12 Best Jason Sudeikis Movies & TV Shows, Ranked

For the past 20 years, Jason Sudeikis has been one of the most prominent voices in American comedy. The actor and comedian came into the world with at least one showbiz connection — his uncle is George Wendt of "Cheers" fame — but he has carved out his own unique space in film and television, outwardly the clean-cut straight man, but with deep reserves of cynicism hidden underneath a bright smile. Sudeikis got his start with the Second City improv troupe before eventually being hired by "Saturday Night Live," where his career really took off. Since working on the show for a decade, he has developed a thriving career that encompasses television, independent dramedies, and big-budget blockbusters. 

His filmography showcases a keen eye for both interesting characters with unexpected facets to their personality and projects that capitalize on his strengths as a performer. Over the years, Sudeikis has earned rave reviews from both audiences and critics, as well as four Primetime Emmys, two Golden Globes, and three Screen Actors Guild Awards. Here are just a few of his most impressive performances.

Although "Downsizing" was not a huge success when it was first released, the years passing have led audiences to reevaluate the quirky science fiction film. Matt Damon stars as a man who agrees to participate in a controversial shrinking program — he, alongside his wife, will be reduced in size to just a few inches tall. Not only does this literal downsizing plan offer them new financial and lifestyle opportunities (they will, for example, save huge amounts of money in rent with a bedroom the size of a shoebox), but it also presents a chance to significantly reduce their carbon footprint. Everything is set, and Paul (Damon) goes through with the unnerving procedure — only to discover after completing the irreversible process that his wife had second thoughts at the last minute and backed out.

Jason Sudeikis plays Dave, Paul's childhood friend who first encourages the couple to consider downsizing when he and his wife turn up pint-sized at their high school reunion. Although his role in "Downsizing" is fairly small (pun intended), Sudeikis operates as the catalyst for the film's entire narrative with his trademark smarmy charm.

You would be entirely forgiven if "Driven" never came across your radar — it quietly hit theaters in August 2019 and disappeared into the void just as quickly, failing to make much of an impact on audiences. But if the film has its fair share of flaws, it is bolstered entirely by the charismatic performances of its two lead actors, Jason Sudeikis and Lee Pace. Sudeikis plays a pilot who, after getting caught running drugs between the United States and South America, takes a deal with the FBI to work as an informant. 

He is relocated across the country, where he quickly discovers that his new neighbor is John DeLorean, who just so happens to be looking for funding for his new car design and isn't particularly picky about whether the money is clean, strictly speaking. Sudeikis plays the ebullient con man with panache, injecting a vibrant energy into the entire production that helps elevate "Driven" above its fairly rote (and in regards to the life of John DeLorean, wildly inaccurate) narrative. Tim Hayes of Sight & Sound summarized the appeal of his character, writing, "Since Sudeikis is by nature a droll straight man, his Hoffman constantly trips over the gap between good intentions and inevitable failure," while reserving the majority of his praise for the enigmatic, scene-stealing performance of Pace as John DeLorean.

Rebecca Hall and Jason Sudeikis may not be the likeliest of romantic pairings, but they are undeniably charming in "Tumbledown." A small independent movie filmed primarily in New England, "Tumbledown" stars Sudeikis as journalist Andrew McCabe, who travels to Maine to write a piece on a beloved folk singer Hunter Miles' death, only to find himself falling in love with his grieving widow Hannah (Hall). The film might disappoint audiences who are looking for a bright and sunny romance, since "Tumbledown" goes down a much more melancholy road, tackling complicated feelings about the process of moving on from loss. 

It leans more heavily toward drama, despite its star's comedic pedigree. Peter Travers of Rolling Stone praised first-time director Sean Mewshaw, writing that he "directs the defensive banter between Hannah and Miles with an affinity for comic tone that never betrays the pain underneath." He also spoke highly of Sudeikis' performance, saying he "shows real skills as an actor ... [and] is wonderfully funny and touching."

With an ensemble cast of bright stars — both established comedians and rising up-and-comers — "We're the Millers" takes an absurd premise and makes it better than it has any right to be. Jason Sudeikis stars as a low-level drug dealer who, after losing a large amount of cash for his boss, is forced into smuggling drugs from Mexico into the United States. But as a single, slightly shady-looking guy in his 30s, he's concerned that he won't be able to slip through the border without getting searched. 

So, he hatches a plan to create the perfect, clean-cut American family who will (he believes) sail through customs with nary a second glance. To this end, he rounds up a crack team of experts — or rather, a 40-something stripper (Jennifer Aniston), a teenage runaway (Emma Roberts), and a lonely little nerd from his building (Will Poulter) — to pose as his wife and children. Their scheme, predictably, runs into roadblocks almost immediately but takes so many unexpected and genuinely funny turns as to make "We're the Millers" a comedic delight. Although it received mixed reviews from critics, it performed extremely well at the box office, earning $270 million — it even helped garner Will Poulter a BAFTA Rising Star Award.

A key component of Jason Sudeikis' 2010s indie phase, "Kodachrome" sees the actor paired up with Ed Harris. Sudeikis plays Matt, a record label executive who, after being estranged from his father Ben (Harris) for the better part of a decade, agrees to accompany him on one last road trip. It turns out that Ben, a well-known photographer, has recently been diagnosed with cancer. Before he dies, he decides to have his last rolls of film developed — no small task, considering that there's only one store in the entire United States that still has the equipment to process Ben's obsolete film stock. So Matt and Ben set off on a journey to Kansas. Will they mend their fences and come to understand one another better along the way? It seems likely.

"Kodachrome" is a wistful ode to a bygone era, aching for both the lost days of Kodak and this broken relationship between father and son. Despite starring a popular comedian, it's far more in drama territory, with many critics praising its two lead performances. Rex Reed of Observer wrote glowingly of the two actors, "Jason Sudeikis does the best and most sensitive work of his acting career and Ed Harris is typically first-rate — a combination of raw mendacity and hidden humanity."

There comes a time in every comedian's life when he begins to think, "Maybe I should try my hand at drama?" And not just a low-budget indie dramedy, but a drama drama. That moment came for Jason Sudeikis in "Race," a period film that details Black track star Jesse Owens' (Stephan James) experiences as he prepares for the 1936 Olympics in Berlin — hardly a bastion of racial equality. The bigotry he faces in Nazi Germany is pointedly juxtaposed with the treatment he receives in the United States: Even after becoming an international celebrity with four Olympic gold medals, he is required to use the service entrance at an event being held in his honor.

Sudeikis stars as Larry Snyder, his college track coach, who attempts to hone his natural talent with discipline and technique. Over the course of the film, the two begin to develop a mutual respect for one another that blossoms into a genuine friendship. "Race" didn't set the box office on fire, but it was well-received by both audiences and critics, with most considering it likable enough, if somewhat predictable.

It's great when a romantic comedy has a really compelling story, but let's be honest; all we really need out of a rom-com is a strong cast and great chemistry between the leads. That's what we get in "Sleeping With Other People." Jason Sudeikis and Alison Brie star as a pair of former college classmates who become unexpected friends years later after reconnecting as part of a support group for people dealing with sex addiction. Not exactly your typical meet-cute, but it works for these two. They grow surprisingly close together, and despite their acknowledged sexual attraction to one another, they agree not to sleep together. Who wants to take bets on how long that'll last?

Sudeikis and Brie have a natural rapport with one another, and they're bolstered by an excellent supporting cast that includes Jason Mantzoukas, Adam Brody, Adam Scott, and Natasha Lyonne. Although it never quite goes dark in a way that would make "Sleeping With Other People" truly stand out from the crowd, it's difficult not to enjoy — Jonathan Romney of The Observer praised the film's "mix of sophistication and unabashed raunch [that] has a definite light charm."

Created by Jason Sudeikis' former "Saturday Night Live" co-star Will Forte, "The Last Man on Earth" quickly developed a reputation for being one of the most unique shows on television. Running on Fox for four seasons in the late 2010s, "The Last Man on Earth" stars Forte as Phil, a man who survives an apocalyptic pandemic, only to discover that the global population has been decimated to such an extent that he believes himself to be the only person left alive. But the show probably couldn't have run for four years if he was just him, right? 

After a while, other survivors begin to trickle into the storyline, including one played by Sudeikis. His character Mike is Phil's younger brother, an astronaut who has just returned to Earth and missed out on the whole deadly virus thing by virtue of being in outer space. He works delightfully off of Forte, as the two rekindle their childhood rivalry before eventually burying the hatchet. "The Last Man on Earth" was met with approval from the critical community, and earned five Emmy nominations.

Starring Anne Hathaway in an extremely out-of-character role, "Colossal" represents a swing for the fences. It's a science fiction comedy about a writer struggling with multiple problems in her life, including a crippling alcohol addiction and a worrying habit of manifesting a giant killer lizard that threatens to destroy the city of Seoul. Jason Sudeikis stars as Oscar, her childhood best friend who happily rekindles their relationship when she returns to her hometown — only he has a few demons himself.

As the two characters unleash havoc (both literally and metaphorically), "Colossal" cleverly (if not particularly subtly) demonstrates the damage we can cause when we're going through an especially messy phase. It's an interesting concept and one that approaches the kaiju narrative from a different perspective. Tara Brady of The Irish Times pointedly compared it to the often rote storytelling of bigger-budget sci-fi films, calling it, "a dazzlingly original fantasy conceit, worked to perfection. Take note DCEU and Marvelverse."

When Olivia Wilde made her directorial debut with "Booksmart," audiences made it clear how much they appreciated watching a film about wild high school adventures that, for once, gave teenage girls permission to be as weird and gross as their male counterparts. It was an instant success, catapulting its two young leads — Kaitlyn Dever and Beanie Feldstein — to Hollywood stardom. Amy and Molly, the two over-achieving characters desperate to experience at least one high school party before they graduate, are incredibly relatable to audiences, from their fumbling attempts at romance to their unintentionally cruel superiority complexes. They hold fast to the idea that the cool kids who partied for the past four years are doomed to peak in high school, but the film's twist is that they all actually got into similarly prestigious universities.

Jason Sudeikis has a small but crucial role in "Booksmart" as the school's beleaguered principal, who has to cope with Molly's domineering ways despite the fact that she's mere hours away from graduation. He also appears later in the film as an Uber driver — in a stunning indictment of what we pay educators — who is unexpectedly subjected to a porn video that Amy and Molly accidentally play through the car's speakers.

Like many comedians of his generation, Jason Sudeikis got his big break on "Saturday Night Live," joining the long-running sketch comedy show as a writer in 2003. At first, he made only occasional on-screen appearances, but it wasn't long before he began to make an impact in front of the camera. He became a featured player in 2005 and joined the main cast a little over a year later. During his decade on the show (he announced his departure in 2013), his performances were almost always infused with a laidback energy, a new take on the traditional straight man. 

He did his fair share of political impersonations — he played a version of then-Vice-President Joe Biden who was "old man strong," as well as a downtrodden Mitt Romney chugging from a contraband carton of milk while ruminating over his electoral loss. But some of his best and most memorable performances took advantage of his unique on-screen persona, including a recurring Devil character who, besides being cool as a cucumber, would appear on Weekend Update to champion some of his latest contributions to humanity (bitcoin and vaping chief among them) as well as bemoan the antics of groups like the Westboro Baptist Church.

In taking a look at Jason Sudeikis' filmography, it becomes clear that he's cornered the market on smarmy, cynical types who are either too cool for school or actively trying to pull something over on their fellow characters. So it was a surprise when he turned up as Ted Lasso, possibly the most earnest Midwesterner ever committed to the small screen. In "Ted Lasso," he plays an American football coach who makes the bizarre decision to take a job managing an English football team, despite knowing almost nothing about the sport. He believes that by making a connection with his players and inspiring them with a little can-do attitude, they'll be able to turn their disastrous season around. Reinforcing the fundamentals? Nope. Investing in top-dollar recruits? No way. Encouraging the players to believe in themselves? Now you're talking.

But what makes the character of Ted Lasso so unique is his almost oppressively positive attitude in spite of some legitimately dark aspects of his life. The show never takes the easy way out, making Ted happy on the outside and cynical on the inside. Instead, it portrays his positivity as something between a coping mechanism and a genuinely sunny outlook. Although "Ted Lasso" Season 3 may not have maintained the momentum of its predecessors, it still represents the creative culmination of a comedic actor embracing the unexpected.