Directing · Kenosha, Wisconsin, USA · Born May 6, 1915
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.
Charmed Lives: A Family Romance
2028
as Self (archive footage)
MovieProust Palimpsesto: Pastiches e Misturas
2026
as Self / The Director / Sir John Falstaff (archive footage) (uncredited)
MovieWeirdWorld
2025
as Troy2000 (Archive footage)
TVTitanic: Secrets of the Shipwreck
2025
as Self (archive footage)
MovieHuman Nature in Eleven Parts
2025
as Narrator "The Scorpion and the Frog" (archive footage)
MovieThe Scorpion and the Frog
2025
as Narrator (archive footage)
MovieOthelo The Great
2024
as Self (archive footage)
MovieThe Battle of Grovers Mill
2024
as Radio Host (voice) (archival footage)
MovieAliens Uncovered: Close Encounters
2024
as Self
MovieJim Henson Idea Man
2024
as Self (archive footage)
MovieFrom Introduction to Orson Welles’s Falstaff: Chimes at Midnight
2023
as Falstaff
MovieIt's Pretty, but is it Art?
2023
as Self (voiceover)
MovieLooking Back Before You Leap
2023
as General Zaroff (voice)
MovieClint Eastwood: The Last Legend
2022
as Self (archive footage)
MovieAmerican: An Odyssey to 1947
2022
as Self (archive footage)
MovieLouis Armstrong's Black & Blues
2022
as Self (archive footage)
MovieThe Welles Raft
2022
as Himself (Archive Footage)
MovieMy Guest is Orson Welles
2021
MovieThe Real Charlie Chaplin
2021
as Self (archive footage)
MovieTall Tales: The Ireland of Orson Welles
2021
as Self
MovieParkinson at 50
2021
as Self (archive footage)
MovieMorceaux de Cannes
2021
MovieStreet Gang: How We Got to Sesame Street
2021
as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
MovieThe Blinding of Isaac Woodard
2021
as Self (archive footage)
MovieHopper/Welles
2020
as Self
MovieNatalie Wood: What Remains Behind
2020
as Self (archive footage)
TVLIFE BEYOND
2019
as Self (voice)
MovieEmergency: Donald Trump’s "Touch of Evil"
2019
as (archive footage)
MovieThe Other Side of the Wind
2018
as Journalist (uncredited)
MovieThey'll Love Me When I'm Dead
2018
as Self (archive footage)
MovieThe Eyes of Orson Welles
2018
as Self - Filmmaker / Various Roles (archive footage)
MovieJeanne Moreau: Free Spirit
2018
as Self - Filmmaker (archive footage)
The Magic History of Cinema
2017
MovieEmbers & Dust
2016
as Professor Richard Pierson / Self (voice) (archive sound)
MovieDecadence and Downfall: The Shah of Iran's Ultimate Party
2016
as Self (archive footage) (voice)
MovieThis Is Orson Welles
2015
as Self
MovieMagician: The Astonishing Life and Work of Orson Welles
2014
as Self - Filmmaker / Various Roles (archive footage)
MovieAlfonso Sansone: Producer by Chance
2014
as Self (archive footage)
MovieToo Much Johnson
2013
as Keystone Kop
MovieJodorowsky's Dune
2013
as Self - Filmmaker (archive footage)
TVTalking Pictures
2013
as Self (archive footage)
MovieMagic Mirror Maze
2012
MovieThe Shadow Knows
2012
as Self (archive footage)
MovieFinal Cut: Ladies and Gentlemen
2012
as (archive footage)
MovieShut Up Little Man! An Audio Misadventure
2011
as Self
MovieJucy
2010
as Elephant Lamp (archive sound)
MovieCameraman: The Life and Work of Jack Cardiff
2010
as Genghis Khan / Bayan (archive footage)
MovieOrson Welles: The Paris Interview
2010
as Himself
MovieHollywood sul Tevere
2009
MovieLucifer et moi
2009
as (archive footage 1982)
MovieSpine Tingler! The William Castle Story
2007
as Self (archive)
MovieThe Deep
2007
as Russ Brewer
MovieLost in "The Thinking"
2005
as Self (archive footage)
MovieOrson Welles Talks With Roger Hill
2005
as (Self)
MovieFilmmakers vs. Tycoons
2005
as Self (archive footage)
MovieThe Other Side of Welles
2005
as Self (archive footage)
MovieThe Well
2005
MovieOrson Welles Uncut
2005
MovieThe Hitch Hiker
2004
as Ronald Adams
The UFO Conspiracy
2004
as Self (archive sound)
MovieThe Dominici Affair by Orson Welles
2003
as Self (archive footage)
MovieHeart of the Festival
2002
as Self (archive footage)
MovieLost in La Mancha
2002
as Self (archive footage)
The Movie Movie (An Excerpt)
2002
as Archival Footage
MovieA Huey P. Newton Story
2001
as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
MovieThe Paranormal Peter Sellers
2001
as Self (Archive footage)
MovieNASA: A Space Odyssey Vol. 3
2001
as Narrator
MovieOrson Welles in the Land of Don Quixote
2000
as Self (Archive footage)
MovieLon Chaney: A Thousand Faces
2000
as Self (archive footage)
MovieMoby Dick
2000
as Captain Ahab / Starbuck / Ishmael (archive footage)
MovieOne Man Band
1999
as Presenter / Various
MovieAccording to Occam's Razor
1999
MovieHi-Fi
1999
MovieThe Best of the Dean Martin Celebrity Roasts
1998
as Self - Roaster (archive footage)
MovieIt's All Brazil
1997
as Self (archive footage)
MovieWho Is Henry Jaglom?
1997
as Self (archive footage)
MovieCelebração - 100 Anos do Cinema Nacional
1997
as Self
MovieThe Battle Over Citizen Kane
1996
as Self (archive footage)
MovieOrson Welles: The One-Man Band
1995
as Self (archive footage)
MovieThe First 100 Years: A Celebration of American Movies
1995
as Self (archive footage)
MovieLa Classe américaine
1993
as Self (archive footage)
MovieIt's All True
1993
as Self
MovieRosabella - La storia italiana di Orson Welles
1993
MovieWorking with Orson Welles
1993
as Himself (Archive Footage)
MovieDon Quixote
1992
as Self
MovieThe Complete 'Citizen Kane'
1991
as Self (archive footage)
MovieEmpire of the Air: The Men Who Made Radio
1991
as Self - Professor in War of the Worlds Broadcast (archive sound)
With Orson Welles: Stories from a Life in Film
1990
as Self (archive footage)
MovieWelles' Language
1990
as Self (archive footage)
MovieRita Hayworth: Dancing Into the Dream
1990
as Self (archive footage)
TVAmerican Experience
1988
as Self (archive footage)
MovieOn the tracks of a filmmaker
1988
as Orson Welles
MovieSomeone to Love
1987
as Danny's Friend
MovieUnseen Lollo
1986
as Himself
MovieIt's Not All True
1986
as Himself (archive footage)
MovieThe Transformers: The Movie
1986
as Unicron (voice)
MovieThe Muppets: A Celebration of 30 Years
1986
as Self (archive footage)
TVScene of the Crime
1985
TVMoonlighting
1985
as Orson Welles
MovieThe Dreamers
1985
as Marcus Kleek
MovieOrson Welles' Magic Show
1985
as Self
The Dean Martin Celebrity Roast: Michael Landon
1984
as Self
MovieAlmonds and Raisins
1984
as Narrator
MovieThe Road to Bresson
1984
as Self
MovieThe Last Sailors: The Final Days of Working Sail
1984
as Narrator
In Our Hands
1984
as Himself
MovieThe Spirit of Charles Lindbergh
1984
as himself
MovieWhere Is Parsifal?
1984
as Klingsor
MovieThe Witching
1983
as Mr. Cato
MovieCan She Bake a Cherry Pie?
1983
as Magician (uncredited)
MovieThe Psychic Connection
1983
as Narrator
King Penguin: Stranded Beyond the Falklands
1983
as Self - Narrator
MovieOrson Welles at the Cinémathèque Française
1983
as Himself
MovieHot Money
1983
as Sheriff Paisley
MovieSlapstick of Another Kind
1982
as Aliens' Father (voice) (uncredited)
MovieWagner e Venezia
1982
as Richard Wagner (voice)
MovieNatalie - A Tribute to a Very Special Lady
1982
as Self
MovieThe Orson Welles Story
1982
as Self
MovieBaryshnikov in Hollywood
1982
as Self - Narrator
MovieGenocide
1982
as Narrator (voice)
MovieNight of 100 Stars
1982
as Self
MovieDoug Henning's World of Magic
1982
as Self - Special Guest
MovieButterfly
1982
as Judge Rauch
MovieLet Poland Be Poland
1982
as Self
MovieMagic with the Stars
1982
as Self - Host
MovieThe Quest for Fire Adventure
1982
as Narrator
MovieA Gift of Harvest
1981
as Narrator
MovieBrasil
1981
as Self (archive footage)
MovieSearch for the Titanic
1981
as Self - Host
MovieThe New Deal for Artists
1981
as Narrator (voice)
MovieHistory of the World: Part I
1981
as Narrator (voice)
Tales of the Klondike
1981
as Narrator
MovieFilming 'The Trial'
1981
as Self
MovieThe Man Who Saw Tomorrow
1981
as Presenter / Narrator (voice)
TVMagnum, P.I.
1980
as Robin Masters (voice)
Franklin D. Roosevelt Four Freedoms Park
1980
as Narrator
TVShōgun
1980
as Narrator
MovieThe Secret of Nikola Tesla
1980
as J.P. Morgan
A Step Away
1980
as English Narrator
MovieThe Greenstone
1980
as Narrator (voice)
MovieThe New Media Bible: Book of Genesis
1979
as Narrator
MovieFrank Sinatra: The First 40 Years
1979
as Self
To Try Again... and Succeed
1979
as Narrator (voice)
MovieFilming Othello
1979
as Host
MovieThe Muppet Movie
1979
as Lew Lord
MovieThe Double McGuffin
1979
as Narrator (voice)
MovieThe Orson Welles Show
1979
as Self
MovieThe Greatest Adventure--The Story of Man's Voyage to the Moon
1979
as Narrator
TVA Woman Called Moses
1978
as Narrator (voice)
TVThe Magic of David Copperfield
1978
as Host
MovieOrson Welles at The Magic Castle
1978
as Self
MovieThe Biggest Battle
1978
as Narratore
MovieThe Late Great Planet Earth
1978
as Self
MovieMysterious Castles of Clay
1978
as Narrator
MovieTut: The Boy King
1978
as Himself - Host
MovieCaesar's Guide to Gaming with Orson Welles
1978
as Himself
MovieIt Happened One Christmas
1977
as Henry F. Potter
The Lions of Capitalism: Some Call It Greed
1977
as Narrator
MovieThe Force Beyond
1977
as Himself (archive footage)
MovieHot Tomorrows
1977
as Parklawn Mortuary (voice)
MovieThe Shirley MacLaine Special: Where Do We Go from Here?
1977
as Self
MovieThe Rime of the Ancient Mariner
1977
as Narrator
MovieFrom Fiber to Fabric: Wool's a Natural
1977
as Narrator
MovieVoyage of the Damned
1976
as José Estedes
MovieNBC: The First Fifty Years
1976
as Self / Narrator
TVCérémonie des César
1976
as Self - President
MovieBugs Bunny Superstar
1976
as Narrator (voice)
A Mother's Tale
1976
as Narrator
TVDoug Henning's World of Magic
1975
as Self
MovieBrother, Can You Spare a Dime?
1975
as Self (archive footage)
Orson Welles - Das vermarktete Genie
1975
as Self
Magnificent Monsters of the Deep
1975
as Narrator
MovieRikki-Tikki-Tavi
1975
as Narrator / Nag / Chuchundra (voice)
MovieWho's Out There?
1975
as Host
MovieThe Challenge... A Tribute to Modern Art
1974
as Narrator
A Legend a Lifetime: Citizen Welles
1974
TVDinah!
1974
as Self
MovieAnd Then There Were None
1974
as Voice on Tape
MovieLetter to Jane: An Investigation About a Still
1974
as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Power and Corruption
1973
as Himself
Kelly Country
1973
as Narrator
TVThe Dean Martin Celebrity Roasts
1973
as Self
MovieF for Fake
1973
as Self
TVOrson Welles' Great Mysteries
1973
as Self - Host
MovieThe Battle of Sutjeska
1973
as Winston Churchill
TVThe American Film Institute Salute to ...
1973
as Self
MovieThe Cave: a parable told by Orson Welles
1973
as Narrator
MovieThe Cave
1973
as Narrator
MovieThe Man Who Came to Dinner
1972
as Sheridan Whiteside
MovieTreasure Island
1972
as Long John Silver
MovieNecromancy
1972
as Mr. Cato
MovieGet to Know Your Rabbit
1972
as Mr. Delasandro
MovieMalpertuis
1972
as Cassavius
MovieJeanne Moreau : Vive le cinéma !
1972
as Self
Future Shock
1972
as Narrator
MovieTen Days' Wonder
1971
as Théo Van Horn
MovieA Safe Place
1971
as The Magician
MovieDirected by John Ford
1971
as Narrator (voice)
The Silent Years
1971
V.I.P. Schaukel
1971
as Self
MovieSentinels of Silence
1971
MovieFlame of Persia
1971
as Narrator
MovieFreedom River
1971
as Narrator
MovieAn Evening with Orson Welles: The Golden Honeymoon
1970
MovieAn Evening with Orson Welles: The Happy Prince
1970
MovieAn Evening with Orson Welles: American Heritage, Vol. I – Selections from George Ade, Thomas Wolfe, Mark Twain
1970
MovieAn Evening with Orson Welles: American Heritage, Vol. II – Clarence Darrow
1970
MovieAn Evening with Orson Welles: Two Wise Old Men – Socrates and Noah
1970
MovieAn Evening with Orson Welles: My Little Boy
1970
TVNight Gallery
1970
as Narrator
MovieIs It Always Right to Be Right?
1970
as Narrator
MovieWaterloo
1970
as Louis XVIII
The Enemy Before Us
1970
as Narrator
MovieCatch-22
1970
as Brigadier General Dreedle
MovieStart the Revolution Without Me
1970
as The Narrator
MovieThe Kremlin Letter
1970
as Bresnavitch
MovieUpon This Rock
1970
as Michelangelo (voice)
MovieA Horse Called Nijinsky
1970
as Narrator
MovieThe Merchant of Venice (Rushes)
1970
as Shylock
MovieSoft Self-Portrait of Salvador Dali
1969
as Narrator (voice)
MovieThe Merchant of Venice
1969
as Shylock
MovieTwelve Plus One
1969
as Markan
MovieThe Battle of Neretva
1969
as Četnik
MovieThe Southern Star
1969
as Plankett
MovieThe Fight for Rome II - The Betrayal
1969
as Justinian
MovieTepepa
1969
as Colonel Cascorro
MovieTo Build a Fire
1969
as Narrator (voice)
MovieThe Fight for Rome
1968
as Justinian
TVThe Name of the Game
1968
as Narrator
MovieThe Immortal Story
1968
as Charles Clay
MovieHouse of Cards
1968
as Leschenhaut
MovieAround the World of Mike Todd
1968
as Self - Narrator
TVThe Dick Cavett Show
1968
as Self - Guest
MoviePortrait d'Orson Welles
1968
as Self
MovieOedipus the King
1968
as Tiresias
TVRowan & Martin's Laugh-In
1968
as Self
MovieVienna
1968
as Himself
MovieI'll Never Forget What's'isname
1967
as Jonathan Lute
MovieBeggars Would Ride
1967
as Narrator
TVOmnibus
1967
as Self - Presenter
Disorder Is 20 Years Old
1967
as Self
MovieCasino Royale
1967
as Le Chiffre
MovieThe Sailor from Gibraltar
1967
as Louis de Mozambique
MovieTen Days That Shook the World
1967
as Narrator
MovieA Man for All Seasons
1966
as Cardinal Wolsey
MovieIs Paris Burning?
1966
as Konsul Nordling
MovieOrson Welles in Spain
1966
as Himself
MovieChimes at Midnight
1965
as Falstaff
MovieMiss Goodall and the Wild Chimpanzees
1965
as Self - Narrator (voice)
Americans on Everest
1965
as Narrator- Self
TVNational Geographic Specials
1965
as Narrator
MovieMarco the Magnificent
1965
as Akerman, Marco's Teacher
MovieProfile No. 6: Orson Welles
1965
MovieA King's Story
1965
as Narrator
TVPour le plaisir
1964
as Self
MovieThe Finest Hours
1964
as Narrator (voice)
TVIn the Land of Don Quixote
1964
as Himself
TVHollywood and the Stars
1963
as Self (archive footage)
MovieThe V.I.P.s
1963
as Max Buda
MovieLa ricotta
1963
MovieRo.Go.Pa.G.
1963
as The 'Director' (segment "La ricotta")
River of the Ocean
1962
as Narrator (English)
TVThe Merv Griffin Show
1962
as Self
TVThe Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
1962
as Self
MovieThe Trial
1962
as Albert Hastler
MovieLafayette
1962
as Benjamin Franklin
TVTempo
1961
as Self
MovieKing of Kings
1961
as Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
MovieThe Tartars
1961
as Burundai
TVSurvival
1961
as Narrator
MovieAusterlitz
1960
as Robert Fulton
MovieAn Arabian Night
1960
as Storyteller
MovieCrack in the Mirror
1960
as Hagolin / Lamerciere
MovieFive Columns on the Front Page: Hong Kong as seen by Orson Welles
1960
as Self (narrator)
MovieDavid and Goliath
1960
as King Saul
MovieHigh Journey
1959
as Narrator
MovieFerry to Hong Kong
1959
as Captain Hart
MovieCompulsion
1959
as Jonathan Wilk
Lords of the Forest
1958
as Narrator (voice)
MovieThe Roots of Heaven
1958
as Cy Sedgewick
MovieThe Fountain of Youth
1958
as the narrator
MovieOrson Welles at Large: Portrait of Gina
1958
as Self - Host
TVColgate Theatre
1958
MovieSouth Seas Adventure
1958
as Narrator
MovieThe Vikings
1958
as Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
MovieThe Long, Hot Summer
1958
as Will Varner
MovieTouch of Evil
1958
as Police Captain Hank Quinlan
MovieMan in the Shadow
1957
as Virgil Renchler
Out of Darkness
1956
as Self - Narrator
MovieMoby Dick
1956
as Father Mapple
TVThe Steve Allen Show
1956
as Self
TVCinépanorama
1956
as Self
Orson Welles and People: Camille, the Naked Lady and the Musketeers
1956
as Self - Narrator (voice)
MovieThe Land of the Basques
1955
as Himself
TVAround the World with Orson Welles
1955
as Host: Orson Welles
Ford Star Jubilee
1955
as Oscar Jaffe
MovieMr. Arkadin
1955
as Gregory Arkadin
MovieMoby Dick—Rehearsed
1955
as An Actor Manager /Father Mapple /Ahab
TVOrson Welles' Sketch Book
1955
as Himself - Host
MovieNapoleon
1955
as Sir Hudson Lowe
MovieThree Cases of Murder
1955
as Lord Mountdrago ("Lord Mountdrago" segment)
MovieTrouble in the Glen
1954
as Sanin Cejador y Mengues
TVReflets de Cannes
1954
as Self
MovieRoyal Affairs in Versailles
1953
as Benjamin Franklin
MovieKing Lear
1953
as King Lear
MovieMan, Beast and Virtue
1953
as Captain Perella, the Beast
MovieReturn to Glennascaul
1953
as Narrator
TVOmnibus
1952
as King Lear
MovieTrent's Last Case
1952
as Sigsbee Manderson
TVHallmark Hall of Fame
1951
as Sheridan Whiteside
MovieOthello
1951
as Othello
TVI Love Lucy
1951
as Orson Welles
MovieDisorder
1950
as Self
MovieThe Black Rose
1950
as Bayan
TVWhat's My Line?
1950
as Self
MovieThe Miracle of St. Anne
1950
as The Director
MoviePrince of Foxes
1949
as Cesare Borgia
MovieThe Third Man
1949
as Harry Lime
MovieBlack Magic
1949
as Joseph Balsamo aka Count Cagliostro
MovieMacbeth
1948
as Macbeth
TVThe Ed Sullivan Show
1948
as Self
MovieThe Lady from Shanghai
1947
as Michael O'Hara
MovieDuel in the Sun
1946
as Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
Battle for Survival
1946
as Narrator
MovieThe Stranger
1946
as Prof. Charles Rankin
MovieTomorrow Is Forever
1946
as John Andrew MacDonald
Mexico City, Old and New
1945
as Narrator
MovieFollow the Boys
1944
as Orson Welles (uncredited)
MovieKnow Your Ally: Britain
1944
as Narrator/Bob (helpful taxi passenger)
MovieJane Eyre
1943
as Edward Rochester
MovieShow-Business at War
1943
as Self
MovieJourney into Fear
1943
as Colonel Haki
MovieThe Magnificent Ambersons
1942
as Narrator (voice)
MovieCitizen Kane
1941
as Charles Foster Kane
MovieSwiss Family Robinson
1940
as Opening Narrator (uncredited)
The Green Goddess
1939
as Rajah/Narrator
MovieThe Spanish Earth
1937
as Narrator (voice)
MovieThe Hearts of Age
1934
as Death
MovieTwelfth Night
1933
as Narrator
Something Else
Voyage of the Brigantine Yankee
as Narrator
