11 Of Kirk Douglas’ Most Memorable Movie Roles

Comingsoon.net is taking a look at some of the most memorable movie roles played by an actor whose career has stood the test of time. Check out our picks in the gallery below!

Kirk Douglas died Wednesday morning at the age of 103. His son, actor Michael Douglas paid tribute to his father (upon announcing the news) on Instagram, “to the world, he was a legend, an actor from the Golden Age of movies who lived well into his golden years…to me and my brothers, Joel and Peter, he was simply Dad.” Douglas’ humanitarian nature contributed to his legacy forged by one of the greatest careers in Hollywood history, acting in over 80 films. He was the survivor of a helicopter crash in 1991 and severe stroke in 1996—Douglas’ fortitude and ethics will stand the test of time.

Douglas used his art to say things; for example, in his film Spartacus (which he produced and starred in), he played a slave. Spartacus’ story and Douglas’ performance served as a message to the McCarthy Era establishment. More importantly, the film acted as a rallying cry to all those who had been blacklisted in Hollywood at the time. Creative choices like that one led to Douglas being nominated for 3 Oscars, ultimately winning an honorary Oscar in 1996. He was an actor who worked on and invested in projects he believed in, unconcerned with critical or commercial praise. While a slide show cannot astutely honor or do life justice, we’ve begrudgingly narrowed Douglas’ prolific career down to 11 of his most memorable roles.