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John Belushi

John Belushi

Actor · Died March 5, 1982, aged 33 · Chicago, Illinois, USA

John Adam Belushi (January 24, 1949 – March 5, 1982) was an American comedian, actor, and musician best known as one of the original cast members of the NBC sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live and for his roles in the films National Lampoon's Animal House and The Blues Brothers. He was the older brother of Jim Belushi.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
January 24, 1949
Died
March 5, 1982 (aged 33)
From
Chicago, Illinois, USA
Works as
Actor
Titles
13 on MovieCove · 22 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 155 days to Oct 26Up 19% in 30 days

What are John Belushi's films like?

Across their 17 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Self and Society.

Genres

Comedy7 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 76th percentile
: browse their Comedy movies
Documentary7 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 84th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Documentary movies

Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.

Themes

share of theme weight
Self
24%
Society
21%
Bonds
19%
Ideas
15%
Power
12%
Survival
6%
Morality
3%
Art5 titles, browse their movies with this themeIdentity5 titles, browse their movies with this themeCommunity4 titles, browse their movies with this themeFamily bonds2 titles, browse their movies with this themeAmbition2 titles, browse their movies with this themeFriendship2 titles, browse their movies with this themeOppression2 titles, browse their movies with this themeFame2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 17 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Light: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their light movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

Light 13 · Serious 3 · Dark 1

Stylized: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their stylized movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

A split, not a type: Grounded 9 · Stylized 3 · Heightened 5

Charged: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their charged movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

Gentle 6 · Charged 10 · Intense 1

Shifting: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their shifting movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

A split, not a type: Steady 10 · Shifting 4 · Whiplash 3

Funny: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their funny movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 2 · Some laughs 5 · Funny 10

Even-paced: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their even-paced movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 6 · Even-paced 9 · Relentless 2

Casual: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their casual movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 13 · Engaged 4 · Full focus 0

Resolved: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their resolved movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 16 · Open-ended 1 · Ambiguous 0

Roles they play

10 analyzed roles

Usually the Trickster: 4 of 10 analyzed roles.

Trickster
4 of 10
Hero
3 of 10
Shadow
2 of 10
Ally
1 of 10
Show the 10 roles

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Joyful
9
Warm
9
Absurd
6
Contemplative
6
Melancholic
2
Other
13

How their films linger

Feel-good9 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFun8 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet6 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteWistful5 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHopeful2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteRousing2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end

  • Happy5
  • Bittersweet8
  • Tragic1
  • Ambiguous1
  • Cyclical2

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch John Belushi's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 6 of their 13 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for John Belushi's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

22 credits, 13 with a MovieCove page; 21 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.

  • An SNL Thanksgiving (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2024)

    as (archive footage)

  • Saturday Night Live: The Best of Dan Aykroyd (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2005)

    as Various Characters (archive footage)

  • Saturday Night Live: 25th Anniversary Special (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1999)

    as (archive footage)

  • The Best of the Blues Brothers(1993)

    as Jake Blues (archive footage)

    Midcredits score: 91st percentile of all films

  • The Best of John Belushi (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1985)

    as Various Characters

  • The Beach Boys: An American Band(1985)

    as Police Officer #2

    Midcredits score: 78th percentile of all films

  • Neighbors(1981)

    as Earl Keese

    Midcredits score: 31st percentile of all films

  • Steve Martin's Best Show Ever(1981)

    as Zhelezna Postruk

    Midcredits score: 76th percentile of all films

  • Continental Divide(1981)

    as Ernie Souchak

    Midcredits score: 47th percentile of all films

  • The Blues Brothers(1980)

    as 'Joliet' Jake Blues

    Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all films

  • 1941(1979)

    as Capt. Wild Bill Kelso

    Midcredits score: 32nd percentile of all films

  • Old Boyfriends(1979)

    as Eric

    Midcredits score: 35th percentile of all films

  • The Blues Brothers Live at Winterland (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1978)

    as Joliet Jake Blues

  • Goin' South(1978)

    as Hector

    Midcredits score: 46th percentile of all films

  • National Lampoon's Animal House(1978)

    as John 'Bluto' Blutarski

    Midcredits score: 89th percentile of all films

  • The Rutles: All You Need Is Cash(1978)

    as Ron Decline

    Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all films

  • The Richard Pryor Show (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1977)

    Show 5 episodes · Actor

  • The Richard Pryor Special?(1977)

    as Slave Driver / Bartender

    Midcredits score: 87th percentile of all films

  • The Beach Boys: It's OK (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1976)

    Writer · as Cop #2

  • The Beach Boys: It's OK (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1976)

    Writer · as Cop #2

  • Saturday Night Live(1975)

    Show 86 episodes · Writer · as Self - Various Characters · as Self (uncredited) · as Self / Eleanor of Gaunt (uncredited) · as Self / Various (archive footage)

    Midcredits score: 71st percentile of all shows

  • Lemmings (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1973)

    Writer · as Various

Career shape

Star power in the 96th percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 21 titles from 1973 to 2024.

Biggest box office

National Lampoon's Animal House (1978)

$142M worldwide

Highest rated

The Blues Brothers (1980)

Midcredits 97th

Film career

Top draw in 4 MovieCove titles.

  • 1978Screen debut· The Rutles: All You Need Is Cash
  • 1978First top-billed film· Animal House

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting20 of 21: 17 only acting, 3 with another role · typical Midcredits score76thWriting4 of 21: 1 only writing, 3 with another role

21 titles, 3 with more than one role — acting and writing overlap on 3 of them.

By decade

1970s12 · 11 acting · 4 crew1980s5 · acting1990s2 · acting2000s1 · acting2020s1 · acting

Billing

usually 1st · top billed in 57% of 7 roles

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored. Billing is TMDB cast order for roles with 25+ votes, billed in the top 30.

How do John Belushi's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 77th percentile, the median of all 12; across their 17 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 79th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

79thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 17

Approval · how many liked their films

81stpercentile
Typical film, the median of 17

Reach · how many have seen their films

74thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 17

Midcredits score across 13 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up7
  • 50th to 74th1
  • 25th to 49th5

Shape of the crowd

5 of their 13 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved3
  • Crowd Pleaser5
  • Broadly Agreed1
  • Mixed4

Most divisive · actor

Steve Martin's Best Show Ever (1981)

63rd percentile spread · 14% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · actor

The Blues Brothers (1980)

Midcredits 97th · 86% liked

Reviewers score the acting 68/100 in their films, across 11 reviewed titles; fans 76, detractors 43. The element that speaks to their work as an actor.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Is John Belushi's work okay for kids?

Across up to 5 MovieCove titles with content scores, sex & nudity runs heavier than most films.

Their medianMedian of all filmsMiddle 80% of their titles
Violence & Gore4 titlesmedian 34 · mildMedian of all films: 44
Sex & Nudity5 titles33–63 · median 47 · moderateheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 32
Profanity4 titlesmedian 55 · moderateMedian of all films: 36
Alcohol & Drugs4 titlesmedian 36 · moderateMedian of all films: 33
Frightening / Intense4 titlesmedian 16 · mildMedian of all films: 39

Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted. The band's colour is the severity of their median, named beside it.

Who does John Belushi work with?

People who share at least 2 of John Belushi's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Dan Aykroyd shares the most, 8.

Directors

Writers

Actors

Composers, cinematographers and editors

Producers

Mixed roles