10 Best Graham McTavish Movies, Ranked By IMDb

Scottish star Graham McTavish has a hearty filmography, which even includes directing. These are his best movies, so far, as ranked by IMDb.

Graham McTavish recently finished filming the second season of Men In Kilts with his road-tripping partner and Outlander co-star, Sam Heughan. The actor can also be recently seen as Sigismund Dijkstra in The Witcher and HBO just has announced that House Of The Dragon will premiere in August 2022, where the Scottish star is among the cast.

The lovable craftsman has done a bit of everything, from appearing on screens both big and small, performing on stage, showing up in animation and video games, and even giving directing a go. He's been in several well-performing films over the years, including blockbusters, delivering a wide array of roles from dwarf to Atlantean king to boxing trainer and more.

10 Dot The I - 6.7

Released in 2003 at Sundance Film Festival, Dot the I is a psychological thriller that comes with a side of romance. A love triangle between the character played by Gael García Bernal, Natalie Verbeke, and James D'Arcy drives the plot and Graham McTavish plays Detective 1.

This isn't one of McTavish's biggest roles and he is present to usher in the plot twist along and not much else. That said, he plays the part well, and the movie is worth a watch.

9 The Finest Hours - 6.7

Based on a true story, The Finest Hours premiered in 2016 and was directed by Craig Gillespie. The action-packed drama tells the story of a dangerous sea rescue in 1952 of the surviving crew of the SS Pendleton off the coast of Cape Cod. The waterlogged thriller is led by Chris Pine and features Graham McTavish as Frank "Pop" Fauteux.

A riveting fact about the real Fauteux is that he survived getting wrecked at sea three times, so this was quite the role for McTavish to embody. He clearly relished the experience to play the seasoned seaman, and it shows in his scenes.

8 Middle Men - 6.8

Middle Men is a 2009 drama directed by George Gallo. The plot traverses over several transgressions in a dirty internet dealings tale. Graham McTavish plays Ivan Sokoloff, the nephew of Nikita Sokoloff, played by Rade Šerbedžija.

The movie gave McTavish the chance to try out a Russian accent and flex some mob family muscle. His scenes are enjoyable and key to keeping the plot on track. One of the most critical parts of the movie is when Ivan comes to collect his uncle's money, and things go fatally awry.

7 Aquaman - 6.9

Superhero fans are well acquainted with Aquaman, the box office hit which came out in 2018. In the movie, Aquaman aka Arthur Curry comes to embrace his Atlantean heritage. McTavish is Curry's ancestor and the legendary founder of Atlantis, King Atlan.

The legend of King Atlan looms large in the film. The story, along with the resolution of the main conflict of the film, would be unfulfilled without Atlan. After all, it is his message and his trident that provide Aquaman with the means to save the day and McTavish is truly regal as the Atlantean founder.

6 Rambo - 7.0

Released in 2008, Rambo is an independent action film and the fourth film in the Rambo series where John Rambo takes on a violent rescue mission in Burma. McTavish embodies an irascible former soldier named Lewis, who gets pulled into the mission.

His portrayal reminds viewers that he's well-suited to playing cantankerous characters and is somewhat reminiscent of his role in Middle Men. His tirades are engaging contributions to the story and serve as a fitting counter to the understated dialogue of Rambo.

5 Secretariat - 7.2

Secretariat is another true story. Directed by Randall Wallace, the horse racing movie premiered in 2010. It's a bit of a comeback story for the subject of Penny Chenery's family and McTavish plays Earl Jansen in the movie.

While not a major character in the movie, Jansen is at the center of the first critical part of the story, and for his folly, Jansen is fired by Penny. In parts both large and small, McTavish appears to be at home playing real-life people.

4 The Hobbit: The Battle For The Five Armies - 7.4

The Battle of the Five Armies is the final installment of The Hobbit trilogy. Martin Freeman, one of a few Hobbit actors who later starred in Marvel movies, reprises the role of Bilbo, as does McTavish as the dwarf Dwalin. The movie is about those who did and didn't survive. Dwalin survives, but dwarf king Thorin is among those that do not.

Dwalin serves McTavish fabulously one final time here, and fans know how bittersweet it was for the star to bid farewell to this character. It's a smooth transition for McTavish to leave Tolkein's universe and enter the Scottish highlander past as Douglas McKenzie in Outlander and his passion for both roles spills out of the screen.

3 Creed - 7.6

Ryan Coogler, who went on to make Black Panther, made the 2015 film Creed. The film spins off of the rivalry turned friendship between Rocky Balboa and Apollo Creed with the next-generation boxer, Adonis "Donnie" Creed, who is Apollo's son. Donnie is trained by Rocky and McTavish plays the opposing trainer, Tommy Holliday, who trains Pretty Ricky Conlan.

The scenes in the ring are certainly intense, and that's due to the presence of the trainers as much as it is because of the men in the ring. The boxer's mettle has been palpably guided by Rocky and Tommy. An interesting fact here is that McTavish holds claim to having starred alongside two of Sylvester Stallone's most iconic characters, Rocky and Rambo.

2 The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug - 7.8

Filling in the middle of The Hobbit narrative is The Desolation of Smaug, released in 2013. McTavish returns as Dwalin, as does Ken Stott as Dwalin's brother, Balin. Here, the dwarves try to stop the awakened Smaug by burying him in molten gold. They succeed ever so briefly before Smaug escapes and flies off towards Laketown.

Dwalin is a great character and McTavish has really settled into the role. While it's true that the trilogy stars a hobbit, it's the dwarves that propel the adventure forward and the ones who recruited Bilbo. Dwalin's exchanges with Thorin are particularly important to the plot.

1 The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey - 7.8

Kicking off The Hobbit prequel trilogy in 2012 is An Unexpected Journey. Peter Jackson helms both trilogies creating an expansive theatrical space for J.R.R. Tolkien's epic writings. This first film brings the recruitment of Bilbo into the dwarves' quest, thusly kicking off a series of adventures. Graham McTavish takes up the role of Dwalin, one of the dwarves.

It's fitting that Dwalin then his brother, Balin, are the first dwarves that Bilbo meets in a scene that is full of mirthful charm. Dwalin is a key member of Thorin's crew and McTavish is perfect in the role, making the trilogy one of the most momentous parts of the Scottish actor's career.

Next: The Hobbit Characters With The Most & Least Screen Time

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