A List of All of the Wes Anderson Films, Ranked

His hotel concierges are charismatic and committed, while his lobby boys are devoted and delightful. His foxes are nothing short of fantastic, and his dogs are as resourceful as they are adorable. Every time that he turns his attention to a family dynamic — be it siblings, strained parent-child relationships or friendships so close that they feel like bonds of blood — dysfunction always reigns supreme. And, when all of the above occurs, it does so within immaculately symmetrical yet immensely eccentric frames.

Yes, we're talking about Wes Anderson, and the distinctive body of work that the American filmmaker has splashed across cinema screens over the past three decades. Usually chronicling some kind of caper, often featuring a retro 60s and 70s soundtrack, and styled so meticulously that each image could happily hang on anyone's wall (in fact, he's even curated museum exhibitions), his films are like no one else's. Often brought to life by a familiar cast of faces — Owen Wilson, Luke Wilson, Jason Schwartzman, Bill Murray, Jeff Goldblum, Anjelica Huston, Tilda Swinton, Willem Dafoe, Adrien Brody, Bob Balaban, Edward Norton, Scarlett Johansson and Benicio del Toro, to name a few — they firmly resonate on their own frequency. And, understandably so, they've amassed quite a following. But, from a filmography to-date that spans from Bottle Rocket to The Phoenician Scheme, which is the best?

As always, that's a subjective question. Like ranking Studio Ghibli movies, it's also a task made all the more difficult by a simple fact: Wes Anderson has never made a bad film, not once. That said, while some are flatout masterpieces that will always stand the test of time, others are entertaining but don't necessarily demand multiple rewatches. That's what we found when we revisited the 13 features (well, 12 and four shorts packaged as an anthology film, which we're counting) currently on his resume, and soaked in his inimitable cinematic creations. And, here are the results: our rundown of Anderson's films from worst — again, not that there's any such thing as a terrible Anderson flick — to best.

13. Moonrise Kingdom

By virtue of their format, a ranked list always requires something to come in last place. Moonrise Kingdom earns that honour on Wes Anderson's filmography — not because it isn't great, which it is, but because it's the movie on his resume that can stick in the mind the least. A bittersweet story about first love and finding a home, it's also the rare Anderson film that feels as much a part of its genre as part of the director's oeuvre. In other words, it's definitely an Anderson flick, but it also charts rather recognisable coming-of-age territory. Still, watching 12-year-olds Suzy Bishop (Kara Hayward, Slayers) and Sam Shakusky (Jared Gilman, Angry Neighbours) set the New England island of New Penzance aflutter when they run off in the name of romance is typically charming.

Moonrise Kingdom streams via YouTube Movies, iTunes and Prime Video. Read our full review.

12. The Darjeeling Limited

In Anderson's fifth film, three brothers take a train across India in the eponymous locomotive. During their trip, Francis (Owen Wilson, Loki), Jack (Jason Schwartzman, The Last Showgirl) and Peter (Adrien Brody, The Brutalist) work through their sibling baggage while literally carting around matching orange-hued, monogrammed baggage. It's been a year since they last crossed paths at their father's funeral, and life isn't treating any of them kindly — with Anderson and co-writers Schwartzman and Roman Coppola (Mozart in the Jungle) balancing the brothers' existential malaise with episodic antics both on the train and off. As stylish as any Anderson-directed feature, The Darjeeling Limited is served best by its performances, as well as its touching blend of sadness and humour.

The Darjeeling Limited streams via Disney+, YouTube Movies, iTunes and Prime Video.

11. Bottle Rocket

When Anderson made his feature directorial debut back in 1996, he did so with this crime-comedy caper about three friends planning a series of heists in the absence of any other direction in their lives. Based on a short film of the same name that he helmed two years prior, and co-written with Owen Wilson, who also stars, Bottle Rocket establishes many of the filmmaker's trademarks from the outset — including his penchant for witty interactions, as well as his love of dressing his characters in coordinated outfits. Owen Wilson plays Dignan, the driving force; however, as his recently voluntarily institutionalised best friend Anthony, this is Luke Wilson's (No Good Deed) time to shine. A third Wilson, their elder brother Andrew (Father Figures), also pops up, because of course he does.

Bottle Rocket streams via YouTube Movies, iTunes and Prime Video.

10. The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar and Three More

It might've originally been released as four separate short films, led by Best Live-Action Short Oscar-winner The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar, but this 2023 addition to Anderson's resume always made sense as an anthology. In its 39-minute namesake chapter, Ralph Fiennes (Conclave) plays Roald Dahl, who did indeed pen the tale that gives this suitably symmetrically shot affair its name — the book it's in, too. The account that the author spills to start is about a man who has learned to see without his eyes (Ben Kingsley, The King of Kings), the doctor (Dev Patel, Monkey Man) fascinated with him and the gambler (Benedict Cumberbatch, Eric) who wants to master the trick, and is one of several in a movie that enthusiastically makes Anderson's love of layers known in its playful structure as much as its faux set.

The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar and Three More streams via Netflix. Read our full review.

9. Isle of Dogs

A literal underdog tale about scrappy canines, a plucky orphan and a pooch-hating politician with an evil scheme, Isle of Dogs is one of the most Wes Anderson-esque movies the filmmaker has ever made. Filled with heart, humour and witty dialogue, this doggone delight is constructed with the tail-wagging enthusiasm of man's best friend — and, as well as sporting all of the beloved Anderson traits (quirky quests, spirited characters, symmetrical compositions, a distinctive colour palette and a huge cast among them), it tells a stellar story. The setup: when his uncle, Megasaki City's mayor, bans all dogs to Trash Island, 12-year-old Atari (Koyu Rankin, Dead Boy Detectives) risks his life to follow his four-legged companion. At every moment, the director fills his narrative to the brim like an overflowing bowl of dog treats, spoiling viewers like he'd spoil his own animal companion.

Isle of Dogs streams via Disney+, YouTube Movies, iTunes and Prime Video. Read our full review.

8. The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou

The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou will always be Anderson's undersung gem. It's so quintessentially Anderson and, with its length, it's guilty of sprawling — but every absurdist moment is a marvel. The premise, casting Bill Murray (Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire) as a Jacques Cousteau-style oceanographer intent on getting revenge on the just-discovered jaguar shark that killed his best friend, is instantly amusing. Trapping a crew of offbeat folks at sea while Zissou pursues his quest provides plenty of comic as well as thoughtful moments, too. The soundtrack of David Bowie songs, including Portuguese-language covers by The Life Aquatic co-star Seu Jorge, sets the pitch-perfect mood. And, visually, Anderson's pans through a cross-section of the ship are always striking. Also, no one has ever watched this film and not immediately wanted a pair of Team Zissou sneakers.

The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou streams via Disney+, YouTube Movies, iTunes and Prime Video.

7. Rushmore

In Anderson's 1998 breakout film, there's nothing that Max Fischer (Jason Schwartzman) loves more than Rushmore Academy. As the director conveys so engagingly, his 15-year-old protagonist has spent the bulk of his life at the exclusive private school — mainly starting extra-curricular clubs, as well as annoying both the headmaster (Brian Cox, The Parenting) and his classmates with his enthusiasm, all while barely caring about his grades. Then, just as he befriends a wealthy company owner (Bill Murray), Max falls for the new first-grade teacher (Olivia Williams, Dune: Prophecy). One of the best of Anderson's coming-of-age films, Rushmore deploys both Schwartzman and Murray to perfection, while weaving a smart yet also often dark comedy about learning to adjust your dreams.

Rushmore streams via Disney+, YouTube Movies, iTunes and Prime Video.

6. Fantastic Mr Fox

Combine Anderson, a magnificent Roald Dahl-penned all-ages story and stunning stop-motion animation, and you get a match made in cinematic heaven. Dahl wrote the acclaimed 1970 children's novel about the canny and cunning titular fox, of course, while Anderson brings it to vibrant life with a voice cast that includes George Clooney (Wolfs), Meryl Streep (Only Murders in the Building), Jason Schwartzman, Bill Murray, Willem Dafoe (Nosferatu) and Owen Wilson (and via a script co-written with Frances Ha, Marriage Story and White Noise's Noah Baumbach, too). While Fantastic Mr Fox marked Anderson's first animated feature, he's a natural when it comes to witty comedy paired with playfulness and a whole lot of sight gags. As for the story, it follows Mr Fox's (Clooney) efforts to outsmart a trio of mean farmers — and it's told here with energy, personality and Anderson's usual flair.

Fantastic Mr Fox streams via Disney+, Stan, YouTube Movies, iTunes and Prime Video.

5. The French Dispatch

Editors fictional and real may disagree — The French Dispatch of the Liberty, Kansas Evening Sun's Arthur Howitzer Jr (Bill Murray) among them — but it's easy to use Wes Anderson's name as both an adjective and a verb. In a sentence that'd never get printed in this film's titular tome (and mightn't in The New Yorker, its inspiration, either), The French Dispatch is another one of the most Wes Anderson movies Wes Anderson has ever Wes Andersoned. It spins three main stories and a couple of delightful interludes like it's laying out pieces from its titular magazine, and it's as symmetrical, idiosyncratic and thoughtful as the writer/director's work has even been. Plus, the cast is packed, as well as glorious in offbeat performances as always, with Tilda Swinton (The Room Next Door), Timothée Chalamet (A Complete Unknown), Benicio del Toro (Reptile) and Jeffrey Wright (The Last of Us) among the standouts.

The French Dispatch streams via Disney+, YouTube Movies, iTunes and Prime Video. Read our full review.

4. The Phoenician Scheme

It'll always be a glaring oversight that Ralph Fiennes didn't win every award that he could for The Grand Budapest Hotel. Here's hoping that Benicio del Toro's efforts in The Phoenician Scheme aren't similarly overlooked. After the actor's sublime work for Anderson in one of The French Dispatch's segments, the Traffic Oscar-winner is again exceptional as Anatole 'Zsa-zsa' Korda, who starts this film in a plane crash, then trying to appoint his sole daughter Liesl (Mia Threapleton, The Buccaneers), a trainee nun, to agree to be his heir. They give each other a trial period — as a father, and as the person who'll carry on Zsa-zsa's legacy. Their other key focus: attempting to enact the titular scheme. Both del Toro and Michael Cera, as a Norwegian tutor, couldn't be more at home in front of Anderson's lens. This is also one of his movies that cuts deep emotionally, and seamlessly shows how he's a master at his usual touches while also venturing into new territory.

The Phoenician Scheme released in Australian cinemas on Thursday, May 29, 2025. Read our interview with Benicio del Toro and Michael Cera.

3. Asteroid City

Asteroid City is Anderson's 11th movie, also a desert spot known for a hefty crater caused 5000 years ago and a play about said locale. As the film itself tells viewers direct to-camera, however, the latter two — the setting and the theatre show — definitely aren't real, even within the world of the feature itself. Anderson gets especially playful in this film about a Junior Stargazer convention, the motley crew of folks that it brings to town in September 1955 and the otherworldly interloper who causes chaos. Staging a play within a TV show within a movie, he gets as smart and moving as his work has ever been to contemplate art, authenticity, and the emotions found in and processed through works of creativity, too. As the closest thing that the ensemble piece has to leads, Jason Schwartzman and Scarlett Johansson (Fly Me to the Moon) are astronomically spectacular, as are the film's look, feel, insightful musings, sense of humour and crater-sized impact.

Asteroid City streams via Paramount+, YouTube Movies, iTunes and Prime Video. Read our full review.

2. The Grand Budapest Hotel

Many a well-known actor has graced Anderson's frames. Most have done so multiple times, with Bill Murray appearing in ten of his 13 films thus far. But no one has put in a performance quite like Ralph Fiennes as M. Gustave in The Grand Budapest Hotel. As the dedicated concierge at the titular holiday spot in the Republic of Zubrowka, he's a powerhouse — as amusing as he is charming, vibrant, confident, soulful, wily and determined. Indeed, it's no wonder that Anderson lets this layered tale of friendship, war, fascism and tragedy hang off his leading man. The rest of his ensemble cast works a treat, including Saoirse Ronan (Blitz) and then-newcomer Tony Revolori (Servant), and this is one of Anderson's most aesthetically stunning creations. Still, without Fiennes, it would've lacked quite a bit of its ample magic.

The Grand Budapest Hotel streams via Disney+, YouTube Movies, iTunes and Prime Video. Read our full review.

1. The Royal Tenenbaums

In his first two films, Anderson focused on characters striving for greatness, be it through pulling off heists in Bottle Rocket or tying their identity to their school in Rushmore. In The Royal Tenenbaums, the titular family's three children were all once great. In fact, they were child prodigies. But as adults, their lives have seen more disappointment and joy, a truth that stern widower and finance whiz Chas (Ben Stiller, Nutcrackers), fiercely private playwright Margot (Gwyneth Paltrow, The Politician) and ex-tennis star Richie (Luke Wilson) are forced to face just as their father (the now-late, great Gene Hackman, Welcome to Mooseport) resurfaces and their mother (Anjelica Huston, Towards Zero) prepares to get remarried. Although undeniably whimsical, it's the most melancholy, poignant and deeply felt of the director's features. And, in its visuals and its performances, it's also oh-so-rich with affecting detail.

The Royal Tenenbaums streams via Disney+, YouTube Movies, iTunes and Prime Video.