Performer
A performer whose catalogue work here is strong, with the fuller case still to be made.
Nutevio rank
#108
of 909177 performers
Top 1%
Danny DeVito represents the rare performer whose career became more ambitious with every decade — 51 years in, and Danny is still choosing the harder script.
The essay
Our editors on the work, the patterns and the reason this body of work holds together.
Danny DeVito appears in 50 films in the Nutevio catalogue, and none of them would work the same way without Danny. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest is the clearest case: a film rated 8.6 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 comedy, fantasy, adventure. It is a style built on what is withheld as much as what is played.
Working with Jake Kasdan, Tim Burton, Chris Pine and others, Danny DeVito 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.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975) as Martini · Catwoman: The Feline Femme Fatale (2021) as Self · Big Fish (2003) as Amos Calloway
Career snapshot
Ranked #108 of 909177 performers tracked in the Nutevio library.
Films in Nutevio
50
1975–2026
Career length
51 yrs
Measured across our catalogue
Academy Awards
—
Unknown
Oscar nominations
—
Unknown
Highest Nutevio score
8.6
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
Average Nutevio score
6.3
Across catalogue work
Highest IMDb rating
8.4
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
Most frequent director
Tim Burton
5 films together
Longest collaboration
5×
With Tim Burton
Most common genre
Comedy
37 titles
Average runtime
1h 44m
Across catalogue work
Golden Globe wins
—
Unknown
Nutevio metric
Ten weighted categories, applied identically to everyone we cover.
Nutevio Performer Score
7.0
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
6.9
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
1970s
7.3 average MV
The 1970s are where the work and the material meet. Goin' South, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest — the run our editors reach for first when the argument is about range rather than fame.
Highest average Nutevio score
1970s
7.3
Across 2 catalogue films in this decade, our scores never drop below the level a career is judged on.
Highest average IMDb rating
1970s
7.1
The public agrees most strongly about this stretch — useful context, and occasionally a decade behind our own reading.
Most awarded era
1970s
0 Academy Awards
Statuettes for the films themselves, which is the honest way to read an ensemble career. Goin' South, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.
Most productive era
1990s
15 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 | 1970s | 1980s | 1990s | 2000s | 2010s | 2020s |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Drama | 8.61 film | — | 6.64 films | 6.75 films | 6.01 film | 6.93 films |
| Action | — | 6.52 films | 7.03 films | 6.02 films | — | 6.81 film |
| Thriller | — | — | 7.13 films | 6.12 films | — | — |
| Comedy | 6.11 film | 6.44 films | 6.611 films | 5.97 films | 6.45 films | 5.89 films |
| Crime | — | 6.31 film | 6.94 films | 5.86 films | — | — |
| Romance | 6.11 film | 6.52 films | 6.52 films | 7.11 film | 5.91 film | — |
| Horror | — | — | — | — | — | 6.91 film |
Chronology
Firsts and peaks
The turning points, in the order they happened.
First film in Nutevio · Highest rated performance · Career peak
1975One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
Where our catalogue meets this career, as Martini. 8.6 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
The current state of the argument, as Eddie.
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.
50 of 50 films
as Sid Hudgens
Directed by Curtis Hanson
as Philoctetes (voice)
Directed by John Musker
as Amos Calloway
Directed by Tim Burton
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
Martini
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975)
Performance score8.5
The performance the rest of the career is read through. Martini gives Danny DeVito a structure to work against, and the film hands over its centre of gravity without hesitation.
View movie#2
Self
Catwoman: The Feline Femme Fatale (2021)
Performance score8.0
Catwoman: The Feline Femme Fatale 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#3
Sid Hudgens
L.A. Confidential (1997)
Performance score7.8
L.A. Confidential asks for something the previous films did not, and gets it. Sid Hudgens is played without a single line of pleading for the audience's sympathy — which is exactly why it lands.
View movie#4
Philoctetes (voice)
Hercules (1997)
Performance score7.7
Hercules asks for something the previous films did not, and gets it. Philoctetes (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 Martini
Start here. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest is the clearest statement of what Danny DeVito does — accessible, 135 minutes, and rated 8.6 by our editors. No context required.
Our editors order this path by accessibility first and chronology second. You meet Danny 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.
L.A. Confidential (1997)
A deliberate change of key after One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest — same instrument, unfamiliar tuning, and the reason range gets mentioned.
Hercules (1997)
A deliberate change of key after L.A. Confidential — same instrument, unfamiliar tuning, and the reason range gets mentioned.
Big Fish (2003)
Keeps the fantasy register of Hercules but asks for a colder reading of it.
Catwoman: The Feline Femme Fatale (2021)
A deliberate change of key after Big Fish — same instrument, unfamiliar tuning, and the reason range gets mentioned.
Company kept
The directors and performers this career keeps returning to.
Tim Burton
Director
5 films together
Notably Big Fish
Danny DeVito
Director
4 films together
Notably Matilda
Ivan Reitman
Director
2 films together
Notably Twins
Barry Sonnenfeld
Director
2 films together
Notably Men in Black
Miloš Forman
Director
2 films together
Notably One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
Jake Kasdan
Director
2 films together
Notably Jumanji: The Next Level
Jack Nicholson
Director
1 film together
Notably Goin' South
Amy Heckerling
Director
1 film together
Notably Johnny Dangerously
Robert Zemeckis
Director
1 film together
Notably Romancing the Stone
Lewis Teague
Director
1 film together
Notably The Jewel of the Nile
John McTiernan
Director
1 film together
Notably Last Action Hero
Penny Marshall
Director
1 film together
Notably Renaissance Man
Joe Pytka
Director
1 film together
Notably Space Jam
Francis Ford Coppola
Director
1 film together
Notably The Rainmaker
John Musker
Director
1 film together
Notably Hercules
Curtis Hanson
Director
1 film together
Notably L.A. Confidential
Sofia Coppola
Director
1 film together
Notably The Virgin Suicides
Nick Gomez
Director
1 film together
Notably Drowning Mona
David Mamet
Director
1 film together
Notably Heist
Jay Roach
Director
1 film together
Notably Austin Powers in Goldmember
F. Gary Gray
Director
1 film together
Notably Be Cool
Brad Silberling
Director
1 film together
Notably 10 Items or Less
Robert Ben Garant
Director
1 film together
Notably Reno 911!: Miami
Mark Steven Johnson
Director
1 film together
Notably When in Rome
Casey Affleck
Director
1 film together
Notably I'm Still Here
Chris Renaud
Director
1 film together
Notably The Lorax
Tony Bancroft
Director
1 film together
Notably Animal Crackers
Karey Kirkpatrick
Director
1 film together
Notably Smallfoot
Thea Sharrock
Director
1 film together
Notably The One and Only Ivan
Cinco Paul
Director
1 film together
Notably Minions & More Volume 1
Scott Mosier
Director
1 film together
Notably Minions & More 2
Barry Levinson
Director
1 film together
Notably The Survivor
Justin Simien
Director
1 film together
Notably Haunted Mansion
Chris Pine
Director
1 film together
Notably Poolman
Behind the camera
Who casts this performer, how often, and what the pairing produces.
Tim Burton
Director
5 films together · 7.0 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 5 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
Big FishDanny DeVito
Director
4 films together · 6.4 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 4 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
MatildaMiloš Forman
Director
2 films together · 7.8 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 2 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's NestBarry Sonnenfeld
Director
2 films together · 7.0 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 2 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
Men in BlackIvan Reitman
Director
2 films together · 5.7 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 2 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
TwinsJake Kasdan
Director
2 films together · 3.5 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 2 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
Jumanji: The Next LevelCurtis Hanson
Director
1 film together · 7.8 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
L.A. ConfidentialJohn Musker
Director
1 film together · 7.6 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
HerculesScott Mosier
Director
1 film together · 7.4 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Minions & More 2Thea Sharrock
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 One and Only IvanSofia Coppola
Director
1 film together · 7.1 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The Virgin SuicidesCinco Paul
Director
1 film together · 7.0 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Minions & More Volume 1Francis Ford Coppola
Director
1 film together · 7.0 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The RainmakerJoe Pytka
Director
1 film together · 6.9 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Space JamBarry Levinson
Director
1 film together · 6.8 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The SurvivorKarey Kirkpatrick
Director
1 film together · 6.8 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
SmallfootRobert Zemeckis
Director
1 film together · 6.8 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Romancing the StoneJohn McTiernan
Director
1 film together · 6.6 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Last Action HeroChris Renaud
Director
1 film together · 6.5 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The LoraxJustin Simien
Director
1 film together · 6.4 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Haunted MansionTony Bancroft
Director
1 film together · 6.4 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Animal CrackersDavid Mamet
Director
1 film together · 6.3 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
HeistLewis Teague
Director
1 film together · 6.3 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The Jewel of the NileAmy Heckerling
Director
1 film together · 6.3 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Johnny DangerouslyBrad Silberling
Director
1 film together · 6.2 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
10 Items or LessPenny Marshall
Director
1 film together · 6.1 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Renaissance ManJack Nicholson
Director
1 film together · 6.1 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Goin' SouthCasey Affleck
Director
1 film together · 6.0 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
I'm Still HereJay Roach
Director
1 film together · 6.0 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Austin Powers in GoldmemberMark Steven Johnson
Director
1 film together · 5.9 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
When in RomeRobert Ben Garant
Director
1 film together · 5.8 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Reno 911!: MiamiF. Gary Gray
Director
1 film together · 5.5 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Be CoolNick Gomez
Director
1 film together · 5.5 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Drowning MonaChris Pine
Director
1 film together · 4.3 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
PoolmanSix 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
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
as Martini
The one that survives a fourth viewing. Nothing in the performance depends on surprise, which is why it keeps paying out.
Most emotional performance
Big Fish
as Amos Calloway
Grief played at conversational volume. The film never asks the audience to cry; the performance simply makes it difficult not to.
Most influential performance
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
as Martini
You can hear this reading in other actors' auditions a decade later — the surest measure of influence there is.
Best ensemble performance
Last Action Hero
as Whiskers (voice) (uncredited)
Work that makes everyone else in the frame better without ever pulling the camera towards itself.
Career defining performance
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
as Martini
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. Danny DeVito 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
51 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
37 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
L.A. Confidential
as Sid Hudgens
The last five minutes reorganise everything before them, and hold up when you already know what's coming.
Best opening
L.A. Confidential
as Sid Hudgens
A first sequence that states the rules of the film without explaining a single one of them.
Most emotional
Big Fish
as Amos Calloway
The film where the technique steps aside and lets the feeling arrive undefended.
Best twist
L.A. Confidential
as Sid Hudgens
A reversal earned by information the film gave you and trusted you to misread.
Best visual achievement
Men in Black
as Alien on TV Monitor (uncredited)
Images that would survive with the sound switched off.
Best action sequence
Men in Black
as Alien on TV Monitor (uncredited)
Geography, stakes and consequence held in the same frame — spectacle you can follow.
Best dialogue
Hercules
as Philoctetes (voice)
Lines written to be spoken, staged so the pauses do half the work.
Most underrated film
Goin' South
as Hog
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
Al Pacino
Works with the same directors — shared collaborators
David Krumholtz
Built a career in the same territory: action and adventure
Have your say
Community
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Reference
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