Orson Welles
Known for: Directing
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.
Filmography
Series
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
Self
1962
Series
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
Self - Guest Host
1962
Series
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
Self (archive footage)
1962
Series
Magnum, P.I.
Robin Masters (voice)
1980
Series
American Experience
Self (archive footage)
1988
Series
The Dick Cavett Show
Self - Guest
1968
Series
What's My Line?
Self
1950
Series
The Merv Griffin Show
Self
1962
Series
Moonlighting
Orson Welles
1985
Series
Omnibus
Self - Presenter
1967
Film
Jane Eyre
Edward Rochester
1943
Series
I Love Lucy
Orson Welles
1951
Series
The Steve Allen Show
Self
1956
Series
Dinah!
Self
1974
Series
Night Gallery
Narrator
1970
Series
Around the World with Orson Welles
Host: Orson Welles
1955
Series
The Name of the Game
Narrator
1968
Series
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
Self
1968
Series
The Ed Sullivan Show
Self
1948
Film
Citizen Kane
Charles Foster Kane
1941
Series
Shōgun
Narrator
1980
Series
Cinépanorama
Self
1956
Series
Omnibus
King Lear
1952
Series
Cérémonie des César
Self - President
1976
Film
Casino Royale
Le Chiffre
1967
V.I.P. Schaukel
Self
1971
Film
The Transformers: The Movie
Unicron (voice)
1986
Film
Catch-22
Brigadier General Dreedle
1970
Film
The Third Man
Harry Lime
1949
Series
The Dean Martin Celebrity Roasts
Self
1973
Film
Touch of Evil
Police Captain Hank Quinlan
1958
Series
Orson Welles' Great Mysteries
Self - Host
1973
Film
Moby Dick
Father Mapple
1956
Series
The Magic of David Copperfield
Host
1978
Film
The Vikings
Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
1958
Series
The American Film Institute Salute to ...
Self
1973
Film
Jodorowsky's Dune
Self - Filmmaker (archive footage)
2013
Film
The Muppet Movie
Lew Lord
1979
Series
Reflets de Cannes
Self
1954
Film
Let Poland Be Poland
Self
1982
Series
Talking Pictures
Self (archive footage)
2013
Series
Survival
Narrator
1961
Film
The Trial
Albert Hastler
1962
Film
Is Paris Burning?
Konsul Nordling
1966
Film
Jim Henson Idea Man
Self (archive footage)
2024
Film
Waterloo
Louis XVIII
1970
Film
A Man for All Seasons
Cardinal Wolsey
1966
Film
King of Kings
Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
1961
Film
Treasure Island
Long John Silver
1972
Film
Macbeth
Macbeth
1948
Film
The Long, Hot Summer
Will Varner
1958
Series
Scene of the Crime
1985
Film
Voyage of the Damned
José Estedes
1976
Film
Tepepa
Colonel Cascorro
1969
Series
National Geographic Specials
Narrator
1965
Film
The Stranger
Prof. Charles Rankin
1946
Film
The Lady from Shanghai
Michael O'Hara
1947
Series
Pour le plaisir
Self
1964
Film
The Dominici Affair by Orson Welles
Self (archive footage)
2003
Film
Louis Armstrong's Black & Blues
Self (archive footage)
2022
Film
Othello
Othello
1951
Film
Napoleon
Sir Hudson Lowe
1955
Film
Duel in the Sun
Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
1946
Film
Butterfly
Judge Rauch
1982
Ford Star Jubilee
Oscar Jaffe
1955
Film
The Battle of Neretva
Četnik
1969
Film
Austerlitz
Robert Fulton
1960
Film
Final Cut: Ladies and Gentlemen
(archive footage)
2012
Film
The Magnificent Ambersons
Narrator (voice)
1942
Film
Lafayette
Benjamin Franklin
1962
Film
F for Fake
Self
1973
Series
A Woman Called Moses
Narrator (voice)
1978
Film
The Biggest Battle
Narratore
1978
Film
The Kremlin Letter
Bresnavitch
1970
Film
History of the World: Part I
Narrator (voice)
1981
Series
Hallmark Hall of Fame
Sheridan Whiteside
1951
Film
Compulsion
Jonathan Wilk
1959
Series
Tempo
Self
1961
Film
The Other Side of the Wind
Journalist (uncredited)
2018
Film
Chimes at Midnight
Falstaff
1965
Film
Directed by John Ford
Narrator (voice)
1971
Film
Black Magic
Joseph Balsamo aka Count Cagliostro
1949
Film
And Then There Were None
Voice on Tape
1974
Film
I'll Never Forget What's'isname
Jonathan Lute
1967
Film
Mr. Arkadin
Gregory Arkadin
1955
Film
Heart of the Festival
Self (archive footage)
2002
Series
Hollywood and the Stars
Self (archive footage)
1963
Film
Tomorrow Is Forever
John Andrew MacDonald
1946
Film
Jucy
Elephant Lamp (archive sound)
2010
Film
They'll Love Me When I'm Dead
Self (archive footage)
2018
Film
House of Cards
Leschenhaut
1968
Film
Morceaux de Cannes
2021
Film
The V.I.P.s
Max Buda
1963
Film
Clint Eastwood: The Last Legend
Self (archive footage)
2022
Film
Natalie Wood: What Remains Behind
Self (archive footage)
2020
Film
The Battle of Sutjeska
Winston Churchill
1973
Film
Royal Affairs in Versailles
Benjamin Franklin
1953
Film
Americans on Everest
Narrator- Self
1965
Film
Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?
Self (archive footage)
1975
Film
The Black Rose
Bayan
1950
Film
NASA: A Space Odyssey Vol. 3
Narrator
2001
Film
The Fight for Rome
Justinian
1968
Series
LIFE BEYOND
Self (voice)
2019
Film
La Classe américaine
Self (archive footage)
1993
Film
Disorder
Self
1950
Film
Street Gang: How We Got to Sesame Street
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
2021
Film
Night of 100 Stars
Self
1982
Film
Start the Revolution Without Me
The Narrator
1970
Film
Doug Henning's World of Magic
Self - Special Guest
1982
Film
Natalie - A Tribute to a Very Special Lady
Self
1982
Series
Titanic: Secrets of the Shipwreck
Self (archive footage)
2025
Film
Proust Palimpsesto: Pastiches e Misturas
Self / The Director / Sir John Falstaff (archive footage) (uncredited)
2026
Film
The Man Who Came to Dinner
Sheridan Whiteside
1972
Film
Follow the Boys
Orson Welles (uncredited)
1944
Film
The Late Great Planet Earth
Self
1978
Film
The Real Charlie Chaplin
Self (archive footage)
2021
Film
Magician: The Astonishing Life and Work of Orson Welles
Self - Filmmaker / Various Roles (archive footage)
2014
Film
Marco the Magnificent
Akerman, Marco's Teacher
1965
Film
The Double McGuffin
Narrator (voice)
1979
Film
Hollywood sul Tevere
2009
Film
The Roots of Heaven
Cy Sedgewick
1958
Film
Lon Chaney: A Thousand Faces
Self (archive footage)
2000
Film
The First 100 Years: A Celebration of American Movies
Self (archive footage)
1995
Film
Oedipus the King
Tiresias
1968
Film
Flame of Persia
Narrator
1971
Future Shock
Narrator
1972
Film
Magic with the Stars
Self - Host
1982
Film
It Happened One Christmas
Henry F. Potter
1977
Film
Rikki-Tikki-Tavi
Narrator / Nag / Chuchundra (voice)
1975
Film
NBC: The First Fifty Years
Self / Narrator
1976
Film
Hot Tomorrows
Parklawn Mortuary (voice)
1977
Film
Prince of Foxes
Cesare Borgia
1949
Film
The Dreamers
Marcus Kleek
1985
Film
The Muppets: A Celebration of 30 Years
Self (archive footage)
1986
Film
Man in the Shadow
Virgil Renchler
1957
Film
Get to Know Your Rabbit
Mr. Delasandro
1972
Series
Orson Welles' Sketch Book
Himself - Host
1955
Film
Someone to Love
Danny's Friend
1987
Film
Journey into Fear
Colonel Haki
1943
Film
Looking Back Before You Leap
General Zaroff (voice)
2023
Film
The Eyes of Orson Welles
Self - Filmmaker / Various Roles (archive footage)
2018
Film
The Immortal Story
Charles Clay
1968
Film
Freedom River
Narrator
1971
Film
Malpertuis
Cassavius
1972
Film
Swiss Family Robinson
Opening Narrator (uncredited)
1940
Film
Lost in La Mancha
Self (archive footage)
2002
Film
Ro.Go.Pa.G.
The 'Director' (segment "La ricotta")
1963
Series
Doug Henning's World of Magic
Self
1975
Film
Who Is Henry Jaglom?
Self (archive footage)
1997
Film
The Deep
Russ Brewer
2007
Film
The Orson Welles Show
Self
1979
Film
Cameraman: The Life and Work of Jack Cardiff
Genghis Khan / Bayan (archive footage)
2010
Film
David and Goliath
King Saul
1960
Film
The Road to Bresson
Self
1984
Film
Parkinson at 50
Self (archive footage)
2021
Film
Hi-Fi
1999
Film
Jeanne Moreau: Free Spirit
Self - Filmmaker (archive footage)
2018
Film
Can She Bake a Cherry Pie?
Magician (uncredited)
1983
Film
Twelve Plus One
Markan
1969
Series
In the Land of Don Quixote
Himself
1964
Film
The Miracle of St. Anne
The Director
1950
Film
The Best of the Dean Martin Celebrity Roasts
Self - Roaster (archive footage)
1998
Film
Empire of the Air: The Men Who Made Radio
Self - Professor in War of the Worlds Broadcast (archive sound)
1991
Film
A King's Story
Narrator
1965
Film
South Seas Adventure
Narrator
1958
Film
The Southern Star
Plankett
1969
Series
Colgate Theatre
1958
Film
Don Quixote
Self
1992
Film
Othelo The Great
Self (archive footage)
2024
Film
The Merchant of Venice
Shylock
1969
Film
Slapstick of Another Kind
Aliens' Father (voice) (uncredited)
1982
Film
Bugs Bunny Superstar
Narrator (voice)
1976
Film
The Battle of Grovers Mill
Radio Host (voice) (archival footage)
2024
Film
The Man Who Saw Tomorrow
Presenter / Narrator (voice)
1981
Film
Ten Days' Wonder
Théo Van Horn
1971
Film
Necromancy
Mr. Cato
1972
Tales of the Klondike
Narrator
1981
Film
An Arabian Night
Storyteller
1960
Film
La ricotta
1963
Film
The Secret of Nikola Tesla
J.P. Morgan
1980
Film
Sentinels of Silence
1971
Film
A Safe Place
The Magician
1971
Film
The Tartars
Burundai
1961
Film
The Well
2005
Film
Mysterious Castles of Clay
Narrator
1978
Film
Frank Sinatra: The First 40 Years
Self
1979
Film
Portrait: Orson Welles
Self
1968
Film
The Shadow Knows
Self (archive footage)
2012
Film
Filmmakers vs. Tycoons
Self (archive footage)
2005
Film
The New Deal for Artists
Narrator (voice)
1981
Film
Celebração - 100 Anos do Cinema Nacional
Self
1997
Film
The Greenstone
Narrator (voice)
1980
Film
Too Much Johnson
Keystone Kop
2013
Film
Vienna
Himself
1968
Film
The Cave
Narrator
1973
Film
Filming 'The Trial'
Self
2002
Film
Twelfth Night
Narrator
1933
Film
Three Cases of Murder
Lord Mountdrago ("Lord Mountdrago" segment)
1955
Film
Genocide
Narrator (voice)
1982
Film
Trouble in the Glen
Sanin Cejador y Mengues
1954
A Legend a Lifetime: Citizen Welles
1974
Film
Crack in the Mirror
Hagolin / Lamerciere
1960
Film
Man, Beast and Virtue
Captain Perella, the Beast
1953
Film
The Spanish Earth
Narrator (voice)
1937
Film
Search for the Titanic
Self - Host
1981
Film
On the tracks of a filmmaker
Orson Welles
1988
Film
Charmed Lives: A Family Romance
Self (archive footage)
2028
Film
Almonds and Raisins
Narrator
1984
Film
The Sailor from Gibraltar
Louis de Mozambique
1967
Film
Know Your Ally: Britain
Narrator/Bob (helpful taxi passenger)
1944
Film
Ferry to Hong Kong
Captain Hart
1959
Film
Letter to Jane: An Investigation About a Still
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
1974
Film
The Other Side of Welles
Self (archive footage)
2005
Film
Ten Days That Shook the World
Narrator
1967
Film
Show-Business at War
Self
1943
Film
WeirdWorld
Troy2000 (Archive footage)
2025
Film
The Battle Over Citizen Kane
Self (archive footage)
1996
Film
The Making Of
Self (archival)
2026
Film
Five Columns on the Front Page: Hong Kong as seen by Orson Welles
Self (narrator)
1960
Film
Rita Hayworth: Dancing Into the Dream
Self (archive footage)
1990
Film
Orson Welles: The One-Man Band
Self (archive footage)
1995
Film
Spine Tingler! The William Castle Story
Self (archive)
2007
Film
Orson Welles at The Magic Castle
Self
1978
Film
Shut Up Little Man! An Audio Misadventure
Self
2011
The Dean Martin Celebrity Roast: Michael Landon
Self
1984
Film
Moby Dick
Captain Ahab / Starbuck / Ishmael (archive footage)
2000
Film
The Spirit of Charles Lindbergh
himself
1984
Film
Jeanne Moreau : Vive le cinéma !
Self
1972
Film
The Fountain of Youth
the narrator
1958
Film
Baryshnikov in Hollywood
Self - Narrator
1982
Film
The Blinding of Isaac Woodard
Self (archive footage)
2021
The Magic History of Cinema
2017
Film
The Hearts of Age
Death
1934
Film
The Psychic Connection
Narrator
1983
The Movie Movie (An Excerpt)
Archival Footage
2002
Film
The Paranormal Peter Sellers
Self (Archive footage)
2001
Film
Orson Welles in Spain
Himself
1966
A Mother's Tale
Narrator
1976
Film
A Horse Called Nijinsky
Narrator
1970
Film
Miss Goodall and the Wild Chimpanzees
Self - Narrator (voice)
1965
Film
The Fight for Rome II - The Betrayal
Justinian
1969
With Orson Welles: Stories from a Life in Film
Self (archive footage)
1990
Film
Orson Welles at Large: Portrait of Gina
Self - Host
1958
Film
Orson Welles: The Paris Interview
Himself
2010
Voyage of the Brigantine Yankee
Narrator
Film
Where Is Parsifal?
Klingsor
1984
Film
The Orson Welles Story
Self
1982
Film
Human Nature in Eleven Parts
Narrator "The Scorpion and the Frog" (archive footage)
2025
Film
The Complete 'Citizen Kane'
Self (archive footage)
1991
Film
An Evening with Orson Welles: American Heritage, Vol. II – Clarence Darrow
1970
Film
Working with Orson Welles
Himself (Archive Footage)
1993
Film
Hot Money
Sheriff Paisley
1983
Film
A Huey P. Newton Story
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
2001
Film
It's All True
Self
1993
Film
Trent's Last Case
Sigsbee Manderson
1952
Film
Emergency: Donald Trump’s "Touch of Evil"
(archive footage)
2019
The Enemy Before Us
Narrator
1970
Film
Welles' Language
Self (archive footage)
1990
Film
The Scorpion and the Frog
Narrator (archive footage)
2025
Disorder Is 20 Years Old
Self
1967
Film
Alfonso Sansone: Producer by Chance
Self (archive footage)
2014
Film
An Evening with Orson Welles: My Little Boy
1970
Film
A Gift of Harvest
Narrator
1981
Film
Embers & Dust
Professor Richard Pierson / Self (voice) (archive sound)
2016
Film
It's Pretty, but is it Art?
Self (voiceover)
2023
Film
Rosabella - La storia italiana di Orson Welles
1993
Film
One Man Band
Presenter / Various
1999
Battle for Survival
Narrator
1946
Film
An Evening with Orson Welles: Two Wise Old Men – Socrates and Noah
1970
Film
Upon This Rock
Michelangelo (voice)
1970
Film
The Welles Raft
Himself (Archive Footage)
2022
Franklin D. Roosevelt Four Freedoms Park
Narrator
1980
The Green Goddess
Rajah/Narrator
1939
Film
Around the World of Mike Todd
Self - Narrator
1968
Film
This Is Orson Welles
Self
2015
Film
Aliens Uncovered: Close Encounters
Self
2024
Film
Tut: The Boy King
Himself - Host
1977
Film
The Finest Hours
Narrator (voice)
1964
Film
It's Not All True
Himself (archive footage)
1986
Film
Is It Always Right to Be Right?
Narrator
1970
Film
The Shirley MacLaine Special: Where Do We Go from Here?
Self
1977
Film
An Evening with Orson Welles: The Happy Prince
1970
To Try Again... and Succeed
Narrator (voice)
1979
Film
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner
Narrator
1977
Film
Orson Welles' Magic Show
Self
1985
Kelly Country
Narrator
1973
Film
King Lear
King Lear
1953
Film
An Evening with Orson Welles: American Heritage, Vol. I – Selections from George Ade, Thomas Wolfe, Mark Twain
1970
Orson Welles - Das vermarktete Genie
Self
1975
Film
The Challenge... A Tribute to Modern Art
Narrator
1974
Film
Who's Out There?
Host
1975
Film
American: An Odyssey to 1947
Self (archive footage)
2022
Film
Orson Welles Uncut
2005
Film
It's All Brazil
Self (archive footage)
1997
Film
To Build a Fire
Narrator (voice)
1969
Film
Decadence and Downfall: The Shah of Iran's Ultimate Party
Self (archive footage) (voice)
2016
Film
Moby Dick—Rehearsed
An Actor Manager /Father Mapple /Ahab
1955
Film
An Evening with Orson Welles: The Golden Honeymoon
1970
Film
Hopper/Welles
Self
2020
Lords of the Forest
Narrator (voice)
1958
Film
Lucifer et moi
(archive footage 1982)
2009
Something Else
Film
The Witching
Mr. Cato
1983
Film
Caesar's Guide to Gaming with Orson Welles
Himself
1978
River of the Ocean
Narrator (English)
1962
Film
Orson Welles in the Land of Don Quixote
Self (Archive footage)
2000
Film
According to Occam's Razor
1999
Film
The New Media Bible: Book of Genesis
Narrator
1979
Magnificent Monsters of the Deep
Narrator
1975
Film
The Merchant of Venice (Rushes)
Shylock
1970
Film
The Quest for Fire Adventure
Narrator
1982
The Silent Years
1971
Film
The Hitch Hiker
Ronald Adams
2004
Film
Lost in "The Thinking"
Self (archive footage)
2005
In Our Hands
Himself
1984
Film
Return to Glennascaul
Narrator
1952
Film
Brasil
Self (archive footage)
1981
Film
The Force Beyond
Himself (archive footage)
1977
King Penguin: Stranded Beyond the Falklands
Self - Narrator
1983
Film
Magic Mirror Maze
2012
Film
The Land of the Basques
Himself
1955
Film
Orson Welles Talks With Roger Hill
(Self)
2005
Mexico City, Old and New
Narrator
1945
Film
My Guest is Orson Welles
2021
Film
Filming Othello
Host
1979
Film
Wagner e Venezia
Richard Wagner (voice)
1982
Power and Corruption
Himself
1973
The Lions of Capitalism: Some Call It Greed
Narrator
1977
Film
The Cave: a parable told by Orson Welles
Narrator
1973
Film
Soft Self-Portrait of Salvador Dali
Narrator (voice)
1969
Out of Darkness
Self - Narrator
1956
Film
The Last Sailors: The Final Days of Working Sail
Narrator
1984
The UFO Conspiracy
Self (archive sound)
2004
Film
Tall Tales: The Ireland of Orson Welles
Self
2021
Film
Unseen Lollo
Himself
1986
Film
Profile No. 6: Orson Welles
1965
Film
From Fiber to Fabric: Wool's a Natural
Narrator
1977
Film
High Journey
Narrator
1959
Film
Orson Welles at the Cinémathèque Française
Himself
1983
Orson Welles and People: Camille, the Naked Lady and the Musketeers
Self - Narrator (voice)
1956
Film
Beggars Would Ride
Narrator
1967
Film
From Introduction to Orson Welles’s Falstaff: Chimes at Midnight
Falstaff
2023
A Step Away
English Narrator
1980
Film
The Greatest Adventure--The Story of Man's Voyage to the Moon
Narrator
1979