Performer
A performer whose catalogue work here is strong, with the fuller case still to be made.
Nutevio rank
#532
of 909177 performers
Top 1%
Chris Rock represents the rare performer whose career became more ambitious with every decade — 39 years in, and Chris is still choosing the harder script.
The essay
Our editors on the work, the patterns and the reason this body of work holds together.
Chris Rock appears in 51 films in the Nutevio catalogue, and none of them would work the same way without Chris. The One and Only Dick Gregory is the clearest case: a film rated 7.9 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 documentary, animation, comedy. It is a style built on what is withheld as much as what is played.
Working with Morgan Neville, Chris Rock, Angus Wall and others, Chris Rock 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.
The One and Only Dick Gregory (2021) as Self · Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) (2021) as Self - Artist · Bowling for Columbine (2002) as Self
Career snapshot
Ranked #532 of 909177 performers tracked in the Nutevio library.
Films in Nutevio
51
1987–2026
Career length
39 yrs
Measured across our catalogue
Academy Awards
—
Unknown
Oscar nominations
—
Unknown
Highest Nutevio score
7.9
The One and Only Dick Gregory
Average Nutevio score
5.9
Across catalogue work
Highest IMDb rating
7.9
The One and Only Dick Gregory
Most frequent director
Chris Rock
4 films together
Longest collaboration
4×
With Chris Rock
Most common genre
Comedy
35 titles
Average runtime
1h 37m
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
6.5
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
1980s
6.6 average MV
The 1980s are where the work and the material meet. Beverly Hills Cop II — the run our editors reach for first when the argument is about range rather than fame.
Highest average Nutevio score
1980s
6.6
Across 1 catalogue film in this decade, our scores never drop below the level a career is judged on.
Highest average IMDb rating
1980s
6.5
The public agrees most strongly about this stretch — useful context, and occasionally a decade behind our own reading.
Most awarded era
1980s
0 Academy Awards
Statuettes for the films themselves, which is the honest way to read an ensemble career. Beverly Hills Cop II.
Most productive era
2020s
19 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 | 1980s | 1990s | 2000s | 2010s | 2020s |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Drama | — | — | 6.46 films | 6.43 films | 4.23 films |
| Action | 6.61 film | 6.61 film | 5.86 films | — | — |
| Thriller | — | 6.61 film | 5.63 films | — | — |
| Comedy | 6.61 film | 6.23 films | 6.013 films | 6.110 films | 4.58 films |
| Crime | 6.61 film | 6.61 film | 6.42 films | — | — |
| Romance | — | 5.71 film | 5.42 films | 6.13 films | — |
| Horror | — | — | — | — | 6.12 films |
Chronology
Firsts and peaks
The turning points, in the order they happened.
First film in Nutevio
Where our catalogue meets this career, as Parking Valet.
Highest rated performance · Career peak
2021The One and Only Dick Gregory
7.9 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
2026Misty Green
The current state of the argument.
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.
51 of 51 films
as Self - Artist
Directed by Questlove
as Marty (voice)
Directed by Eric Darnell
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
Self
The One and Only Dick Gregory (2021)
Performance score8.2
The performance the rest of the career is read through. Self gives Chris Rock a structure to work against, and the film hands over its centre of gravity without hesitation.
View movie#2
Self - Artist
Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) (2021)
Performance score7.9
Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) asks for something the previous films did not, and gets it. Self - Artist is played without a single line of pleading for the audience's sympathy — which is exactly why it lands.
View movie#3
Self
Albert Brooks: Defending My Life (2023)
Performance score7.6
Albert Brooks: Defending My Life asks for something the previous films did not, and gets it. Self is played without a single line of pleading for the audience's sympathy — which is exactly why it lands.
View movie#4
Marty (voice)
Madagascar (2005)
Performance score7.5
Madagascar asks for something the previous films did not, and gets it. Marty (voice) 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 Self
Start here. The One and Only Dick Gregory is the clearest statement of what Chris Rock does — accessible, 113 minutes, and rated 7.9 by our editors. No context required.
Our editors order this path by accessibility first and chronology second. You meet Chris 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.
Bowling for Columbine (2002)
Keeps the documentary register of The One and Only Dick Gregory but asks for a colder reading of it.
Madagascar (2005)
A deliberate change of key after Bowling for Columbine — same instrument, unfamiliar tuning, and the reason range gets mentioned.
Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) (2021)
A deliberate change of key after Madagascar — same instrument, unfamiliar tuning, and the reason range gets mentioned.
Albert Brooks: Defending My Life (2023)
Keeps the documentary register of Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) but asks for a colder reading of it.
Company kept
The directors and performers this career keeps returning to.
Chris Rock
Director
4 films together
Notably Top Five
Eric Darnell
Director
3 films together
Notably Madagascar
Dennis Dugan
Director
3 films together
Notably Grown Ups
Kevin Smith
Director
2 films together
Notably Dogma
Neil LaBute
Director
2 films together
Notably Nurse Betty
Tony Scott
Director
1 film together
Notably Beverly Hills Cop II
Reginald Hudlin
Director
1 film together
Notably Boomerang
Richard Donner
Director
1 film together
Notably Lethal Weapon 4
Betty Thomas
Director
1 film together
Notably Doctor Dolittle
Louis C.K.
Director
1 film together
Notably Pootie Tang
Chris Weitz
Director
1 film together
Notably Down to Earth
Bobby Farrelly
Director
1 film together
Notably Osmosis Jones
Steven Spielberg
Director
1 film together
Notably A.I. Artificial Intelligence
Joel Schumacher
Director
1 film together
Notably Bad Company
Michael Moore
Director
1 film together
Notably Bowling for Columbine
Paul Abascal
Director
1 film together
Notably Paparazzi
Peter Segal
Director
1 film together
Notably The Longest Yard
Simon J. Smith
Director
1 film together
Notably Bee Movie
Kirk Jones
Director
1 film together
Notably What to Expect When You're Expecting
Sofia Coppola
Director
1 film together
Notably A Very Murray Christmas
Tyler Perry
Director
1 film together
Notably Nobody's Fool
Robert Smigel
Director
1 film together
Notably The Week Of
Craig Brewer
Director
1 film together
Notably Dolemite Is My Name
Jay Karas
Director
1 film together
Notably Feeding America Comedy Festival
Robert Zemeckis
Director
1 film together
Notably Roald Dahl's The Witches
Questlove
Director
1 film together
Notably Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)
Ash Brannon
Director
1 film together
Notably Stoner Cats
Darren Lynn Bousman
Director
1 film together
Notably Spiral: From the Book of Saw
David O. Russell
Director
1 film together
Notably Amsterdam
Mike Binder
Director
1 film together
Notably Dirty Daddy: The Bob Saget Tribute
Rob Reiner
Director
1 film together
Notably Albert Brooks: Defending My Life
Angus Wall
Director
1 film together
Notably Being Eddie
Morgan Neville
Director
1 film together
Notably Lorne
Behind the camera
Who casts this performer, how often, and what the pairing produces.
Chris Rock
Director
4 films together · 4.3 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 4 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
Top FiveEric Darnell
Director
3 films together · 6.8 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 3 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
MadagascarDennis Dugan
Director
3 films together · 6.1 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 3 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
Grown UpsKevin Smith
Director
2 films together · 6.7 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 2 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
DogmaNeil LaBute
Director
2 films together · 6.0 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 2 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
Nurse BettyQuestlove
Director
1 film together · 7.6 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)Michael Moore
Director
1 film together · 7.3 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Bowling for ColumbineRob Reiner
Director
1 film together · 7.2 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Albert Brooks: Defending My LifeSteven Spielberg
Director
1 film together · 7.1 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
A.I. Artificial IntelligenceCraig Brewer
Director
1 film together · 7.0 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Dolemite Is My NameMorgan Neville
Director
1 film together · 6.8 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
LorneAngus Wall
Director
1 film together · 6.8 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Being EddiePeter Segal
Director
1 film together · 6.7 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The Longest YardRichard Donner
Director
1 film together · 6.6 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Lethal Weapon 4Tony Scott
Director
1 film together · 6.6 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Beverly Hills Cop IIBobby Farrelly
Director
1 film together · 6.5 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Osmosis JonesRobert Zemeckis
Director
1 film together · 6.3 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Roald Dahl's The WitchesSimon J. Smith
Director
1 film together · 6.2 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Bee MovieDavid O. Russell
Director
1 film together · 6.1 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
AmsterdamTyler Perry
Director
1 film together · 6.1 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Nobody's FoolKirk Jones
Director
1 film together · 6.0 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
What to Expect When You're ExpectingBetty Thomas
Director
1 film together · 6.0 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Doctor DolittleDarren Lynn Bousman
Director
1 film together · 5.9 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Spiral: From the Book of SawJay Karas
Director
1 film together · 5.8 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Feeding America Comedy FestivalReginald Hudlin
Director
1 film together · 5.7 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
BoomerangChris Weitz
Director
1 film together · 5.6 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Down to EarthRobert Smigel
Director
1 film together · 5.5 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The Week OfJoel Schumacher
Director
1 film together · 5.5 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Bad CompanyPaul Abascal
Director
1 film together · 5.3 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
PaparazziSofia Coppola
Director
1 film together · 5.2 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
A Very Murray ChristmasLouis C.K.
Director
1 film together · 5.1 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Pootie TangMike Binder
Director
1 film together · 4.9 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Dirty Daddy: The Bob Saget TributeAsh Brannon
Director
1 film together · 0.0 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Stoner CatsSix 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
The One and Only Dick Gregory
as Self
The one that survives a fourth viewing. Nothing in the performance depends on surprise, which is why it keeps paying out.
Most emotional performance
Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)
as Self - Artist
Grief played at conversational volume. The film never asks the audience to cry; the performance simply makes it difficult not to.
Most influential performance
The One and Only Dick Gregory
as Self
You can hear this reading in other actors' auditions a decade later — the surest measure of influence there is.
Best ensemble performance
Lorne
as Self
Work that makes everyone else in the frame better without ever pulling the camera towards itself.
Career defining performance
The One and Only Dick Gregory
as Self
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. Chris Rock 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
39 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.
Comedy Legend
Awarded
35 catalogue titles in comedy, 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
The One and Only Dick Gregory
as Self
The last five minutes reorganise everything before them, and hold up when you already know what's coming.
Best opening
Lethal Weapon 4
as Det.Lee Butters
A first sequence that states the rules of the film without explaining a single one of them.
Most emotional
Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)
as Self - Artist
The film where the technique steps aside and lets the feeling arrive undefended.
Best twist
Spiral: From the Book of Saw
as Detective Zeke Banks
A reversal earned by information the film gave you and trusted you to misread.
Best visual achievement
The One and Only Dick Gregory
as Self
Images that would survive with the sound switched off.
Best action sequence
Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back
as Chaka Luther King
Geography, stakes and consequence held in the same frame — spectacle you can follow.
Best dialogue
Dolemite Is My Name
as Bobby Vale
Lines written to be spoken, staged so the pauses do half the work.
Most underrated film
Doctor Dolittle
as Rodney (voice)
The public vote sits below ours on this one, and the direction is the reason for the gap.
If you like this performer
Matt Damon
Built a career in the same territory: adventure and drama
Michael Caine
Built a career in the same territory: adventure and drama
Tom Hanks
Built a career in the same territory: animation and family
Bonnie Hunt
Built a career in the same territory: animation and family
David Krumholtz
Built a career in the same territory: action and adventure
Cillian Murphy
Built a career in the same territory: drama and history
Have your say
Community
Which Chris Rock performance holds up best?
Our readers argue about this one. Make your case, or read the ranked debate already in progress.
Join the conversation
Reference
Continue exploring
Trending performers
Directors they work with
Collections to read next
