The 5 Best Benicio Del Toro Performances!

Benicio Del Toro is one of the most underrated performers in Hollywood. Over the course of his almost 40-year career, Del Toro has worked with acclaimed filmmakers such as Steven Soderbergh, Paul Thomas Anderson, Wes Anderson, Denis Villeneuve, Alejandro G. Iñárritu, and many more. He's been nominated for two Oscars, winning one for Traffic, along with many more nominations and wins at other award ceremonies. Despite these accolades, whenever someone’s asked who their favorite actor is, Benicio Del Toro is too often overlooked. Today, we want to look at 5 films that really highlight how brilliant of a performer Benicio Del Toro is. 

1. Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas (1998)

Terry Gilliam’s Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas is an insane trip of a movie. The cult classic film follows Raoul Duke, played by Johnny Depp, and his attorney Dr. Gonzo, played by Benicio Del Toro, as they travel to Las Vegas on every type of drug that they have in their briefcase and spend the next 48 hours indescribably intoxicated. While watching the film, it’s often hard tracking exactly what’s going on. The viewer has to just go off vibes as these two grown men lose their minds on the Las Vegas Strip. Gilliam’s frenetic visual style and energy is matched by Del Toro’s, as well as Depp’s, equally chaotic performance. One moment we’ll be laughing at Del Toro failing to get off the rotating carousel bar, then the next terrified as he is threatening the single diner worker late at night, where it’s clear this is what this guy is truly like. (Available on VOD/Digital)

2. Traffic (2000)

Steven Soderbergh’s Traffic follows 3 separate storylines about the war on drugs, the corruption within the Mexican police, Judge Wakefield’s public and personal war on drugs, and the trial of drug lord Carl Ayala and the DEA watching his wife Helena. To help distinguish each story line, Soderbergh gave each plot their own distinct color palette. This choice creates some interesting and beautiful imagery. Traffic marked Benicio Del Toro’s first, and somehow only, Oscar win. Del Toro portrays Javier Rodríguez, a good-hearted Mexican cop attempting to put an end to the drug trafficking problem between U.S. and Mexican citizens. Javier finds himself surrounded by corruption around every corner and attempts to find his place within it in order to ultimately do some good. In a cast full of incredible performances, Benicio Del Toro is a shining light that helps humanize the actions portrayed in the film. His final moments in the film, after his statement to the media about the corruption in the police force and army, where he is watching children play baseball is beautiful. The whole film, he is fighting in order for kids to have a better future than is currently available for them, dealing with the real horror that comes with that fight. So, ending with Javier watching them play baseball with his hands folded as if in prayer, hoping that change is possible, is a touching, optimistic moment that Benicio Del Toro perfectly sells. (Stream on Netflix)

3. Che: Part One and Che: Part Two (2008) 

Che follows Argentine Marxist revolutionary Ernesto "Che" Guevara, focusing on the Cuban Revolution in Part One and his failed attempt to recreate that movement in Bolivia in Part Two. Steven Soderbergh shot these films in a cinéma vérité style, aka truthful cinema or observational cinema. This allows the films to showcase Che’s revolution in as objective a manner as is possible. The movie was/is overlooked, as it doesn’t follow the typical biopic format, but because of its unconventional filmmaking, it’s way more unique and interesting than its peers. Del Toro’s performance as Che Guevara is a miraculous feat. He spent 7 years obsessively researching Guevara’s life. He looked at Guevara’s photographs, read his personal writings, read Guevara’s favorite books, and met with friends and family of Ernesto, which included his widow and even Fidel Castro. Doing research doesn’t always equate to a great performance, but in this case, Benicio’s dedication led to an incredible depiction of the iconic revolutionary. There are so many moments where we were blown away by BDT, but the easiest scene to point to is his asthma attack in Bolivia. His plans are failing him, people are deserting due to selfishness or fear, they're losing men left and right as the Bolivian army are 5 steps ahead of them, and now his health problems are catching up to him. It’s a quiet but intense moment where Che is questioning if what he’s doing in Bolivia is worth it. This should’ve been his third Oscar nomination and win. This is our plea that everyone should watch Che: Part One and Che: Part Two! (Stream on AMC+)

4. Sicario (2015)

Sicario follows Kate Mercer, played by Emily Blunt, who is enlisted by a government task force, led by CIA SAC Matt, played by Josh Brolin, and Alejandro, played by Benicio Del Toro, to bring down the leader of a dangerous Mexican drug cartel. Over the course of the story, Kate learns the true purpose of the mission, which is to revert the varied drug cartels back into a single Colombian-run business that the U.S. can easily control and work with. Alejandro’s true purpose for being on the mission is hidden until the third act. There, we learn that his wife and child were murdered by Alarcón, the cartel leader they’ve been chasing the entire film and that Alejandro has been hired to assassinate him. Alejandro is given the typical hero-revenge story, but his actions make him a sympathetic anti-hero. He tortures Alarcón’s siblings, shoots Kate, kills an innocent cop, and threatens to kill Kate and falsify her death as a suicide just so she can sign a paper declaring everything they did on the mission was by the book. BDT plays both tender and intense at the flip of the hat. He’ll be looking at Kate, who reminds him of his daughter, and the next second have a gun pointed under her chin. Alejandro is not a black and white character. He’s not strictly good or evil. He lives in the gray where we can be sympathetic for his reasoning and goal but also be repulsed by his actions. (Stream on Peacock)

5. One Battle After Another (2025)

One Battle After Another is the latest Paul Thomas Anderson blockbuster. The film follows Bob Ferguson, played by Leonardo DiCaprio, a former member of the revolutionary group the French 75, who must rescue his daughter Willa, played by Chase Infiniti, from a corrupt, racist military official Steven Lockjaw, played by Sean Penn. The film is equally hilarious and relevant, as it reflects the current state of our world. Benicio Del Toro plays Sensei Sergio, Willa’s sensei and in general friend to Bob. Del Toro delivers what may be the funniest performance of the year and best supporting role of the 2020s. Sensei Sergio has been heralded as one of the best fictional characters ever, all thanks to BDT’s ability to support DiCaprio and give him interesting bits to play off of. He doesn’t take the spotlight away from Leo, who is also giving an all time best performance, but BDT has instantly iconic and quotable moments and lines, such as his little dance and delivery of “a few small beers” to the cops who pulled him over, and “no fear, like Tom f*cking Cruise”. Sensei Sergio is the ideal supporting character. The movie is nonstop chaos, but Sergio/Del Toro bring a sense of calm that brings both Bob and the audience at ease. In a film full of incredible performances, Benicio Del Toro shines like a star. It’s wonderful to see a sea of posts praising Del Toro, both for this film and his previous incredible work. (In theatres now)

All of this to say, Benicio Del Toro is a once-in-a-generation performer. He puts so much work into his roles, but when watching the final film, he makes it look so effortless. He is often the best part of whatever movie he is in but always supports the film to make it the best it can be. So, if you come away from this article with anything, it should be the itch to watch a Benicio Del Toro film tonight. Whether it’s any of the 5 we mentioned today, such as Che, or any of his other work like The Usual Suspects (1995), Snatch (2000), 21 Grams (2003), No Sudden Move (2020), Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017), The Phoenician Scheme (2025), or even his various appearances in the MCU as The Collector, you're in safe hands with a BDT performance.