8 Best Wes Anderson Movies You Should Watch, Ranked for 2026

The best Wes Anderson movies to watch are The Grand Budapest Hotel, Fantastic Mr. Fox, Moonrise Kingdom, Isle of Dogs, The Royal Tenenbaums, Rushmore, Asteroid City and The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. Anderson has directed 12 feature films since 1996, and these eight show his range best. We also list his newer work, including The Phoenician Scheme (2025).

Wes Anderson is an American filmmaker known for symmetrical frames, pastel colour palettes, detailed sets and deadpan humour that hides a lot of sadness. His first feature, Bottle Rocket, came out in 1996. Since then his style has become so recognisable that social media trends have copied it, which brought many younger viewers to his films.

Wes Anderson films at a glance

Film	Year	Oscar highlight
The Grand Budapest Hotel	2014	9 nominations, 4 wins
Fantastic Mr. Fox	2009	Animated Feature nomination
Moonrise Kingdom	2012	Original Screenplay nomination
Isle of Dogs	2018	Animated Feature nomination
The Royal Tenenbaums	2001	Original Screenplay nomination
Rushmore	1998	None
Asteroid City	2023	None
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou	2004	None

8 best Wes Anderson movies

1. The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)

Often called his best film, this story follows Gustave H., the concierge of a grand hotel in the fictional European country of Zubrowka, who is framed for murder. Ralph Fiennes leads the cast, with Tony Revolori as his loyal lobby boy.

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The film received nine Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture and Best Director for Anderson, and won four: production design, costume design, makeup and hairstyling, and original score. It is the best place to start.

2. Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)

Anderson’s first stop-motion film adapts Roald Dahl’s children’s book. George Clooney voices Mr. Fox, a reformed thief who cannot resist raiding three nasty farmers, and Meryl Streep voices Mrs. Fox. Anderson himself voices a small role.

The film was nominated for Best Animated Feature at the Oscars. It works for families, but adults will notice the jokes about midlife restlessness.

3. Moonrise Kingdom (2012)

Set on a New England island in 1965, this film follows two 12-year-olds who run away together, sending the adults of the town on a search. Bruce Willis, Edward Norton, Bill Murray and Frances McDormand play the grown-ups.

Anderson and Roman Coppola were nominated for the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay. It is one of his warmest films and a good choice for a first-time viewer.

4. Isle of Dogs (2018)

This stop-motion film is set in a future Japan where all dogs are exiled to a garbage island after an outbreak of dog flu. A 12-year-old boy flies there to find his dog, Spots. Bryan Cranston, Edward Norton and Scarlett Johansson are among the voice cast.

Anderson won the Silver Bear for Best Director at the 2018 Berlin International Film Festival for it, and the film was nominated for two Oscars.

5. The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)

Gene Hackman plays Royal Tenenbaum, an absent father who returns to his family of former child prodigies by claiming he is dying. Gwyneth Paltrow, Ben Stiller, Luke Wilson and Anjelica Huston make up the family.

Anderson co-wrote the film with Owen Wilson, and the pair earned an Oscar nomination for Best Original Screenplay. It mixes comedy and grief in the way his later films would.

6. Rushmore (1998)

Jason Schwartzman plays Max Fischer, an ambitious but failing student at a private school who falls for a teacher and ends up in a rivalry with a wealthy businessman, played by Bill Murray. It marked the start of Anderson’s long working relationship with Murray.

Many critics consider it the film where his style first came together.

7. Asteroid City (2023)

Structured as a play within a television programme, this film follows a group of families at a junior stargazing event in a small desert town in 1955, where a strange event leads to a lockdown. The large ensemble includes Jason Schwartzman, Scarlett Johansson, Tom Hanks and Margot Robbie.

It premiered in competition at Cannes in 2023. It is one of his more layered films and rewards a second watch.

8. The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004)

Bill Murray plays an oceanographer and documentary maker who sets out to hunt the shark that killed his partner. The film is known for its handmade sea creatures and its David Bowie songs sung in Portuguese by Seu Jorge.

It received mixed reviews on release and is less tightly made than his best work, but it has built a loyal following.

Also worth watching

• The Darjeeling Limited (2007): Three American brothers travel across India by train after their father’s death. Indian viewers often enjoy spotting the locations, though some find its view of India touristic.
• The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar (2023): A short film adapted from Roald Dahl, starring Benedict Cumberbatch. It won Anderson his first competitive Oscar, for Best Live Action Short Film, at the 96th Academy Awards in 2024. It streams on Netflix.
• The French Dispatch (2021): An anthology set in the offices of an American magazine based in a French town.
• The Phoenician Scheme (2025): His latest feature, starring Benicio del Toro as a wealthy businessman, premiered in competition at Cannes in May 2025.

What makes a Wes Anderson film

His films share a few clear habits: centred, symmetrical framing, careful colour schemes for each film, chapter titles, miniature sets and a recurring cast that includes Bill Murray, Jason Schwartzman, Owen Wilson, Tilda Swinton and Adrien Brody. Under the neat surface, most of his stories deal with broken families, loss and loneliness.

For more film lists, visit our entertainment section and our infotainment section.

Frequently asked questions

Sources: Wikipedia: Wes Anderson, Academy Awards 2024, Festival de Cannes.