Donald Glover’s 10 Best Movies & TV Shows, Ranked

Summary

• Donald Glover is a multitalented artist with a successful music career, acting roles, multiple awards, and a high bar for industry excellence.
• Despite his success, Glover has appeared in films with mixed reviews like “The Lazarus Effect” and “Solo: A Star Wars Story”.
• Standout projects include “Atlanta”, his magnum opus, and his recent show “Mr. & Mrs. Smith”, highlighting his enjoyable role and chemistry with Maya Erskine.

Donald Glover is a modern Renaissance man, recognized as a multi-talented artist with performances in several fantastic movies and shows under his belt. Aside from acting, Donald Glover is known best for his music career under the stage name Childish Gambino. He’s written and directed for fantastic TV shows, starred in blockbuster movies, and is considered a successful comedian. In terms of career versatility in the entertainment industry, Glover sets a high bar for excellence across several mediums.

Donald Glover began his career at the age of 23, hired to write on the sitcom 30 Rock. His rise to fame came later in another sitcom, Community, where he portrayed Troy. Since then, he’s released multiple albums and starred in box office hits like The Lion King reboot and Spider-Man: Homecoming. He’s the recipient of two Golden Globe Awards, two Emmy Awards, and five Grammy Awards. An Oscar seems to be the only thing left for Glover, though for now, he’s got plenty of great movies and shows to watch through.

10 The Lazarus Effect (2015)

Directed by David Gelb

Donald Glover hasn’t been in too many movies, given the variety of projects he’s ventured into. Unfortunately, that’s allowed the critically shunned The Lazarus Effect to sneak into his best movies. Glover plays a supporting role in the sci-fi/horror movie, and while the film doesn’t have much going for it, it’s fun to see him paired with talented stars like Olivia Wilde and Evan Peters. The film received a 5.2 on IMDb and an abysmal 15% on Rotten Tomatoes, making it a total flop.

9 Mystery Team (2009)

Directed by Dan Eckman

One of Donald Glover’s lesser-known projects, Mystery Team, demonstrates the actors’ comedic abilities at their best. Not only does Glover star in the raunchy 2009 comedy, he also co-wrote the film. It’s fun to see Glover paired with Aubrey Plaza, and Mystery Team makes for a genuinely funny 2000s comedy that’s better than reviews make it seem. Glover’s comedy has sharpened and improved over time, but Mystery Team is still an underrated gem of its era.

8 Magic Mike XXL (2015)

Directed by Gregory Jacobs

Another film where Donald Glover plays a supporting role, Magic Mike XXL, is a fun sequel with an exciting ensemble cast. Donald Glover is joined in the supporting ensemble by stars like Elizabeth Banks and Andie MacDowell, and he manages to stand out in his minor role as the character Andre. The film is a clear downgrade from the first Magic Mike, but it’s still a commercial hit with decent enough reviews, and it’s not the worst movie in the Magic Mike trilogy.

7 The Lion King (2019)

Directed by Jon Favreau

The 2019 reboot of The Lion King wasn’t as critically praised as the original, but it’s hard to deny the film’s success. Donald Glover stars in the lead role in one of the highest-grossing movies ever, and he’s memorable in the musical moments, even keeping up with Beyoncé. While The Lion King received mixed reviews from critics, it has one of Donald Glover’s highest audience scores on Rotten Tomatoes, with an 88%. It’s a divisive movie, but it’s hard to deny its success and broad cultural appeal.

6 Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018)

Directed by Ron Howard

In another well-known yet divisive film, Donald Glover plays a supporting role as Lando Calrissian in Solo: A Star Wars Story, offering a modern rendition of Billy Dee Williams’ classic character. Solo was released amidst a controversial wave of Star Wars films, and fans have varying opinions about the 2018 release. Out of Glover’s many commercial hits, it’s ironic that his Star Wars film was one that didn’t pan out, with Solo being the first in the saga to flop at the box office. Still, Glover is charismatic as Lando, and it seems like he’ll be returning for a Lando movie sometime soon.

5 Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)

Directed by Jon Watts

Cameo roles usually wouldn’t count, but since Donald Glover has appeared as Aaron Davis twice in Spider-Man films, it’s worth noting the 2017 superhero film. Spider-Man: Homecoming is one of the better MCU movies, and Glover’s role is quite memorable. In 2023’s Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, he returns for another rendition of the character, this time suited up as the Prowler. Out of Glover’s feature film roles, Spider-Man: Homecoming also has the second-highest IMDb rating, with a 7.4.

4 Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2023-)

Created by Francesca Sloane and Donald Glover

The show’s brilliant writing is centered around making Glover and Erskine fun to watch, and in that sense, it’s his most enjoyable role.

A modern reboot of the film of the same name, Amazon Prime Video’s Mr. & Mrs. Smith, is the most recent project developed by Donald Glover. He also stars alongside Maya Erskine, with their impeccable chemistry as the show’s highlight. There are several differences between the Mr. & Mrs. Smith movie and the show, including more relatable characters in the Prime Video series, as Glover and Erskine bring immense star power while maintaining general accessibility. The show’s brilliant writing is centered around making Glover and Erskine fun to watch, and in that sense, it’s his most enjoyable role.

3 The Martian (2015)

Directed by Ridley Scott

Appearing in a Ridley Scott is a massive step for any actor, even if it’s a minor role. Donald Glover plays a supporting character in The Martian, which is one of Ridley Scott’s best movies, especially in recent years. The film has one of Glover’s highest Rotten Tomatoes scores and his highest Audience Score. It’s the only film project he’s been a part of that received Academy Award acclaim, including a nomination for Best Picture. Despite his limited screen time, The Martian is a vital piece of Donald Glover’s filmography and is his best film.

Created by Dan Harmon

The Martian may be Glover’s best movie, but his best acting work has been on television. The role of Troy on Community, one of the best sitcoms of all time, launched Donald Glover into fame and earned him recognition as a comedian in front of the camera. Glover is one among the brilliant ensemble of Community, which is still a beloved show that consistently finds new engagement nearly a decade after its conclusion. Even though he left the show before its conclusion, Troy is an unforgettable character, and he’ll return for the Community movie.

1 Atlanta (2016–2022)

Created by Donald Glover

Atlanta is Donald Glover’s most outstanding achievement in the world of film and television, earning him multiple Emmys and Golden Globes. In fact, it’s one of the most astounding television accomplishments of the 21st century, with four phenomenal seasons produced, written, directed by, and starring Donald Glover. At age 40, Atlanta is Donald Glover’s magnum opus, expressing his multi-faceted talent.

Atlanta
explores social issues of race, class, and more through a fascinating, surrealist, heightened reality lens.

The FX series offers a mix of overarching narrative and anthology episodes. While the first season is relatively tame, centered around the hip-hop industry in Atlanta, season 2 begins to explore more complex themes and narrative techniques. Atlanta explores social issues of race, class, and more through a fascinating, surrealist, heightened reality lens. Atlanta season 2 stands out as the best, with Donald Glover showing incredible talent with episodes like “Teddy Perkins,” which solidified the series as groundbreaking television.