Over the decades, the American lottery has provided a huge amount of excitement, intrigue, and drama, all excellent material for movies. American viewers, lottery players or not, love watching the drama unfold.
Here's a rundown of some of the best movies with a lottery theme.
If I Had a Million
Cast: W.C. Fields, Gary Cooper, Charles Laughton, George Raft, Mary Boland
This star-studded 1932 movie had quite a following. Though it's not strictly about the lottery, it was an inspiration for many subsequent TV dramas about winning the lottery and its effects on people's lives. It's the story of eight fortunate men who become rich quite by chance when they are randomly picked from the phone book. A mixture of drama and comedy, the movie is an emotional rollercoaster ride.
Waking Ned Devine
Cast: Ian Bannen, David Kelly, Fionnula Flanagan
If you're a fan of British comedy, you will not be able to resist this movie. Set in a small Irish village, two friends, Jackie and Michael, find out that their neighbor Ned Devine has won the lottery. When they visit him to talk him into giving them a share, they discover that he's died from shock. The community bands together to convince the lottery claim inspector that Michael is really Ned Devine so they can share the winnings between the villagers.
Class Warfare
Cast: Lindsey McKeon, Wade Carpenter, Robin Dunne
In this 2001 movie, Kristen, a wealthy teenager who runs around with the in-crowd at an exclusive high school, suddenly loses all her money. This means her high-class social life and plans to go to Harvard are withering on the vine. However, Kristen is determined to regain her wealth by any means. On a weekend trip with some friends, Kirsten discovers that one of the group, Richard, has a winning lottery ticket. Kirsten tries to persuade her boyfriend to help her get the ticket and do away with Richard.
Finder's Fee
Cast: Ryan Reynolds, James Earl Jones, Matthew Lillard
In this 2001 drama, Tepper, an upstanding guy from Greenwich Village, finds a wallet on the street. The wallet contains no cash or identification, but it contains a winning Big 3 Lotto ticket that's worth $6 million. Torn between cashing the ticket and finding the owner, Tepper struggles with his conscience even more when the stakes in his weekly poker game are higher than usual.
Lottery Ticket
Cast: Shad Moss, Bow Wow, Brandon T. Jackson
This movie, released in 2010, is about an ordinary guy – Kevin Carson – whose life in the projects is going nowhere until he wins a $370 million lottery jackpot. As it's a weekend, the claim office is closed, so he has to wait a couple of days before he can claim his prize. In the meantime, he tries to keep his win a secret. However, that's not as easy as it seems, and the news begins to spread throughout his community; he has to try to find a way to hold off his friends, family, and neighbors, who are all after a share of his prize.
Highland Park
Cast: Billy Burke, Parker Posey, Danny Glover
In this star-studded comedy-drama from 2013, a group of six friends who work at a High School in a run-down area of Detroit have each been playing the same lottery numbers for ten years in the hope of winning and using the prize money to drag their community back from poverty. On the brink of losing their jobs due to budget cuts, the friends' lottery numbers finally come up and they begin re-vitalizing the local economy and hope for the community is finally restored.
Welcome to Me
Cast: Kristen Wiig, James Marsden, Joan Cusack
This dark comedy from 2015 tells the tale of Alice Klieg, a woman with Borderline Personality Disorder who has a big lottery jackpot win of $86 million. In the throes of excitement from her win, Alice stops taking her medication and uses her money to create her own talk show inspired by Oprah. Unfortunately, Alice doesn't have Oprah's talent or experience, but her quest for fame has some unexpected and hilarious moments.
Jerry and Marge Go Large
Cast: Bryan Cranston, Annette Bening, Rainn Wilson
In this 2022 comedy-drama based on a true story, Michigan couple Jerry and Marge Selbee figure out a loophole to win the WinFall lottery. They use their millions to invest in their hometown, giving rundown businesses a new lease of life, and the community begins to thrive again. Jerry and Marge have to overcome the plots and schemes of a jealous college student who is trying to cheat the system and disrupt Jerry's community. It's up to Jerry to find a way to ensure that the game is fair for everyone.
To Leslie
Cast: Andrea Riseborough, Allison Janney, Marc Maron.
In this 2022 movie, the eponymous heroine is a single mother who suffers from alcohol addiction. After winning $190,000 in a local lottery, Leslie soon squanders all her prize money on drugs and liquor. Six years later, she is living a life of destitution in seedy motels and stealing when she can. She is offered a chance to redeem herself when a motel owner offers her a job. But is she strong enough to change her ways?
Your Lucky Day
Cast: Angus Cloud, Jessica Garza, Sterling Beaumon
This action thriller from 2023 opens with a group of strangers in a convenience store. Their conversations can be overheard. All of them are talking about money. One of the customers buys a lottery ticket and instantly wins $156 million. He makes a big deal about it, attracting the attention of the other customers, each of whom wants the money. Suddenly, there's a confrontation that leads to one of the customers holding the other hostage for the ticket.
Lottery Road
Cast: Tess Dees, Ernie Joseph, Charli Savannah Dees
In this 2018 movie, a small-town hairdresser treats herself to a lottery ticket while purchasing tickets for her mother. Distracted by her toddler daughter, she puts the ticket away but forgets where. When she finds out that she's won a multi-million dollar lottery prize, she can't find her ticket anywhere. She becomes obsessed with finding the ticket before it expires. Her search takes her on a journey of self-discovery when she has to think hard about the person she is now and the person she would become with millions of dollars at her disposal.
29th Street
Cast: Frank Pesce, Robert Forster, Lainie Kazan
This comedy/drama was released in 1991. It tells the story of Frank Pesce Jr., a man who was born lucky. As he grows up in an Italian neighborhood in New York, his friends and family members are irritated by his good fortune and irresponsible behavior. When he becomes the first winner of the New York State Lottery, his father is angry and decides to teach his son a lesson.
Lucky Christmas
Cast: Elizabeth Berkley, Jason Gray-Stanford, Mitchell Kummen
This made-for-TV movie is from 2011. Holly Ceroni – a single mother who's struggling to get back on her feet – considers herself to be one of the most unlucky people in the world. Her notion is proven when she wins the lottery at Christmas, but her winning ticket is stranded in the glove compartment of her car, which has just been stolen. Meanwhile, the car thief attempts to befriend Holly in a scheme to get her to spit her winning with him. What he's not expecting is to fall in love with Holly.
Lucky Numbers
Cast: Lisa Kudrow, John Travolta, Tim Roth
In this comedy from 2000, a Harrisburg TV weatherman, Richard, has invested in a snowmobile business. A warm winter has caused him serious money problems and risks ruining his celebrity image. As he falls deeper into debt, he also becomes the target of a hitman. Richard and his buddy, a shady strip club owner, develop a fraudulent scheme to garner money from the state lottery. Richard's ditzy girlfriend, who draws and announces the lottery numbers, becomes his accomplice. The plan works, but before Richard can claim his $6,4 million jackpot prize, everything begins to unravel.
Uptown Saturday Night
Cast: Sidney Poitier, Harry Belafonte, Bill Crosby
This movie is a classic comedy from 1974. At the outset of his vacation, steelworker Steve meets his taxi driver friend, who persuades him to go out and have a good time, just like the good old days when they were younger. They end up at Madame Zenobia's club, where the locals go to weekend parties. While they are living it up, Steve is robbed and loses his wallet containing a winning lottery ticket.
The Lady From Louisiana
Cast: John Wayne, Ona Munsen, Henry Stephenson
Directed by Bernard Corhaus, this classic western from 1941 is set in the Gay Nineties in New Orleans. While the State Lottery is booming, local John Reynolds finds his loyalties in turmoil when he's caught between the southern belle he's in love with, her father, who owns the lottery company, and her aunt, who is trying to destroy the lottery. John manages to save the lottery because it funds charitable organizations, but can he save his relationship?
Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory
Original Cast: Gene Wilder
Although this movie is not about winning money, it is about a lottery. What's more, this story, based on the children's book by Roald Dahl, has been made into a movie four times:
- Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory – 1971
- Charlie and the Chocolate Factory – 2005
- Tom and Jerry: Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory – 2017
- Wonka – 2023
The movie tells the story of a young boy named Charlie from a poor family. He dreams of finding one of five golden tickets hidden in a bar of chocolate to win the lottery and visit the magical Wonka chocolate factory. The children who win the other four tickets are spoilt and obnoxious. Will Charlie's dream come true?
Don't settle for watching movies and TV shows about lottery winners; buy a ticket, win it for yourself, and live the dream!
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