Tim Curry’s Best Role Wasn’t Dr. Frank-N-Furter — It Was In This Cult Comedy

Paramount Pictures

In the wake of the deeply sad passing of Tim Curry — a legendary comedian and actor who passed away on August 25, 2026 after years of health problems — people are, understandably, discussing his astounding body of work. Across nearly six decades, Curry, a luminary of the stage and screen, left us with so many performances that won’t just stand the test of time, but define their respective eras. There’s no question that Curry’s performance as Dr. Frank-n-Furter, a pansexual mad scientist and “transsexual from Transylvania” in “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” — a character he essentially created alongside Richard O’Brien — has soundtracked and assisted awakenings during midnight showings across the world. Curry’s turn as Long John Silver in “Muppet Treasure Island” is unforgettable, as is, frankly, his voice performance in the animated series “The Wild Thornberrys” as the eccentric family patriarch Nigel. The list goes on and on and on.

We’re here to talk about “Clue,” though — Curry’s best performance and, for my money, one of the best comedic performances ever committed to film. The Curry performance you think about as you mourn the loss of this legitimately legendary actor will vary depending on which one you saw at which point in your life, but for me, it’s Curry’s turn as Wadsworth in “Clue.” Jonathan Lynn’s cult classic hit theaters in 1985 and thanks to the fact that it was based on a board game and Lynn provided a different ending to each screening theater, it flopped hard at the box office. (Yes, the “Barbie” movie was a success despite being based on a toy. This was a different time.) Thankfully, “Clue” has earned its status as a cult classic over the years, and while it features a murderer’s row (pun intended) of comedy heavyweights, Curry is the one who makes the whole film work.

Paramount Pictures

Just as a quick refresher, here’s the deal with “Clue.” A group of people involved, in various capacities, with the U.S. government — Mr. Green (Michael McKean), Mrs. Peacock (Eileen Brennan), Professor Plum (Christopher Lloyd), Colonel Mustard (Martin Mull), Mrs. White (Madeline Kahn), and Miss Scarlet (Lesley Ann Warren) — are being blackmailed by a mysterious guy named Mr. Boddy (Lee Ving), and all of them are subsequently invited to Boddy’s mansion by his butler Wadsworth. When people start dropping dead, including Mr. Boddy and the mansion’s chef (Kellye Nakahara), a motorist (Jeffrey Kramer), a singing telegram girl (Jane Wiedlin), and the mansion’s maid Yvette (Colleen Camp), Wadsworth gets all the survivors together after a power cut to explain precisely what happened.

That’s where “Clue,” in my opinion, goes from a fun, silly movie to one of the best comedies ever made. I mentioned that Jonathan Lynn ensured that each movie theater received a different ending, but anyone who loves “Clue” like I do knows that, if you own the movie on DVD, you want to go out of your way to choose the “mega-ending” where Wadsworth pivots between the three and presents every possibility. (In one of them, he’s the murderer!)

What Tim Curry does during these endings is nothing short of astonishing. Running pell-mell around the set to explain exactly how each ending played out and narrating every event of the movie up until that point, Curry isn’t just committed, but delivering one of the most flawless comedic performances I’ve ever seen. Yes, he’s heightened and crazy, but Curry is also astoundingly precise as Wadsworth, understanding perfectly that timing is everything. Honestly, the guy should have multiple Oscars, somehow, for that scene alone.

Paramount Pictures

If you want to argue with me about Wadsworth vs. Dr. Frank-n-Furter when it comes to Tim Curry’s best role, be my guest, I guess … but with the utmost due respect to “The Rocky Horror Picture Show,” it’s “Clue” all the way for me. On some level, this is personal. I had a “Clue” themed birthday party in college with all of my theater friends, who couldn’t possibly have crushed the theme harder. In my twenties, I worked a strange editorial job that inexplicably involved event planning and crafted a “Clue” themed cocktail event with improv actors “playing” the “characters” so that attendees could participate in a large-scale version of the board game. I still play the board game whenever it’s available (I’m Miss Scarlet, always, so don’t even try), and the movie?! I watch that movie all the time. Whenever I’m in a bad or weird mood, “Clue” fixes me.

Everyone in “Clue,” as I’ve established, is great. (Special shout-out to the late, great Madeline Kahn, who improvised the “flames on the side of my face” monologue that gets a chuckle out of me every time I just think about it.) Curry is the glue that holds the film together, and it’s not just because the narrative catalyst who literally brings all of the characters into the same room. In the hands of a lesser actor — or even a slightly lower-key actor! — Wadsworth would be unremarkable. By the time Curry is actively giving himself health problems by sprinting around the set recounting every single event of the movie itself, you realize you’re watching cinematic history.

Losing Curry is terrible, but the legacy he left behind is astounding. Whether you have or haven’t seen “Clue,” it’s on Paramount+.