There are fewer more popular cult classics than The Big Lebowski. Some of the cast is very well known of course, and they are on this list, but others are less so. They are all phenomenal actors, and most have had long careers outside of the Coen Brothers classic, and while you might think to yourself, “Oh yeah, I know that guy,” you might not remember from where. That’s why we’re here to fill in those gaps and give you 32 cast members from The Big Lebowski and where else you’ve seen them on screen.
Jeff Bridges (The Dude)
Of course, you can’t talk about The Big Lebowski without talking about The Dude, or “El Duderino” if you’re not into the whole brevity thing. Jeff Bridges is on the record as saying it was one of his favorite roles and that’s saying a lot considering he’s won an Oscar for another role in Crazy Heart and is the star of another beloved cult classic, Tron. Bridges’ full list of accomplishments is far too long to mention here.
Peter Stormare (Uli Kunkel/Karl Hungus)
Any fan of the Coens probably immediately recognizes Peter Stormare as the nihilist Uli Kunkel and from his role as Gaear Grimsrud, Steve Buscemi partner in Fargo. Before Lebowski, he also was in The Lost World: Jurassic Park and Armageddon. Most recently, he is probably best known for playing Abram Tarasov, the main baddie in John Wick: Chapter 2.
John Goodman (Walter Sobchak)
John Goodman’s performance as Walter Sobchak is one of the best of the legend’s career. It’s hardly his only great performance in a Coen Brothers movie, either. He’s worked with the writing and directing team in Raising Arizona, O Brother Where Are Thou?, Inside Llewellyn Davis, and Barton Fink as well. Not to mention all the other roles he’s well known for.
David Huddlestone
The late David Huddlestone, who passed away in 2016 was amazing as the other Jeff Lebowski. He also pops up in some other great roles you may have missed, like Mayor Olson Johnson in Blazing Saddles and as Sen. Max Lobell in a couple of episodes of The West Wing.
Philip Moon (Woo)
Philip Moon’s Woo is one of the two goons sent by Jackie Treehorn to shakedown the wrong Lebowski and his actions towards The Dude’s rug is what kicks off the whole adventure. Outside of this movie, Moon is probably best known as Mr. Lee in Season 2 of Deadwood.
Mark Pellegrino (Thug #2)
Mark Pellegrino plays one of the thugs who assault The Dude at the beginning of the movie, dropping The Dude’s bowling ball on the floor in the bathroom. Pellegrino has dozens of credits on his resume going all the way back to the 1980s including the wrestling movie No Holds Barred, plus Lethal Weapon 3, Mulholland Drive, Capote, and National Treasure. Pellegrino is also well known for playing Jacob in Lost.
Flea (Kieffer)
The three idiot nihilists who fake the kidnapping of Bunny Lebowski were all in a band together called Autobahn. Every band needs a bass player, so adding the Red Hot Chili Pepper’s Flea to the mix is perfect casting. It’s not Flea’s only acting work, either. He has also appeared in Back to the Future II as one of the skating thugs, and alongside his bandmate, Anthony Kiedis in The Chase among other roles.
Leon Russom (Malibu Police Chief)
The chief of the Malibu police department, played by Leon Russom, is a real reactionary. Russom himself is, presumably, not, but he is a fantastic actor. He’s best known these days for his smaller, but very important role as the old man in the woods in A Quiet Place.
Torsten Voges (Franz)
German Torsten Voges’ first big role in the U.S. was as one of the nihilists, Franz. He’s the least known of the three actors playing the supposed kidnappers, but since he’s appeared in movies like 88mm and TV shows like Grimm.
Julianne Moore (Maude Lebowski)
The late ’90s were a peak moment in Julianne Moore’s career, one of a few, as she continues to be one of the best actors in Hollywood. Around the same that she starred in The Big Lebowski, she also starred in Boogie Nights and Magnolia. More recently she received acclaim for her acting in May December, one of the best movies of 2023.
Jerry Haleva (Saddam Hussein)
Jerry Haleva isn’t a big name actor, but he found a lot of success in the 1990s for playing Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, including in The Big Lebowski. As the spitting image of Hussein, he also showed up in Hot Shots! and Hot Shots! Part Deux.
Sam Elliott (The Stranger)
Sam Elliott has one of the greatest mustaches in movie history and it’s on full display in the movie. Elliott is beloved for his decades of work in movies like Mask, the classic western Tombstone, and Road House.
Philip Seymour Hoffman (Brandt)
The Big Lebowski was released just as the late Philip Seymour Hoffman’s career was really starting to take off. He’d had some important roles previously, as in Boogie Nights, Twister, and Scent of a Woman, and of course after he became a pretty huge star.
Jimmie Dale Gilmore (Smokey)
Jimmie Dale Gilmore plays the burnout pacifist Smokey whose foot was over the line in a league match against Walter and The Dude. The late Gilmore wasn’t a professional actor, but he was one of the most accomplished and underrated country singer/songwriters of ’70s and ’80s.
Ben Gazzara (Jackie Treehorn)
When Ben Gazzara died in 2012, he’d been in show business for nearly 60 years. He started on the stage but also made a huge mark on TV and in movies. Some of his most well-known roles came in The Thomas Crown Affair (1999), Summer of Sam, and, of course, as the main antagonist in the original Road House, alongside fellow Lebowski actor Sam Elliott.
Aimee Mann (Nihilist Woman)
Aimee Mann doesn’t have a huge role in the movie, as she’s seen just in one scene, ordering pancakes with the other nihilists, and missing a toe nail, with nail polish. Of course, Mann is best known as one of Canada’s greatest singer/songwriters and while her music has been in many movies, she’s only acted in a couple.
Jon Polito (Da Fino)
Jon Polito was a Coen Brothers regular, playing in five of their movies before his death in 2015. He also was a series regular in the first couple of seasons of Homicide Life On The Streets and in movies like The Crow and American Gangster.
Tara Reid (Bunny Lebowski)
Pretty much everyone knows Tara Reid, right? In the ’90s, she was huge, starring not only as Bunny in The Big Lebowski, but as Vicky in American Pie and its sequels. Since, her most infamous role has been in the Sharknado series. Bunny is still her best role though, don’t you think? Brandt does.
Jack Kehler (Marty The Dancing Landlord)
Jack Kehler is a fantastic character actor who completely disappears into his roles. So much so that you might love some his movies and not even know he’s in it – and that’s meant as a compliment. He’s been in Point Break, Men In Black, Waterworld, and many others.
Steve Buscemi (Donny)
Donny was a bowler. And a surfer. Steve Buscemi is an actor. And a legend. And so much more. There isn’t much we can add that most people don’t know about Buscemi. He’s starred in some of the best movies and TV shows of all time, including Reservoir Dogs, Con Air, and The Sopranos. It’s arguably he’s most loved as Donny though.
Carlos Leon (Maude’s Thug)
Carlos Leon has a pretty small role in The Big Lebowski as one of Maude’s thugs who knocks The Dude out and takes the rug back. After Lebowski, he found his biggest fame as a series regular, Carlos, in Oz. He’s got dozens of other credits to his name, especially on shows shot in New York like Law & Order and others. Of course, he is most known for being Madonna’s ex-partner and the father of her daughter, Lourdes Leon.
John Turturro (Jesus)
It could be easily argued that John Turturro steals the show as Jesus. Of course, he steals the show in almost every movie his in, and he’s well-known for doing it. His breakout role came in Spike Lee’s Do the Right Thing and since he’s got dozens and dozens of impressive credits, including three Golden Globe-winning performances.
Richard Gant (Older Cop)
Richard Gant’s small role in The Big Lebowski as the more skeptical cop investigating The Dude’s car theft is a character actor with an impressive career. He’s worked with Eddie Murphy in movies like Norbit, Daddy Day Care, and Nutty Professor II: The Klumps, among other roles.
Christian Clemenson (Younger Cop)
The more enthusiastic cop helping The Dude with his car is played by Christian Clemenson. Clemenson has been working in Hollywood since the mid-’80s when he had a small role in Hannah and Her Sisters. He’s also been in blockbusters like United 93, Apollo 13, J. Edgar, The Fisher King, and Broadcast News.
Dom Irrera (Tony The Chauffeur)
When The Dude learns all about his chauffeur’s rash, he can do nothing but sympathize. the chauffeur, played by comedian Dom Irrera, is a small but memorable role. It’s Irrera that makes it so. The standup has been in the business for decades and often pops up in screwball comedies like Silence of the Hams and the forgotten Rodney Dangerfield movie The Fourth Tenor.
David Thewlis (Knox Harrington)
David Thewlis plays the visual artist Knox Harrington. Most people know Thewlis as Remus Lupin in the Harry Potter series. He’s was also Ares in Wonder Woman and Justice League, plus he’ll star in the next two installments of the Avatar series. He’s a fantastic actor who you might now know the name of, but love him nonetheless.
Lu Elrod (Diner Waitress)
Lu Elrod is one of the actors that you know you’ve seen before, but can’t always place. In Lebowski she’s the waitress that tries to hush Walter, but she’s also played small roles in about a dozen other movies like Primary Colors, Wag The Dog, and Kicking And Screaming.
Mike Gomez (Laughing Cop)
The most memeable moment in the movie is the laughing cop when The Dude asks about any leads in the case of his stolen car. Mike Gomez is that laughing cop and as such, has become more recognizable for that rile. Outside of that, he’s probably best known as Quinones in the Clint Eastwood movie Heartbreak Ridge.
Peter Siragusa (Gary The Bartender)
Heard more than seen, Peter Siragusa as Gary the bartender doesn’t have a big role in the movie, serving The Dude his White Russians at the bowling alley. Peter Siragusa was an accomplished actor, however. Much of it was voice work before he died in 2022, but you would certainly recognize him as the lineman in Home Alone.
Warren Keith (The Funeral Director)
Warren Keith is one of the Coen Brothers’ go-to actors, having appeared in four of their movies, Raising Arizona and The Big Lebowski and well as off screen in Fargo and A Serious Man. He was recently in the acclaimed 2020 Oscar-winner Nomandland as well.
Gérard L’Heureux (The Big Lebowski’s Chauffeur)
Gérard L’Heureux doesn’t have a big role in the movie either, but he is a great actor, despite not really having any lines as he drags The Dude from one limo to another. He’s probably best known as one of the prison guards in Con Air, a movie that doesn’t make any sense but is still one of the most re-watchable movies ever.
Asia Carrera (Woman in Adult Movie)
Some of you out there might not want to admit to knowing who Asia Carrera is, but certainly many do. As one of the most-booked adult film stars of the ’90s, Carrera was very famous, but not often talked about. The Big Lebowski is one of her very few roles in straight Hollywood, but she’s got hundreds of credits in that other Hollywood that people don’t always admit to watching. She’s really a legend in that way.
