Mandy Patinkinhas been an accomplished actor for nearly 50 years, having gotten his start as a stage performer in the mid-’70s. While he made his theatrical debut starring alongside Meryl Streep in a New York City Shakespeare Festival, Patinkin would eventually transition to musicals, winning a Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical forEvitain 1980. Around the same time, Patinkin would make the transition into movies and television.
His big break would come in 1983 as love-struck yeshiva student Avigdor in Barbra Streisand’sYentl, though movie buffs probably most associate Patinkin with his role as the patricide-avenging Inigo Montoya in the 1987 fantasy adventure filmThe Princess Bride. Since then, Patinkin has shown incredible range on the big and small screens, playing everything from a French playwright to a skilled surgeon to a corrupt U.S. government official.
Patinkin has done plenty to prove that he’s more than just the Spanish swashbuckler in one of the best fantasy films of all time – though we will probably never get tired of hearing him say his iconic introduction line. For those who aren’t familiar with Mandy Patinkin outside of his most famous movie role, here is an unofficial ranking of his best movie and television performances.
10Alien Nation (1988)
Alien Nation
Alien Nation (1988) navigates a unique integration of alien refugees into Los Angeles and the complexities that arise from interspecies partnerships. When a human detective teams up with an extraterrestrial cop, they confront issues of prejudice, loyalty, and justice, set against a backdrop of crime and social tension. This film offers a thought-provoking glimpse into the challenges and potential of a multicultural society.
Before Rockne S. O’Bannon’sFarscapecame out in the late ’90s, the writer and producer tried his hand at his first major science fiction franchise withAlien Nation. Directed by Graham Baker, the film stars James Caan as a veteran police detective and Mandy Patinkin as his extraterrestrial partner. The duo teams up to solve a murder in a futuristic Los Angeles where hundreds of thousands of aliens called “Newcomers” (one of which being Patinkin’s character) have assimilated. The neo-noir/buddy-cop flick received mixed reviews, thoughAlien Nationlater spawned several TV movies, a short-lived series, and even a comic book adaptation.
What Makes It Great
Alien Nationreceived a Saturn Award for Best Science Fiction Film of 1988, though it staunchly divided critics, withRoger Ebert calling it"a failure of imagination." What most critics could agree on was the solid performance of Patinkin, who maintained an impressive rapport with Caan despite being covered in four-hours-worth of alien makeup. For his efforts, Patinkin earned a Saturn Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor, losing out to Robert Loggia for his role inBig.
Rent on Apple TV
9Impromptu (1991)
Impromptuis a period drama film set in 19th-century France that follows the romantic relationship between Polish composer Frédéric Chopin (Hugh Grant) and French novelist Amantine-Lucile-Aurore Dupin (Judy Davis), most known by the intentionally masculine-sounding pen name George Sand. A poignant exploration of gender and the real-life love affair between Chopin and Sand, the film co-stars Mandy Patinkin as poet and playwright Alfred de Musset, one of Sand’s many ex-lovers.
Patinkin has relatively little screen time compared to most of his big-name co-stars, but he makes the most of what he has as the alcoholic and hot-tempered de Musset. With several comedic moments throughout the film,Patinkin brilliantly demonstrates his background as a stage actor and period-piece performer.
8The Good Fight (2021)
the good fight
The Good Fight, a spin-off of the legal drama seriesThe Good Wife, stars Christine Baranski as former law firm partner Diane Lockhart, who fights to rebuild her career after losing her life savings in afinancial scam. Nominated for a number of TV awards since its premiere in 2017, the Paramount+ show introduced Mandy Patinkin as a series regular in season five. He plays the delusionally-ambitious Hal Wackner, who, with no legal experience, opens a court in the back of a copy shop.
Patinkin’s Wackner is a solid blend of offbeat and kindhearted, which makes him the perfect grandfather-esque mentor to the spunky Marissa Gold (Sarah Steele). Nominated for Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series at the 2022 Critics' Choice Television Awards, Patinkin’s understated-yet-impactful performancesand his subtly-comedic moments onThe Good Fightmake him a strong contender for one of the most underrated TV actors of the past 20 years.
Stream on Paramount+
Read More:Mandy Patinkin’s Hunchback of Notre Dame Audition for Disney Sounds Like a Nightmare
7The House on Carroll Street (1988)
Patinkin shows that he can play villains just as deftly as heroes in his turn as a corrupt lawyer with the House on Un-American Activities Committee in Peter Yates’sThe House on Carroll Street. The neo-noir drama filmstars Kelly McGillisas a magazine photojournalist who teams up with an FBI agent (played by Jeff Daniels) to uncover a dangerous Nazi plot, of which (spoiler alert) Patinkin is the chief perpetrator.
The House on Carroll Streetwas a massive box-office flop (making less than $500,000 on a budget of $14 million), though many critics praised it for being a send-up of Hitchcockian noirs from the 1950s. Every film of that ilk needs an over-the-top villain, which Patinkin perfectly provides. Gushing with sleaze and menace, he couldn’t be further away from the brave and virtuous Inigo Montoya, a role he played less than a year prior to the theatrical release ofThe House on Carroll Street.
Stream on Tubi
6Criminal Minds (2005-2007)
Criminal Minds
For three seasons of the police proceduralCriminal Minds, Mandy Patinkin played Senior Supervisory Special Agent Jason Gideon, the paternal profiler on the FBI’s Behavioral Analysis Unit. Patinkin was part of the show’s original main cast, which included Thomas Gibson, Lola Glaudini, Shemar Moore, Matthew Gray Gubler, A. J. Cook, and Kirsten Vangsness. After season three, Joe Mantegna was brought on as senior supervisory special agent David Rossi when Patinkin was written off the show.
Despite his relatively brief tenure onCriminal Minds, Patinkin was a huge fan favorite during the early seasons and was consistently praised by critics for portraying the frank and quick-thinking BAU chief. While he would end up leaving the show due to concerns over its dark subject matter, Patinkin’s Gideon is still considered byCriminal Mindspurists to be one of the show’s best characters.
Stream on Hulu
5The Music of Chance (1993)
Based on the 1991 Paul Auster novel of the same name,The Music of Chancestars Mandy Patinkin as Jim Nashe, an ex-fireman who, after coming into some money, decides to buy a car and travel around the country. After picking up a professional gambler named Jack Pozzi (played by James Spader), Nashe offers to provide the $10,000 buy-in for the mysterious drifter’s poker game with two millionaires (M. Emmet Walsh and Charles Durning). The poker game doesn’t go well for the new friends, and they’re forced to work off their debt by building a 10,000-stone wall for the eccentric rich men.
Earning a domestic gross of just over $300,000,The Music of Chancewent largely unnoticed during its short theatrical run. Still, the film currently boasts a perfect 100% score on Rotten Tomatoes, with critics particularly praising the acting of the two leads. Patinkin’s stoic-and-mysterious Nash serves as the perfect counterpoint to Spader’s slick-talking, over-the-top Pozzi, which demonstrates Patinkin’s impressive ability to convey enormous depth in subtle performances.
Stream on The Roku Channel
4Yentl (1983)
IfYentlhad a subtitle, it would probably beThe Barbra Streisand Movie. The EGOT winner co-wrote, directed, produced, and starred in the musical drama film about an Ashkenazi Jewish woman in Poland who poses as a man to study the Talmud following the death of her father.
While Streisand is the predominant star on- and off-screen star of the proceedings, Mandy Patinkin also turns in a career-defining performance as Avigdor, a fellow yeshiva student who is conflicted over his romantic feelings for his disguised classmate. Receiving the Academy Award for Best Original Score,Yentlalso won the Golden Globe Awards for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy, while Streisand’s Best Director win solidified her as the first woman to win the award at the Golden Globes.
Despite the recent alleged controversy surrounding Patinkin’s on-set behavior, (Streisand claimed in her 2023 memoirMy Name Is Barbrathat herYentlco-star “disturbed my equilibrium” during the production after proposing a romantic affair), the actor received immense praise from critics and audience members for his emotional performance as Avigdor. Many point to it as Patinkin’s best big-screen acting credit, and while he wasn’t able to show off his award-winning singing voice for the role, it did earn him a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy.
Stream on Max
3Chicago Hope (1994-2000)
Chicago Hope
Nearly a decade before playing Jason Gideon inCriminal Minds, Mandy Patinkin starred in a procedural of a different sort as Dr. Jeffrey Geiger in the medical drama seriesChicago Hope. Created by renowned TV showrunner and producer David E. Kelley, the multi-Emmy-winning show also starred Christine Lahti, Thomas Gibson, Héctor Elizondo, and Adam Arkin.
Patinkin’s stint onChicago Hopewas the first role that would earn him respect as a television actor. During his first two years on the show, he received the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series, while also getting Best Actor nods at the Golden Globes and Screen Actors Guild Awards. But, just as he would eventually do onCriminal Minds, Patinkin derailed his own hype train at the beginning of its journey, opting to leave the show during the second season to spend more time with his wife and children.
While he would return as a recurring guest for three seasons (he received another Emmy nomination for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series in 1999), Patinkin wouldn’t return to the main cast until the sixth and final season. Patinkin’s seeming strategy early in his television career of leaving a show before his character gets stale paid off for him once again, because just like withCriminal Minds, fans ofChicago Hoperegard him as one of the strongest characters in the series.
Read More:The 15 Most Unforgettable Quotes from The Princess Bride, Ranked
2The Princess Bride (1987)
The Princess Bride
With the release ofThe Princess Bridein 1987, Rob Reiner introduced moviegoers to a different sort of fantasy film, blending a comedic and meta style with familiar action-adventure tropes that resonated with both casual consumers of the genre as well as more diehard fans.Starring Cary Elwesas the heroic Westley, Robin Wright as Princess Buttercup, Andre the Giant as Fezzik, and, of course, Mandy Patinkin as the sword-fighting Inigo Montoya,The Princess Brideresonates with multiple generations as one of the best comfort films of the modern movie era.
“Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die.” The oft-quoted line would probably be enough to solidify Patinkin as arguably the biggest cult hero in fantasy movie history. But, the veteran actor’s commitment to hisPrincess Briderole went far beyond his ability to expertly deliver a single iconic line.
In just three weeks, Patinkin learned how to fence both right- and left-handed, performing virtually all his own stunts for the major fight scenes. Throw in his electric on-screen chemistry with Andre the Giant and his impressive aptitude for physical comedy, and it’s clear why Patinkin is such a beloved genre actor.
Stream on Disney+
1Homeland (2011-2020)
Based on the Israeli television showPrisoners of War,Homelandchanged the game when it came to the representation of spy thrillers on the small screen. The Showtime series starred Claire Danes as Carrie Mathison, a CIA officer with bipolar disorder, and Damien Lewis as U.S. Marine Nicholas Brody, whom Mathison believes is a double agent for al-Qaeda. Co-starring Mandy Patinkin as Saul Berenson, Mathison’s mentor who rises through the CIA’s ranks during the show,Homelandwon nearly 40 awards on over 100 nominations during its eight-season run.
Patinkin racked up five nominations (four Emmys and one Golden Globe) for playing Berenson onHomeland. He may not have received the same amount of accolades as Danes or Lewis, but Patinkin’s role as the grounded and reserved voice of reason on the show represents not only his longest stint on TV, but also his most mainstream role to date. Playing the same character on a high level for nearly a decade showcased Patinkin’s impressive ability to completely immerse himself in a demanding performance more than ever before.
