Brian Cox’s 10 favourite movies of the 21st century
One of the many great things about Succession is that it reminded the world of just how great Brian Cox can be.
As Logan Roy, the foul-mouthed head of the series’ central family, Cox blew everyone away with his cruel and often supervillain-esque portrayal of a media baron. This felt like the actor’s coming-out party, even though he was in his early 70s when the series premiered. However, real ones know that the distinguished Scot was famous long before he ever stepped into the boardroom.
Superhero fans will recognise Cox from his role in the second ‘X-Men’ movie. As Colonel William Stryker, he plays a key part in the origin story of Wolverine. He was also the first actor to play Hannibal Lecter on the big screen, playing the sadistic cannibal in Michael Mann’s 1986 movie Manhunter. Just don’t ask him to discuss the character with Anthony Hopkins, because he will say no. All of this success makes Cox more than qualified to talk about movies, especially when a major newspaper came calling.
In 2025, the New York Times released what they called the ‘100 Best Movies of the 21st Century’. Lists like this have been made before, but this one’s ace in the hole was its celebrity involvement. The publication polled dozens of famous names in the movie business to get their opinion on the previous quarter-century of movies. On the list were Bong Joon Ho, Mikey Maddison, Mel Brooks, Sofia Coppola, and, of course, our good friend Brian.
Like his fellow jury members, Cox was asked to supply ten choices that would then be collated into a larger list. Three of his picks made the top ten. First up is Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, which landed at number seven. One place higher is No Country For Old Men. Cox described it as his favourite film by the Coen brothers, who had four entries in the list overall. Mulholland Drive, David Lynch’s surreal homage to Los Angeles, ended up in second place on the main list.
“It’s a kind of ruthless film,” Cox wrote. “David Lynch has that view of humanity, which is a little critical, shall we say.”
Two more of the star’s picks made the main list. The Grand Budapest Hotel landed at number 22, with Pamela Anderson decrying that “Wes Anderson is king!”, while Dennis Lehane called it a “lament for civility and civil discourse”. At number 48, we have Florian Henckel Von Donnersmarck’s The Lives of Others, which means five of Cox’s picks remain unranked.
His more obvious picks (which are in no particular order) are Clint Eastwood’s Million Dollar Baby and Guillermo del Toro’s The Shape of Water. A bit more obscure is Leviathan, a Russian crime drama with biblical overtones. Another foreign offering, Michael Haneke’s The White Ribbon (Das weiße Band – Eine deutsche Kindergeschichte in its original German) is next. Finally, Cox opted for American Utopia by Spike Lee. A concert movie, the film captures a Broadway performance of David Byrne’s show of the same name and was released on HBO Max in 2020.
That’s quite the selection, proving that Cox is well across the cinematic spectrum. If you ever get invited round to his for a movie night, just be careful. You never know what he might stick on.
