One of favourite ever actors, Jeff Goldblum celebrates his 66th birthday today. So to mark the occasion, we thought we’d celebrate the great man in the only way we know how; by pulling together a hashed out Top 5 of his best ever roles. We guarantee it won’t be ‘one big pile shit’.

5) The Big Chill (1983) – Michael Gold

Lawrence Kasdan’s The Big Chill has plenty going for it. Not only does it boast one of the best ensemble casts of the 80s AND one of the best movie soundtracks in film history (we’ll fight anyone who says otherwise), it also features one of Jeff Goldblum’s most nuanced performances to date. The film follows a groups of friends (including Kevin Kline, Glenn Close and William Hurt) who reunite at the funeral of their friend. Goldblum plays Michael Gold, a sex-obsessed magazine journalist. The role is more subtle than pretty much anything Goldblum has played since, but it still packs all the quirks and topes you’d want from a Goldblum performance.

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4) The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004) – Alistair Hennessey

If you’re regular readers of Average Joes, you’ll know just how much we love Wes Anderson. So we were never going to be able to ignore Goldblum’s hilarious portrayal of Steve Zissou’s arch-nemesis, Alistair Hennessey. He may not be in the film much, but Zissou’s ‘part gay’ professional rival makes the most of every single one of his scenes, with textbook Goldblumian timing of hilarious one liners. Anderson always packs his films with odd characters and Hennessey is arguably his best villain creation to date. Goldblum couldn’t have been more perfect for it.

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3) Independence Day (1996) – David Levison

Roland Emmerich’s Independence Day caused quite the fanfare upon its release back in 1996 with Will Smith taking plenty of the plaudits. But for us, it’s his right-hand man, David Levison who steals the show. Goldblum plays the tech wizard who discovers the countdown to a possible alien attack hidden in satellite transmissions. The brain to Will Smith’s brawn, Goldblum plays the unlikely hero perfectly with quips and classic Goldblum aplomb; “It’s like in chess: First, you strategically position your pieces and when the timing is right you strike.” He might be talking about an imminent alien attack, but he may as well be talking about his unique line delivery.

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2) The Fly (1986) – Seth Brundle

The definitive Goldblum lead performance, The Fly is undoubtedly one of his best roles ever. The main man had featured in a number of films previously to David Cronenberg’s 1986 sci-fi flick, but this is where the world began to take notice of the power of the Blum. He stars as Seth Brundle, a scientist whose decision to test his ‘telepod’ invention on himself results in rather dire consequences. But none worse that Brundle transforming himself into the film’s namesake. Cronenberg has always been a dab hand at the weird and wonderful – especially when it comes to his sci-fi work – and alongside Goldblum’s watchability, The Fly really is a masterpiece of the genre.

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1) Jurassic Park (1993) – Dr. Ian Malcolm

Though we’d accept he has more work to do in The Fly, Goldblum’s Dr. Ian Malcolm will forever be his most memorable role. Adding some light relief to the otherwise tension-bombarded Jurassic Park, Dr. Malcolm is Goldblum at his finest. Having accompanied other scientists on a trip to a remote island where dinosaurs roam free, Malcolm acts as the voice of the audience with eccentricity and charisma oozing from every movement and line. Goldblum was so good, Spielberg even gave him the lead in the second Jurassic instalment. While it may not have lived up to the original, we have no doubts that Dr. Ian Malcom is Jeff Goldblum’s standout film role to date.

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