Entertainment

The Best Will Rogers Movies

Updated November 5, 2019

List Rules

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

Here is a list of the best Will Rogers movies ranked from best to worst. Will Rogers'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 Will Rogers movies is decided by how many votes they receive, so only highly rated Will Rogers movies will be at the top of the list. Will Rogers has been in a lot of films, so people often debate each other over what the greatest Will Rogers movie of all time is. If you and a friend are arguing about this then use this list of the most entertaining Will Rogers films to end the squabble once and for all.

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

List includes State Fair, Doctor Bull and more.

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

Ranked by

1
Steamboat Round the Bend
Will Rogers, Eugene Pallette, Anne Shirley
- Released: 1935
- Directed by: John Ford
Steamboat Round the Bend is a 1935 American comedy film directed by John Ford. The film stars Will Rogers and was released a few weeks after his death in an airplane crash.
2
Judge Priest
Will Rogers, Tom Brown, Anita Louise
- Released: 1934
- Directed by: John Ford
In this John Ford comedy, Will Rogers stars as Judge William Priest, an amiable Civil War veteran living in small-town Kentucky. While the widowed Judge Priest, a proud former Confederate, dispenses ...more
3
A Connecticut Yankee
Will Rogers, Maureen O'Sullivan, Myrna Loy
- Released: 1931
- Directed by: David Butler
Making a delivery to a mysterious mansion in a rainstorm, radio salesman Hank Martin (Will Rogers) is knocked out when a suit of armor topples on him. Upon awakening, Hank finds himself in the time ...more
4
Doctor Bull
Will Rogers, Vera Allen, Marian Nixon
- Released: 1933
- Directed by: John Ford
Country physician Dr. Bull (Will Rogers) is big on homespun wisdom and thinks little of newfangled medicine. He also spends much of his time wooing widow Janet Cardmaker (Vera Allen). But his ...more
5
Life Begins at Forty
Will Rogers, Rochelle Hudson, Sterling Holloway
- Released: 1935
- Directed by: George Marshall
Life Begins at Forty is a 1935 black-and-white film starring Will Rogers and Richard Cromwell. It is based on the non-fiction self-help book Life Begins at 40 by Walter B. Pitkin.
6
In Old Kentucky
Will Rogers, Alan Dinehart, Charles Sellon
- Released: 1935
- Directed by: George Marshall
In Old Kentucky is a 1935 comedy film directed by George Marshall.
7
Doubting Thomas
Will Rogers, Billie Burke, Alison Skipworth
- Released: 1935
- Directed by: David Butler
A Hollywood agent visits a small town where several residents aspire to be actors. Among them is beautician Peggy Burns (Frances Grant), whose father, Thomas (Will Rogers), forbids her to try out. ...more
8
The County Chairman
Mickey Rooney, Will Rogers, Kent Taylor
- Released: 1935
- Directed by: John G. Blystone
The County Chairman is a 1935 film directed by John G. Blystone.
9
Lightnin'
Wallace MacDonald, Jay Hunt
- Released: 1925
- Directed by: John Ford
Lightnin' is a 1925 American comedy film directed by John Ford. It was based on a successful play of the same name. The original run started in 1918 at the Gaiety Theatre and continued for 1,291 ...more
10
The Headless Horseman
Will Rogers, James Sheridan, Ben Hendricks Jr.
- Released: 1922
- Directed by: Edward D. Venturini
The Headless Horseman is a 1922 American horror film adaption of Washington Irving's The Legend of Sleepy Hollow starring Will Rogers, Lois Meredith, and Ben Hendricks Jr. that was directed by Edward ...more

11
State Fair
Janet Gaynor, Will Rogers, Lew Ayres
- Released: 1933
- Directed by: Henry King
State Fair is a movie directed by Henry King and starring Janet Gaynor, Will Rogers, and Lew Ayres. The film was based on a novel by Phil Stong, was the first of three film versions of the Phillip ...more
12
They Had to See Paris
Will Rogers, Edgar Kennedy, Irene Rich
- Released: 1929
- Directed by: Frank Borzage
They Had to See Paris is a 1929 film directed by Frank Borzage.
13
Jubilo, Jr.
Will Rogers
- Released: 1924
- Directed by: Robert F. McGowan
Jubilo, Jr. is a 1924 short silent comedy film directed by Robert F. McGowan. It was the 27th Our Gang short subject released.
14
Tip Toes
Will Rogers, Dorothy Gish
- Directed by: Herbert Wilcox
Tip Toes is a 1927 British silent film comedy-drama, directed by Herbert Wilcox and starring Dorothy Gish and Will Rogers. The film is a loose adaptation of the stage musical Tip-Toes, with the ...more
15
An Unwilling Hero
Will Rogers, John Bowers, Jack Curtis
- Released: 1921
- Directed by: Clarence G. Badger
An Unwilling Hero is a 1921 comedy and drama film written by Arthur F. Statter and directed by Clarence G. Badger, based from the story Whistling Dick's Christmas Stocking by O. Henry.
16
Business and Pleasure
Will Rogers, Jetta Goudal
- Released: 1932
- Directed by: David Butler
Business and Pleasure is a 1932 American comedy film directed by David Butler, starring Will Rogers and featuring Boris Karloff.
17
Ambassador Bill
Will Rogers, Marguerite Churchill, Greta Nissen
- Released: 1931
- Directed by: Sam Taylor
When the king of Sylvania abruptly abdicates the throne, the sneaky prime minister (Gustav von Seyffertitz) starts running the country from the shadows. Amid the chaos, Ambassador Bill Harper (Will ...more
18
David Harum
Will Rogers, Jane Darwell, Noah Beery
- Released: 1934
- Directed by: James Cruze
David Harum is a 1934 comedy film story by Edward Noyes Wescott and written by Walter Woods and directed by James Cruze
19
Mr. Skitch
Rochelle Hudson
- Released: 1933
- Directed by: James Cruze
Mr. Skitch is a 1933 film directed by James Cruze.
20
So This Is London
Will Rogers, Maureen O'Sullivan, Frank Albertson
- Released: 1930
- Directed by: John G. Blystone
So This Is London is a 1930 American comedy film directed by John G. Blystone and starring Will Rogers, Irene Rich, Frank Albertson and Lumsden Hare. It was based on the 1922 play So This Is London ...more

21
Hollywood
Bess Flowers, J. Warren Kerrigan, Nita Naldi
- Released: 1923
- Directed by: James Cruze
Hollywood is an American silent comedy film directed by James Cruze, co-written by Frank Condon and Thomas J. Geraghty, and released by Paramount Pictures. The film is a lengthier feature follow-up ...more
22
Too Busy to Work
Will Rogers, Marian Nixon, Dick Powell
- Released: 1932
- Directed by: John G. Blystone
Too Busy to Work is a 1932 American comedy film directed by John G. Blystone.
23
Happy Days
Betty Grable, Janet Gaynor, Stuart Erwin
- Released: 1930
- Directed by: Benjamin Stoloff
Happy Days is an 80 minute musical film, notable for being the first feature film shown entirely in widescreen anywhere in the world. French director Abel Gance's Napoléon had a final widescreen ...more
24
Laughing Bill Hyde
Will Rogers, Anna Lehr, Clarence Oliver
Laughing Bill Hyde is a 1918 American comedy film directed by Hobart Henley.
25
Water, Water, Everywhere
Will Rogers, Irene Rich, Rowland V. Lee
Water, Water, Everywhere is a 1920 American western comedy directed by Clarence G. Badger.

Laughing Bill Hyde

Water, Water, Everywhere