Justin Timberlake is an American singer, songwriter, actor, record producer, and entrepreneur. He has been in the limelight since the 90s; starting as a member of the boyband NSYNC and subsequently launching a solo career. His musical accomplishments include winning 9 Grammy awards, selling over 32 million albums and 56 million singles, and being one of the highest-grossing live musicians in the world.
Justin Timberlake has appeared in a number of Hollywood films, making his first appearance on the big screen in 2002 with the cult classic, Crossroads. Along the way, he has also penned a track for the award-winning movie, Trolls. Today he is widely considered one of the most successful musician-turned-actors in Hollywood. Here is a list of all Justin Timberlake movies, focusing on the entertaining musicals and comedies.
The Social Network (2010)
The Social Network is a drama film released in 2010 directed by David Fincher and written by Aaron Sorkin. Justin Timberlake plays the role of Sean Parker, co-founder of Napster and the first President of Facebook. The movie follows the life and career of Mark Zuckerberg, played by Jesse Eisenberg, and his involvement in the founding of the now global, online social network, Facebook. Also starring Justin Timberlake, Andrew Garfield, and Armie Hammer, the film was a commercial success, making over $224 million worldwide and winning 3 Academy Awards for Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Original Score, and Best Film Editing.
The Love Guru (2008)
The Love Guru is a 2008 comedy movie starring Mike Myers and Justin Timberlake. Written and produced by Myers and directed by Marco Schnabel, the movie follows Myers as an American self-help author and spiritualist, Guru Pitka, who is hired by a professional hockey team, the Toronto Maple Leafs, to help one of their players gain the confidence to get back into his game. Justin Timberlake plays the villainous whale, “Jacques Grande”. The Love Guru received overwhelmingly poor reviews, with Rotten Tomatoes giving it a 4% rating and the movie grossing only $40 million worldwide.
Shrek The Third (2007)
In 2007, Justin Timberlake voiced the role of Artie in the animated feature film, Shrek the Third. Directed by Chris Miller, Shrek the Third is the third installment in the Shrek franchise, a comedy film based on the fairytale stories by William Steig. Artie is the small-time, insecure, yet also ambitious teenage prince, who desperately tries to invade the kingdom and conquer the throne. The movie crossed the $800 million mark at the box office, making it the highest-grossing animated movie of the year.
Alpha Dog (2006)
Alpha Dog is a crime-drama directed by Nick Cassavetes and released in 2006. Starring Justin Timberlake, Bruce Willis, Emile Hirsch, and Sharon Stone, the movie follows the real story of a young man named Jesse James Hollywood and how his life spiraled out of control eventually leading to murder. Justin Timberlake plays the role of Frankie Ballenbacher, one of Jesse’s friends and associates who got embroiled in the crime. Alpha Dog managed to pull in $60.2 million at the box office and earned Justin Timberlake numerous awards.
Inside Llewyn Davis (2013)
Inside Llewyn Davis is the latest Justin Timberlake movie, released in 2013 and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen. The movie stars Timberlake in a supporting role as Jim Berkey, a folk singer and Juno character’s love interest in the movie. The movie follows Llewyn Davis, played by Oscar Issac, a folk singer trying to make it in the musical world of New York’s greenwich village in 1961. Inside Llewyn Davis was highly praised and earned a whopping $32 million at the box office.
Justin Timberlake’s transition from a popstar to a serious actor has been truly remarkable. He has appeared in classic movies such as The Social Network, singing an inspiring ballad for the award-winning movie, Trolls, and voiced the light-hearted Artie in the animated movie, Shrek the Third. Justin Timberlake even managed to draw praise for his poor yet entertaining comedy performance in The Love Guru and his award-winning performance in Alpha Dog. Despite the lukewarm reception that Inside Llewyn Davis received, Justin Timberlake’s presence in the movie was well-received by the audience.
From comedies to musicals, Justin Timberlake has demonstrated his versatile performance as an actor. As an award-winning musician, Justin Timberlake is one of the few musicians-turned-actors who made a remarkable mark in Hollywood.
