Few actors in history have ever had a period as truly, proudly, wonderfully crotchety as the run Harrison Ford has been on over the last 20 or so years. One of the most famous people in the world and one of the most gifted and incredible movie stars ever, Ford is still, above all else, a working actor, and being a working actor means getting paid. And from time to time, that’s exactly his approach. Over the last two decades, he’s frequently made no bones of the fact that he was doing a movie just to get paid.
To be clear, this is something that shouldn’t be met with derision. All jobs are just jobs, acting included, and usually what matters most is the clarity of vision to understand which things we do from passion and which things we do for a paycheck. Ford has always been careful in choosing his projects, and even the biggest cash grabs have pretty clear reasons — unlike many other great actors who don’t mind so much where their paycheck comes from (not that there’s anything wrong with that). This isn’t to say that he doesn’t have fun in these movies, or perform his best — part of what makes Ford so special is he often delivers even when in a movie that seems like a pure “pay my bills” opportunity.
“Cash grabs,” here, are defined pretty loosely as something that Harrison Ford doesn’t seem particularly interested in the subject matter of, or is outside the bounds of his work in the late period of his career, which we’re designating for the purposes of this piece as post-2008. This caveat leaves most thrillers off the list because he’s spent most of his career starring in those. There is plenty of other work from his filmography that won’t show up here, like Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, 1923, and The Call of the Wild, because, frankly, it seems like he actually really enjoyed those projects.
So, with all that in mind, here are seven of Ford’s most significant cash grabs, ranked from worst to best. Our criteria is based on a combination of how good he is in them and how good the movies themselves are.
Captain America: Brave New World
Where to watch: Theaters
Is it worth watching?: This is more like an added Harrison Ford bonus if you happen to be making your way through MCU movies
This is Ford’s cash grab apex. He’s always been outspoken on his feelings about the shortcomings of projects he’s in, but never has he done so with this much gusto. The anecdotes on set included at least one instance of Ford preparing for a take by saying, “Let’s shoot this piece of shit.” More recently, on the movie’s press tour, he’s taken to giving answers about the ridiculousness of the role of Red Hulk with the very earnest, “That’s what the money’s for.”
Image: Universal Pictures via Everett Collection
Where to watch: Rentable on Apple TV and Amazon Prime Video
Is it worth watching?: No, watch 1923 on Paramount Plus instead for all your Harrison Ford on a horse needs
This may seem like the obvious, prototypical cash grab film: an entirely forgotten late 2000s blockbuster with a huge budget, star-studded cast, and virtually no cultural footprint. However, you have to remember one thing about Harrison Ford: He fucking loves riding horses, and there’s a lot of horse riding in Cowboys & Aliens. Now that doesn’t necessarily stop this movie from being a decent paycheck, but it does mean that he had at least two reasons to say yes to the project. As for the movie itself, it’s bad, but hopefully at least Ford had a good time shooting it.
Image: Summit Entertainment via Everett Collection
Where to watch: Hulu
Is it worth watching?: If you’re a real sucker for sci-fi
This movie is not good. But it does gain a tiny bit of ground on this list simply by virtue of how it uses Harrison Ford. Ford’s in the craggy mentor role here, and he brings so much presence and gravitas to the part that for just a second you can forget how lifeless nearly everything else about the movie feels. Otherwise, it’s an “only OK” adaptation of the classic sci-fi novel.
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Image: Lucasfilm
Where to watch: Disney Plus
Is it worth watching?: You probably already know if you want to rewatch this movie or not.
Ford is on the record as wishing his character had died in Return of the Jedi, so the prospect of getting to revive Han Solo to finally give him the on-screen fate he deserved was probably appealing. Probably equally appealing was the dump truck full of money that Disney surely backed up to Ford’s ranch in Wyoming. Typically, though, Ford hasn’t lost a step in playing his iconic rogue with a heart of gold, and he’s probably the best part of this mediocre and misbegotten legacy sequel.
(We’re not even going to mention The Rise of Skywalker on this list: He’s in that movie for two seconds and the less we can talk about that film, the better.)
Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues
Where to watch: Rentable on Apple TV and Amazon Prime Video
Is it worth watching?: Eh, you can just watch his scene on YouTube
This movie is technically a cash grab for everyone involved, and Ford’s role is really just a cameo, but he definitely has fun with it, which makes it one of the more enjoyable entries on this list.
The Secret Life of Pets 2
1/2
Where to watch: Rentable on Apple TV and Amazon Prime Video
Is it worth watching?: It depends a little bit on your tolerance for animated shenanigans, but it’s a good movie so you might as well
Given that Ford has one of the best voices in all of Hollywood, and has for over 60 years now, it’s kind of shocking that he hasn’t been in more animated movies. Perhaps even more importantly, he’s pretty good in this one, and the movie’s not bad either. It’s a touching and sweet, if surprisingly tragic, movie that is made better by Ford’s presence as a somewhat misguided mentor — and it doesn’t hurt that the dog he voices scowls almost as well as Ford himself.
Image: Warner Bros. via Everett Collection
Where to watch: Rentable on Apple TV and Amazon Prime Video
Is it worth watching?: Absolutely
Blade Runner 2049 is the only truly excellent movie on this list. Much like the original, it probably wasn’t appreciated as much on its release as it should have been, but has consistently grown in estimation and deserves to one day be seen as a classic alongside the original. The art, beauty, and thought behind this movie makes it enormously tempting to allow it to skirt the cash grab category for Ford. After all, he’s grown to love the original, and it’s clear he thought highly of the sequel, too. But in a 2017 interview with GQ about the film, he explained what appealed to him about it:
“The experience of making a film that was a bit different to what I’ve lately been doing. And the intellectual puzzle of it. And I got paid. Always happy to be paid.”
This is what makes Blade Runner 2049 the ultimate cash grab for Ford, both in terms of quality and essence: it’s a paycheck he could believe in. Ford is genuinely excellent in his return as Deckard, bringing his own age into the character to give him weight, years, and the weary presence that only age and experience can provide. And director Denis Villeneuve and co-star Ryan Gosling helped prove Ford right in the end. It’s an excellent movie, a testament to one of Ford’s best films, and a perfect later-in-life return to a character that feels so deeply and uniquely Harrison Ford. And he got paid!