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Personal Info
Known For
Directing
Birthday
May 6, 1915
Died
October 10, 1985
Place of Birth
Kenosha, Wisconsin, USA
Also Known As
- George Orson Welles
- O. W. Jeeves
Orson Welles
1.4 Popularity
Biography
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. Noted for his innovative dramatic productions as well as his distinctive voice and personality, Welles is widely acknowledged as one of the most accomplished dramatic artists of the twentieth century, especially for his significant and influential early work—despite his notoriously contentious relationship with Hollywood. His distinctive directorial style featured layered, nonlinear narrative forms, innovative uses of lighting such as chiaroscuro, unique camera angles, sound techniques borrowed from radio, deep focus shots, and long takes. Welles's long career in film is noted for his struggle for artistic control in the face of pressure from studios. Many of his films were heavily edited and others left unreleased. He has been praised as a major creative force and as "the ultimate auteur." After directing a number of high-profile theatrical productions in his early twenties, including an innovative adaptation of Macbeth and The Cradle Will Rock, Welles found national and international fame as the director and narrator of a 1938 radio adaptation of H. G. Wells's novel The War of the Worlds performed for the radio drama anthology series Mercury Theatre on the Air. It was reported to have caused widespread panic when listeners thought that an invasion by extraterrestrial beings was occurring. Although these reports of panic were mostly false and overstated, they rocketed Welles to instant notoriety. Citizen Kane (1941), his first film with RKO, in which he starred in the role of Charles Foster Kane, is often considered the greatest film ever made. Several of his other films, including The Magnificent Ambersons (1942), The Lady from Shanghai (1947), Touch of Evil (1958), Chimes at Midnight (1965), and F for Fake (1974), are also widely considered to be masterpieces. In 2002, he was voted the greatest film director of all time in two separate British Film Institute polls among directors and critics, and a wide survey of critical consensus, best-of lists, and historical retrospectives calls him the most acclaimed director of all time. Andrew Sarris in his influential book of film criticism The American Cinema: Directors and Directions 1929–1968 included him in the "pantheon" of the 14 greatest film directors who had worked in the United States. Well known for his baritone voice, Welles was also an extremely well regarded actor and was voted number 16 in AFI's 100 Years... 100 Stars list of the greatest American film actors of all time. He was also a celebrated Shakespearean stage actor and an accomplished magician, starring in troop variety shows in the war years.
Known For
10.0
Troy2000 (Archive footage)
WeirdWorld
2025
0.0
Narrator "The Scorpion and the Frog" (archive footage)
Human Nature in Eleven Parts
2025
5.0
Narrator (archive footage)
The Scorpion and the Frog
2025
0.0
Self (archive footage)
Othelo The Great
2024
0.0
Radio Host (voice) (archival footage)
The Battle of Grovers Mill
2024
0.0
Self
Aliens Uncovered: Close Encounters
2024
7.8
Self (archive footage)
Jim Henson Idea Man
2024
0.0
Falstaff
From Introduction to Orson Welles’s Falstaff: Chimes at Midnight
2023
0.0
Self (voiceover)
It's Pretty, but is it Art?
2023
0.0
General Zaroff (voice)
Looking Back Before You Leap
2023
Credits
WeirdWorld
as Troy2000 (Archive footage)
2025
10.0
Human Nature in Eleven Parts
as Narrator "The Scorpion and the Frog" (archive footage)
2025
0.0
The Scorpion and the Frog
as Narrator (archive footage)
2025
5.0
Othelo The Great
as Self (archive footage)
2024
0.0
The Battle of Grovers Mill
as Radio Host (voice) (archival footage)
2024
0.0
Aliens Uncovered: Close Encounters
as Self
2024
0.0
Jim Henson Idea Man
as Self (archive footage)
2024
7.8
From Introduction to Orson Welles’s Falstaff: Chimes at Midnight
as Falstaff
2023
0.0
It's Pretty, but is it Art?
as Self (voiceover)
2023
0.0
Looking Back Before You Leap
as General Zaroff (voice)
2023
0.0
Clint Eastwood: The Last Legend
as Self (archive footage)
2022
7.3
American: An Odyssey to 1947
as Self (archive footage)
2022
0.0
Louis Armstrong's Black & Blues
as Self (archive footage)
2022
6.7
The Welles Raft
as Himself (Archive Footage)
2022
0.0
The Real Charlie Chaplin
as Self (archive footage)
2021
7.5
Tall Tales: The Ireland of Orson Welles
as Self
2021
9.0
Parkinson at 50
as Self (archive footage)
2021
10.0
Street Gang: How We Got to Sesame Street
as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
2021
7.5
The Blinding of Isaac Woodard
as Self (archive footage)
2021
0.0
Hopper/Welles
as Self
2020
5.9
Natalie Wood: What Remains Behind
as Self (archive footage)
2020
6.4
Emergency: Donald Trump’s "Touch of Evil"
as (archive footage)
2019
0.0
The Other Side of the Wind
as Journalist (uncredited)
2018
6.7
They'll Love Me When I'm Dead
as Self (archive footage)
2018
7.1
🎬
Black Baby
as Self (archive footage)
2018
0.0
The Eyes of Orson Welles
as Self - Filmmaker / Various Roles (archive footage)
2018
7.0
Jeanne Moreau: Free Spirit
as Self - Filmmaker (archive footage)
2018
7.0
🎬
The Magic History of Cinema
2017
0.0
Embers & Dust
as Professor Richard Pierson / Self (voice) (archive sound)
2016
6.7
This Is Orson Welles
as Self
2015
7.3
Magician: The Astonishing Life and Work of Orson Welles
as Self - Filmmaker / Various Roles (archive footage)
2014
6.5
Alfonso Sansone: Producer by Chance
as Self (archive footage)
2014
0.0
Jodorowsky's Dune
as Self - Filmmaker (archive footage)
2013
7.8
Talking Pictures
as Self (archive footage)
2013
5.8
Magic Mirror Maze
2012
0.0
The Shadow Knows
as Self (archive footage)
2012
0.0
Final Cut: Ladies and Gentlemen
as (archive footage)
2012
7.6
Shut Up Little Man! An Audio Misadventure
as Himself
2011
5.2
Cameraman: The Life and Work of Jack Cardiff
as Genghis Khan / Bayan (archive footage)
2010
6.6
Orson Welles: The Paris Interview
as Himself
2010
4.0
Lucifer et moi
as (archive footage 1982)
2009
0.0
The Deep
as Russ Brewer
2007
0.0
Lost in "The Thinking"
as Self (archive footage)
2005
0.0
Orson Welles Talks With Roger Hill
as (Self)
2005
0.0
Filmmakers vs. Tycoons
as Self (archive footage)
2005
6.2
The Other Side of Welles
as Self (archive footage)
2005
0.0
The Well
2005
0.0
The Hitch Hiker
as Ronald Adams
2004
0.0
🎬
The UFO Conspiracy
as Self (archive sound)
2004
4.5
The Dominici Affair by Orson Welles
as Self (archive footage)
2003
6.0
Lost in La Mancha
as Self (archive footage)
2002
7.0
A Huey P. Newton Story
as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
2001
5.1
NASA: A Space Odyssey Vol. 3
as Narrator
2001
0.0
The Paranormal Peter Sellers
as Self (Archive footage)
2001
0.0
Orson Welles in the Land of Don Quixote
as Self (Archive footage)
2000
5.5
Lon Chaney: A Thousand Faces
as Self (archive footage)
2000
6.5
Moby Dick
as Captain Ahab / Starbuck / Ishmael (archive footage)
2000
0.0
According to Occam's Razor
1999
0.0
Hi-Fi
1999
5.0
The Best of the Dean Martin Celebrity Roasts
as Self - Roaster (archive footage)
1998
5.0
It's All Brazil
as Self (archive footage)
1997
6.2
Who Is Henry Jaglom?
as Self (archive footage)
1997
6.6
Celebração - 100 Anos do Cinema Nacional
as Self
1997
0.0
The Battle Over Citizen Kane
as Self (archive footage)
1996
7.3
Orson Welles: The One-Man Band
as Self (archive footage)
1995
6.4
La Classe américaine
as Self (archive footage)
1993
7.6
It's All True
as Self
1993
7.6
Rosabella - La storia italiana di Orson Welles
1993
5.0
Working with Orson Welles
as Himself (Archive Footage)
1993
5.5
Don Quixote
as Self
1992
6.1
Empire of the Air: The Men Who Made Radio
as Self - Professor in War of the Worlds Broadcast (archive sound)
1991
7.5
🎬
With Orson Welles: Stories from a Life in Film
as Self (archive footage)
1990
0.0
Rita Hayworth: Dancing Into the Dream
as Self (archive footage)
1990
6.5
Welles' Language
as Self (archive footage)
1990
6.0
American Experience
as Self (archive footage)
1988
6.9
On the tracks of a filmmaker
as Orson Welles
1988
0.0
Someone to Love
as Danny's Friend
1987
5.3
It's Not All True
as Himself (archive footage)
1986
6.5
The Transformers: The Movie
as Unicron (voice)
1986
7.1
The Muppets: A Celebration of 30 Years
as Self (archive footage)
1986
7.0
Scene of the Crime
1985
5.0
Moonlighting
as Orson Welles
1985
7.5
The Dreamers
as Marcus Kleek
1985
5.0
Orson Welles' Magic Show
as Self
1985
6.3
🎬
The Dean Martin Celebrity Roast: Michael Landon
as Self
1984
0.0
Almonds and Raisins
as Narrator
1984
0.0
The Road to Bresson
as Self
1984
6.8
The Last Sailors: The Final Days of Working Sail
as Narrator
1984
9.0
🎬
In Our Hands
as Himself
1984
0.0
The Spirit of Charles Lindbergh
as himself
1984
5.9
Where Is Parsifal?
as Klingsor
1984
3.0
The Witching
as Mr. Cato
1983
0.0
Can She Bake a Cherry Pie?
as Magician (uncredited)
1983
5.7
The Psychic Connection
as Narrator
1983
0.0
🎬
King Penguin: Stranded Beyond the Falklands
as Self - Narrator
1983
0.0
Orson Welles at the Cinémathèque Française
as Himself
1983
0.0
Notre Dame de la Croisette
as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
1983
6.0
Hot Money
as Sheriff Paisley
1983
2.0
Slapstick of Another Kind
as Aliens' Father (voice)
1982
2.7
Wagner e Venezia
as Richard Wagner (voice)
1982
0.0
Natalie - A Tribute to a Very Special Lady
as Self
1982
6.0
The Orson Welles Story
as Self
1982
9.0
Baryshnikov in Hollywood
as Self - Narrator
1982
0.0
Genocide
as Narrator (voice)
1982
7.4
Night of 100 Stars
as Self
1982
6.7
Doug Henning's World of Magic
as Self - Special Guest
1982
0.0
Butterfly
as Judge Rauch
1982
4.8
Let Poland Be Poland
as Self
1982
0.0
Magic with the Stars
as Host
1982
0.0
The Quest for Fire Adventure
as Narrator
1982
6.0
A Gift of Harvest
as Narrator
1981
0.0
Brasil
as Self (archive footage)
1981
7.5
🎬
Search for the Titanic
as Himself (host)
1981
0.0
Enchanted Journey
as Pippo
1981
6.4
The New Deal for Artists
as Narrator (voice)
1981
0.0
History of the World: Part I
as Narrator
1981
6.8
🎬
Tales of the Klondike
as Narrator
1981
0.0
Filming 'The Trial'
as Self
1981
7.0
The Man Who Saw Tomorrow
as Presenter / Narrator (voice)
1981
7.0
Magnum, P.I.
as Robin Masters (voice)
1980
7.3
🎬
Franklin D. Roosevelt Four Freedoms Park
as Narrator
1980
0.0
Shōgun
as Narrator
1980
7.6
The Secret of Nikola Tesla
as J.P. Morgan
1980
6.2
🎬
A Step Away
as English Narrator
1980
0.0
The Greenstone
as Narrator (voice)
1980
1.5
The New Media Bible: Book of Genesis
as Narrator
1979
0.0
Frank Sinatra: The First 40 Years
as Self
1979
0.0
🎬
To Try Again... and Succeed
as Narrator (voice)
1979
0.0
Filming Othello
as Host
1979
7.3
The Muppet Movie
as Lew Lord
1979
7.2
The Double McGuffin
as Narrator (voice)
1979
5.0
The Orson Welles Show
as Self
1979
6.0
The Greatest Adventure--The Story of Man's Voyage to the Moon
as Narrator
1979
0.0
A Woman Called Moses
as Narrator (voice)
1978
7.0
The Magic of David Copperfield
1978
7.0
Orson Welles at The Magic Castle
as Self
1978
0.0
The Biggest Battle
as Narratore
1978
4.4
The Late Great Planet Earth
as Self
1978
4.3
Caesar's Guide to Gaming with Orson Welles
as Himself
1978
0.0
Mysterious Castles of Clay
as Narrator
1978
5.8
Tut: The Boy King
as Himself - Host
1978
0.0
It Happened One Christmas
as Henry F. Potter
1977
4.6
🎬
The Lions of Capitalism: Some Call It Greed
as Narrator
1977
0.0
The Force Beyond
as Himself (archive footage)
1977
4.3
Hot Tomorrows
as Parklawn Mortuary (voice)
1977
6.0
The Shirley MacLaine Special: Where Do We Go from Here?
as Self
1977
6.0
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner
as Narrator
1977
6.0
From Fiber to Fabric: Wool's a Natural
as Narrator
1977
0.0
Voyage of the Damned
as José Estedes
1976
6.0
NBC: The First Fifty Years
as Self / Narrator
1976
0.0
🎬
Orson Welles' F for Fake Trailer
as Self
1976
0.0
🎬
A Mother's Tale
as Narrator
1976
0.0
Doug Henning's World of Magic
as Self
1975
8.0
Bugs Bunny Superstar
as Narrator (voice)
1975
7.3
Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?
as Self (archive footage)
1975
6.1
🎬
Orson Welles - Das vermarktete Genie
as Self
1975
0.0
🎬
Magnificent Monsters of the Deep
as Narrator
1975
0.0
Rikki-Tikki-Tavi
as Narrator / Nag / Chuchundra (voice)
1975
6.4
Who's Out There?
as Host
1975
6.3
The Challenge... A Tribute to Modern Art
as Narrator
1974
5.8
🎬
A Legend a Lifetime: Citizen Welles
1974
0.0
Dinah!
as Self
1974
6.7
And Then There Were None
as Voice on Tape
1974
5.7
Letter to Jane: An Investigation About a Still
as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
1974
7.0
🎬
Power and Corruption
as Himself
1973
0.0
🎬
Kelly Country
as Narrator
1973
0.0
The Dean Martin Celebrity Roasts
as Self
1973
5.4
F for Fake
as Self
1973
7.4
Orson Welles' Great Mysteries
as Self - Host
1973
6.7
The Battle of Sutjeska
as Winston Churchill
1973
6.3
The American Film Institute Salute to ...
as Self
1973
6.3
The Cave
as Narrator
1973
0.0
The Cave: a parable told by Orson Welles
as Narrator
1973
0.0
The Man Who Came to Dinner
as Sheridan Whiteside
1972
0.0
Treasure Island
as Long John Silver
1972
5.8
Necromancy
as Mr. Cato
1972
4.4
Get to Know Your Rabbit
as Mr. Delasandro
1972
4.9
Malpertuis
as Cassavius
1972
6.4
Jeanne Moreau : Vive le cinéma !
as Self
1972
0.0
🎬
Future Shock
as Narrator
1972
4.7
London
as Winston Churchill / George Bernard Shaw
1971
0.0
Ten Days' Wonder
as Théo Van Horn
1971
6.1
A Safe Place
as The Magician
1971
5.5
Directed by John Ford
as Narrator (voice)
1971
6.9
🎬
The Silent Years
1971
0.0
🎬
V.I.P. Schaukel
as Self
1971
7.5
Sentinels of Silence
1971
6.8
Flame of Persia
as Narrator
1971
0.0
Freedom River
as Narrator
1971
6.3
An Evening with Orson Welles: The Golden Honeymoon
1970
0.0
Night Gallery
as Narrator
1970
7.8
Is It Always Right to Be Right?
as Narrator
1970
6.2
Waterloo
as Louis XVIII
1970
7.1
🎬
The Enemy Before Us
as Narrator
1970
0.0
Catch-22
as Brigadier General Dreedle
1970
6.7
Start the Revolution Without Me
as The Narrator
1970
5.8
The Kremlin Letter
as Bresnavitch
1970
6.0
A Horse Called Nijinsky
as Narrator
1970
10.0
Upon This Rock
as Michelangelo (voice)
1970
0.0
Soft Self-Portrait of Salvador Dali
as Narrator (voice)
1969
3.0
The Merchant of Venice
as Shylock
1969
8.0
The Battle of Neretva
as Četnik
1969
6.8
Twelve Plus One
as Markan
1969
5.2
The Southern Star
as Plankett
1969
6.2
The Fight for Rome II - The Betrayal
as Justinian
1969
7.5
Tepepa
as Colonel Cascorro
1969
6.6
To Build a Fire
as Narrator (voice)
1969
7.6
The Fight for Rome
as Justinian
1968
5.4
🎬
One Man Band
1968
0.0
The Name of the Game
as Narrator
1968
6.8
The Immortal Story
as Charles Clay
1968
7.2
House of Cards
as Leschenhaut
1968
4.7
Around the World of Mike Todd
as Self - Narrator
1968
6.0
The Dick Cavett Show
as Self - Guest
1968
6.8
Oedipus the King
as Tiresias
1968
5.5
Portrait: Orson Welles
as Self
1968
5.8
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
as Self
1968
6.6
Vienna
as Himself
1968
6.0
I'll Never Forget What's'isname
as Jonathan Lute
1967
5.3
Beggars Would Ride
as Narrator
1967
0.0
Omnibus
as Self - Presenter
1967
7.2
🎬
Disorder Is 20 Years Old
as Self
1967
0.0
Casino Royale
as Le Chiffre
1967
5.3
Ten Days That Shook the World
as Narrator
1967
6.2
The Sailor from Gibraltar
as Louis de Mozambique
1967
5.7
A Man for All Seasons
as Cardinal Wolsey
1966
7.3
Is Paris Burning?
as Konsul Nordling
1966
7.2
🎬
Orson Welles in Spain
as Himself
1966
5.0
Miss Goodall and the Wild Chimpanzees
as Self - Narrator (voice)
1965
0.0
Chimes at Midnight
as Falstaff
1965
7.2
National Geographic Specials
as Narrator
1965
6.9
🎬
Americans on Everest
as Narrator- Self
1965
0.0
Marco the Magnificent
as Akerman, Marco's Teacher
1965
4.7
Profile No. 6: Orson Welles
1965
0.0
A King's Story
as Narrator
1965
5.7
The Finest Hours
as Narrator (voice)
1964
6.3
In the Land of Don Quixote
as Himself
1964
4.7
🎬
Hollywood and the Stars
as Self (archive footage)
1963
6.0
The V.I.P.s
as Max Buda
1963
6.1
Ro.Go.Pa.G.
as The 'Director' (segment "La ricotta")
1963
7.2
🎬
River of the Ocean
as Narrator (English)
1962
0.0
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
as Self
1962
7.5
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
as Self - Guest Host
1962
7.5
The Merv Griffin Show
as Self
1962
6.2
The Trial
as Albert Hastler
1962
7.4
Lafayette
as Benjamin Franklin
1962
5.2
🎬
Tempo
as Self
1961
0.0
King of Kings
as Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
1961
7.2
The Tartars
as Burundai
1961
5.5
Survival
as Narrator
1961
8.0
The Battle of Austerlitz
as Robert Fulton
1960
6.6
🎬
An Arabian Night
as Storyteller
1960
0.0
Crack in the Mirror
as Hagolin / Lamerciere
1960
7.5
David and Goliath
as King Saul
1960
3.5
High Journey
as Narrator
1959
6.0
Ferry to Hong Kong
as Captain Hart
1959
5.5
Compulsion
as Jonathan Wilk
1959
7.1
🎬
Lords of the Forest
as Narrator (voice)
1958
8.0
The Roots of Heaven
as Cy Sedgewick
1958
6.2
The Fountain of Youth
as the narrator
1958
6.1
Orson Welles at Large: Portrait of Gina
as Self - Host
1958
6.7
🎬
Colgate Theatre
1958
0.0
South Seas Adventure
as Narrator
1958
5.7
The Vikings
as Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
1958
7.0
The Long, Hot Summer
as Will Varner
1958
7.1
Touch of Evil
as Police Captain Hank Quinlan
1958
7.8
Man in the Shadow
as Virgil Renchler
1957
6.7
🎬
Out of Darkness
as Self - Narrator
1956
0.0
Moby Dick
as Father Mapple
1956
7.1
The Steve Allen Show
as Self
1956
5.6
Cinépanorama
as Self
1956
8.0
The Land of the Basques
as Himself
1955
0.0
Around the World with Orson Welles
as Host: Orson Welles
1955
6.9
🎬
Ford Star Jubilee
as Oscar Jaffe
1955
7.0
Mr. Arkadin
as Gregory Arkadin
1955
6.9
Moby Dick Rehearsed
as An Actor Manager /Father Mapple /Ahab
1955
0.0
Orson Welles' Sketch Book
as Self - Host
1955
6.5
Orson Welles' Sketch Book
as Himself - Host
1955
7.0
Napoleon
as Sir Hudson Lowe
1955
6.3
Three Cases of Murder
as Lord Mountdrago ("Lord Mountdrago" segment)
1955
5.9
Trouble in the Glen
as Sanin Cejador y Mengues
1954
5.7
Reflets de Cannes
as Self
1954
2.0
Royal Affairs in Versailles
as Benjamin Franklin
1954
6.7
King Lear
as King Lear
1953
8.0
Man, Beast and Virtue
as Captain Perella, the Beast
1953
6.7
Return to Glennascaul
as Narrator
1953
6.5
Omnibus
as King Lear
1952
6.0
Trent's Last Case
as Sigsbee Manderson
1952
5.2
Hallmark Hall of Fame
as Sheridan Whiteside
1951
8.6
Othello
as Othello
1951
7.3
I Love Lucy
as Orson Welles
1951
7.9
Disorder
as Self
1950
5.0
The Black Rose
as Bayan
1950
6.6
What's My Line?
as Self
1950
6.9
Prince of Foxes
as Cesare Borgia
1949
6.2
The Third Man
as Harry Lime
1949
7.9
Black Magic
as Joseph Balsamo aka Count Cagliostro
1949
6.3
Macbeth
as Macbeth
1948
7.2
The Ed Sullivan Show
as Self
1948
6.8
The Lady from Shanghai
as Michael O'Hara
1947
7.3
Duel in the Sun
as Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
1946
6.3
🎬
Battle for Survival
as Narrator
1946
0.0
The Stranger
as Prof. Charles Rankin
1946
7.2
Tomorrow Is Forever
as John Andrew MacDonald
1946
6.1
🎬
Mexico City, Old and New
as Narrator
1945
0.0
Follow the Boys
as Orson Welles (uncredited)
1944
5.3
Know Your Ally: Britain
as Narrator/Bob (helpful taxi passenger)
1944
4.6
Jane Eyre
as Edward Rochester
1943
6.9
Show-Business at War
as Self
1943
7.0
Journey into Fear
as Colonel Haki
1943
6.1
The Magnificent Ambersons
as Narrator (voice)
1942
7.3
Citizen Kane
as Charles Foster Kane
1941
8.0
Swiss Family Robinson
as Opening Narrator
1940
5.6
Citizen Kane Trailer
as himself
1940
0.0
Too Much Johnson
as Keystone Kop
1938
5.3
The Spanish Earth
as Narrator (voice)
1937
6.5
The Hearts of Age
as Death
1934
5.3
Twelfth Night
as Narrator
1933
6.0
🎬
Voyage of the Brigantine Yankee
as Narrator
N/A
0.0
🎬
Something Else
N/A
0.0