Top 7 Danny Masterson Movies, Ranked

Here’s a bold claim worth making: Danny Masterson built one of the most recognizable personas in late-90s TV comedy, and his film work has always lived in that shadow. The TV Hulk team ranked these performances by how convincing and memorable Masterson is in each role, how much he disappears into the character versus coasting on the Hyde energy audiences already loved, and how effectively each performance holds up when you strip away the goodwill he earned on the small screen. It’s a short filmography, and a lot of it is supporting work, but there are real moments here worth tracking down.

7. Beethoven’s 2nd (1993)

Seth is a blink-and-you’ll-miss-him role, but you can already see something clicking into place. He’s a teenager in a fluffy family sequel, and the part doesn’t ask much — a few scenes, some light comic reaction work — but watch how he handles the moments where Beethoven does something chaotic in his vicinity. Rather than mugging or overselling the surprise, he lets the reaction land quietly, holding just a beat longer than you’d expect before moving on, which makes it funnier than it has any right to be. That instinct for stillness in the middle of broad physical comedy is exactly what would later make Hyde feel so watchable, and it’s genuinely interesting to catch it this early, already pretty much fully formed.

6. California Solo (2012)

Paul is a quiet role in a quiet film, and Masterson plays him with a restraint that fits the material perfectly. Robert Carlyle carries this indie drama almost entirely on his own, and the supporting cast exists largely to react to his character’s slow unraveling. Danny gets a handful of scenes where Paul pushes back, offers some grounded perspective, and generally keeps things from tipping into melodrama, and he handles those moments without overplaying them. It’s the best-reviewed project on this list, and the mid-film conversation where Paul calls out Carlyle’s character is where you really see what Masterson is doing — he keeps his voice flat and his eyes steady, like someone who’s said this before and already knows it won’t stick.

5. Dracula 2000 (2000)

Nightshade gets introduced as part of a crew of thieves breaking into a high-security vault, and Masterson plays him with a loose, slightly cocky energy that fits the film’s pulpy tone exactly right. This was a Wes Craven-produced studio horror release, which puts it in a different commercial league from most of the indie work on this list. Danny clearly understood the assignment: don’t take it too seriously, keep the charm dialed up, and let the genre do the heavy lifting. There’s a scene early on where Nightshade is casing the vault and cracking jokes under pressure, and Masterson plays it with the same effortless cool he was bringing to Hyde at the exact same moment in his career. It’s a fun performance in a film that knows exactly what it is.

4. The Chicago 8 (2011)

Jerry Rubin is the most demanding role Masterson ever took on film. The real Rubin was a Yippie firebrand, theatrical, confrontational, politically combustible, and playing him requires a charged, performative energy that’s a long way from the laid-back slacker roles that built Danny’s reputation. He commits to it. There’s a courtroom sequence where Rubin essentially turns the legal proceedings into street theater, and Masterson leans into the showmanship without letting it tip into caricature. The film received a mixed critical reception, but the ambition of the casting choice is real. This is the role on the list where he’s most clearly working outside his comfort zone, and it shows in the best possible way.

3. Smiley Face (2007)

Steve exists mostly in the background of Gregg Araki’s stoner comedy, but that’s exactly the point. As the oblivious roommate who sets the entire plot in motion without fully registering what he’s done, Masterson plays the role with a deadpan blankness that lands as quietly funny. The best moment comes early: Steve explains the situation to Anna Faris’s character with complete calm, delivering his lines with such flat sincerity that the comedy lands harder than it has any right to. It’s supporting work that rewards repeat viewing because he’s not trying to be funny, he’s just being Steve, and Steve is oblivious to everything. The real trick is that he never once glances at Faris for a reaction, keeping his eyes fixed somewhere slightly off-camera like the answer to everything is just out of frame.

2. The Bridge to Nowhere (2009)

Kevin is the role where Masterson actually carries weight as a central character rather than orbiting someone else’s story, and he rises to it. This gritty crime drama puts him in uncommonly dark territory, bad decisions, real consequences, material that doesn’t leave room for the easy charm he usually relies on. There’s a scene where Kevin realizes how far things have gone off the rails, and Danny plays it with a stillness that’s more effective than any amount of dramatic scenery-chewing. He’s not trying to announce the moment; he just lets it land. It’s the most dramatically substantial performance on this list, and it makes you wish he’d pursued more work in this register. The film didn’t find a wide audience, but as a showcase for what Masterson could do when pushed, it’s hard to top.

1. Yes Man (2008)

Rooney is the best-friend role done right. Masterson plays Jim Carrey’s buddy with a relaxed, wisecracking warmth that never feels like he’s just marking time between Carrey’s big comedic set pieces. There’s a running dynamic where Rooney is the sensible one, skeptical of Carl’s new philosophy but clearly in his corner, and Danny finds the right balance between comic foil and actual friend. The moments where Rooney pushes back on Carl’s lifestyle as a concerned friend carry more genuine feeling than you’d expect from a broad studio comedy. Yes Man was a mainstream Hollywood production at a scale Masterson hadn’t often operated in before, and he fits into it seamlessly. Rooney maps naturally onto the persona fans already loved, but he brings enough specificity that it never feels like a retread.

Danny Masterson’s film career will always be a footnote to his television work. Hyde, the perpetually suspicious, leather-jacketed basement philosopher from That ’70s Show, is the role that defined him for a generation, with later TV work keeping that connection alive. On film, he rarely got the screen time to match it, but Yes Man and his smaller indie entries show an actor far more capable of range than his movie résumé ever let him prove.