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Gerard Butler stars in the action sequel Den of Thieves 2: Pantera (in theaters this weekend - get your tickets here!), so we're taking the opening to revisit his best films according to the Tomatometer. Of course, much of Butler’s bread and butter are movies that don’t necessarily hit with critics but have built an enduring, action-focused audience over his career, but we're focusing on the Fresh: The How to Train Your Dragon trilogy, the sentimental Dear Frankie and 2020's Greenland. That sci-fi family thriller was his first Certified Fresh non-animated movie since Frankie 16 years earlier, and that led the way to 2021’s equally praised Copshop and 2023's crjtical and box office hit Plane. Will Den of Thieves 2 rank among Butler's best?
Check out Gerard Butler's top-ranking movies below, and see the complete list at Rotten Tomatoes.
12. Rocknrolla (2008)
Tomatometer: 60%
Popcornmeter: 71%
Synopsis: Old-school mobster Lenny Cole (Tom Wilkinson) rules London's underworld with an iron fist and a score of well-greased palms. As big-time gangsters and petty crooks all scramble to get their cut of a Russian mobster's crooked land deal, street-wise hustler One Two (Gerard Butler) tries to play both sides of the fence as the lucrative deal falls into the lap of Lenny's presumed-dead son.
Starring: Gerard Butler, Tom Wilkinson, Thandiwe Newton, Mark Strong
Directed By: Guy Ritchie
11. 300 (2006)
Tomatometer: 61%
Popcornmeter: 89%
Synopsis: In 480 B.C. a state of war exists between Persia, led by King Xerxes (Rodrigo Santoro), and Greece. At the Battle of Thermopylae, Leonidas (Gerard Butler), king of the Greek city state of Sparta, leads his badly outnumbered warriors against the massive Persian army. Though certain death awaits the Spartans, their sacrifice inspires all of Greece to unite against their common enemy.
Starring: Gerard Butler, Lena Headey, David Wenham, Dominic West
Directed By: Zack Snyder
10. Plane (2023)
Tomatometer: 79%
Popcornmeter: 94%
Synopsis: In the white-knuckle action movie PLANE, pilot Brodie Torrance (Gerard Butler) saves his passengers from a lightning strike by making a risky landing on a war-torn island -- only to find that surviving the landing was just the beginning. When most of the passengers are taken hostage by dangerous rebels, the only person Torrance can count on for help is Louis Gaspare (Mike Colter), an accused murderer who was being transported by the FBI. In order to rescue the passengers, Torrance will need Gaspare's help, and will learn there's more to Gaspare than meets the eye.
Starring: Gerard Butler, Mike Colter, Yoson An, Daniella Pineda
Directed By: Jean-François Richet
9. The Vanishing (2018)
Tomatometer: 84%
Popcornmeter: 48%
Synopsis: Three lighthouse keepers arrive on an isolated island off the Scottish coast and find an object that becomes the catalyst to a struggle for survival as they are overcome by greed and paranoia.
Starring: Gerard Butler, Peter Mullan, Connor Swindells, Ólafur Darri Ólafsson
Directed By: Kristoffer Nyholm
8. Greenland (2020)
Tomatometer: 77%
Popcornmeter: 64%
Synopsis: John Garrity, his estranged wife and their young son embark on a perilous journey to find sanctuary as a planet-killing comet hurtles toward Earth. Amid terrifying accounts of cities getting leveled, the Garrity's experience the best and worst in humanity. As the countdown to the global apocalypse approaches zero, their incredible trek culminates in a desperate and last-minute flight to a possible safe haven.
Starring: Gerard Butler, Morena Baccarin, Roger Dale Floyd, Scott Glenn
Directed By: Ric Roman Waugh
7. Dear Frankie (2004)
Tomatometer: 82%
Popcornmeter: 90%
Synopsis: Frankie (Jack McElhone) does not know his father because his mother, Lizzie (Emily Mortimer), ran away from the abusive lout when Frankie was just a baby. Instead of telling the truth to her deaf son, she concocts an elaborate lie, telling him that his father is a merchant seaman on the MS Accra. She even writes letters for Frankie posing as his father. But when the actual MS Accra docks in their small Scottish town, Lizzie quickly needs to find a fake father for Frankie.
Starring: Emily Mortimer, Jack McElhone, Gerard Butler, Sharon Small
Directed By: Shona Auerbach
6. Copshop (2021)
Tomatometer: 83%
Popcornmeter: 74%
Synopsis: On the run from a lethal assassin, a wily con artist devises a scheme to hide out inside a small-town police station--but when the hitman turns up at the precinct, an unsuspecting rookie cop finds herself caught in the crosshairs.
Starring: Gerard Butler, Frank Grillo, Alexis Louder, Toby Huss
Directed By: Joe Carnahan
5. How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World (2019)
Tomatometer: 90%
Popcornmeter: 87%
Synopsis: When the sudden appearance of a female Light Fury coincides with the darkest threat their village has ever faced, Hiccup and Toothless must journey to a hidden world thought only to exist in myth. The two friends will soon discover their true destinies as dragon and rider fight together to protect everything they've grown to treasure.
Starring: Jay Baruchel, America Ferrera, F. Murray Abraham, Cate Blanchett
Directed By: Dean DeBlois
4. Her Majesty, Mrs. Brown (1997)
Tomatometer: 92%
Popcornmeter: 79%
Synopsis: After the death of her beloved husband, Prince Albert, Queen Victoria (Judi Dench) withdraws from public life, so the court appoints a former servant of the prince, John Brown (Billy Connolly), to help her recover from her grief. Brown's unorthodox ways and disdain for protocol draw the queen out of her shell, and the brash Scot becomes her sole confidant. However, their growing closeness causes a stir, as scandalous rumors begin circulating about the exact nature of their relationship.
Starring: Judi Dench, Billy Connolly, Geoffrey Palmer, Antony Sher
Directed By: John Madden
3. Coriolanus (2011)
Tomatometer: 92%
Popcornmeter: 58%
Synopsis: Caius Martius, aka Coriolanus (Ralph Fiennes), is an arrogant and fearsome general who has built a career on protecting Rome from its enemies. Pushed by his ambitious mother (Vanessa Redgrave) to seek the position of consul, Coriolanus is at odds with the masses and unpopular with certain colleagues (James Nesbitt, Paul Jesson). When a riot results in his expulsion from Rome, Coriolanus seeks out his sworn enemy, Tullus Aufidius (Gerard Butler). Together, the pair vow to destroy the great city.
Starring: Ralph Fiennes, Gerard Butler, Brian Cox, Vanessa Redgrave
Directed By: Ralph Fiennes
2. How to Train Your Dragon 2 (2014)
Tomatometer: 92%
Popcornmeter: 90%
Synopsis: Five years have passed since Hiccup and Toothless united the dragons and Vikings of Berk. Now, they spend their time charting the island's unmapped territories. During one of their adventures, the pair discover a secret cave that houses hundreds of wild dragons -- and a mysterious dragon rider who turns out to be Hiccup's long-lost mother, Valka (Cate Blanchett). Hiccup and Toothless then find themselves at the center of a battle to protect Berk from a power-hungry warrior named Drago.
Starring: Jay Baruchel, Cate Blanchett, Gerard Butler, Craig Ferguson
Directed By: Dean DeBlois, Tom Owens
1. How to Train Your Dragon (2010)
Tomatometer: 99%
Popcornmeter: 91%
Synopsis: A misfit Viking teenager sees a chance to change the course of his clan's future when he befriends an injured dragon.
Starring: Jay Baruchel, Gerard Butler, America Ferrera, Jonah Hill
Directed By: Christopher Sanders, Dean DeBlois
