Yorgos Lanthimos has carved out a unique and unforgettable niche in modern cinema. From his early, shocking Greek works to his Oscar-winning Hollywood productions, his filmography is a masterclass in surrealism, dark humor, and biting social satire. With his 2025 release, Bugonia, now captivating audiences and critics, the inevitable question arises: where does this new, genre-bending entry stand among his celebrated works? Using a blend of critical consensus, audience scores, and cultural impact, we’ve crafted the definitive ranking of every Yorgos Lanthimos film. Whether you’re a longtime devotee or a curious newcomer, this guide will navigate you through his bizarre and brilliant world.
The Complete Yorgos Lanthimos Filmography Ranked from Best to Worst
Here is our breakdown of Lanthimos’s feature films, from his most accessible masterpieces to his foundational, experimental beginnings.
1. Poor Things (2023)
Representing the peak of Lanthimos’s artistic and commercial powers, Poor Things is a visually stunning, Oscar-winning triumph. Emma Stone’s fearless performance as Bella Baxter—a woman rediscovering the world with an infant’s brain—anchors this steampunk-inspired odyssey. It’s Lanthimos at his most ambitious, balancing his signature weirdness with a surprisingly emotional and accessible narrative. With an impressive 92% on Rotten Tomatoes and 4 Academy Awards, including Best Actress, it’s widely considered his magnum opus.
2. The Favourite (2018)
This sumptuous period piece proved Lanthimos could play the awards game without dulling his edge. A vicious power struggle in Queen Anne’s court becomes a showcase for razor-sharp wit, stunning cinematography, and career-best performances from Olivia Colman (who won the Oscar), Rachel Weisz, and Emma Stone. With a 91 Metacritic score and 10 Oscar nominations, The Favourite is a masterclass in blending historical drama with absurdist cruelty.
3. Dogtooth (2009)
The film that put Lanthimos on the international map, Dogtooth remains his most influential and unsettling work. This bleak allegory about parents who imprison their adult children in a secluded compound is a brutal critique of authoritarian control and manufactured reality. Its austere style and shocking content earned it the Un Certain Regard prize at Cannes and a cult following. It’s essential, if challenging, viewing.
4. The Lobster (2015)
Lanthimos’s first English-language film is a dystopian black comedy that perfectly encapsulates his unique worldview. In a society where single people are turned into animals if they fail to find a partner, Colin Farrell navigates a world of bizarre rituals and arbitrary rules. A critical favorite with an 87% on Rotten Tomatoes, The Lobster is a brilliantly original and darkly funny take on modern relationships and social conformity.
5. Bugonia (2025)
So, where does Bugonia land? Based on the aggregated data, it solidly occupies the #5 spot. Critics praise Emma Stone’s and Jesse Plemons’s “standout performances” and the film’s “razor-sharp critique of modern paranoia.” Holding a “Certified Fresh” 87% on Rotten Tomatoes, it’s seen as a “mesmerizing blend of absurdist satire and psychological horror.” However, many reviewers slot it just below his consensus masterpieces, calling it “mid-tier Lanthimos”—still a formidable entry, but its status as an adaptation of Save the Green Planet! may prevent it from feeling like a pure, personal vision.
6. The Killing of a Sacred Deer (2017)
A chilling and relentless modern Greek tragedy, this film leans fully into psychological horror. With its Kubrickian framing, eerie score, and a deeply unsettling performance from Barry Keoghan, it creates an atmosphere of profound dread. While its glacial pacing and arbitrary curse logic can be divisive, it’s a compelling, if difficult, experience for fans of arthouse terror.
7. Kinds of Kindness (2024)
A three-part anthology starring Lanthimos’s recurring troupe of actors, this is the director at his most challenging. While showcasing Emma Stone’s incredible versatility, the nearly three-hour runtime and deliberately opaque storytelling alienated some viewers. With a 71% on Rotten Tomatoes, it’s often described as “for Lanthimos completists only,” featuring brilliant moments within an uneven, demanding framework.
8. Alps (2011)
The immediate follow-up to Dogtooth, Alps explores similar themes of identity and performance through a group that impersonates deceased people. While it contains fascinating ideas, it struggles to match the focused impact of its predecessor and remains one of his least-discussed major works, acting as a stepping stone between his early and later periods.
9. Kinetta (2005)
Lanthimos’s solo directorial debut is a gritty, abstract exercise in style. Following strangers who reenact murders, it announced his visual and thematic interests but lacks the narrative cohesion of his later films. It’s primarily a historical document for dedicated fans wanting to see the origins of his unique aesthetic.
10. My Best Friend (2001)
A mainstream Greek comedy co-directed by Lanthimos, this film bears almost no resemblance to his later work. It was a domestic success but is largely insignificant to his international auteur status, serving only as a curious footnote in his incredible journey.
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From the shocking confines of Dogtooth to the Oscar glory of Poor Things and the sharp satire of Bugonia, Yorgos Lanthimos has maintained one of the most consistent and distinctive voices in cinema. His films, united by deadpan delivery, absurdist premises, and a fascination with power and control, offer a singular and critical mirror to our own societal rituals.
While Bugonia may not dethrone his top-tier masterpieces, its strong critical scores and resonant themes confirm that even a “mid-tier” Lanthimos film is a event worth experiencing. It cements his status as an auteur who continues to challenge and captivate in equal measure.
What do you think? Does Bugonia deserve a higher spot? Is The Lobster your personal number one? Share your own ranking in the comments below!
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