by Megan Bailey, Staff Writer & Emily Maesar, Staff Writer

Emily: Chris Pine is the best Chris. At least of the white Chris continuum. It’s wild to me that there’s any debate about that—especially when you consider that most of us will never actually know any of these men. But it’s Chris Pine’s birthday. His 42nd birthday. His Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy “answer to the universe” birthday. So, we thought it would be fun to write about some of his work since he started acting professionally. Is he good at accents? Not really, but also kinda! But is he a great actor? You know, sometimes he’s the only good thing in the dang movie!

The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement (dir. Garry Marshall, 2004)

Megan: The first real film Chris Pine acted in—and the first time I ever encountered him. But boy, what a movie! He’s charming, smarmy, and almost, kind of delivering on the silly accent here. He also rides a ridiculous bicycle. All that and the enemies-to-lovers plot line with Anne Hathaway makes this a goddamn gift. Looking back at it, it’s a very sweet first film! He sells the almost-baddie to sweetheart turn, plus his chemistry with Anne is off the charts. “I loathe you,” indeed. If you saw this as a teen and didn’t want to fall into a fountain with him, I simply don’t believe you!

Star Trek (dir. J.J. Abrams, 2009)

Emily: It shouldn’t be surprising that I love Star Trek, given the Captain’s Log of it all. However, now might be a fun time to mention that this film is the reason why. Like, it was always around and I had an appreciation for it as something my mom loved, but this film (and Chris Pine in this film) really got my engines revved and made me this weirdo mess you know and love. Chris’s performance as Kirk really spoke to me. Plus, seeing his stupid hot face completely beat from the bar fight while Pike convinced him to join Starfleet? HELLO! I’d just turned 17 when this movie came out and it was a not insignificant moment for me. 

People Like Us (dir. Alex Kurtzman, 2012)

Megan: Listen, some of us got sucked into Chris Pine’s filmography after Star Trek (2009) and watched some deeply weird movies because of it. This is a movie in which Chris’s character goes looking for the sister he didn’t know he had (played by Elizabeth Banks), and she flirts with him before finding out they’re related? Hmmm, okay! But he’s just so ding-dang charming that the movie almost works in spite of the weirdo plot stuff. 

Rise of the Guardians (dir. Peter Ramsey, 2012)

Emily: By the time 2012 rolled around, Chris Pine had already imprinted directly into my brain. Add on top of that my deep obsession with Jack Frost (thank you, Rankin/Bass) and Rise of the Guardians was always going to be one of my favorite animated films. For what I think is one of Pine’s first (though very notably not last, more on that later) voice acting role… he’s pretty freaking good. There are a lot of fun performances in this film, and his turn as Jack Frost is really charming and sweet. 

Hell or High Water (dir. David Mackenzie, 2016)

Megan: If you’re looking for a film where Chris Pine is dirty and down on his luck, this is the movie for you! It’s a cat-and-mouse bank robbery movie, where we follow two brothers (Pine and Ben Foster) trying to outrun a Texas Ranger (Jeff Bridges). Pitched as a neo-Western crime drama, this film has a lot going for it, including one of Chris Pine’s best performances. While I love a good weirdo role for him, he makes this “everyman abused by the bank system” interesting too. There’s such tension in this film, and Chris and Ben Foster play off each other so well. 

Star Trek Beyond (dir. Justin Lin, 2016)

Emily: I’m cheating by talking about two of three Kelvin timeline Star Trek movies, I know that. But ask me how much I care? The middle movie, Into Darkness, is a nightmare from which I’ve yet to wake up from, but I’m sure I’ll talk about more in the future. Beyond, however, is one of Chris Pine’s best performances to date. It’s in part because the film is actually interested in his character’s evolution (and the evolutions of all the other characters), but also because of how Chris plays those changes. This is the film that makes me wish, more than anything, we’d gotten a reboot Trek show with this cast, rather than just a film series. I want to live with his Kirk for the rest of my life. Nothing compares. 

Wonder Woman (dir. Patty Jenkins, 2017)

Megan: While there are a lot of good things about this movie, and the No-Man’s Land scene alone fuels me on any given day, Chris is just so delightful in this. He’s charming, serious, and doubtful, bringing the human element and reminding Diana that humanity is worth saving. And then he helps save the day as well! He has great chemistry with Gal, and the dancing in the snow scene is such good stuff. While the DC romances are usually pretty boring, Diana and Steve have a real connection here. 

And, it must be said, he is undoubtedly the best part of Wonder Woman 1984, though he absolutely shouldn’t have been in it. His incredulous reactions to escalators, breakdancing, and trash cans are truly amazing. It would have been a better movie had it given that focus to other plot lines (and improved them), but he’s just so good as Steve Trevor in these films. 

A Wrinkle In Time (dir. Ava DuVernay, 2018)

Emily: Chris Pine is a DILF! I’m sorry—except I’m not! I know he’s not actually a dad, but he is in A Wrinkle in Time and I am deeply thankful for that fact. Because not only is he just generally hot… but this is the true beginning of his silver fox era. And that has been the best era I’ve ever been alive for, I’ll tell you what! Besides, I’ll always be a sucker for a good dad, and Alex Murry is a positively lovely father. The best of both worlds is having a DILF who’s also a good dad!

Outlaw King (dir. David Mackenzie, 2018)

Megan: For all that the promo for Outlaw King got swept up in how Chris shows his Pine in it, this is such an interesting movie. While I don’t think it all comes together as intended, our man delivers a great performance. He’s doing more accent work, and despite some pretty noticeable ADR in the very first scene (yikes), it seems to level out for the most part. And he’s serving up reluctant royal and devoted family man. What a treat! 

I think this film lost something in all the full-frontal talk. It’s such a short scene, and there are definitely more interesting things about it. And that’s without mentioning the wonderful performance from Florence Pugh, as well! The two will be teaming up again in the upcoming Don’t Worry Darling, which is exciting. 

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (dirs. Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, & Rodney Rothman, 2018)

Emily: It has been said, more than once, that whenever a straight guy says they think an actor would be a good Peter Parker, then that’s them saying they want to kiss that man on the mouth. Which… yes. Agreed. That is also what I mean, too. And Chris Pine is a supremely great Peter Parker. Like, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is the greatest film featuring the character, and Chris’s version of Peter (Miles’s original Peter) is a perfectly put together Spider-Man. He gets to be the Peter that doesn’t exist and Chris Pine is a great compliment and contrast to Jake Johnson’s Peter Parker. Even in animation, and less time than if he were starring, Chris Pine shows off the kind of acting scene partner he is—a great one!

Megan: As previously mentioned, Pine is the best Chris. This is not up for debate! His best performance is, though. While this list is a good starting point, he’s got plenty of other funky films to check out, along with some standard action-man fare (sorry, The Contractor and Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit). We can’t wait for his next few films, including Don’t Worry Darling, Dungeons and Dragons, and his directorial debut, Poolman. Happy birthday, Chris Pine! Here’s to many more films in your ouvre.