Mel Brooks has long been known as one of America’s most popular exports when it comes to comedy, with his movies reaching a wide audience all over the world. And there’s a good reason for that. Not only are his works very funny indeed, they often push social boundaries and challenge what we can have a conversation about. Yes, like any great satirist, Brooks isn’t afraid to push people’s buttons. And that’s given his films something of an evergreen quality, even his earliest ones like 1967’s The Producers.
A summary of Mel Brook’s best acting roles can be seen below (video provided by Stream TV):
Early satires
In fact, there’s an argument to be made that The Producers is still to this day his best work. It certainly started a conversation when it was first released as it dealt with a lot of topics few dared touch, primarily Adolf Hitler. Of course, with Mel Brooks at the helm here, the whole thing was handled with a very deft hand. Basically the plot to this one is that as a result of a financial loophole, a Broadway producer and his accountant realise they could make more money by writing a flop than a hit, so they set about writing the biggest sure fire flop they can imagine.
What would this flop be? A play written by an ex Nazi soldier as a love letter to Adolf Hitler entitled Springtime for Hitler: A Gay Romp with Adolf and Eva at Berchtesgaden. Needless to say then, this movie was hugely controversial when it first hit screens. But while many were upset by what they were seeing, others were tuned into Brooks’ style of comedy enough that they saw the satire in the whole thing. And that was what led to it becoming something of a hit within those circles, so much of a hit that it would not only earn its creator an Academy Award for Best Screenplay, but would also be adapted into an actual hit Broadway musical in the years following.
And this wouldn’t be the only time Mel Brooks courted controversy with one of his early satirical works either. No, the exact same thing would happen just seven years later when he released Blazing Saddles, the story of a racist old west town who find themselves being forced to deal with the fact they have a new sheriff, and that this sheriff is a black man.
Obviously then, this leads to a lot of jokes that are pretty near to the bone. But none of these jokes are ever done in a way in which we’re meant to be laughing at our new sheriff. No, the comedy is always aimed at the buffoonish locals and their moronic, out of date attitudes. Really, despite having the potential to be very offensive, you could make a solid argument that no movie in history has skewered the very concept of racism better than this one.
Recurring collaborators
But the cutting satire of Blazing Saddles wouldn’t be the only reason it was another hit for Brooks, one which fully solidified him as a major player in the comedy scene. No, a big part of the success also goes down to the stars of the film, Cleavon Little, Madeline Kahn, and Gene Wilder. And when it came to the latter two of this trio, this was far from the only time they’d work with the director. In fact, both would return for Mel Brooks’ next film, Young Frankenstein, a parody of the classic horror film genre. And Kahn would feature in a further two films of his from there, 1977’s High Anxiety and 1982’s epic film parody The History of the World, Part 1.
As for Gene Wilder? Well his total number of collaborations with Brooks would be three by the time all was said and done, But each of those appearances would be in a starring role. Still, in terms of volume this was nothing compared to Dom DeLuise who worked with Mel Brooks in six different projects, first in 1970’s with High Anxiety, and lastly in 2008 with Spaceballs: The Animated Series, an animated continuation of his 1987 hit.
Middle period works
Of course, by the time the late eighties had come around and movies like Spaceballs had been released out into the world, Mel Brooks wasn’t quite as much of a critical darling as he’d been earlier in his career. Sure, he was still very well respected, and actors were lining up to work with him. That said, there was a feeling amongst some critics that his Star Wars parody marked the beginning of a bit of a creative downturn for him, a downturn which would continue with further parodies throughout the nineties like Dracula: Dead and Loving It, and Robin Hood: Men in Tights.
But while critics might not have been all in on these movies, fans certainly were as they remained successful with the directors core audience. In fact, Robin Hood: Men in Tights, a parody retelling of the story of the mythical figure of English folklore, would go on to become quite the cult hit in the years following its release. And the same could be said for Spaceballs too, with some people who grew up watching this one going as far as to call it their favourite film of the director’s.
Sure, part of the reason these films would find an audience would be because of the work of comedy legends like John Candy, Leslie Neilson, and Rick Moranis, with the latter playing a particularly memorable parody of Darth Vader in Spaceballs named Dark Helmet. But as with his early work, a lot of the credit has to go to the writing and direction of Mel Brooks too.
Production work
By then though, Mel Brooks wasn’t just focused on directing and writing. No, he’d also moved into production too, with this allowing him to use his money and fame to help other filmmakers get their work made. And he wouldn’t just be focusing on comedy here either. No, he’d help to produce a classic horror film in David Cronenberg’s 1986 remake of The Fly, all while also helping David Lynch to get his 1980 classic The Elephant Man off of the ground.
That said, you wouldn’t know Brooks was a producer on these movies if you were watching them because he’d make the wise decision to go uncredited, with his reasoning being that if his name showed up on screen at the start of the film, people would be expecting a comedy. And that worked out well as both of these turned out to be pretty big hits, with all this allowing him to transition into the later stage of his career, the stage we’re at today.
Late period works
So what has Mel Brooks been doing in the last few decades? Well, not much in the way of movies. No, ever since the release of Dracula: Dead and Loving It in 1995, the directors only involvement in anything involving the big screen has been a writer and producer credit on the 2005 remake of The Producers, as well as some voice acting work in animated kids films like Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation, Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank, and Toy Story 4. Aside from that, it’s been television that Brooks has moved over to, with this beginning in 2008 when he wrote and produced Spaceballs: The Animated Series.
And after that he’d move on to reviving another one of his earlier hits for the small screen, with it being in 2023 that gave us The History of the World, Part 2, a direct TV continuation of his earlier cinematic work, The History of the World, Part 1. As you would expect then, this one was a hit with fans who had come to accept that they may never get another work for Mel Brooks again.
Will it lead to further TV work in the future? Well, there have been talks of a History of the World, Part 3 being in the pipeline for Hulu and Disney Plus. And who knows? That could even lead to more films being made by Brooks before all is said and done. Sure, he might be ninety eight years old now, but age hasn’t dulled any of his comedy instincts.
No, in 2025 Mel Brooks is just as sharp as he ever was. And given the work he’s put out in the past, that’s very impressive. We are after all talking about the man who in many ways defined the satirical comedy for an entire generation with this white hot takes on racism, fascism, and just the general absurdity of life in this world in which we live in. And in doing this he’s been able to carve out a place for himself in Hollywood history as a true comedy legend. For more information on Mel Brook’s filmography including top picks, check out Stream TV on YouTube!
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