Tom Waits, a renowned singer-songwriter and globally acclaimed musician, is also an esteemed character actor, known for his magnetic presence and unmistakable vocal timbre. His film career is characterized by roles as eccentric, melancholic, or "outsider" characters.

He made his film debut in Jim Jarmusch's *Down by Law* (1986), immediately becoming iconic in the role of Zack. Among his most memorable performances are Renfield in Francis Ford Coppola's *Bram Stoker's Dracula* (1992), the co-star in *Ironweed* (1987), and the Devil in *The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus* (2009). More recently, he received praise for his role in the "All Gold Canyon" segment of the Coen brothers' *The Ballad of Buster Scruggs* (2018).

He often embodies marginal figures, anti-heroes, or tormented sages, enriching every scene with his unique depth and his charisma as a "philosophical ragman."