15 Underrated Films by Anthony Hopkins You Must See

Anthony Hopkins has a filmography that runs deep, with roles that span historical figures, literary adaptations, and bold experiments. Beyond the performances everyone knows, there are many projects where he anchors striking stories with meticulous craft and a sharp sense of character detail. This list brings together films that often sit just outside the usual highlights and gives you the essentials on what each one is about and how it was made.

You will find a mix of biographical dramas, thrillers, and adaptations, along with several collaborations with noted directors and writers. Each entry notes Hopkins’s role, the creative team behind the film, key co stars, and useful context on production, source material, and release, so you can line up what to watch next with confidence.

‘Magic’ (1978)

Richard Attenborough directs this adaptation of William Goldman’s novel, with a screenplay by Goldman. Anthony Hopkins plays Corky Withers, a stage magician and ventriloquist whose act centers on a dummy named Fats, alongside Ann Margret and Burgess Meredith.

The story follows Corky’s attempt to restart his career while concealing a deteriorating mental state from his agent and from a former classmate he reconnects with in upstate New York. The production shot on locations that reflect small town settings, and Jerry Goldsmith composed the score that supports the film’s psychological focus.

‘The Bounty’ (1984)

Roger Donaldson revisits the story of the 1789 mutiny aboard HMS Bounty with a script drawn from Richard Hough’s account. Anthony Hopkins portrays Lieutenant William Bligh, with Mel Gibson as Fletcher Christian and a supporting cast that includes Daniel Day Lewis and Liam Neeson.

The film used a full scale sailing replica to stage ocean sequences and shot extensively in French Polynesia to capture the voyage’s island settings. Vangelis provides the music, and the narrative charts the expedition from its scientific aim in the South Pacific through the crew’s rebellion and the long return journey.

’84 Charing Cross Road’ (1987)

David Hugh Jones directs this adaptation of Helene Hanff’s epistolary book about a transatlantic correspondence between a New York writer and a London bookseller. Anthony Hopkins plays Frank Doel, with Anne Bancroft as Helene Hanff, as their letters trace two decades of book orders and personal milestones.

The production recreates the Marks and Co shop at the real London address and contrasts postwar London with midcentury New York. The film organizes the passage of time through the exchange of letters that begin in 1949, using period details, voiceover readings, and careful set design to keep both cities distinct.

‘Desperate Hours’ (1990)

Michael Cimino directs this remake of the 1955 film based on Joseph Hayes’s novel and play. Anthony Hopkins plays Tim Cornell, whose suburban home is seized by an escaped convict played by Mickey Rourke, with Mimi Rogers and Lindsay Crouse in key roles.

The plot compresses the action into a tense home invasion as police mount a search and the captors plan a getaway. The production updates the setting from the earlier version and emphasizes practical location work inside the residence to stage negotiations, standoffs, and attempts to signal for help.

‘Nixon’ (1995)

Oliver Stone’s biographical drama covers decades of American political history through the life of the 37th president. Anthony Hopkins takes the title role, with Joan Allen as Pat Nixon and James Woods as H. R. Haldeman, supported by an ensemble that recreates the presidential inner circle.

The film moves from early campaigns to the events surrounding Watergate and the 1974 resignation, blending staged scenes with archival material. It was released in late 1995 and received multiple award nominations, and the production uses a wide range of locations to mirror Washington institutions and campaign stops.

‘Surviving Picasso’ (1996)

James Ivory directs this Merchant Ivory production about the personal life of Pablo Picasso during the years after the Second World War. Anthony Hopkins plays Picasso, with Natascha McElhone as Françoise Gilot, and the film follows their relationship alongside appearances by figures from the Paris art world.

The script focuses on domestic settings, studios, and gatherings that frame the artist’s daily routine and collaborators. The production filmed in France to capture neighborhoods associated with Picasso and uses period costumes and interiors to match the postwar timeline without relying on museum settings.

‘The Edge’ (1997)

Lee Tamahori directs from a screenplay by David Mamet that pairs survival drama with a character study. Anthony Hopkins plays Charles Morse, a wealthy bookish traveler stranded in the wilderness with a fashion photographer played by Alec Baldwin, and Elle Macpherson and Harold Perrineau appear in supporting roles.

Filming took place in the Canadian Rockies to stand in for Alaska, with large scale outdoor sequences and extensive work with Bart the Bear for the animal encounters. The production emphasizes practical stunts, cold weather logistics, and aerial photography to track the trek across rivers, forests, and glacial terrain.

‘Titus’ (1999)

Julie Taymor adapts Shakespeare’s ‘Titus Andronicus’ with a design that merges ancient Rome with modern imagery. Anthony Hopkins plays Titus, with Jessica Lange as Tamora and Alan Cumming as Saturninus, and Harry Lennix appears as Aaron to anchor the central rivalries.

The production shot in Italy, including Rome and Cinecittà, and uses stylized sets, opera scale costuming, and large crowd scenes to stage battles and ceremonies. Elliot Goldenthal’s music and Taymor’s visual approach fold period elements into a contemporary frame, which keeps the Shakespearean text while reimagining the setting.

‘Instinct’ (1999)

Jon Turteltaub directs this psychological thriller that is loosely inspired by Daniel Quinn’s novel ‘Ishmael’. Anthony Hopkins plays Ethan Powell, an anthropologist who has lived with gorillas, and Cuba Gooding Jr plays a young psychiatrist assigned to evaluate him.

The film divides its time between a secure psychiatric facility and flashbacks to field work in central Africa. The production features animal behavior sequences staged with trained animals and careful second unit photography, while the present day storyline focuses on interviews, hearings, and institutional procedures.

‘Hearts in Atlantis’ (2001)

Scott Hicks adapts Stephen King’s ‘Low Men in Yellow Coats’ from the collection ‘Hearts in Atlantis’. Anthony Hopkins plays Ted Brautigan, a mysterious lodger who befriends a young boy played by Anton Yelchin, with Hope Davis as the boy’s mother.

The film is set in early 1960s New England and follows incidents that shape the boy’s memory of that summer. The production uses small town streets, neighborhood houses, and a local pool hall to create a consistent period look, and it frames the narrative with adult recollection to connect past and present.

‘The World’s Fastest Indian’ (2005)

Roger Donaldson directs this biographical drama about New Zealander Burt Munro and his modified Indian Scout motorcycle. Anthony Hopkins portrays Munro as he prepares for a trip to the United States to attempt land speed records on the Bonneville Salt Flats.

Filming took place in New Zealand and Utah to cover both the home workshop and the American racing venue. The production works closely with replicas of Munro’s machine and period racing equipment, and it recreates the procedures used at speed trials to show inspections, timing runs, and safety checks.

‘Proof’ (2005)

John Madden brings David Auburn’s Pulitzer Prize winning play to the screen with a focus on a family of mathematicians. Anthony Hopkins plays Robert, a celebrated professor, with Gwyneth Paltrow as his daughter Catherine and Jake Gyllenhaal as a former student.

The film is set in Chicago and uses university neighborhoods and house interiors to stage debates over authorship and legacy. Flashbacks and notebooks move the plot between past research and present discoveries, and the production coordinates blackboard work and prop pages to match the mathematical themes.

‘Fracture’ (2007)

Gregory Hoblit directs this legal thriller that centers on a complex attempted murder case. Anthony Hopkins plays Ted Crawford, an engineer who faces prosecution led by a deputy district attorney played by Ryan Gosling, with Rosamund Pike and David Strathairn in supporting roles.

The story unfolds through interviews, hearing rooms, and laboratory work that test the strength of the case. The production sets most scenes in Los Angeles and balances courtroom proceedings with investigative steps, focusing on chain of evidence, plea discussions, and procedural timing.

‘Slipstream’ (2007)

Anthony Hopkins writes and directs this experimental drama about a screenwriter named Felix Bonhoeffer who drifts between reality and imagination. The cast includes Stella Arroyave, Christian Slater, John Turturro, and Michael Clarke Duncan, and the film layers film within a film sequences with looping timelines.

It premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2007 and later had a limited theatrical release. The production uses rapid cutting, nonlinear scenes, and repeated motifs to fold script revisions into the onscreen action, and it mixes black and white with color photography to mark shifts in point of view.

‘The City of Your Final Destination’ (2009)

James Ivory adapts Peter Cameron’s novel about a graduate student who seeks permission to write a biography of a deceased author. Anthony Hopkins plays Adam Gund, the brother of the writer, with Omar Metwally as the researcher and Laura Linney and Charlotte Gainsbourg as members of the author’s household.

The film was shot largely in Argentina with locations that stand in for a family estate where the decision about the biography is made. The production follows legal and personal negotiations among the rights holders, and it tracks how letters of authorization and family agreements determine the project’s future.

Share the film you would add to this list in the comments.