50 Greatest Movie Drunks

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They’re three sheets to the wind…

Tom Poston in Cold Turkey (1971)

Karen Allen in Raiders Of The Lost Ark (1981)

The Drunk: More of a ‘drinker’ than an all-out drunk, Marion Ravenwood can hold her liquor - even when she’s competing with the roughest of the rough. What a gal.

Tipple Of Choice: Shots of liquor. It’ll put hairs on your chest.

Everybody in The Hangover (2009)

The Drunks: A quartet of buddies (sort of) who all get together to celebrate the impending marriage of Doug. Their night of debauchery is matched only in epic-ness by the hilarious repercussions.

Tipple Of Choice: It would be more pertinent to ask: Just what don’t these guys drink?

Billy Bob Thornton in Bad Santa (2003)

The Drunk: Willie T. Stokes loves alcohol so much that when some kid brings him a glass of straight orange juice, he doesn't even know what it is.

Tipple Of Choice: Mostly stolen, whatever shape that comes in.

Richard E. Grant in Withnail and I (1987)

The Drunk: Withnail lives on a diet of booze and pills. Which understandably makes him into something of a hot-blooded chap, though he’s got the heart of a poet.

Tipple Of Choice: Any tipple will do. Especially when paired up with pills.

Susan Hayward in I'll Cry Tomorrow (1955)

The Drunk: Occasional actress Lillian Roth, whose domineering mother – not to mention the death of her fiancé – drives her to drink.

Tipple Of Choice: Whatever numbs the pain.

Gedde Watanabe in Sixteen Candles (1984)

The Drunk: “What’s happening hot stuff?” Exchange student Dong has never tasted American booze before, but apparently it’s supremely potent because he spends nearly the whole movie wasted.

Tipple Of Choice: Whatever it is that kids drink these days.

Randy Quaid in Independence Day (1996)

The Drunk: Nobody believes Russell Casse when he starts raving that he’s been abducted by aliens, mostly because he’s all but hooked up to an alcohol drip. Except then the aliens invade…

Tipple Of Choice: Beer. Beautiful.

Will Smith in Hancock (2008)

The Drunk: Superhero John Hancock. Sure, he uses his powers for good by taking down crime, but he’s generally off his rocker when he does so, meaning he destroys more of the city than he saves.

Tipple Of Choice: Beer. Wine. Anything he can get his mitts on.

William Powell and Myrna Loy in The Thin Man (1934)

The Drunks: Nick and Nora Charles, truly loveable comedy drunks who’ve been married for years, and like nothing more than a brisk snifter to help them mull over their latest case.

Tipple Of Choice: Anything that comes in a nice glass.

Joshua Winning

Josh Winning has worn a lot of hats over the years. Contributing Editor at Total Film, writer for SFX, and senior film writer at the Radio Times. Josh has also penned a novel about mysteries and monsters, is the co-host of a movie podcast, and has a library of pretty phenomenal stories from visiting some of the biggest TV and film sets in the world. He would also like you to know that he "lives for cat videos..." Don't we all, Josh. Don't we all.