For actors, filmmakers, and creatives of all kinds on Cast Artists, understanding the drama of the business world is crucial. After all, building a career in media production is an entrepreneurial venture in itself!
Movies about business are often the most powerful dramas, showing the intense passion, ruthlessness, and sheer grit it takes to build an empire from an idea. These films are more than entertainment; they are case studies in innovation, negotiation, leadership, and moral compromise.
Here is our curated list of the Top 20 English Movies on Entrepreneurship and Business Success-each a masterclass in the cinematic portrayal of ambition.
The Biopics: Building Giants from the Ground Up
These films dramatize the true stories of individuals who changed industries, demonstrating the extraordinary drive required for world-changing success.
- 1. The Social Network (2010): A sharp, fast-paced look at the controversial founding of Facebook. It’s a masterclass in the complexities of partnership, intellectual property, and scaling a disruptive tech idea.
- 2. The Founder (2016): Starring Michael Keaton as Ray Kroc, this film is a sobering, fascinating study of how a struggling salesman took the innovative idea of the McDonald brothers and ruthlessly scaled it into the global fast-food franchise we know today. It’s about real estate more than burgers.
- 3. The Pursuit of Happyness (2006): An incredibly inspiring true story starring Will Smith as Chris Gardner, a salesman enduring homelessness while relentlessly pursuing an unpaid internship at a stock brokerage firm. A powerful testament to persistence, determination, and optimism against all odds.
- 4. Joy (2015): Based on the life of Joy Mangano, the single mother who invented the Miracle Mop and built a massive business empire. This film highlights the struggles faced by female entrepreneurs in a cutthroat, male-dominated commercial landscape.
- 5. The Aviator (2004): Leonardo DiCaprio stars as the eccentric business magnate, pilot, and filmmaker Howard Hughes. It’s an epic exploration of genius, ambition, and the immense personal cost of building multiple, diverse empires.
- 6. Steve Jobs (2015): A uniquely structured biopic, focusing on three key product launches, that reveals the brilliant, chaotic, and uncompromising personality behind the Apple revolution. It’s about passion for product above all else.
The Financial Thrillers: Greed, Risk, and the Crash
These high-stakes films explore the dark side of finance, market disruption, and the moral choices made at the highest echelons of corporate power.
- 7. The Wolf of Wall Street (2013): Martin Scorsese’s wildly energetic, cautionary tale based on the memoir of stockbroker Jordan Belfort. It is an intense, if morally corrupt, lesson in extreme salesmanship and persuasion.
- 8. Wall Street (1987): The classic film that defined the era of ‘greed is good,’ starring Michael Douglas as the ruthless corporate raider Gordon Gekko. A fundamental cautionary tale about insider trading and the seductive nature of power.
- 9. The Big Short (2015): A clever, star-studded film that explains the lead-up to the 2008 financial crisis through the eyes of the few people who saw it coming and bet against the system. It showcases the value of non-conformist thinking and rigorous analysis.
- 10. Boiler Room (2000): A look inside a fraudulent Long Island brokerage firm. This thriller is a gripping depiction of the high-pressure world of cold-calling sales and the devastating consequences of ambition without ethics.
- 11. Margin Call (2011): A tense drama set over a 24-hour period inside an investment bank on the eve of the 2008 financial crisis. It provides a sobering look at risk management and the corporate decision-making process in a crisis.
Strategy, Innovation, and Team Building
Success often comes down to clever tactics, disruptive innovation, and excellent team leadership, themes perfectly captured by these films.
- 12. Moneyball (2011): A sports film that is pure business inspiration. Brad Pitt plays baseball general manager Billy Beane, who revolutionized the Oakland A’s by using data-driven analytics (Sabermetrics) to challenge decades of conventional wisdom.
- 13. Jerry Maguire (1996): Tom Cruise stars as a sports agent who has a moral awakening, gets fired, and risks everything to start his own agency with a single client and a powerful mission statement. It’s a powerful story about the value of personal relationships over volume.
- 14. Glengarry Glen Ross (1992): Based on the David Mamet play, this film is a brutal study of a group of real estate salesmen under intense pressure. It’s often cited for its raw depiction of the sales environment and the famous mantra: “Always Be Closing.”
- 15. Chef (2014): A renowned chef quits his restrictive restaurant job to open a food truck, rediscovering his passion for cooking and his relationship with his family. A heartwarming look at starting small, marketing, and creative fulfillment.
- 16. Pirates of Silicon Valley (1999): An engaging, early biopic detailing the rivalry between Steve Jobs and Bill Gates in the late 1970s and 1980s. A fascinating look at how two different approaches to innovation conquered the world of personal computing.
Underrated Gems and Cautionary Tales
Rounding out the list are films that offer nuanced or satirical takes on the modern corporate environment, business ethics, and the power of marketing.
- 17. Office Space (1999): A cult classic satire of corporate life, cubicle culture, and the crushing monotony of unfulfilling work. It’s a great reminder of what not to build your company into.
- 18. Catch Me If You Can (2002): A biographical crime film about Frank Abagnale Jr. (Leonardo DiCaprio), a master con man. While illegal, his story is an unparalleled lesson in charming salesmanship, confidence, and quickly adapting to new environments.
- 19. Erin Brockovich (2000): Julia Roberts stars in this true story of a single mother who, with no formal legal training, takes on a massive power company. It’s a powerful story of tenacity, research, and corporate accountability.
- 20. Air (2023): This film focuses on how Sonny Vaccaro (Matt Damon) and Nike’s fledgling basketball division pursued the groundbreaking endorsement deal with Michael Jordan. It’s a masterclass in bold negotiation, brand vision, and recognizing talent.
Find Your Next Winning Role on Cast Artists
Just as these entrepreneurs had a vision, you, the artist, have a vision for your career. Whether you are an actor looking for a role in the next big biopic or an influencer ready to partner with a rising startup, Cast Artists is the platform to launch your venture. Create your professional portfolio and connect with production companies that are ready to invest in your talent.
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