A recent Reddit conversation had a poster proclaiming Tom Hanks’ 1992-2002 streak of films as maybe the greatest ever by an actor.
Hanks did churn out memorable films during this time span (Philadelphia, Forrest Gump, Apollo 13, Toy Story, Saving Private Ryan, The Green Mile, Cast Away, Road to Perdition, Catch Me If You Can).
However, this pales in comparison to the legendary roll of films Robert De Niro gave us between 1973 and 1983: Mean Streets, The Godfather Part II, Taxi Driver, 1900, The Deer Hunter, Raging Bull, The King of Comedy, Once Upon A Time in America, Brazil. Total insanity of brilliance.
Then there’s De Niro’s underrated run from ‘87 to ‘99: The Untouchables, Midnight Run, Awakenings, Goodfellas, Cape Fear, A Bronx Tale, Casino, Heat, Cop Land, Jackie Brown, Wag the Dog, Ronin …
The only other actor I can think of who could quite possibly match De Niro’s output is Humphrey Bogart.
Bogie had a legendary streak of films from 1941 to 1950. The Maltese Falcon, High Sierra, Casablanca, The Big Sleep, In a Lonely Place, Key Largo, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre and The African Queen.