10 Best Willem Dafoe Film Performances

Having starred in around 130 films over his illustrious career, the fact that The Hunter is one of Dafoe's favourites of his own projects speaks volumes about his performance in it.

Dafoe portrays a mercenary called Martin David, who is hired by a shady company to kill the last of a rare species of tiger in Tasmania. As he attempts to fulfil his duties, he grows close to the family with whom he's lodging, and begins to question his allegiances.

With striking cinematography, beautifully sweeping sets and a tense tone throughout, The Hunter is a slow-burn of the highest order, made all the more compelling by Dafoe's turn as a man obsessed with doing his job and doing the right thing all at once. As a drama, it can be a predictable affair, but as a character study it is as rich as anything else the actor has ever done, and deserved to be seen for Dafoe's performance alone.