Joe Bugner
Actor · Died September 1, 2025, aged 75 · Szőreg, Szeged, Hungary
József Kreul Bugner (13 March 1950 – 1 September 2025) was a Hungarian-born British-Australian former heavyweight boxer and actor. He held triple nationality, being a citizen of Hungary and a naturalised citizen of both Australia and the United Kingdom. He unsuccessfully challenged Muhammad Ali for the heavyweight championship in 1975, losing by unanimous decision. As an actor, he was best known for his role in the 1994 action film Street Fighter alongside Jean-Claude Van Damme and Raul Julia. Born in Szőreg, a southeastern suburb of Szeged in southern Hungary, Bugner and his family fled after the 1956 Soviet invasion and settled in Britain. Standing at 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) with a prime weight of around 220 pounds (100 kg), Bugner twice held the British and British Commonwealth heavyweight titles and was a three-time European heavyweight champion. He was ranked among the world's top ten heavyweights in the 1970s, fighting such opponents as Muhammad Ali, Joe Frazier, Ron Lyle, Jimmy Ellis, Manuel Ramos, Chuck Wepner, Earnie Shavers, Henry Cooper, Brian London, Mac Foster, Rudie Lubbers, Eduardo Corletti, Jurgen Blin and George Johnson. Bugner retired from boxing in 1976, but over the next two decades, he made sporadic comebacks with varying success. He moved to Australia in 1986, adopting the nickname "Aussie Joe", beating fighters such as Greg Page, David Bey, Anders Eklund and James Tillis before retiring again after a TKO loss to Frank Bruno in 1987. He made a final comeback during the 1990s, winning the Australian heavyweight title in 1995 and the lightly regarded World Boxing Federation (WBF) heavyweight championship in 1998 at the age of 48 against James "Bonecrusher" Smith. He retired for the last time in 1999 with a final record of 69-13-1, including 43 wins by knockout. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Biography from TMDB.
- March 13, 1950
- September 1, 2025 (aged 75)
- Szőreg, Szeged, Hungary
- Actor
- 8 on MovieCove · 17 credits in all
Known for
What are Joe Bugner's films like?
Across their 6 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Self.
Genres
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
What they feel like to watch
A split, not a type: Ironic 2 · Wry 0 · Earnest 3
Light 5 · Serious 0 · Dark 0
Grounded 0 · Stylized 4 · Heightened 1
A split, not a type: Gentle 2 · Charged 3 · Intense 0
Steady 3 · Shifting 2 · Whiplash 0
Straight-faced 0 · Some laughs 0 · Funny 5
Slow burn 2 · Even-paced 3 · Relentless 0
Casual 4 · Engaged 1 · Full focus 0
Easy watch 5 · Affecting 0 · Heavy 0
Resolved 5 · Open-ended 0 · Ambiguous 0
Roles they play
- Shadowas Ormond in I'm for the Hippopotamus (1979)
- Shadowas Sheriff Bronson in Buddy Goes West (1981)
Moods and endings
- Happy5
- Ambiguous1
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 Joe Bugner's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 2 of their 8 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (2).
Subscription and free streaming for Joe Bugner'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
17 credits, 8 with a MovieCove page; 2 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.
Earnie Shavers (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2021)
Bert's Family Feud (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2006)
The Baby Juice Express(2004)
Midcredits score: 26th percentile of all films
Gettin' Square(2003)
Midcredits score: 73rd percentile of all films
The Lost World (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1999)
Midcredits score: 6th percentile of all shows
Voyage au centre de la terre (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1999)
Roar (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1997)
Street Fighter(1994)
Midcredits score: 5th percentile of all films
Fatal Bond (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1991)
Sher Mountain Killings Mystery (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1990)
Barracuda (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1988)
Dispatches (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1987)
Buddy Goes West(1981)
Midcredits score: 60th percentile of all films
I'm for the Hippopotamus(1979)
Midcredits score: 71st percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 52nd percentile of all films
Lo chiamavano Bulldozer(1978)
Midcredits score: 72nd percentile of all films
Career shape
Star power in the 88th percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 16 titles from 1978 to 2021; peak year 1978.
Film career
Peak 1978 · fewer prominent film roles lately. Film roles by billing, audience size and rating; 25+ votes. A show carries a single first-air date, so shows are not on the curve.
- 1978Screen debut· They Called Him Bulldozer
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 Joe Bugner's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 60th percentile, the median of all 7; across their 5 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 60th percentile for acclaim.
- 50th to 74th5
- 25th to 49th1
- Below 25th2
Shape of the crowd
5 of their 8 titles are Crowd Pleasers.
- Universally Panned1
- Crowd Pleaser5
- Mixed2
Reviewers score the acting 67/100 in their films, across 5 reviewed titles; fans 78, detractors 51. 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.
Who does Joe Bugner work with?
People who share at least 2 of Joe Bugner's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Bud Spencer shares the most, 4.
Directors
- Michele LupoShared titles: Buddy Goes West (1981), The Sheriff and the Satellite Kid (1979), Lo chiamavano Bulldozer (1978)See all 3 shared titles with Michele Lupo
Writers
- Francesco ScardamagliaShared titles: The Sheriff and the Satellite Kid (1979), Lo chiamavano Bulldozer (1978)See all 2 shared titles with Francesco Scardamaglia
- Marcello FondatoShared titles: The Sheriff and the Satellite Kid (1979), Lo chiamavano Bulldozer (1978)See all 2 shared titles with Marcello Fondato
Actors
- Bud SpencerShared titles: Buddy Goes West (1981), I'm for the Hippopotamus (1979), The Sheriff and the Satellite Kid (1979), Lo chiamavano Bulldozer (1978)See all 4 shared titles with Bud Spencer
- Ottaviano Dell'AcquaShared titles: Buddy Goes West (1981), The Sheriff and the Satellite Kid (1979), Lo chiamavano Bulldozer (1978)See all 3 shared titles with Ottaviano Dell'Acqua
- Carlo RealiShared titles: Buddy Goes West (1981), The Sheriff and the Satellite Kid (1979)See all 2 shared titles with Carlo Reali
- Luigi BonosShared titles: The Sheriff and the Satellite Kid (1979), Lo chiamavano Bulldozer (1978)See all 2 shared titles with Luigi Bonos
Composers, cinematographers and editors
- Franco Di GiacomoShared titles: Buddy Goes West (1981), The Sheriff and the Satellite Kid (1979), Lo chiamavano Bulldozer (1978)See all 3 shared titles with Franco Di Giacomo
- Eugenio AlabisoShared titles: Buddy Goes West (1981), The Sheriff and the Satellite Kid (1979)See all 2 shared titles with Eugenio Alabiso
- Guido De AngelisShared titles: The Sheriff and the Satellite Kid (1979), Lo chiamavano Bulldozer (1978)See all 2 shared titles with Guido De Angelis
- Maurizio De AngelisShared titles: The Sheriff and the Satellite Kid (1979), Lo chiamavano Bulldozer (1978)See all 2 shared titles with Maurizio De Angelis
Producers
- Elio ScardamagliaShared titles: The Sheriff and the Satellite Kid (1979), Lo chiamavano Bulldozer (1978)See all 2 shared titles with Elio Scardamaglia
