Orson Welles

Orson Welles

Directing

Born May 6, 1915 · Kenosha, Wisconsin, USA

59 films as director · Active 1933–2020

George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American film director, actor, theatre director, screenwriter, and producer, who worked extensively in film, theatre, television and radio.…

Known for

The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson

The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson

1962

The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson

The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson

1962

Magnum, P.I.

Magnum, P.I.

1980

American Experience

American Experience

1988

The Merv Griffin Show

The Merv Griffin Show

1962

I Love Lucy

I Love Lucy

1951

Moonlighting

Moonlighting

1985

Omnibus

Omnibus

1967

Directed(59)

Hopper/Welles

2020Hopper/Welles★ 5.9

The Other Side of the Wind

2018The Other Side of the Wind★ 6.7

Too Much Johnson

2013Too Much Johnson★ 5.4

The Deep

2007The Deep★ 7.0

Orson Welles Talks With Roger Hill

2005Orson Welles Talks With Roger Hill

Filming 'The Trial'

2002Filming 'The Trial'★ 7.4

Moby Dick

2000Moby Dick★ 9.0

One Man Band

1999One Man Band★ 8.0

Orson Welles: The One-Man Band

1995Orson Welles: The One-Man Band★ 6.6

It's All True

1993It's All True★ 7.6

Don Quixote

1992Don Quixote★ 6.2

It's All True: Four Men on a Raft

1986It's All True: Four Men on a Raft

Unseen Lollo

1986Unseen Lollo

The Dreamers

1985The Dreamers★ 5.0

Orson Welles' Magic Show

1985Orson Welles' Magic Show★ 7.3

The Spirit of Charles Lindbergh

1984The Spirit of Charles Lindbergh★ 6.2

Filming Othello

1979Filming Othello★ 7.5

The Orson Welles Show

1979The Orson Welles Show★ 8.0

F for Fake

1973F for Fake★ 7.4

An Evening with Orson Welles: The Golden Honeymoon

1970An Evening with Orson Welles: The Golden Honeymoon★ 7.0

The Merchant of Venice (Rushes)

1970The Merchant of Venice (Rushes)★ 5.0

An Evening with Orson Welles: The Happy Prince

1970An Evening with Orson Welles: The Happy Prince

An Evening with Orson Welles: American Heritage, Vol. I – Selections from George Ade, Thomas Wolfe, Mark Twain

1970An Evening with Orson Welles: American Heritage, Vol. I – Selections from George Ade, Thomas Wolfe, Mark Twain

An Evening with Orson Welles: American Heritage, Vol. II – Clarence Darrow

1970An Evening with Orson Welles: American Heritage, Vol. II – Clarence Darrow

An Evening with Orson Welles: Two Wise Old Men – Socrates and Noah

1970An Evening with Orson Welles: Two Wise Old Men – Socrates and Noah

An Evening with Orson Welles: My Little Boy

1970An Evening with Orson Welles: My Little Boy

The Merchant of Venice

1969The Merchant of Venice★ 8.0

The Immortal Story

1968The Immortal Story★ 7.1

Vienna

1968Vienna★ 6.3

The Heroine

1967The Heroine

Chimes at Midnight

1965Chimes at Midnight★ 7.2

The Trial

1962The Trial★ 7.4

Five Columns on the Front Page: Hong Kong as seen by Orson Welles

1960Five Columns on the Front Page: Hong Kong as seen by Orson Welles★ 6.0

Touch of Evil

1958Touch of Evil★ 7.7

Orson Welles at Large: Portrait of Gina

1958Orson Welles at Large: Portrait of Gina★ 7.3

The Fountain of Youth

1958The Fountain of Youth★ 6.2

1956Orson Welles and People: Camille, the Naked Lady and the Musketeers★ 7.0

The Land of the Basques

1955The Land of the Basques

Mr. Arkadin

1955Mr. Arkadin★ 6.8

Moby Dick—Rehearsed

1955Moby Dick—Rehearsed★ 7.0

Othello

1951Othello★ 7.4

The Miracle of St. Anne

1950The Miracle of St. Anne

Black Magic

1949Black Magic★ 6.4

Macbeth

1948Macbeth★ 7.3

The Lady from Shanghai

1947The Lady from Shanghai★ 7.3

The Stranger

1946The Stranger★ 7.2

1943It's All True

The Magnificent Ambersons

1942The Magnificent Ambersons★ 7.3

Citizen Kane

1941Citizen Kane★ 8.0

1939The Green Goddess

The Hearts of Age

1934The Hearts of Age★ 5.4

Twelfth Night

1933Twelfth Night★ 4.8

Acting(342)

2028Charmed Lives: A Family RomanceSelf (archive footage)

2026War of the Worldsnarrator

2026The Making OfSelf (archival)

2026Proust Palimpsesto: Pastiches e MisturasSelf / The Director / Sir John Falstaff (archive footage) (uncredited)

2025WeirdWorldTroy2000 (Archive footage)

2025Titanic: Secrets of the ShipwreckSelf (archive footage)

2025Human Nature in Eleven PartsNarrator "The Scorpion and the Frog" (archive footage)

2025The Scorpion and the FrogNarrator (archive footage)

2024Othelo The GreatSelf (archive footage)

2024The Battle of Grovers MillRadio Host (voice) (archival footage)

2024Aliens Uncovered: Close EncountersSelf

2024Jim Henson Idea ManSelf (archive footage)

2023From Introduction to Orson Welles’s Falstaff: Chimes at MidnightFalstaff

2023It's Pretty, but is it Art?Self (voiceover)

2023Looking Back Before You LeapGeneral Zaroff (voice)

2022Clint Eastwood: The Last LegendSelf (archive footage)

2022American: An Odyssey to 1947Self (archive footage)

2022Louis Armstrong's Black & BluesSelf (archive footage)

2022The Welles RaftHimself (Archive Footage)

2021My Guest is Orson Welles

2021The Real Charlie ChaplinSelf (archive footage)

2021Tall Tales: The Ireland of Orson WellesSelf

2021Parkinson at 50Self (archive footage)

2021Morceaux de CannesSelf (archive footage)

2021Street Gang: How We Got to Sesame StreetSelf (archive footage) (uncredited)

2021The Blinding of Isaac WoodardSelf (archive footage)

2020Hopper/WellesSelf

2020Natalie Wood: What Remains BehindSelf (archive footage)

2019LIFE BEYONDSelf (voice)

2019Emergency: Donald Trump’s "Touch of Evil"(archive footage)

2018The Other Side of the WindJournalist (uncredited)

2018They'll Love Me When I'm DeadSelf (archive footage)

2018The Eyes of Orson WellesSelf - Filmmaker / Various Roles (archive footage)

2018Jeanne Moreau: Free SpiritSelf - Filmmaker (archive footage)

2017The Magic History of Cinema

2016Embers & DustProfessor Richard Pierson / Self (voice) (archive sound)

2016Decadence and Downfall: The Shah of Iran's Ultimate PartySelf (archive footage) (voice)

2015This Is Orson WellesSelf

2014Magician: The Astonishing Life and Work of Orson WellesSelf - Filmmaker / Various Roles (archive footage)

2014Alfonso Sansone: Producer by ChanceSelf (archive footage)

2013Too Much JohnsonKeystone Kop

2013Jodorowsky's DuneSelf - Filmmaker (archive footage)

2013Talking PicturesSelf (archive footage)

2012Magic Mirror Maze

2012The Shadow KnowsSelf (archive footage)

2012Final Cut: Ladies and Gentlemen(archive footage)

2011Shut Up Little Man! An Audio MisadventureSelf

2010JucyElephant Lamp (archive sound)

2010Cameraman: The Life and Work of Jack CardiffGenghis Khan / Bayan (archive footage)

2010Orson Welles: The Paris InterviewHimself

2009Hollywood sul Tevere

2009Lucifer et moi(archive footage 1982)

2007Spine Tingler! The William Castle StorySelf (archive)

2007The DeepRuss Brewer

2005Lost in "The Thinking"Self (archive footage)

2005Orson Welles Talks With Roger Hill(Self)

2005Filmmakers vs. TycoonsSelf (archive footage)

2005The Other Side of WellesSelf (archive footage)

2005Orson Welles Uncut

2004The Hitch HikerRonald Adams

2004The UFO ConspiracySelf (archive sound)

2003The Dominici Affair by Orson WellesSelf (archive footage)

2002Filming 'The Trial'Self

2002Heart of the FestivalSelf (archive footage)

2002Lost in La ManchaSelf (archive footage)

2002The Movie Movie (An Excerpt)Archival Footage

2001A Huey P. Newton StorySelf (archive footage) (uncredited)

2001The Paranormal Peter SellersSelf (Archive footage)

2001NASA: A Space Odyssey Vol. 3Narrator

2000Orson Welles in the Land of Don QuixoteSelf (Archive footage)

2000Lon Chaney: A Thousand FacesSelf (archive footage)

2000Moby DickCaptain Ahab / Starbuck / Ishmael (archive footage)

1999One Man BandPresenter / Various

1999According to Occam's Razor

1998The Best of the Dean Martin Celebrity RoastsSelf - Roaster (archive footage)

1997It's All BrazilSelf (archive footage)

1997Who Is Henry Jaglom?Self (archive footage)

1997Celebração - 100 Anos do Cinema NacionalSelf

1996The Battle Over Citizen KaneSelf (archive footage)

1995Orson Welles: The One-Man BandSelf (archive footage)

1995The First 100 Years: A Celebration of American MoviesSelf (archive footage)

1993La Classe américaineSelf (archive footage)

1993It's All TrueSelf

1993Rosabella - La storia italiana di Orson Welles

1993Working with Orson WellesHimself (Archive Footage)

1992Don QuixoteSelf

1991The Complete 'Citizen Kane'Self (archive footage)

1991Empire of the Air: The Men Who Made RadioSelf - Professor in War of the Worlds Broadcast (archive sound)

1990With Orson Welles: Stories from a Life in FilmSelf (archive footage)

1990Welles' LanguageSelf (archive footage)

1990Rita Hayworth: Dancing Into the DreamSelf (archive footage)

1988American ExperienceSelf (archive footage)

1988On the tracks of a filmmakerOrson Welles

1987Someone to LoveDanny's Friend

1986Unseen LolloHimself

1986It's Not All TrueHimself (archive footage)

1986The Transformers: The MovieUnicron (voice)

1986The Muppets: A Celebration of 30 YearsSelf (archive footage)

1985Scene of the Crime

1985MoonlightingOrson Welles

1985The DreamersMarcus Kleek

1985Orson Welles' Magic ShowSelf

1984The Dean Martin Celebrity Roast: Michael LandonSelf

1984Almonds and RaisinsNarrator

1984The Road to BressonSelf

1984The Last Sailors: The Final Days of Working SailNarrator

1984In Our HandsHimself

1984The Spirit of Charles Lindberghhimself

1984Where Is Parsifal?Klingsor

1983The WitchingMr. Cato

1983Can She Bake a Cherry Pie?Magician (uncredited)

1983The Psychic ConnectionNarrator

1983King Penguin: Stranded Beyond the FalklandsSelf - Narrator

1983Orson Welles at the Cinémathèque FrançaiseHimself

1983Hot MoneySheriff Paisley

1982Slapstick of Another KindAliens' Father (voice) (uncredited)

1982Wagner e VeneziaRichard Wagner (voice)

1982Natalie - A Tribute to a Very Special LadySelf

1982The Orson Welles StorySelf

1982Baryshnikov in HollywoodSelf - Narrator

1982GenocideNarrator (voice)

1982Night of 100 StarsSelf

1982Doug Henning's World of MagicSelf - Special Guest

1982ButterflyJudge Rauch

1982Let Poland Be PolandSelf

1982Magic with the StarsSelf - Host

1982The Quest for Fire AdventureNarrator

1981A Gift of HarvestNarrator

1981BrasilSelf (archive footage)

1981Search for the TitanicSelf - Host

1981The New Deal for ArtistsNarrator (voice)

1981History of the World: Part INarrator (voice)

1981Tales of the KlondikeNarrator

1981The Man Who Saw TomorrowPresenter / Narrator (voice)

1980Magnum, P.I.Robin Masters (voice)

1980Franklin D. Roosevelt Four Freedoms ParkNarrator

1980ShōgunNarrator

1980The Secret of Nikola TeslaJ.P. Morgan

1980A Step AwayEnglish Narrator

1980The GreenstoneNarrator (voice)

1979The New Media Bible: Book of GenesisNarrator

1979Frank Sinatra: The First 40 YearsSelf

1979To Try Again... and SucceedNarrator (voice)

1979Filming OthelloHost

1979The Muppet MovieLew Lord

1979The Double McGuffinNarrator (voice)

1979The Orson Welles ShowSelf

1979The Greatest Adventure--The Story of Man's Voyage to the MoonNarrator

1978A Woman Called MosesNarrator (voice)

1978The Magic of David CopperfieldHost

1978Orson Welles at The Magic CastleSelf

1978The Biggest BattleNarratore

1978The Late Great Planet EarthSelf

1978Mysterious Castles of ClayNarrator

1978Caesar's Guide to Gaming with Orson WellesHimself

1977It Happened One ChristmasHenry F. Potter

1977The Lions of Capitalism: Some Call It GreedNarrator

1977The Force BeyondHimself (archive footage)

1977Tut: The Boy KingHimself - Host

1977Hot TomorrowsParklawn Mortuary (voice)

1977The Shirley MacLaine Special: Where Do We Go from Here?Self

1977The Rime of the Ancient MarinerNarrator

1977From Fiber to Fabric: Wool's a NaturalNarrator

1976Voyage of the DamnedJosé Estedes

1976NBC: The First Fifty YearsSelf / Narrator

1976Cérémonie des CésarSelf - President

1976Bugs Bunny SuperstarNarrator (voice)

1976A Mother's TaleNarrator

1975Doug Henning's World of MagicSelf

1975Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?Self (archive footage)

1975Orson Welles - Das vermarktete GenieSelf

1975Magnificent Monsters of the DeepNarrator

1975Rikki-Tikki-TaviNarrator / Nag / Chuchundra (voice)

1975Who's Out There?Host

1974The Challenge... A Tribute to Modern ArtNarrator

1974A Legend a Lifetime: Citizen Welles

1974And Then There Were NoneVoice on Tape

1974Letter to Jane: An Investigation About a StillSelf (archive footage) (uncredited)

1973Power and CorruptionHimself

1973Kelly CountryNarrator

1973The Dean Martin Celebrity RoastsSelf

1973F for FakeSelf

1973Orson Welles' Great MysteriesSelf - Host

1973The Battle of SutjeskaWinston Churchill

1973The American Film Institute Salute to ...Self

1973The CaveNarrator

1972The Man Who Came to DinnerSheridan Whiteside

1972Treasure IslandLong John Silver

1972NecromancyMr. Cato

1972Get to Know Your RabbitMr. Delasandro

1972MalpertuisCassavius

1972Jeanne Moreau : Vive le cinéma !Self

1972Future ShockNarrator

1971Ten Days' WonderThéo Van Horn

1971A Safe PlaceThe Magician

1971Directed by John FordNarrator (voice)

1971The Silent Years

1971V.I.P. SchaukelSelf

1971Sentinels of Silence

1971Flame of PersiaNarrator

1971Freedom RiverNarrator

1970An Evening with Orson Welles: The Golden Honeymoon

1970An Evening with Orson Welles: The Happy Prince

1970An Evening with Orson Welles: American Heritage, Vol. I – Selections from George Ade, Thomas Wolfe, Mark Twain

1970An Evening with Orson Welles: American Heritage, Vol. II – Clarence Darrow

1970An Evening with Orson Welles: Two Wise Old Men – Socrates and Noah

1970An Evening with Orson Welles: My Little Boy

1970Night GalleryNarrator

1970Is It Always Right to Be Right?Narrator

1970WaterlooLouis XVIII

1970The Enemy Before UsNarrator

1970Catch-22Brigadier General Dreedle

1970Start the Revolution Without MeThe Narrator

1970The Kremlin LetterBresnavitch

1970Upon This RockMichelangelo (voice)

1970A Horse Called NijinskyNarrator

1970The Merchant of Venice (Rushes)Shylock

1969Soft Self-Portrait of Salvador DaliNarrator (voice)

1969The Merchant of VeniceShylock

1969Twelve Plus OneMarkan

1969The Battle of NeretvaČetnik

1969The Southern StarPlankett

1969The Fight for Rome II - The BetrayalJustinian

1969TepepaColonel Cascorro

1969To Build a FireNarrator (voice)

1968The Fight for RomeJustinian

1968The Name of the GameNarrator

1968The Immortal StoryCharles Clay

1968House of CardsLeschenhaut

1968Around the World of Mike ToddSelf - Narrator

1968The Dick Cavett ShowSelf - Guest

1968Portrait: Orson WellesSelf

1968Oedipus the KingTiresias

1968Rowan & Martin's Laugh-InSelf

1968ViennaHimself

1967I'll Never Forget What's'isnameJonathan Lute

1967Beggars Would RideNarrator

1967OmnibusSelf - Presenter

1967Disorder Is 20 Years OldSelf

1967Casino RoyaleLe Chiffre

1967The Sailor from GibraltarLouis de Mozambique

1967Ten Days That Shook the WorldNarrator

1966A Man for All SeasonsCardinal Wolsey

1966Is Paris Burning?Konsul Nordling

1966Orson Welles in SpainHimself

1965Chimes at MidnightFalstaff

1965Miss Goodall and the Wild ChimpanzeesSelf - Narrator (voice)

1965Americans on EverestNarrator- Self

1965National Geographic SpecialsNarrator

1965Marco the MagnificentAkerman, Marco's Teacher

1965Profile No. 6: Orson Welles

1965A King's StoryNarrator

1964Pour le plaisirSelf

1964The Finest HoursNarrator (voice)

1964In the Land of Don QuixoteHimself

1963Hollywood and the StarsSelf (archive footage)

1963The V.I.P.sMax Buda

1963Ro.Go.Pa.G.The 'Director' (segment "La ricotta")

1962River of the OceanNarrator (English)

1962The Merv Griffin ShowSelf

1962The Tonight Show Starring Johnny CarsonSelf

1962The TrialAlbert Hastler

1962LafayetteBenjamin Franklin

1961King of KingsNarrator (voice) (uncredited)

1961The TartarsBurundai

1961SurvivalNarrator

1960AusterlitzRobert Fulton

1960An Arabian NightStoryteller

1960Crack in the MirrorHagolin / Lamerciere

1960Five Columns on the Front Page: Hong Kong as seen by Orson WellesSelf (narrator)

1960David and GoliathKing Saul

1959High JourneyNarrator

1959Ferry to Hong KongCaptain Hart

1959CompulsionJonathan Wilk

1958Lords of the ForestNarrator (voice)

1958The Roots of HeavenCy Sedgewick

1958The Fountain of Youththe narrator

1958Orson Welles at Large: Portrait of GinaSelf - Host

1958Colgate Theatre

1958South Seas AdventureNarrator

1958The VikingsNarrator (voice) (uncredited)

1958The Long, Hot SummerWill Varner

1958Touch of EvilPolice Captain Hank Quinlan

1957Man in the ShadowVirgil Renchler

1956Out of DarknessSelf - Narrator

1956Moby DickFather Mapple

1956The Steve Allen ShowSelf

1956CinépanoramaSelf

1956Orson Welles and People: Camille, the Naked Lady and the MusketeersSelf - Narrator (voice)

1955The Land of the BasquesHimself

1955Around the World with Orson WellesHost: Orson Welles

1955Ford Star JubileeOscar Jaffe

1955Mr. ArkadinGregory Arkadin

1955Moby Dick—RehearsedAn Actor Manager /Father Mapple /Ahab

1955Orson Welles' Sketch BookHimself - Host

1955NapoleonSir Hudson Lowe

1955Three Cases of MurderLord Mountdrago ("Lord Mountdrago" segment)

1954Trouble in the GlenSanin Cejador y Mengues

1954Reflets de CannesSelf

1953Royal Affairs in VersaillesBenjamin Franklin

1953King LearKing Lear

1953Man, Beast and VirtueCaptain Perella, the Beast

1952Return to GlennascaulNarrator

1952OmnibusKing Lear

1952Trent's Last CaseSigsbee Manderson

1951Hallmark Hall of FameSheridan Whiteside

1951OthelloOthello

1951I Love LucyOrson Welles

1950DisorderSelf

1950The Black RoseBayan

1950What's My Line?Self

1950The Miracle of St. AnneThe Director

1949Prince of FoxesCesare Borgia

1949The Third ManHarry Lime

1949Black MagicJoseph Balsamo aka Count Cagliostro

1948MacbethMacbeth

1948The Ed Sullivan ShowSelf

1947The Lady from ShanghaiMichael O'Hara

1946Duel in the SunNarrator (voice) (uncredited)

1946Battle for SurvivalNarrator

1946The StrangerProf. Charles Rankin

1946Tomorrow Is ForeverJohn Andrew MacDonald

1945Mexico City, Old and NewNarrator

1944Follow the BoysOrson Welles (uncredited)

1944Know Your Ally: BritainNarrator/Bob (helpful taxi passenger)

1943Jane EyreEdward Rochester

1943Show-Business at WarSelf

1943Journey into FearColonel Haki

1942The Magnificent AmbersonsNarrator (voice)

1941Citizen KaneCharles Foster Kane

1940Swiss Family RobinsonOpening Narrator (uncredited)

1939The Green GoddessRajah/Narrator

1937The Spanish EarthNarrator (voice)

1934The Hearts of AgeDeath

1933Twelfth NightNarrator

Voyage of the Brigantine YankeeNarrator