Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | Ragtime | P. C. O'Donnell | |
| 1983 | Terms of Endearment | Flap Horton | |
| 1985 | Marie | Eddie Sisk | |
| 1985 | The Purple Rose of Cairo | Tom Baxter/Gil Shepherd | Nominated – Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy |
| 1986 | Something Wild | Charles Driggs | |
| 1986 | Heartburn | Richard | |
| 1987 | Radio Days | Biff Baxter | |
| 1988 | The House on Carroll Street | Cochran | |
| 1988 | Sweet Hearts Dance | Sam Manners | |
| 1989 | Checking Out | Ray Macklin | |
| 1989 | No Place Like Home | Mike | Television film |
| 1990 | Arachnophobia | Ross Jennings | Saturn Award for Best Actor |
| 1990 | Welcome Home, Roxy Carmichael | Denton Webb | |
| 1991 | Love Hurts | Paul Weaver | |
| 1991 | The Butcher's Wife | Dr. Alex Tremor | |
| 1992 | Timescape also known as Grand Tour: Disaster in Time | Ben Wilson | International Fantasy Film Award for Best Actor |
| 1992 | There Goes the Neighborhood | Willis Embry | |
| 1992 | Teamster Boss: The Jackie Presser Story | Tom Noonan | Television film |
| 1993 | Rain Without Thunder | Jonathan Garson | |
| 1993 | Gettysburg | Colonel Joshua Chamberlain | Nominated – Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor |
| 1994 | Speed | Harry Temple | |
| 1994 | Dumb and Dumber | Harry Dunne | |
| 1995 | Redwood Curtain | Lyman Fellers | |
| 1996 | Fly Away Home | Thomas Alden | Nominated – Chlotrudis Award for Best Actor |
| 1996 | 2 Days in the Valley | Alvin Strayer | |
| 1996 | 101 Dalmatians | Roger Dearly | |
| 1997 | Trial and Error | Charlie Tuttle | |
| 1998 | Pleasantville | Bill Johnson | Nominated – Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy |
| 1999 | My Favorite Martian | Tim O'Hara | |
| 1999 | All the Rage | Warren Harding | retitled It's the Rage for American television |
| 2000 | The Crossing | George Washington | Television film |
| 2000 | Chasing Sleep | Ed Saxon | |
| 2000 | Cheaters | Dr. Gerard Plecki | Television film; HBO |
| 2001 | Escanaba in da Moonlight | Reuben Soady | |
| 2002 | Super Sucker | Fred Barlow | |
| 2002 | Blood Work | Jasper "Buddy" Noone | |
| 2002 | The Hours | Louis Waters | |
| 2003 | Gods and Generals | Lt. Colonel Joshua Chamberlain | |
| 2003 | I Witness | James Rhodes | |
| 2004 | The Goodbye Girl | Elliot Garfield | Television film |
| 2004 | Imaginary Heroes | Ben Travis | |
| 2004 | The Five People You Meet In Heaven | The Blue Man | |
| 2005 | The Squid and the Whale | Bernard Berkman | Chlotrudis Award for Best Supporting Actor Nominated – Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy Nominated – Independent Spirit Award for Best Male Lead Nominated – London Film Critics Circle Award for Actor of the Year Nominated – National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actor |
| 2005 | Because of Winn-Dixie | The Preacher | |
| 2005 | Good Night, and Good Luck. | Sig Mickelson | |
| 2006 | RV | Travis Gornicke | |
| 2006 | Infamous | Alvin Dewey | |
| 2007 | The Lookout | Lewis | Nominated – Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture |
| 2007 | Mama's Boy | Mert Rosenbloom | |
| 2007 | A Plumm Summer | Narrator | |
| 2008 | Sweet Nothing in My Ear | Dan Miller | Television film |
| 2008 | Space Chimps | Zartog | Voice only |
| 2008 | Traitor | Carter | |
| 2009 | State of Play | Representative George Fergus | |
| 2009 | The Answer Man | Arlen Faber | |
| 2009 | Away We Go | Jerry Farlander | |
| 2009 | Paper Man | Richard Dunn | |
| 2010 | Howl | Professor David Kirk | |
| 2010 | Planet Sheen | Glonb | Voice Episode: "What's Up Chock?" |
| 2010 | The Adventures of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer | Santa Claus | |
| 2011 | Right Angle | Mickey | |
| 2012–present | The Newsroom | Will McAvoy | |
| 2012 | Looper | Abe |
Read more about this topic: Jeff Daniels