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Tom Waits

Tom Waits

25 movies on Netflix

Biography

Tom Waits is a singer, songwriter, composer and actor from the United States whose gravelly voice and songs about society's margins became his signature. Born in Pomona, California, and raised in nearby Whittier, he began performing on the San Diego folk circuit, then relocated to Los Angeles in 1972, and signed with Asylum Records, putting out his debut album Closing Time (1973) and later Small Change (1976) and Heartattack and Vine (1980). He moved into film with Sylvester Stallone's Paradise Alley (1978), wrote the One from the Heart soundtrack with Crystal Gayle, which earned an Academy Award nomination, and appeared in Coppola's Rumble Fish and The Outsiders. Swordfishtrombones (1983) marked a turn toward an experimental sound, and he wrote songs for Robert Wilson's musicals The Black Rider, Alice and Woyzeck. Grammys came for Bone Machine (1992) and Mule Variations (1999), and in 2011 he joined the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

76years old

Turns 77 on December 7in 64 days

  • Born Pomona
  • Star sign: SagittariusThe sign runs November 22 to December 21
  • Thomas Alan Waits (birth name)

Movie Career

Films
25
Career span
47 years1978 to 2025

Genres

First and latest

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  1. First role

    In 1969 Waits was hired as an occasional doorman at the Heritage coffeehouse, where folk musicians performed regularly, and he began singing there, at first mostly covers of Dylan and Red Sovine's "Phantom 309".

  2. First role

    Waits became friends with Sylvester Stallone, and Stallone cast him in Paradise Alley, where Waits played a drunken piano player in his first film role.

  3. Big break

    Waits kept playing at the Troubadour, and it was there that he met David Geffen, who offered him a recording contract with Asylum Records.

  4. Behind the award

    Waits won a Grammy for Best Alternative Music Album for Bone Machine. When asked about the award, he responded with the question, "alternative to what?!"

  5. Behind the award

    In 2011, Neil Young introduced Waits at his Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction. Young called him indescribable and described him as a performer, singer, actor, magician, spirit guide and changeling.

  6. Behind the camera

    At Allen Ginsberg's suggestion, Waits and Wilson asked William S. Burroughs to write the lyrics, while Waits wrote the music.

Tom Waits movies on Netflix

Best known for

The films on Netflix they are best known for, with the part played in each.

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  1. Licorice Pizza2021 Comedy, Drama, Romanceas Rex Blau

    IMDb rating 7.1164K votes

  2. Seven Psychopaths2012 Comedy, Crimeas Zachariah Rigby

    IMDb rating 7.1291K votes

  3. The Book of Eli2010as Engineer

    IMDb rating 6.8364K votes

  4. Down by Law1986as Zack

    IMDb rating 7.659K votes

  5. The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus2009as Devil

    IMDb rating 6.7158K votes

  6. Bram Stoker's Dracula1992as R.M. Renfield

    IMDb rating 7.4271K votes

  7. The Dead Don't Die2019as Hermit Bob

    IMDb rating 5.4104K votes

  8. The Old Man & the Gun2018as Waller

    IMDb rating 6.753K votes

Most often with

Francis Ford Coppola directed five of these films, Jim Jarmusch five and Hector Babenco two. Five actors appear in three of them each. Pick a number on the chart or a name in the list to see the films they share.

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Steve Buscemi, 3 films togetherSee the 3 films with Steve BuscemiDiane Lane, 3 films togetherSee the 3 films with Diane LaneRoberto Benigni, 3 films togetherSee the 3 films with Roberto BenigniGlenn Withrow, 3 films togetherSee the 3 films with Glenn WithrowNicoletta Braschi, 3 films togetherSee the 3 films with Nicoletta BraschiNicolas Cage, 2 films togetherSee the 2 films with Nicolas CageFrancis Ford CoppolaDirector, 5 filmsSee the 5 films by Francis Ford CoppolaJim JarmuschDirector, 5 filmsSee the 5 films by Jim JarmuschHector BabencoDirector, 2 filmsSee the 2 films by Hector Babenco

Films together

Box office

What Tom Waits's films earned in cinemas worldwide.

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Combined worldwide box office

$689 million

24 of the 25 films have a worldwide figure.

Of the 25 films: 24 worldwide figure; 1 never in cinemas.

  • 24Worldwide figure
  • 1Never in cinemas

Top grosser

Bram Stoker's Dracula1992as R.M. Renfield$216 million

Highest grossing

The eight biggest films earned 86% of the total. The bars are drawn to scale.

  1. 1
    Bram Stoker's Dracula1992as R.M. Renfield
    $216M31.3% of the total
  2. 2
    The Book of Eli2010as Engineer
    $157M22.8% of the total
  3. 3
    The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus2009as Devil
    $64M9.3% of the total
  4. 4
    The Outsiders1983as Buck Merrill
    $34M4.9% of the total
  5. 5
    Licorice Pizza2021as Rex Blau
    $33M4.8% of the total
  6. 6
    Seven Psychopaths2012as Zachariah Rigby
    $33M4.8% of the total
  7. 7
    Mystery Men1999as Doc Heller
    $30M4.3% of the total
  8. 8
    The Cotton Club1984as Irving Stark
    $26M3.8% of the total
The Tiger and the Snow (2005), $24.0 millionThe Dead Don't Die (2019), $15.3 millionThe Old Man & the Gun (2018), $11.3 millionCoffee and Cigarettes (2003), $7.9 millionFather Mother Sister Brother (2025), $7.7 millionIronweed (1987), $7.3 millionParadise Alley (1978), $7.2 millionShort Cuts (1993), $6.1 millionRumble Fish (1983), $2.5 millionMystery Train (1989), $1.5 millionDown by Law (1986), $1.5 millionAt Play in the Fields of the Lord (1991), $1.3 millionTwixt (2011), $647,839Queens Logic (1991), $612,781Wristcutters: A Love Story (2006), $454,026Tom Waits: Big Time (1988), $148,426

$95.6 millionfrom the other 16 films with a worldwide figure, 14% of the total

Awards

One award and honor.

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Tom Waits's awards and nominations, grouped by award
YearAwardFilmResult
Other honors
2011Rock and Roll Hall of FameWon

Online

Official profiles and reference pages.

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