Performer
A performer whose catalogue work here is strong, with the fuller case still to be made.
Nutevio rank
#1483
of 909177 performers
Top 1%
Joel Edgerton works on versatility rather than volume, and the catalogue keeps proving that the quieter choice was the correct one.
The essay
Our editors on the work, the patterns and the reason this body of work holds together.
Joel Edgerton appears in 30 films in the Nutevio catalogue, and none of them would work the same way without Joel. Warrior is the clearest case: a film rated 7.8 by our editors, where the performance carries weight the script only implies.
The recognisable elements are versatility, transformation, quiet performance. Watch two of these films back to back and the method separates from the material — the same instrument, tuned differently for drama, thriller, history. It is a style built on what is withheld as much as what is played.
Working with George Clooney, Paul Schrader, Ron Howard and others, Joel Edgerton helped set a standard other performers now audition against. Awards bodies have been slower than the work, which is usually the sign of a career built on choices rather than campaigns.
Warrior (2011) as Brendan Conlon · Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005) as Owen Lars · Thirteen Lives (2022) as Harry Harris
Career snapshot
Ranked #1483 of 909177 performers tracked in the Nutevio library.
Films in Nutevio
30
2002–2025
Career length
23 yrs
Measured across our catalogue
Academy Awards
—
Unknown
Oscar nominations
—
Unknown
Highest Nutevio score
7.8
Warrior
Average Nutevio score
6.4
Across catalogue work
Highest IMDb rating
7.8
Warrior
Most frequent director
Joel Edgerton
2 films together
Longest collaboration
2×
With Joel Edgerton
Most common genre
Drama
21 titles
Average runtime
1h 59m
Across catalogue work
Golden Globe wins
—
Unknown
Nutevio metric
Ten weighted categories, applied identically to everyone we cover.
Nutevio Performer Score
6.9
out of 10
A performer whose catalogue work here is strong, with the fuller case still to be made.
Nutevio metric
Cultural impact and legacy, measured separately from craft — how far the work travelled once it left the cinema.
Nutevio Influence Score
6.4
out of 10
A quieter influence — felt inside the films rather than across the industry.
How far the work travelled past the people who saw it first.
What survives once the release-week conversation has burned off.
Institutional acknowledgement, weighted but never decisive.
Years of chosen, relevant work rather than years merely employed.
Statuettes, read as evidence rather than verdict.
Roles named without needing the film named alongside them.
Directors who wrote parts because this performer existed.
The reading other performers now have to answer.
Actor DNA
A fingerprint derived from the roles themselves — register, range and the kind of film they carry.
The shape of a career
Every performance plotted in time. Hover a point to read the title behind it.
Peak years
Where the scores, the awards and the sheer volume of work agree with each other.
Best decade
2000s
6.7 average MV
The 2000s are where the work and the material meet. Smokin' Aces, Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith, King Arthur — the run our editors reach for first when the argument is about range rather than fame.
Highest average Nutevio score
2000s
6.7
Across 5 catalogue films in this decade, our scores never drop below the level a career is judged on.
Highest average IMDb rating
2010s
6.6
The public agrees most strongly about this stretch — useful context, and occasionally a decade behind our own reading.
Most awarded era
2000s
0 Academy Awards
Statuettes for the films themselves, which is the honest way to read an ensemble career. Smokin' Aces, Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith, King Arthur.
Most productive era
2010s
16 films
The busiest stretch of the catalogue — volume that reads as appetite rather than availability.
Range, mapped
Genres down the side, decades across the top. Warmer cells mean stronger titles.
| Genre | 2000s | 2010s | 2020s |
|---|---|---|---|
| Drama | 6.32 films | 6.712 films | 6.87 films |
| Action | 6.75 films | 6.35 films | — |
| Thriller | 6.51 film | 6.64 films | 6.54 films |
| Comedy | 6.51 film | 5.91 film | — |
| Crime | 6.51 film | 6.22 films | 6.12 films |
| Romance | — | 7.12 films | — |
Chronology
Firsts and peaks
The turning points, in the order they happened.
First film in Nutevio
2002Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones
Where our catalogue meets this career, as Owen Lars.
Highest rated performance · Career peak
2011Warrior
7.8 on the Nutevio scale, the top of the catalogue for this performer. Weighing billing against the film's own quality, this is the point where everything aligned at once.
Most recent film
2025Train Dreams
The current state of the argument, as Robert Grainier.
Our order
Every performance in the catalogue, ordered by Nutevio Score.
Every title
Filter by genre or decade, and compare any two titles side by side.
30 of 30 films
as Brendan Conlon
Directed by Gavin O'Connor
as Robert Grainier
Directed by Unknown
as Harry Harris
Directed by Ron Howard
as Coach Al Ulbrickson
Directed by George Clooney
as Falstaff
Directed by David Michôd
From the library
Every movie and TV credit stored for this name in the Nutevio catalogue — filter by media, role or sort by rating.
Loading credits…
The defining work
#1
Brendan Conlon
Warrior (2011)
Performance score8.3
The performance the rest of the career is read through. Brendan Conlon gives Joel Edgerton a structure to work against, and the film hands over its centre of gravity without hesitation.
View movie#2
Robert Grainier
Train Dreams (2025)
Performance score7.9
Train Dreams asks for something the previous films did not, and gets it. Robert Grainier is played without a single line of pleading for the audience's sympathy — which is exactly why it lands.
View movie#3
Harry Harris
Thirteen Lives (2022)
Performance score7.9
Thirteen Lives asks for something the previous films did not, and gets it. Harry Harris is played without a single line of pleading for the audience's sympathy — which is exactly why it lands.
View movie#4
Coach Al Ulbrickson
The Boys in the Boat (2023)
Performance score7.8
The Boys in the Boat asks for something the previous films did not, and gets it. Coach Al Ulbrickson is played without a single line of pleading for the audience's sympathy — which is exactly why it lands.
View movieStart here
A guided path through the work, ordered so each film explains the next.
Best entry point
as Brendan Conlon
Start here. Warrior is the clearest statement of what Joel Edgerton does — accessible, 140 minutes, and rated 7.8 by our editors. No context required.
Our editors order this path by accessibility first and chronology second. You meet Joel at the most legible performance, then move forward in time so each film reads as a response to the one before it rather than a repetition of it.
The King (2019)
Keeps the drama register of Warrior but asks for a colder reading of it.
Thirteen Lives (2022)
Keeps the drama register of The King but asks for a colder reading of it.
The Boys in the Boat (2023)
Keeps the drama register of Thirteen Lives but asks for a colder reading of it.
Train Dreams (2025)
Keeps the drama register of The Boys in the Boat but asks for a colder reading of it.
Company kept
The directors and performers this career keeps returning to.
George Lucas
Director
2 films together
Notably Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith
Gavin O'Connor
Director
2 films together
Notably Warrior
Joel Edgerton
Director
2 films together
Notably Boy Erased
Gregor Jordan
Director
1 film together
Notably Ned Kelly
Antoine Fuqua
Director
1 film together
Notably King Arthur
Joe Carnahan
Director
1 film together
Notably Smokin' Aces
Zack Snyder
Director
1 film together
Notably Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole
Kathryn Bigelow
Director
1 film together
Notably Zero Dark Thirty
Baz Luhrmann
Director
1 film together
Notably The Great Gatsby
Ridley Scott
Director
1 film together
Notably Exodus: Gods and Kings
Scott Cooper
Director
1 film together
Notably Black Mass
David Ayer
Director
1 film together
Notably Bright
Francis Lawrence
Director
1 film together
Notably Red Sparrow
Nash Edgerton
Director
1 film together
Notably Gringo
David Michôd
Director
1 film together
Notably The King
David Lowery
Director
1 film together
Notably The Green Knight
Thomas M. Wright
Director
1 film together
Notably The Stranger
David Gelb
Director
1 film together
Notably Obi-Wan Kenobi: A Jedi's Return
Ron Howard
Director
1 film together
Notably Thirteen Lives
Paul Schrader
Director
1 film together
Notably Master Gardener
George Clooney
Director
1 film together
Notably The Boys in the Boat
Behind the camera
Who casts this performer, how often, and what the pairing produces.
George Lucas
Director
2 films together · 7.3 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 2 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the SithJoel Edgerton
Director
2 films together · 6.8 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 2 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
Boy ErasedGavin O'Connor
Director
2 films together · 6.8 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 2 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
WarriorRon Howard
Director
1 film together · 7.6 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Thirteen LivesBaz Luhrmann
Director
1 film together · 7.4 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The Great GatsbyGeorge Clooney
Director
1 film together · 7.2 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The Boys in the BoatDavid Michôd
Director
1 film together · 7.2 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The KingKathryn Bigelow
Director
1 film together · 7.0 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Zero Dark ThirtyDavid Gelb
Director
1 film together · 6.8 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Obi-Wan Kenobi: A Jedi's ReturnZack Snyder
Director
1 film together · 6.8 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'HooleDavid Lowery
Director
1 film together · 6.6 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The Green KnightFrancis Lawrence
Director
1 film together · 6.5 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Red SparrowScott Cooper
Director
1 film together · 6.5 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Black MassJoe Carnahan
Director
1 film together · 6.5 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Smokin' AcesAntoine Fuqua
Director
1 film together · 6.4 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
King ArthurThomas M. Wright
Director
1 film together · 6.2 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The StrangerDavid Ayer
Director
1 film together · 6.2 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
BrightGregor Jordan
Director
1 film together · 6.1 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Ned KellyPaul Schrader
Director
1 film together · 6.0 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Master GardenerNash Edgerton
Director
1 film together · 5.9 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
GringoRidley Scott
Director
1 film together · 5.9 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Exodus: Gods and KingsSix degrees
Follow the thread outward — director, film, co-star, and the film after that.
Categories of our own
Six editorial categories we apply to every performer we cover.
Most rewatchable
Warrior
as Brendan Conlon
The one that survives a fourth viewing. Nothing in the performance depends on surprise, which is why it keeps paying out.
Most emotional performance
The Great Gatsby
as Tom Buchanan
Grief played at conversational volume. The film never asks the audience to cry; the performance simply makes it difficult not to.
Most influential performance
Warrior
as Brendan Conlon
You can hear this reading in other actors' auditions a decade later — the surest measure of influence there is.
Best ensemble performance
Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith
as Owen Lars
Work that makes everyone else in the frame better without ever pulling the camera towards itself.
Career defining performance
Warrior
as Brendan Conlon
If the career had to be argued in a single scene, our editors would pick one from this film and rest the case.
In their films' words
“You can build a whole film around a performer who knows when not to speak. Joel Edgerton has known it for a long time.”
Head to head
Put two careers on the same scale and see where the argument actually sits.
Ours alone
Recognitions handed out by this desk, on criteria no awards body uses.
Career Achievement
Awarded
23 years of relevant work — not merely a long career, but a long career of choices.
Modern Classic Performer
Awarded
Defining performances delivered inside the last twenty-five years, in films already being taught rather than merely remembered.
Drama Legend
Awarded
21 catalogue titles in drama, each one a reference point for the films that followed.
Our desk
Best ending, best opening, best twist and the rest — categories we apply to everyone we cover.
Best ending
Warrior
as Brendan Conlon
The last five minutes reorganise everything before them, and hold up when you already know what's coming.
Best opening
Warrior
as Brendan Conlon
A first sequence that states the rules of the film without explaining a single one of them.
Most emotional
Loving
as Richard Loving
The film where the technique steps aside and lets the feeling arrive undefended.
Best twist
Red Sparrow
as Nathaniel "Natan" Nash
A reversal earned by information the film gave you and trusted you to misread.
Best visual achievement
Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith
as Owen Lars
Images that would survive with the sound switched off.
Best action sequence
Jane Got a Gun
as Dan Frost
Geography, stakes and consequence held in the same frame — spectacle you can follow.
Best dialogue
Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole
as Metalbeak (voice)
Lines written to be spoken, staged so the pauses do half the work.
Most underrated film
Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith
as Owen Lars
The public vote sits below ours on this one, and the direction is the reason for the gap.
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Reference
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