3 5
Age 65

HEAD-TO-HEAD COMPARISON

Age 87

Not Ranked

Current Rank

#41

#1

Peak Rank

#3

42

Years Ranked

43

11

Years in Top 10

6

21.8

Average Rank

28.2

38

Theatrical Releases

42

Shrek 2 $441.6 Million

Biggest Hit

Beauty and the Beast $504.0 Million

$3.8 Billion

Career Domestic
Box Office

$3.9 Billion

COMMUNITY VOTE

Who had the greater Hollywood career overall?

Cast your vote and compare your opinion with the community.

Community voting reflects visitor opinion and is independent of the Hollywood Rankings methodology.

Career Comparison Summary AI-generated historical comparison. Click to expand.

Note: Films released during the selected year influence the following year's rankings.

Looking at the Hollywood Rankings in 2026, this matchup highlights how differently two careers can score within the same historical snapshot. The category score gives Ian McKellen the broader edge, though the result remains a comparison of career outcomes rather than personal popularity.

Elite Top 10 presence favors Eddie Murphy, whose advantage across Top 10 seasons gives the comparison more long-range context. Overall, the head-to-head score leans leans toward Ian McKellen, but the strongest context comes from the categories where the gap is clearest.

CAREER RANKING HISTORY

Eddie Murphy Ian McKellen

FILMOGRAPHY COMPARISON

Eddie Murphy

38 theatrical releases • $3.8 Billion Domestic

Year Movie Domestic Box Office Domestic BO
2016 Mr. Church $685,780
2012 A Thousand Words $18.5 Million
2011 Tower Heist $78.0 Million
2010 Shrek Forever After $238.7 Million
2009 Imagine That $16.1 Million

Ian McKellen

42 theatrical releases • $3.9 Billion Domestic

Year Movie Domestic Box Office Domestic BO
2026 The Christophers $1.8 Million
2024 The Critic $449,020
2019 Cats $27.2 Million
2019 The Good Liar $17.2 Million
2019 All Is True $1.2 Million