shaw . Alan . September 15, 2017 . December 4, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171204123449/https://www.sundaypost.com/fp/steve-mcqueen-would-have-made-a-great-escape-from-being-an-actor/ . December 4, 2017 . live.
  26. Web site: Towering Inferno (1974) . The Numbers . December 4, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171204122139/http://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Towering-Inferno#tab=summary . December 4, 2017 . live.
  27. News: McQueen In 1976 'Enemy Of The People' . The New York Times . Maslin . Janet . Janet Maslin . August 11, 1981 . December 4, 2017 . https://archive.today/20171204151921/http://www.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9500EFDA113BF932A2575BC0A967948260 . December 4, 2017 . live .
  28. Web site: Somebody Up There Likes Me (1956) . . December 2, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171202173150/https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/51121 . December 2, 2017 . live.
  29. Web site: The Magnificent Seven (1960) . . December 2, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171202180715/https://www.moviefone.com/movie/the-magnificent-seven/1021915/main/ . December 2, 2017 . live.
  30. Web site: The Honeymoon Machine (1961) . . December 2, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171202181021/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/honeymoon_machine/ . December 2, 2017 . live.
  31. Web site: Staff . Variety . 1962-01-01 . Hell Is for Heroes . 2024-03-13 . Variety . en-US.
  32. Web site: Junior Bonner (1972) . Rotten Tomatoes . December 3, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171203081358/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/junior_bonner/ . December 3, 2017 . live.
  33. Web site: The Hunter (1980) . Rotten Tomatoes . December 3, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171203084803/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1010230_hunter . December 3, 2017 . live .
  34. Web site: Steve McQueen Made His Debut On . . December 12, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171212112812/https://www.almanac.com/fact/steve-mcqueen-made-his-debut-on-a . December 12, 2017 . live.
  35. Web site: Season 9, Episode 1 The Defenders . TV Guide . December 12, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171212121559/http://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/studio-one/episode-1-season-9/the-defenders/204666/ . December 12, 2017 . live.
  36. Web site: Season 9, Episode 2 The Defenders . . December 12, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171212121551/http://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/studio-one/episode-2-season-9/the-defenders/204666/ . December 12, 2017 . live.
  37. The West Point Story, Episode 23 – Ambush . March 8, 1957 . . New York City.
  38. Web site: Season 2, Episode 16 Deep Water . TV Guide . December 12, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171212121617/http://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/hour-of-stars/episode-16-season-2/deep-water/194594/ . December 12, 2017 . live.
  39. Web site: Car 83 (1957) . . December 12, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171212112452/http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b8b4e0b3e . December 12, 2017 . dead.
  40. Web site: Season 2, Episode 23 Bill Longley . TV Guide . December 12, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171212121632/http://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/tales-of-wells-fargo/episode-23-season-2/bill-longley/431299/ . December 12, 2017 . live.
  41. Web site: The Bounty Hunter . TV Guide . December 12, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171212121639/http://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/trackdown/episode-804956/205125/ . December 12, 2017 . live.
  42. Web site: Wanted: Dead or Alive . TV Guide . December 12, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171212121645/http://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/wanted-dead-or-alive/cast/205354/ . December 12, 2017 . live.
  43. Web site: Season 4, Episode 32 Human Interest Story . TV Guide . December 12, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171212121658/http://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/alfred-hitchcock-presents/episode-32-season-4/human-interest-story/100020/ . December 12, 2017 . live.
  44. Web site: Alfred Hitchcock In The Schoolyard . . January 5, 2010 . December 14, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171214121057/http://www.emmytvlegends.org/news/alfred-hitchcock-in-the-schoolyard . December 14, 2017 . live.

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