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The Best Joseph Cotten Movies

Updated September 23, 2019 1.6k votes 286 voters 20.2k views68 items

List RulesVote for your favorite movies, regardless of critic reviews or how big the role was.

List of the best Joseph Cotten movies, ranked best to worst with movie trailers when available. Joseph Cotten's highest grossing movies have received a lot of accolades over the years, earning millions upon millions around the world. The order of these top Joseph Cotten movies is decided by how many votes they receive, so only highly rated Joseph Cotten movies will be at the top of the list. Joseph Cotten has been in a lot of films, so people often debate each other over what the greatest Joseph Cotten movie of all time is. If you and a friend are arguing about this then use this list of the most entertaining Joseph Cotten films to end the squabble once and for all.

If you think the best Joseph Cotten role isn't at the top, then upvote it so it has the chance to become number one. The greatest Joseph Cotten performances didn't necessarily come from the best movies, but in most cases they go hand in hand.

The list you're viewing is made up of different films like Hers to Hold and Guyana: Crime of the Century.

"This list answers the questions, "What are the best Joseph Cotten movies?" and "What are the greatest Joseph Cotten roles of all time?"

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Shadow of a Doubt
Alfred Hitchcock, Teresa Wright
Released: 1943
Released: 1943
Directed by: Alfred Hitchcock
Directed by: Alfred Hitchcock
Shadow of a Doubt is a 1943 American psychological thriller directed by Alfred Hitchcock, and starring Teresa Wright and Joseph Cotten. Written by Thornton Wilder, Sally Benson, and Alma Reville, the... more
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The Third Man
Orson Welles, Trevor Howard
Released: 1949
Released: 1949
Directed by: Carol Reed
Directed by: Carol Reed
The Third Man is a 1949 British film noir, directed by Carol Reed and starring Joseph Cotten, Alida Valli, Orson Welles, and Trevor Howard. It is considered one of the greatest films of all time,... more
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Gaslight
Ingrid Bergman, Angela Lansbury
Released: 1944
Released: 1944
Directed by: George Cukor
Directed by: George Cukor
Gaslight is an American 1944 mystery-thriller film adapted from Patrick Hamilton's 1938 play Gas Light. It was the second version to be filmed, following the British film Gaslight, directed by... more
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Othello
Orson Welles, Joseph Cotten
Released: 1952
Released: 1952
Directed by: Orson Welles
Directed by: Orson Welles
Othello is a 1952 drama film based on the Shakespearean play, made by Mercury Productions Inc. and Les Films Marceau and distributed by United Artists when released in the United States in 1955. It... more
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A Blueprint for Murder
Joseph Cotten, Jean Peters
Released: 1953
Released: 1953
Directed by: Andrew L. Stone
Directed by: Andrew L. Stone
A Blueprint for Murder is a 1953 thriller film noir starring Joseph Cotten, Jean Peters, and Gary Merrill. Andrew L. Stone wrote and directed the film.... more
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Citizen Kane
Orson Welles, Alan Ladd
Released: 1941
Released: 1941
Directed by: Orson Welles
Directed by: Orson Welles
Citizen Kane is a 1941 American drama film produced by, co-written by, directed by and starring Orson Welles. The picture was Welles's first feature film. The film was nominated for Academy Awards in... more
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Soylent Green
Charlton Heston, Edward G. Robinson
Released: 1973
Released: 1973
Directed by: Richard Fleischer
Directed by: Richard Fleischer
Soylent Green is a 1973 American science fiction film directed by Richard Fleischer and starring Charlton Heston, Leigh Taylor-Young, and, in his final film, Edward G. Robinson. The film combines the... more
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Portrait of Jennie
Nancy Reagan, Anne Francis
Released: 1948
Released: 1948
Directed by: William Dieterle
Directed by: William Dieterle
Portrait of Jennie is a 1948 fantasy film based on the novella by Robert Nathan. The film was directed by William Dieterle and produced by David O. Selznick. It stars Jennifer Jones and Joseph Cotten.... more
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The Magnificent Ambersons
Orson Welles, Anne Baxter
Released: 1942
Released: 1942
Directed by: Orson Welles
Directed by: Orson Welles
The Magnificent Ambersons is a 1942 American period drama, the second feature film produced and directed by Orson Welles. Welles adapted Booth Tarkington's Pulitzer Prize-winning 1918 novel, about... more
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Niagara
Marilyn Monroe, Joseph Cotten
Released: 1953
Released: 1953
Directed by: Henry Hathaway
Directed by: Henry Hathaway
Niagara is an American 1953 thriller-film noir, released by Twentieth Century-Fox, directed by Henry Hathaway, and starring Joseph Cotten, Jean Peters, Casey Adams, and Marilyn Monroe. Unlike other... more

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The Steel Trap
Teresa Wright, Joseph Cotten
Directed by: Andrew L. Stone
Directed by: Andrew L. Stone
The Steel Trap is a 1952 thriller film noir written and directed by Andrew L. Stone, and starring Joseph Cotten and Teresa Wright.... more
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Hush… Hush, Sweet Charlotte
Bette Davis, Joan Crawford
Released: 1964
Released: 1964
Directed by: Robert Aldrich
Directed by: Robert Aldrich
Hush... Hush, Sweet Charlotte is a 1964 American thriller film directed and produced by Robert Aldrich, and starring Bette Davis, Olivia de Havilland, Joseph Cotten, and Agnes Moorehead, as well as... more
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The Killer Is Loose
Rhonda Fleming, Alan Hale
Released: 1956
Released: 1956
Directed by: Budd Boetticher
Directed by: Budd Boetticher
The Killer Is Loose is a 1956 American crime film noir directed by Budd Boetticher and starring Joseph Cotten, Rhonda Fleming and Wendell Corey.... more
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Touch of Evil
Charlton Heston, Orson Welles
Released: 1958
Released: 1958
Directed by: Orson Welles
Directed by: Orson Welles
Touch of Evil is a 1958 American thriller film, written, directed by, and co-starring Orson Welles. The screenplay was loosely based on the novel Badge of Evil by Whit Masterson. Along with Welles,... more
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Twilight's Last Gleaming
Burt Lancaster, Charles Durning
Released: 1977
Released: 1977
Directed by: Robert Aldrich
Directed by: Robert Aldrich
Twilight's Last Gleaming is a 1977 film directed by Robert Aldrich and starring Burt Lancaster and Richard Widmark. The film was a West German/US co-production, shot mainly at the Bavaria... more
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From the Earth to the Moon
George Sanders, Joseph Cotten
Released: 1958
Released: 1958
Directed by: Byron Haskin
Directed by: Byron Haskin
From the Earth to the Moon is a Technicolor science fiction film adaptation of the Jules Verne novel From the Earth to the Moon. It stars Joseph Cotten, George Sanders, Debra Paget, and Don Dubbins.... more
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Journey into Fear
Orson Welles, Dolores del Río
Released: 1943
Released: 1943
Directed by: Orson Welles, Norman Foster
Directed by: Orson Welles, Norman Foster
Journey into Fear is a 1943 American spy film based on the Eric Ambler novel of the same name. The film broadly follows the plot of the book, but the protagonist was changed to an American... more
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The Last Sunset
Kirk Douglas, Rock Hudson
Released: 1961
Released: 1961
Directed by: Robert Aldrich
Directed by: Robert Aldrich
The Last Sunset is a 1961 western movie starring Rock Hudson, Kirk Douglas, and Dorothy Malone, and was directed by Robert Aldrich. The film was released by Universal Studios, shot in Eastman color.... more
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Since You Went Away
Shirley Temple, Claudette Colbert
Released: 1944
Released: 1944
Directed by: John Cromwell
Directed by: John Cromwell
Since You Went Away is a 1944 American film directed by John Cromwell for Selznick International Pictures and distributed by United Artists. It is an epic about the American home front during WWII... more
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Beyond the Forest
Bette Davis, Joseph Cotten
Released: 1949
Released: 1949
Directed by: King Vidor
Directed by: King Vidor
Beyond the Forest is a 1949 American film noir directed by King Vidor and featuring Bette Davis, Joseph Cotten, David Brian and Ruth Roman. The screenplay is written by Lenore J. Coffee based on a... more

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The Devil's Daughter
Shelley Winters, Diane Ladd
Released: 1973
Released: 1973
Directed by: Jeannot Szwarc
Directed by: Jeannot Szwarc
The Devil's Daughter is a TV horror movie that originally aired on ABC on January 9, 1973. It was an early screenwriting credit for Colin Higgins.... more
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The Abominable Dr. Phibes
Vincent Price, Caroline Munro
Released: 1971
Released: 1971
Directed by: Robert Fuest
Directed by: Robert Fuest
The Abominable Dr. Phibes is a 1971 British horror film starring Vincent Price and American actor Joseph Cotten. Its art deco sets, dark humour and performance by Price have made the film and its... more
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The Farmer's Daughter
James Arness, Loretta Young
Released: 1947
Released: 1947
Directed by: H. C. Potter
Directed by: H. C. Potter
The Farmer's Daughter is a 1947 movie that tells the story of a farmgirl who ends up working as a maid for a Congressman and his politically powerful mother. It stars Loretta Young, Joseph Cotten,... more
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I'll Be Seeing You
Ginger Rogers, Shirley Temple
Released: 1944
Released: 1944
Directed by: William Dieterle, George Cukor
Directed by: William Dieterle, George Cukor
I'll Be Seeing You is a 1944 drama film made by Selznick International Pictures, Dore Schary Productions, and Vanguard Pictures, and distributed by United Artists. It was directed by William Dieterle... more
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The Tramplers
Franco Nero, Joseph Cotten
Released: 1965
Released: 1965
Directed by: Albert Band, Mario Sequi
Directed by: Albert Band, Mario Sequi
The Tramplers is a 1965 Italian Spaghetti Western film directed by Albert Band and Mario Sequi based on the novel Guns of North Texas by Will Cook.... more