Crispin Glover Is Awesome And Eccentric In Everything, Even If You Don't Recognize Him Half The Time

Tim Burton adapting Alice in Wonderland makes a lot of sense, and Crispin Glover being in a Tim Burton adaptation of Alice in Wonderland makes even more sense. He plays Stayne, the Knave of Hearts and former lover to the Red Queen (Helena Bonham Carter).

The actor's penchant for oddball delivery of dialogue and outrageous costumes are put to good use here. With flowing hair and a heart-shaped eye-patch, he's right at home in this over-the-top fantasy world. His scenes with Carter - another performer who embraces weirdness onscreen - have a real spark.

Far and away, Crispin Glover's signature role is George McFly in Back to the Future. He plays the nerdy father to Michael J. Fox's time-traveling Marty. 

Glover does two things very well here. In present-day scenes, he dons makeup to play George as a slightly beleaguered adult with a goofy demeanor. In the scenes set during the '50s, he elevates the entire "teen nerd" stereotype, investing George with a lovable quality that makes us root for him to defeat bully Biff and win the heart of true love Lorraine. He makes the character's awkwardness endearing and provides Back to the Future with its heart.

Famously, Glover opted not to return for the sequels. Instead, the filmmakers put molds of his face onto another actor, then tried to pass that actor off as him. This led Glover to sue for violating his "right of publicity."

Oliver Stone's The Doors offered Crispin Glover a rare opportunity to portray a real person, the legendary artist Andy Warhol. He has a scene in which he meets Jim Morrison (Val Kilmer) at a party and gives him a telephone so he can "talk to God."

The casting is perfect. For starters, with the wig and glasses, Glover is a virtual Doppelganger for Warhol. But there's also a subliminal element at play here. Warhol was famously eccentric, so seeing the equally eccentric Glover portray him feels absolutely right. Rather than doing a mere impression, the actor is perfectly suited to channel Warhol's mystique.

It takes a lot to make an impact through silence, yet Glover does just that in Charlie's Angels. He plays a silent assassin known as Thin Man who relentlessly stalks the Angels. He even takes on stars Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore, and Lucy Liu in a three-against-one fight. 

In a perfect example of his creative inspiration, it was Glover's idea to play the character as silent. He thought the dialogue written for Thin Man was corny and convinced director McG that he could make a bigger splash without speaking. Those instincts were correct. His performance is a highlight of the movie.

Glover is often cast in a supporting role, but for 2003's loose remake of the 1971 horror classic Willard, he got a chance to be the leading man. He plays the title character, a socially awkward mama's boy who trains an army of rats to attack people who have done him wrong.

The role is perfect for Glover, as it makes full use of both his intensity and his trademark eccentricity. Casting any other actor in the part would have felt forced, but because of his well-honed reputation for being odd, it's easy to buy Glover as a guy who would socialize with rats. He's delightfully creepy. 

If you need someone to play Arlo, the one-eyed employee of notoriously sleazy adult magazine tycoon Larry Flynt, who do you call? Crispin Glover, of course! And that's exactly who he portrays in Milos Forman's The People vs. Larry Flynt.

The role is small, but crucial. To make Flynt's world authentic onscreen, Forman needed actors who could pull off the dichotomy of working in a disreputable, yet highly profitable business. With his long hair, squinty face, tacky suits, and ever-present sense of anarchy, Glover fits the bill. He gets maximum mileage out of his minimal screen time, to the film's overall benefit.