Humans have always had a fascination with dinosaurs — the great beasts that pre-dated us on this Earth — and these days you don’t need more than the Jurassic Park franchise box office numbers to prove it. Who better, then, to delve into the history than Steven Spielberg? The Dinosaurs is the second nature docuseries executive-produced by the filmmaker and narrated by Morgan Freeman for Netflix, and as it hits the 2026 TV schedule, critics are sharing their reviews.

The Dinosaurs follows 2023’s Life on Our Planet and will illustrate what the Earth may have looked like in prehistoric times, when dinosaurs ruled the land, sea and sky. According to Shawn Van Horn of Collider, they’ve never looked more real. That’s in large part thanks to Industrial Light & Magic’s effects and the emotional writing that gets us invested in their fight for survival. The critic rates it 8 out of 10, writing:

Alex Bear of RIOTUS says the four-part series covers hundreds of millions of years with ease, even injecting stories that are sure to pull at your heartstrings. The final episode that depicts the extinction event is where The Dinosaurs truly shines, Bear says, as it manages to convey the asteroid’s scale of destruction, unlike anything they’ve seen before. The critic grades it a B and says:

Jack Seale of The Guardian gives it 3 out of 5 stars, in part for its photorealistic visual effects, but Morgan Freeman’s voiceover could double as a relaxation tape and is the new Netflix series’ real draw. This critic’s biggest complaint is that it doesn’t offer much that amateur expert viewers won’t already know. In Seale’s words:

Greg Wheeler of The Review Geek agrees the docuseries fails to properly explore the science behind what we’re seeing or dig deeper into what’s changed about our understanding of the dinosaurs over the years. Wheeler gives The Dinosaurs a 6 out of 10, writing:

Anne Brodie of What She Said disagrees, calling the Netflix doc a “must-see.” The subject matter, the animation and, of course, Morgan Freeman’s voice combine for an experience Brodie says is genuinely worth your time. More from the review:

The critics seem pretty pleased with the Steven Spielberg-produced docuseries, with the biggest complaints being that it doesn’t dig deep enough into the science, instead focusing on getting us to invest emotionally in the lives of these creatures that lived so many millions of years before humans.

Each of The Dinosaurs’ four episodes is around an hour long and can be streamed now with a Netflix subscription.

Morgan Freeman is in his 7th decade of working in Hollywood, and even at 88 years old, still doesn’t have any concrete plans to retire from the industry, having appeared in both the third Now You See Me movie and narrated Ken Burns’ American Revolution in 2025. It doesn’t sound like he’s exceedingly enthused about potentially having one of his signature traits duplicated and taken advantage of by AI companies trying to make digital performers like Tilly Norwood more of the norm in an industry where human creativity has always reigned supreme.

Appearing on CBS Morning News (in a clip shared to Instagram, Morgan Freeman was asked about his stance on the wave of AI startups attempting to use likenesses of actors to populate their user-generated videos, and for a guy whose known for waxing poetically with his dulcet tones, the Se7en vet showed off some very non-artificial brevity with his snappy response:

If you woke up on whatever side of the bed this morning that told you Morgan Freeman was out here putting up with AI companies’ sh-t, that was the wrong side of the bed.

At this point, voice actors in various corners of the entertainment industry have already taken legal action over the use of vocal likenesses, while several others have lambasted the practice. For instance, The Simpsons’ Hank Azaria has spoken out about it, as has Nancy Cartwright, while actors in the world of anime have spoken out against AI being used for localized dubbing, and for doing a cruddy job at the same time. (All while Disney went the other route by making exclusive deals for its own characters.)

CBS anchor Vladimir Duthiers was pretty tickled by Morgan Freeman’s response, and followed his initial question up by asking if the Oscar winner would be more agreeable to allow his voice to be used by AI if a company paid him the money to gain access. The actor was more amenable to that, and addressed having taken on a similar deal some years back, although this involved another human being who had the chops to pull off Freeman’s voice. As he put it:

Now, he didn't come out and say he'd sign up with OpenAI on the spot or anything, and I could see Freeman being more hesitant to take compensation for digital likenesses that don't involve other actors. But the point is that no one's voice should be copied for money-making purposes without proper conversations and deals.

Just in case anyone thought he was joking about his lawyers being put to use, Morgan Freeman confirmed that his legal team has indeed been busy trying to thwart unlicensed use of his voice. saying "Yes, yes, yes" when asked.

Here's my take on it. If Freeman's timeless Shawshank Redemption quote "Get busy living or get busy dying" doesn't properly apply to the thing trying to recreate the voice, it shouldn't be allowed to. And since AI can't get busy living, it's sh-it out of luck.

Morgan Freeman is an incredible actor who has had an equally incredible career. At 88 years old, Freeman's best movies include everything from The Shawshank Redemption to Batman Begins to The LEGO Movie. He’s certainly earned his retirement, but don’t expect to see him actually retire anytime soon.

Speaking with The Guardian, Morgan Freeman admits that he sometimes contemplates retiring. However, that contemplation ends whenever he gets offered a new role. While he doesn't take everything that he’s offered, some are just too good to pass up. The actor said…

The actor doesn’t distinguish between TV and film roles. His most recent screen appearances include the series Lioness, available with a Paramount+ subscription, and Now You See Me: Now You Don’t, the third film in the magical heist franchise that just hit theaters.

Many jobs ultimately require retirement because, at a certain point, it becomes difficult to do them if you’re too old. Acting isn’t one of those jobs, as getting older simply changes the sort of roles that you get offered. Ultimately, Hollywood requires that some actors never retire, at least not completely, because there will always be a need for older actors to play older roles.

Some actors, especially those who have been successful and don’t need to work, enter a sort of partial retirement. They may work less than they used to, but if a role comes along that interests them, they’ll still take it. Even Daniel Day-Lewis, who did retire, recently came out of retirement to work with his son, and has indicated he would do so again for the right reasons.

Other actors simply don’t plan to ever retire. Samuel L. Jackson will apparently act until he’s not able to do so. Nicolas Cage has also indicated that he won’t retire because he simply loves doing the job too much. Some do seem to have real retirement plans. Cate Blanchett has said she plans to retire so she can do other things, though it's unclear when that day may come.

While Morgan Freeman has no plans to retire yet, the possibility still exists. He admits that he may not have quite the passion he once did, but it’s still there enough to keep him at it. He continued…

Perhaps the day will come when the appetite will dim enough that Freeman will retire. Until then, we all get to enjoy his incredible skill and his incredible voice.

At this point, the A+ casting for a Now You See Me movie is an old trick. I mean, in the first movie, both Morgan Freeman and Michael Caine showed up alongside Jesse Eisenberg, Isla Fisher, Dave Franco, Woody Harrelson and Mark Ruffalo. However, those old tricks still work wonders, as Now You See Me: Now You Don’t’s cast proves, as it mixes the aforementioned icons with rising stars. So, I asked some of these rising stars what it was like to meet an actor like Morgan Freeman, and they reacted the same way I would have.

In Now You See Me: Now You Don’t, Ariana Greenblatt, Justice Smith and Dominic Sessa joined the cast as the newest magicians. All three of them are young actors with impressive careers; however, I still wondered what it was like for them to meet Morgan Freeman and see him play a character like Thaddeus Bradley. When I told the three actors that I applauded when the Oscar winner appeared on screen for the first time, Greenblatt said their reaction to meeting him in real life was similar. She explained:

Just take a look at the list of Morgan Freeman’s best movies, and you’ll know that this kind of decorum feels like the natural way to go about meeting him. He’s a literal living legend, he has one of the most iconic voices ever, and his astounding career spans over five decades.

So, best behavior and applause feel necessary if the Shawshank Redemption actor is in the same room as you. To that point, Greenblatt, who plays June in the movie, and Dominic Sessa, who plays Bosco, then went back and forth about people getting emotional when Freeman came to film his scenes for the 2025 movie schedule release. They said:

• Dominic Sessa: I think I cried, like, three times.
• Ariana Greenblatt: No, honestly.
• Dominic Sessa: No, that was Ruben [Fleischer].
• Ariana Greenblatt: Ruben was a crier, especially the last day of him on set, everyone got together and took a picture. And Ruben was quite emotional.

Well, that’s adorable that Ruben Fleischer, the director of Now You See Me: Now You Don’t, got emotional when Freeman was on set. And how could you not? While this cast is quite literally full of A-list actors, you can’t get much more legendary than Morgan Freeman.

So, if I were in these young performers’ shoes, I think I would have reacted the same way if I met the Se7en star. Tears would 100% be involved, and I would be beside myself as I stared star-struck at this actor (who hilariously has admitted he gets star-struck too, even though that’s hard to believe). Then, once I was able to do my job again, I would certainly be doing the best work possible.

That’s exactly what this cast did too. Now You See Me: Now You Don’t is a fun follow-up to its predecessors that mixes the old cast with a new one in a fun way. So, on November 14, make sure you head to the theater to see Morgan Freeman, Ariana Greenblatt, Dominic Sessa and so many more in action as they work to pull off another magical heist.

Some of the most enduring stars got their starts more than six decades ago, and they are still going strong today. Stars like Harrison Ford, Dame Judi Dench, Jeff Bridges, and even Jodie Foster have been acting their whole lives, and their amazing careers will live on forever. Here is our list of amazing actors who started in the 1960s and are still working today.

Robert Duvall

After cutting his teeth with some television appearances starting in 1959, Robert Duvall made one of the most memorable film debuts of all time as Boo Radley in 1962's To Kill A Mockingbird. Duvall hasn't stopped stealing scenes in the 60+ years since. He's starred in some of the greatest movies ever, like The Godfather, and won an Oscar for Tender Mercies. His most recent credit is The Pale Blue Eye from 2022.

Sally Field

Sally Field is truly America's sweetheart. Her breakout role came on the classic TV show Gidget, and she's starred in some legendary movies and TV shows ever since. With roles in movies as diverse as Smokey and the Bandit, Forrest Gump, and Fried Green Tomatoes, Field has proven she can handle any role she takes on.

Clint Eastwood

There are no bigger legends in Hollywood history than Clint Eastwood. Not much has been said here. His career started in earnest with Spaghetti Westerns, and he's been directing and starring in movies ever since.

Jane Fonda

Jane Fonda is Hollywood royalty as the daughter of Henry Fonda, so it's no surprise that she started her career at a young age. Her first credit goes all the way back to 16960's Tall Story, and she's still starring in movies today, like 2023's 80 for Brady.

Morgan Freeman

Morgan Freeman's career really didn't take off on screen until the 1980s (though he had plenty of credits in the '70s, too). He started mostly on stage in the 1960s and kept his focus there until landing a TV gig in 1971 on PBS's The Electric Company. Today, he remains one of America's most beloved stars.

Shirley MacLaine

Shirley MacLaine made her film debut way back in 1955 and by the 1960s was one of the biggest stars in Hollywood. Her star has never dimmed in the decades since, either, with memorable roles in Downton Abbey and the live-action The Little Mermaid in 2018.

Dustin Hoffman

When you burst onto the scene in a movie like The Graduate, as Dustin Hoffman did in 1967, it's pretty much a guarantee you're going to be a star. In the 60 years since that seminal movie, Hoffman has won countless awards and starred in everything from comedies like Tootsie to dramas like Rain Man, getting nominated for Oscars for both (and winning his second for the latter).

Faye Dunaway

If you look at a list of the best movies of all time, you'll notice Faye Dunaway in the credits of many of them. Starting with Bonnie and Clyde in 1967, right up until the 2020s. She took a small hiatus in the teens, but has been back working regularly since.

Kurt Russell

Kurt Russell's career started when he was just a kid, often starring in Disney projects. It's even Hollywood folklore that Walt Disney's last words were when he scrawled Russell's name on a piece of paper. Though there is no way to know when the note was written. Still, for the better part of seven decades, Kurt Russell has been a Hollywood superstar.

Helen Mirren

Dame Helen Mirren (you know they are important when they get a title like "Dame") started in film in 1966, and that was after having already started acting professionally on stage in the UK. She's never stopped, including starring in the recent hit MobLand on Paramount+

Anthony Hopkins

Sir Anthony Hopkins' first credited film role came in the Shakespeare adaptation The Lion in Winter in 1968 alongside Peter O'Toole and Katharine Hepburn. He's since become one of the most beloved actors of his generation and has won countless awards and accolades.

Jodie Foster

If you look at Jodie Foster's credits, you might think she started in the 1970s as a teenager, but she was starring in commercials as far back as 1967 when she was just three years old.

Jeff Bridges

When you have a legend for a father like Jeff Bridges with Lloyd Bridges, its not hard to understand how he got his start so young. His amazing career in the decades since can only be credited to his immense talent, charm, and charisma on and off screen. And that's not, like, my opinion, man, it's a fact.

Rita Moreno

Puerto Rican superstar Rita Moreno can do it all. She can act, she can sing, and she can dance, and she's been dancing into our hearts since she first way back in 1950! For those of you counting, that's EIGHT decades of excellence.

Judi Dench

Like Dame Helen Mirren, Dame Judy Dench started in the theater, especially doing Shakespeare plays. Her first professional stage credits date back to 1957, and right up through the 2020s, she's been a favorite of millions. One of the best actors of her generation, it's crazy she's only won one Oscar (for Shakespeare in Love).

Harrison Ford

The first thing you might think of when you think of Harrison Ford is Star Wars or Indiana Jones. It's true that it was those movies in the late '70s and early '80s that made him a superstar, but his career started humbly with roles in movies like A Time for Killing and Luv in 1967.

Sophia Loren

For more than 70 years, Sophia Loren has been a star in Europe and the United States. She started in her native Italy in 1950 before coming Stateside in 1958 when she signed on to star in movies for Paramount. Before long, she was a superstar on both sides of the pond.

Warren Beatty

Like his co-star in Bonnie and Clyde, Faye Dunaway, Warren Beatty has been a star in Hollywood for decades. He's also been discerning in the roles he's taken over the years, so he doesn't have a long list of credits like most of the people on this list. That's not because his star dimmed. He's just particular, and that is something we all strive for.

Barbra Streisand

What can we really say about Barbra Streisand? She's a legendary singer and actor, and she's equally well-known for both. There are few stars as enduring and amazing as "Babs."

Robert Redford

Though he is officially retired now, Robert Redford is still one of the biggest Hollywood stars today (and ever). His career started with early roles on shows like The Twilight Zone, and by the time he hung up his cleats, so to speak, the star of The Natural was one of the biggest stars in the history of the industry.

Blythe Danner

Like many on this list, Blythe Danner started her professional career on Broadway and Off-Broadway in the 1960s. Her first movie credit came in 1972, but by then, she was a seasoned pro. She may be best known as the mother of Gwyneth Paltrow these days, but that is selling her way short, as she's been an award-winning actress for decades.

Al Pacino

Famously, Al Pacino entered the American consciousness in 1972's The Godfather, but he'd been working for a few years at that point, mostly on stage. His film debut was in Me, Natalie, alongside Sopranos cast member Nancy Marchand. He has been widely considered one of the best actors of his generation ever since.

Ellen Burstyn

Though her breakthrough didn't come until 1971 with The Last Picture Show, Ellen Burstyn had been picking up small roles on TV shows for years at that point. She has since gone on to win an Academy Award, a Tony Award, two Primetime Emmy Awards, a BAFTA, and a Golden Globe Award. Not too shabby.

Robert De Niro

When you ask someone who the best actor of the last 60 years is, there is a decent chance Robert De Niro will be the name that comes out of their mouth. For many, many decades, De Niro has been stealing scenes and working his tail off to be the best actor he can be. He's gained weight for roles, dropped weight for others, and gotten completely cut for still others. All the while delivering his trademark charm and skills.

Cher

If you could turn back time and you were taking bets in the 1960s that Cher would still be one of the biggest stars in the world in the 2020s, you would probably get pretty good odds that she wouldn't be. She's proven everyone wrong, winning an Oscar for Moonstruck and continuing to wow audiences with her concerts.

Martin Sheen

It's hard to say just what role Martin Sheen will be best remembered for long after he's gone. Will it be Jeb Bartlett on The West Wing? Captain Benjamin L. Willard in Apocalypse Now? Carl Fox in Wall Street? Robert E. Lee in Gettysburg? What is for sure is that Sheen, who landed his first movie role in 1967, will be remembered fondly by millions of fans.

Vanessa Redgrave

English actress Vanessa Redgrave got her star in period pieces like A Man For All Seasons and Camelot in the 1960s. She parlayed that into a decades-long career that is still going, including a role in Cold Storage in 2025.

Ian McKellen

For modern generations, Ian McKellen is known for his roles as Gandalf the Grey and Magneto, but his career is so, so much more. One of the great Shakespearean actors of the last 60 years, he's been starring on stage and screen since the mid-'60s.

Candice Bergen

Candice Bergen found her biggest fame in the 1990s with Murphy Brown, but her career started way back in 1966 in the Sidney Lumet film The Group. She was a model before that, and has turned in role after beloved role on TV and in films.

Ron Howard

These days, Ron Howard is pretty much sticking just to directing, and he's an ace director to be sure. He famously started his Hollywood career as a kid in the 1950s and became a child star in the '60s as Opie Taylor on The Andy Griffith Show. He later starred in Happy Days, before getting behind the camera and becoming one of the great directors of his time.

Goldie Hawn

Goldie Hawn first became a household name in 1968 when she starred in Laugh-In. She's been a star ever since, including starring in a slew of box office hits in the '70s and '80s. There is no question she is one of the funniest actors of her generation, and now she's also the mother to some big stars, too, in Wyatt Russell and Kate Hudson. Not a bad legacy to leave.

Patrick Stewart

Like others on this list, Patrick Stewart will be best known for roles that came in the second half of his career, like Captain Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation and Professor X in The X-Men series. Of course, his career is much more than those two roles. It's a career that started in TV in the '60s on British shows like Coronation Street and Civilisation.

There are all kinds of exciting upcoming 2025 movies I’m looking forward to as we soon enter the second half of the year, but since the Now You See Me movies arrived for those with a Netflix subscription I’ve been getting more amped for the third movie, Now You See Me: Now You Don’t. When I caught the trailer this week, I wasn’t expecting it to call back to a dangerous stunt from the original film. I need to talk about it.

That Time Isla Fisher Almost Died Filming Now You See Me

Have you heard the story from Now You See Me regarding the water tank scene? Well, I was recently reminded of the story behind it when I came across an old interview on Instagram. Here’s what Isla Fisher told On Demand Entertainment when she was on the Now You See Me press tour:

As you may recall, early in the 2013 movie, Isla Fisher’s magician character of Henley Reeves performs an escapist act where she attempts to get out of being handcuffed in a water tank in under a minute before piranhas are unleashed on her. During the scene, Fisher fakes out the audience by pretending there’s a problem and banging on the glass. Here’s what happened when Fisher really felt trapped in the tank in her words:

I can’t even imagine! There’s been a lot of actors who have incidents while filming movies, but this one is especially scary because she actually could have died if the crew never caught on that she wasn’t acting, but really needed help.

So Why Does Now You See Me 3 Have A Water Tank Scene, Too?

That brings me to what we know about Now You See Me 3, which is officially called Now You See Me: Now You Don’t. The movie’s first trailer dropped in late April to introduce what to expect, which is the return of The Four Horsemen, consisting of Jesse Eisenberg’s J. Daniel Atlas, Woody Harrelson’s Merritt McKinney, Isla Fisher’s Henley Reeves and Dave Franco’s Jack Wilder.

This time they’ll be teaming up with a younger group of magicians played by Justice Smith, Dominic Sessa and Ariana Greenblatt for a heist involving the world’s largest queen diamond from a family crime syndicate. Check out the trailer below:

If you look closely at around two minutes, you’ll see that there’s a scene being previewed where not only Henley, but all the Horsemen are dropped into a water tank and one shot calls back to the original with Fisher’s character banging on the glass. The trailer shows that the Four Horseman definitely finds a way out of the tank somehow, but I’m so curious about how the stunt was accomplished and how Fisher felt about the whole thing after her traumatizing moment on the set of the original.

It is kind of sweet that all the other main leads did it with her, and I'm excited by the scene, I've got to say. But I need to know more about how and why another water tank scene got written and approved after the hullabaloo surrounding the first movie’s stunt. Anyways, Now You See Me: Now You Don’t hits theaters on November 14, 2025.

If you have any vague familiarity with how film and TV productions work, then chances are you know what a call sheet is. That document includes the vital details for any given day on a production, and that includes call times for actors. When it comes to the cast, one particular actor is No.1 on that sheet, and that distinction comes with a lot of weight. Now, many of Hollywood’s great leading Black actors are sharing their thoughts on that subject for a two-part documentary film, and Morgan Freeman’s take is particularly great.

Apple TV+ subscription holders will soon be able to stream Number One on the Call Sheet. The Reginald Hudlin-directed movie features in-depth interviews with a wide array of talented performers including Denzel Washington, Viola Davis, Halle Berry and Eddie Murphy. Each talk about the dynamics that come into play when an actor finds themself being the first on the sheet. The significance of that distinction is discussed as well. When talking about the strength of Black talent, Gabrielle Union shared a direct message:

That’s certainly a true statement as, for years now, African American actors have been putting in fantastic work and garnering some strong box office receipts as well. Anyone in need of proof of that should consider some of the best Black family films or a number of the greatest Black-led biopics. Stars such as Will Smith, Jamie Foxx and Whoopi Goldberg (who are all in the doc) have led such films and been No. 1 on the call sheet.

Being in that position is a big deal, and said star has a massive responsibility to set the tone for those around them. Someone who certainly knows that better than most is the incomparable Morgan Freeman. He’s led many films in his time, and I’m eager to hear all of his thoughts and recollections when I watch the documentary. And, as you can see in the trailer above, he had a funny take on what it’s like working with others when you’re No. 1 on the sheet:

Don’t let the A+ joke fool you, as Morgan Freeman is well known for his humility. By all accounts, he has a lot of respect for fellow actors, with his recent tribute to the late Gene Hackman being just one example of that. Also, as imposing as the 87-year-old actor himself is, even he’s gotten starstruck. That happened when he worked with Jack Nicholson on the 2007 dramedy film The Bucket List.

Mr. Freeman’s joke quip aside, though, this is a much-needed discussion in regard to Black leads. Yes, when they’re No. 1 on the call sheet, they are put in situations similar to their white counterparts, yet there are more nuanced aspects of that job that vary for people of color. What I’m hoping to see is a doc that provides some illuminating commentary from some cerebral stars – as well as a few funny anecdotes or comments similar to Freeman’s.

You can check out Number One on the Call Sheet when it hits Apple TV+ on March 28. In the meantime, find out what some of Hollywood’s Black talent have on the doc by checking out the 2025 movie schedule.

The Academy Awards have always been a night of celebration, recognition and heartfelt tributes to Hollywood legends who have left an indelible mark on the industry. This year, one of the most poignant moments of the ceremony will mark the death of legendary actor Gene Hackman, the two-time Oscar-winning actor who passed away in February along with his wife and dog. New details have emerged regarding how the Academy plans to honor the screen icon, and it appears one of his former co-stars, Morgan Freeman, will play a central role in the commemoration.

Mr. Hackman’s family was informed that Morgan Freeman will take the stage during the ceremony to speak about his former colleague and friend, per TMZ. This tribute will be part of the "In Memoriam" segment, which traditionally honors the lives and careers of industry figures who have passed away over the last year. Freeman and Hackman famously starred together in Clint Eastwood’s (acting as actor and director) 1992 masterpiece and one of the best westerns of all time, Unforgiven, in which Hackman delivered an Oscar-winning performance as the ruthless sheriff Little Bill Daggett.

Although Freeman was not nominated for his role in the film, he later secured his own Oscar win in one of the best movies of the 2000s, Million Dollar Baby, another Clint Eastwood-directed project. The two actors reunited again for the 2000 thriller Under Suspicion, one of The Royal Tenenbaums star’s final film appearances before his retirement in 2004.

The full details of The Bucket List alum’s tribute speech remain under wraps, but it’s expected to highlight his late co-star’s extraordinary career, spanning decades and including legendary performances in The French Connection, Superman, The Conversation, Mississippi Burning, and Superman–one of the best superhero movies of all time. Hackman’s ability to seamlessly transition between heroic and villainous roles solidified him as one of the most versatile actors of his generation, earning him admiration from peers and audiences alike.

The late actor’s family has reportedly decided not to attend the Oscars in person, a decision that comes in the wake of the tragic and unexpected loss. As previously reported, both Gene Hackman and his wife, Betsy Arakawa, were found deceased in their New Mexico home, alongside one of their three dogs. The circumstances surrounding their deaths remain under investigation, with authorities stating that Hackman's pacemaker recorded its last activity on February 17. Toxicology results are still pending, though early reports indicate no signs of carbon monoxide poisoning and no signs of foul play.

Given the gravity of the actor’s passing, the Academy’s decision to spotlight his legacy in such a meaningful way underscores his impact on Hollywood. Morgan Freeman is uniquely positioned to offer heartfelt and personal insights into the late legend’s career, work ethic, and off-screen character. Their collaborations showcased a compelling on-screen dynamic, particularly in Unforgiven, where Hackman’s chilling portrayal of a lawman drunk on power powerfully contrasted with Freeman's measured, world-weary performance.

As Gene Hackman tributes continue to flood in from fans and fellow actors, it’s clear that his legacy isn’t just about the roles he played—it’s about the enduring mark he left on the industry. His presence in Hollywood will be sorely missed, but tonight’s tribute promises to be a powerful and emotional send-off. With Morgan Freeman leading the charge, this moment will surely resonate with audiences worldwide, reminding us why he remains one of the most extraordinary talents ever to grace the silver screen.

Fans won’t want to miss this touching tribute when the 97th Academy Awards air live tonight, Sunday, March 2, at 7 PM ET / 4 PM PT on ABC. The ceremony will also be available for streaming for viewers with a Hulu subscription. Be sure to tune in and watch as Hollywood comes together to celebrate beloved stars we’ve lost this year.

Every year, I try to honor Black History by writing about something important that has occurred in the entertainment industry. And, I can’t think of any greater honor than winning the Academy Award.

Yes, there have been achievements in many different categories, including directing, writing, producing, scoring, etc, but today, my focus is going to be on Black actors.

Split amongst the Best Lead Actor, Best Lead Actress, Best Supporting Actress, and Best Supporting Actor categories, there have been a total of 23 Oscars doled out to Black performers. So, here are all 23 of them, chronologically ordered.

Hattie McDaniel - Gone With The Wind (1939)

The very first Black winner for an acting Academy Award, Hattie McDaniel won it for Best Supporting Actress with her portrayal of Mammy in Gone With the Wind.

And, even though it's a racial stereotype role, McDaniel's character was often the most sensible and attention-grabbing character on the screen. It's a landmark victory for Black people in cinema.

Sidney Poitier - Lilies Of The Field (1963)

One of Sidney Poitier’s best movies, Lilies of the Field, which is about a handyman who helps a group of nuns build a chapel, was actually Poitier’s second nomination for Best Lead Actor.

His first was for 1958’s The Defiant Ones, which was a movie that he mostly shared with Tony Curtis. Lilies of the Field, however, was a leading role purely for Poitier, and he ended up becoming the first Black Actor to ever win the award. Great stuff!

Louis Gossett Jr. - An Officer And A Gentleman (1982)

In this romantic drama that also stars Richard Gere, Louis Gossett Jr. plays a hard-nosed drill instructor who really challenges his cadets.

Before there was R. Lee Ermey in one of my favorite Kubrick films, Full Metal Jacket, there was Louis Gossett Jr. berating his troops. He was the first Black man to win a Best Supporting Acting trophy, and it was justly awarded. He’s really good in this.

Denzel Washington - Glory (1989)

Denzel Washington’s first Academy Award was a supporting one for his role as a private in the Civil War drama, Glory.

As both a leader to the men in his regiment, but also a soldier who must follow orders, Washington’s character shows the duality of a Black man in uniform. Him deciding to hold up the flag for the charge is one of the most iconic scenes in late ‘80s cinema.

Whoopi Goldberg - Ghost (1990)

An EGOT recipient (though, not the only one on this list), Whoopi Goldberg received a Best Supporting Actress Award for her role as the medium, Oda Mae Brown, in the hit Ghost.

The romance between Swayze and Moore’s character is what defines this film, but it wouldn’t be nearly as enjoyable without Goldberg’s humor, and seriousness when the moment calls for it.

Cuba Gooding Jr. - Jerry Maguire (1996)

For this sports comedy-drama, Cuba Gooding Jr. received a Best Supporting Actor award for his role as a cocky but steadfast wide receiver who wants to be shown the money.

Gooding Jr.’s performance is full of energy, and it makes this romantic comedy feel even sweeter when his and Tom Cruise’s characters share more than just a player and client relationship and actually become good friends.

Halle Berry - Monster's Ball (2001)

The only Black woman who has ever won Best Lead Actress, Halle Berry, took home the trophy for her role as a conflicted woman who takes on a relationship with the man who helped execute her husband.

Berry’s character is highly vulnerable, and the events of the movie are stressful beyond belief. Still, her character, as flawed as she is (everybody’s flawed in this film) weathered the storm, and earned Berry a Best Actress statue for her troubles.

Denzel Washington - Training Day (2001)

Washington’s second trophy came as the Best Lead Actor, for playing a cop in Training Day who definitely didn’t follow the rules.

Washington’s character was both charming and terrifying, often in the same scene. Say it with me, people: King Kong ain't got nothing on him!

Morgan Freeman - Million Dollar Baby (2004)

Morgan Freeman actually had a supporting role in two of Clint Eastwood’s best movies, those being Unforgiven, and Million Dollar Baby. And, both films won Best Picture.

However, it was in the latter film where Freeman picked up the Best Supporting Actor statue, for playing a grizzled former boxer and gym assistant. It’s a mostly quiet role, but a memorable one.

Jamie Foxx - Ray (2004)

In one of the best music movies of all time, Jamie Foxx scored a much deserved Best Lead Actor award for his role as the famous blind musician, Ray Charles.

Foxx even had his eyes glued shut for the sake of authenticity. Anything for the craft, right?

Jennifer Hudson - Dreamgirls (2006)

Another EGOT recipient on this list, Jennifer Hudson, scored a Best Supporting Actress trophy in her VERY FIRST ACTING GIG!

It’s little wonder why though. Hudson’s portrayal of Effie White in Dreamgirls is powerful. Going from lead singer to starting all over again, Hudson did a “Supreme” job (Do you see what I did there?) in her very first role.

Forest Whitaker - The Last King of Scotland (2006)

Forest Whitaker’s best performance is by far his role as Idi Amin in The Last King of Scotland.

In a role that netted him a Best Lead Actor award, Whitaker is utterly terrifying, but also somewhat funny, in the way that only Whitaker can be.

Mo'Nique - Precious (2009)

After watching Mo’Nique as the abusive mother in Precious, it’s hard to watch her again in one of the best Black TV shows, The Parkers. It just seems like such a smoke screen.

Anyway, Mo’Nique was awarded a Best Supporting Actress trophy for this performance, and I haven’t looked at her the same way since.

Octavia Spencer - The Help (2011)

Though The Help hasn’t aged well, Octavia Spencer’s role as a maid who was fired for using a guest bathroom is still one of her best performances.

Spencer won Best Supporting Actress for a role where she got to take a dump in somebody’s pie. It’s a feel good film.

Lupita Nyong'o - 12 Years a Slave (2013)

In her career-defining role in 12 Years a Slave, Lupita Nyong'o plays a violently abused slave.

It is one of the most brutal (and likely most realistic) portrayals of slavery ever put to screen, and Nyong'o won a Best Supporting Actress Award for her performance.

Viola Davis - Fences (2016)

In this adaptation of a play in August Wilson’s Pittsburgh Cycle, Viola Davis plays a wronged but loyal wife.

The third EGOT recipient on this list, Davis should have several Oscars, but this is her sole win, and it’s in the Best Supporting Actress category.

Mahershala Ali - Moonlight (2016)

Though only in Moonlight for one act, Mahershala Ali’s performance as a caring drug dealer was so powerful that he won the Best Supporting Actor trophy.

It would be his first of two Academy Awards so far.

Regina King - If Beale Street Could Talk (2018)

In If Beale Street Could Talk, Regina King plays the mother of a young woman whose boyfriend has been convicted of rape, and she tries to convince the victim that it wasn’t him.

King won a Best Supporting Actress Award for her quiet, but searing performance.

Mahershala Ali - Green Book (2018)

In Ali’s second Best Supporting Actor win, the skilled performer played real-life pianist Don Shirley in this Best Picture winner.

Ali’s character in this film is completely different from that in Moonlight, but that sense of vulnerability still persists, which was worthy of the award.

Daniel Kaluuya - Judas And The Black Messiah (2020)

Playing the “Black Messiah,” Daniel Kaluuya portrayed the inspirational Fred Hampton in this riveting biopic.

He won Best Supporting Actor, beating out the “Judas” (Bill O’Neal) in this picture, played excellently by LaKeith Stanfield, who was also nominated.

Ariana DeBose - West Side Story (2021)

In this second adaptation of the famed musical West Side Story, Ariana DeBose won Best Supporting Actress playing Anita, who was portrayed by Rita Moreno in the first theatrical adaptation.

DeBose is absolutely magnetic in the role, firmly earning her win.

Will Smith - King Richard (2021)

Though the unfortunate slap is likely what many people remember most about this ceremony and Will Smith's award, his Best Lead Actor-winning turn really does deserve a second look.

Playing the tenacious father to Venus and Serena Williams, Smith definitely deserved the award for his work in the lauded film.

Da'Vine Joy Randolph - The Holdovers (2023)

And finally, the most recent winner, Da'Vine Joy Randolph, won Best Supporting Actress for her portrayal of a quietly grieving mother in The Holdovers.

This film speaks to me as a teacher, yes, but also as a parent. I can thankfully only imagine the pain that her character Is going through.

That’s all of them! We’ll see if Zoe Saldaña, Colman Domingo, or Cynthia Erivo pick up a trophy at the 2025 Academy Awards.

As a kid, my parents’ movie library was an important resource for my cinematic education. And you could bet that we had a copy of The Shawshank Redemption on VHS, just waiting for me to eventually one of the best ‘90s movies to ever exist. Upon rewatching Frank Darabont’s iconic Stephen King adaptation, I certainly had some thoughts, and they further proved why this movie has endured.

I’m Kind Of Surprised Andy Dufresne Was Even Convicted

I know if Andy Dufresne (Tim Robbins) doesn’t get convicted of murdering his wife and her lover, there’s no Shawshank Redemption. But between our protagonist’s profession, and the infidelities being visited upon him, do you seriously mean to tell me a 1950s jury wouldn’t side with these implied actions?

I Can’t Think Of Anyone Else Playing Andy Or Red

Here’s a piece of Shawshank Redemption trivia you may not have known: Tom Cruise and Harrison Ford were among the potential pairs considered to play Andy and Red. I’m all for considering “what if…” scenarios when it comes to classic films, but I honestly can’t think of anyone else matching the chemistry of Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman’s friendship on screen.

The Shawshank Redemption’s Casting Game Has Always Been Strong

Every time I watch this movie, I swear I notice new actors that I either forgot or hadn’t noticed were part of the cast. This time around I “discovered” that Robocop and E.R. vet Paul McCrane was one of the guards, and was reminded that 24’s Jude Ciccolella was also a screw at Shawshank. Meanwhile, every go-round reminds me how I'll always recognize Jeffrey DeMunn after his short but powerful turn as the lawyer who sends Andy up the river.

Stephen King Knows How To Write Grounded Adult Fairy Tales

While Red (Morgan Freeman) delivers the line “Prison is no fairy tale world” in The Shawshank Redemption, I still consider it an example of realism meeting such morally tinged fables for adults. The fact that Stephen King would not only go on to write The Green Mile as a sort of “Shawshank meets magical thinking” heartbreaker, with Frank Darabont returning for its 1999 adaptation, only proves my point.

Bob Gunton’s Introduction Is So Subtly Chilling

Throughout the entirety of this prison drama, we see Bob Gunton's Warden Samuel Norton barely raise his voice, except for when he discovers Andy’s escape. Revisiting his chilling introduction through Andy Dufrense’s arrival at Shawshank, I was reminded that vocal hysterics are no match for wielding a bible, and knowing how to hurt someone with just a nod.

Jake Is One Of The Many Clever Ways The Passage Of Time Is Shown At Shawshank

Most movies show time passing with either obvious dialogue or handy title cards. There are moments in The Shawshank Redemption where dialogue helps contextualize when we are in the story, but it’s never clunky. Also, with the added device of Jake the crow growing from a baby to a full-grown buddy, we’re shown progress without needing to put a calendar right under our noses.

Clancy Brown Plays The Line Between Menace And Authority To A Tee

When your kids are old enough, show them The Shawshank Redemption, then a random episode of Spongebob Squarepants. It’ll blow their minds by connecting Mr. Brown’s roles of Byron Hadley and Mr. Krabs, and it’s only another example of versatile performers filling Frank Darabont’s cast. While he’s not always turned up to 11, the shifts between unchecked menace and simple authority are so seamless.

I Wish I Could Tell You Andy Dufresne's First Encounter With The Sisters Wasn’t Tragic

One of the emotional moments that never fails to maintain its tragedy is when Bogs (Mark Rolston) and the rest of The Sisters gang up on Andy in the prison laundry. We don’t see the brutality, relying on Morgan Freeman’s narration to confirm that the worst had indeed happened. Each time that scene comes on, expect your heart to sink.

The Roofing Crew Scene May Be The Best Scene In The Shawshank Redemption

If there is one scene that ties all of The Shawshank Redemption’s perfection into a subtle package, it’s when Andy and his fellow prisoners enjoy that cold bohemian beer after tarring a roof. It’s idyllic, visually stunning, and gives the audience the same temporary moment of unbridled joy as Andy Dufresne. Other moments may be more pronounced, but the joy truly sneaks up on you every time, even if it’s a consequence of Brooks Hadley threatening to cause Andy “accidental” harm.

Thomas Newman Really Poured His Heart Into The Shawshank Redemption Score

Andy's escape into the rain. Red's arrival on the beach in Zihuatanejo. Brooks' sad end. All of those moments are cinematic history in The Shawshank Redemption, and their perfection is aided by composer Thomas Newman's emotionally charged musical score. Good luck trying to drive if "Brooks Was Here" comes up on shuffle.

The Shawshank Redemption Helped Me See Beyond Stephen King’s Horror Writing

Growing up, I was introduced to Stephen King as “The Master of Horror.” That image only grew through my eventual initiation through watching miniseries like 1990’s IT. But when I saw that The Shawshank Redemption was written by the same man who masterminded such frights, it was a watershed moment that helped me look past the stereotype and love the man’s work even more.

If Anyone Should Have Remade The Stand, It Should Have Been Frank Darabont

Mick Garris’ 1994 miniseries adaptation of The Stand, in my mind, has never been topped. I’ve slowly slogged through the 2020 Paramount+ remake, and with all due respect to the talent involved, it pales in comparison. But now that I’ve rewatched The Shawshank Redemption, I can’t help but wish that Frank Darabont’s Randall Flagg easter egg led to an alternate universe where he got to do his thing with the epic clash between the disciples of The Walkin’ Dude and Mother Abigail.

Brooks’ “Easy Peasy” Line Holds Up, Even If It’s Of Questionable Taste

“Easy peasy, Japanese-y.” I know it’s not a terribly offensive line, but hearing the sweet Brooks Hadlen (James Whitmore) utter that line always gave me pause. Upon this most recent viewing, however, I realized that this line is another clever way of showing character. Thanks to the institutionalization of Brooks, we get a window into what the world was like when he was a free man; back when that sort of phrase was probably more prevalent.

Andy’s Story Doesn’t Forget To Include Moments Of Levity

I’ll never look at a copy of Alexandre Dumas’ The Count of Monte Cristo without thinking of William Sadler, Tim Robbins, and Morgan Freeman debating where to file it in the prison library. Humor and warmth go hand in hand with tragedy and tears in The Shawshank Redemption, allowing for organic breaks from the harsh realities of incarceration. Frank Darabont’s sensibilities as the writer/director of this film are sharp as the rock hammer Andy uses to get his freedom, knowing when to lean into either extreme.

No Letter Writing Campaign Could Ever Beat Andy Dufrense’s Quest For Books

A former friend of mine and I used to love referencing the moment when Andy Dufrense petitioned his local government officials for better resources in Shawshank’s prison library. As someone who loves a good story where a dedicated fanbase gets something done through letter-writing, I have to say that Dufrense’s triumph is probably the greatest example of this time-tested form of protest winning the day.

How In The Name Of Castle Rock Did The Shawshank Redemption Bomb At The Box Office?

The weekend of September 23, 1994, had some pretty decent movies in the box office top 10…and somehow The Shawshank Redemption wasn’t one of them. That’s right, the only reason we’re still talking about this picture is thanks to video rentals and constant airings on TNT in the years that followed. How did people let this happen?!

Shawshank Is A Masterclass In Patient Storytelling

In a little under two and a half hours, you really feel like you’ve gotten to know Andy Dufresne and some of his pals at Shawshank State Prison. It consistently amazes me that I can still feel this way about a movie I’ve watched frequently over its three decades of existence. There’s never a moment where it feels like you could either skip or fast forward to the next, putting the pacing in that sweet spot where you don’t want it to end, but can’t think of anything to add.

William Sadler Really Is One Of The Best Actors We Have

I originally thought that The Shawshank Redemption proved that William Sadler was one of the best character actors on the scene. Upon further thought, I'd say he's one of the best performers out there, period. The dude's range has seen him hang with the Crypt Keeper, tangle with John McClane, and try to reap the souls of Bill and Ted. Watching him as Heywood always puts a smile on my face, because how can you begrudge a man just listening to his Hank Williams records?

Brooks’ Epilogue Still Crushes My Heart Every Single Time

You don't even have to show a person the entirety of this film to bring them to tears. While having the background on Brooks' character does make his eventual fate all the more tragic, you could merely show them his final scenes on the outside of Shawshank. No matter how many times I see James Whitmore play the end to his arc, I always hope that Jake found Brooks somehow, somewhere far away from that pain.

This Movie Pivots Perfectly Between Emotional Ups And Downs

In the span of a handful of minutes, The Shawshank Redemption goes from Brooks’ tragic suicide to Andy’s triumphant book delivery, which then turns to our humble bank manager’s solitary confinement. Just those moments piled on top of each other are an emotional roller coaster, but they all land perfectly, without losing a step to any potential tonal whiplash.

Frank Darabont Truly Understands Stephen King’s Work

Adapting The Green Mile into a Tom Hanks-starring tear-jerker was the next step in Frank Darabont’s King canon journey, but giving The Mist its soul-crushing ending was probably the greatest sign that Darabont truly understands Stephen King’s work. Especially because according to his own account, Frank Darabont was inspired by King’s original text to get to that traumatizing finale.

You Could Frame That Shot Of Andy Escaping The Tunnels

The moment that Andy Dufrense escapes those tunnels of…waste in The Shawshank Redemption, he bathes in the rain of liberation in a moment you could practically frame and hang on your wall. Considering it went on to become the original poster art for the 1994 release campaign, I’m glad I’m not the only one who thought so.

How Is This Picture Only 142 Minutes?

There is no way that The Shawshank Redemption is only a couple minutes short of two and a half hours. It never feels anything shorter than perfect, which is honestly thanks to the pacing of the storytelling and every factor being top-shelf. Honestly, this is probably why The Green Mile would eventually be allowed to slightly exceed the 3-hour mark when it was released.

The Shawshank Redemption Counts As A Heist Movie

I never really thought of Andy Dufresne’s antics as a secret heist movie, but that’s exactly what I came away thinking this time out. Years before Danny Ocean and his ten friends would knock off Las Vegas, Andy used accounting, knowledge of the banking system, and some geological know-how to make his great escape. Is it too late to give Andy a role in the Ocean’s Eleven prequel?

Tommy Williams’ Fate Is Even Crueler Than That Of Brooks Hadlen

If anyone got a worse deal than Brooks Hadlen, it had to be Tommy Williams (Gil Bellows). Sent to prison for burglary, he wasn’t nearly as hardened as some of the criminals who walked the halls of Shawshank State Prison. Yet thanks to his ability to exonerate Andy Dufresne, the young man who could have had a bright future was taken out with another one of Warden Norton’s patented nods.

Roger Deakins’ Cinematography Helped Make This A Timeless Classic

Everyone knows that cinematographer Roger Deakins is a GOAT when it comes to his craft. The Shawshank Redemption is a key piece of proof as to how he’s maintained such a reputation, as his eye helps this picture evade any sort of signs of aging. It looks timeless, and feels just as preserved through never being approached as a “‘90s movie.”

Without Question, Shawshank Is A ‘Remote Drop’ Movie

Thanks to Christopher Nolan’s love for Talladega Nights, the world now knows to call something you can never turn away from on TV a “remote drop” movie. The Shawshank Redemption is absolutely such a gem, as no matter what point in the story you’re at, no matter how many times you’ve seen it before, you’re in for the duration once it’s caught your eye.

Frank Darabont Might Actually Get Me To Watch Stranger Things Season 5

I haven’t cared about Stranger Things since completing Season 2, but have kept up with the series as a responsible journalist. I’ll do the same when its final season debuts, but knowing that Frank Darabont came out of retirement to direct a Season 5 episode has given me a smidgen of incentive to finish the journey.

I Can’t Believe The Shawshank Redemption Almost Didn’t Show Us Andy And Red’s Reunion

It took notes from a test screening, and the reluctance of Morgan Freeman, to give The Shawshank Redemption an ending where we actually saw Red and Andy reunite on the shores of Zihuatanejo. I refuse to accept a world where that true moment of redemption doesn’t exist.

The Shawshank Redemption Is Still A Perfect Movie

A little over a decade ago, I wrote about perfect Shawshank moments in a bid to show that I felt it was a perfect movie. I stand by my feelings to this day, and I don’t think that’s going to change any time soon.

How Did Forrest Gump Win Best Picture In 1995?

The 67th Academy Awards in 1995 saw Tom Hanks’ bittersweet nostalgia trip Forrest Gump winning Best Picture. The rest of the field was occupied by Pulp Fiction, Four Weddings and a Funeral, Quiz Show, and The Shawshank Redemption. Is anyone else ready to send someone to Shawshank for letting this happen?

This Is One Of The Most Rewatchable Films In History

If The Shawshank Redemption was a storybook, I imagine I’d have several copies that are worn to varying degrees. It’s something you can always return to and enjoy freshly while reflecting on those peaks and valleys of emotion that pop up along the way. Which reminds me...I'm long overdue to pick up the 4K disc, even if the cover art isn't the gorgeous Drew Struzan poster that adorned the Blu-ray set.

Rain drenches an anonymous street in Los Angeles, which is standing in for an anonymous city that won’t be named. Two A-list actors, playing polar opposite detectives assigned to a frightening and ominous case, stand around and wait for their turn to step on set, where they’re poised to discover the next atrocity left for them by a mysterious serial killer named John Doe.

But in this specific moment, director David Fincher is just trying to figure out how to get the body of character actor Michael Reid McKay, transformed into the victim we’ll come to know as Sloth, onto the set without disrupting the man’s intricate makeup job.

That’s just one of many unexpected challenges facing David Fincher (Fight Club, The Social Network, Zodiac) as he labored on Seven, the mesmerizing dark-noir thriller that cast Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman as cops tracking a killer whose victims are modeled after the Seven Deadly Sins. It’s an ingenious hook, designed by screenwriter Andrew Kevin Walker. But it was Fincher’s meticulous execution of the crimes that burrowed under the skin of moviegoers back in 1995, and helped make Seven an unforgettable achievement that earned its place in the pop-culture pantheon of contemporary masterpieces.

I’m not sure Fincher knew he was creating a masterpiece at the time of filming. The former music-video director was coming off of a disastrous shoot with Alien 3, was focused on establishing himself and his own voice, and had to deal with a difficult schedule attached to one of his leading men. (More on that in a second). And then, there was this damn Sloth body… the one that wakes up mid-investigation, and scares the daylights out of John C. McGinley (Scrubs).

Speaking with CinemaBlend on behalf of a 30th anniversary 4K UHD release of Seven (which arrives on January 7), Fincher started reminiscing about that particular Deadly Sin, telling us:

Insanity. And that’s only one Deadly Sin – and only one of the more amazing stories that David Fincher happily shared about the making of his magnificent detective thriller. Dive into CinemaBlend’s exclusive conversation about the making of Seven.

‘We only had 58 days with Brad.’

The beauty of Seven lies in its economy. Scripter Andrew Kevin Walker relies on a few familiar detective tropes to plunge us into the story – an inexperienced but eager hotshot cop (Brad Pitt) gets paired with a grizzled detective (Morgan Freeman) trying to survive one last case – but then takes the narrative through some unforeseen, disturbing avenues that helped Seven stand apart from the crowd. Walker and Fincher weren’t afraid to pull back the curtain on the darkest sins of humanity, holding up a mirror to some truly disgusting people that had us asking difficult questions about the victims, the killer, and even the cops investigating the crimes.

Speaking with Fincher about his relationships with these memorable characters, and how he made them more than their archetypes, the director told CinemaBlend:

It’s one portion of the job. The rest often comes down to solving impossible problems as you keep the entire production on schedule. As mentioned, Fincher and Walker seemed to strip the Seven narrative down to its essence. Over the course of one week, Detectives Mills (Pitt) and Somerset (Freeman) would encounter a new victim every day of the week, leading to a confrontation with the Big Bad. Fincher had a vision. But as a relative newcomer to the world of feature films, he found that he had to fight tooth and nail for each supplement he hoped to add.

Here’s an amazing example. During our conversation, Fincher spoke about the riveting finale in the desert, where Mills and Somerset agree to accompany John Doe (Kevin Spacey) to a pre-determined location. The cops are accompanied by an entourage of law enforcement… only, Fincher said he ran into one major obstacle. He told CinemaBlend:

Can you imagine the Seven finale without the aerial shots of the helicopters surrounding Mills and Somerset as they play the final mind game with John Doe? That feeling of hovering over the action, almost struggling to keep everything in focus because the helicopters are moving, adds to the dread and uncertainty that Fincher establishes in the moment. Of course, there’s the brilliant moment when Mills learns what’s in the box. But after he kills John Doe – and completes the serial killer’s mission – we get that incredible improvisation of John C. McGinley shouting into the helicopter headset microphone:

Thankfully, as David Fincher explained to us, Pitt’s schedule cooperated. And New Line executives realized what kind of a gem they had in their hands, because they relented. A month after Pitt wrapped shooting on 12 Monkeys, New Line approved nine days of pickup shots, sending Fincher and crew scrambling back to the desert to complete the project. As Fincher recalled:

I’ll never be able to think of that scene without hearing McGinley’s exasperated plea. And now I won’t watch the scene without thinking that the helicopter shots almost weren’t part of it. Because that would have been a huge mistake.

‘John Doe has the upper hand.’

Of course, one of the more legendary moves pulled off by Seven was the casting of Kevin Spacey as John Doe, and then hiding his identity until the final-act reveal. Yes, we now know that Spacey appeared earlier in the movie, and got chastised by Mills for photographing a crime scene. But the reveal of Doe’s true identity matched up with some other late-game twists that were happening at the movies at that time… and also involving Spacey.

Did you realize that Bryan Singer’s crime thriller The Usual Suspects, with Spacey in a pivotal role, opened in theaters one month before Fincher dropped Seven? Because Fincher knew. And as he told CinemaBlend, it caused him more than a little agita. The director explained:

It’d be difficult to imagine anyone but Spacey in the part of John Doe now. Just like it’d be really hard to look at a cardboard box on the set of Seven and not picture the head of Gwyneth Paltrow inside of it. Don’t expect Fincher to have the actual box on shelf somewhere, ready to be added to The David Fincher Museum when that exhibit is one day established.

As he tells CinemaBlend:

Everyone will be able to see it again, this time in 4K, when Warner Bros. puts Seven out on 4K UHD beginning on January 7.

I’m a huge fan of horse operas, and I’ve watched many of the best westerns of all time.

However, one thing that has always kind of bugged me about the genre is that a number of classic westerns either A: Don’t feature any Black characters whatsoever, or B: feature Black characters, but in a minute role, or in a demeaning fashion (I’m looking at you, 1931 Cimarron).

That’s why when I see Black characters featured prominently in westerns, I get super excited. So, here are just a few such examples. Yah!

Ned Logan (Morgan Freeman) - Unforgiven

The story of a disfigured sex worker, and the bounty her friends put on the men who did it to her, Unforgiven is often seen as a meditative western, starring none other than Clint Eastwood. It’s one of my all-time favorites, and I often go back and forth on whether I think The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, or Unforgiven is the better western.

Eastwood, who also directed the Oscar-winning film, is the star of the picture, and he plays William Munny, a former outlaw who has a failing farm and needs the money. He enlists the help of his friend, Ned Logan, played by Morgan Freeman, as well as a rather green cowboy who goes by the name of “the Schofield Kid”.

Well, unlike Munny, who still has the heart of a killer, Ned doesn’t, and he’s conflicted about coming back into the field. In one pivotal moment, he shows he can no longer kill a man, as he truly did leave that life behind. And, I just love how three dimensional his character is. Ned is a man who wants to help – both the sex workers, as well as his old riding buddy – but he really struggles because he feels like he can’t anymore.

Unfortunately, Logan comes up against the villainous Little Bill (who is definitely a cop who doesn’t follow the rules), and his story is a tragic one. But, it’s also memorable in a genre that doesn’t always have memorable performances for Black actors.

Cuffee (Danielle Deadwyler) - The Harder They Fall

In this predominantly Black western directed by Jeymes Samuel, a cowboy named Nat Love (Jonathan Majors) seeks vengeance against a terrifying outlaw named Rufus Buck (Idris Elba). As a plus, basically all of the principle characters are based off of real people, so this story doubles as historical fiction.

With a cast as stacked as this one, I literally could have picked any of the characters, but I’m choosing Cuffee, played by Danielle Deadwyler, since she’s the most fascinating to me.

Based on the real Cathay Williams, who was the first (and ostensibly only) woman to serve in the U.S. Army during the American Frontier Wars (she posed as a man), Cuffee is interesting because she is probably the best shooter out of the bunch of sharpshooters. Hers is a tale of being both underestimated, but also feared, for her proficiency with a firearm.

My favorite moment is when she squares up against Cherokee Bill (Lakeith Stanfield), since it has all the hallmarks of a battle for the quickest hand. Honestly, I wish there were more excellent roles for Black women in westerns. We don’t get nearly enough of them. Speaking of which…

Moses “Mo” Washington (Letitia Wright) - Surrounded

In a post-Civil War America, Mo Washington (Letitia Wright) is a free woman looking for gold. But, due to unforeseen circumstances, Washington has to stay with an outlaw (Jamie Bell) as others go out for help after her stagecoach was attacked.

Wright, who I first learned about through Black Panther, is an indomitable force in this movie. You know she’s tough since she plays a former Buffalo Soldier, but her toughness is put to the test when dealing with Jamie Bell’s character, who offers a pretty ostentatious performance.

But, Mo plays it cool. As a Black woman, there are many who don’t take her seriously. That is until she whips out her pistols and makes them take her seriously.

Much like Cuffee in the last entry, Mo understands that she’s underestimated, which is why it’s all the more satisfying when she puts ignorant men in their place.

Buck (Sidney Poitier) - Buck And The Preacher

In this exciting western, which was also Poitier’s directorial debut, he plays a former soldier named Buck who helps get other Black people across the country through indigenous territory. Buck has struck a sort of agreement with the indigenous people, which comes in handy later when white bounty hunters try to get Buck to stop his work. It all culminates in an exciting conclusion.

Buck and the Preacher is a really fun film, and I regret that I didn’t mention it in my list of Sidney Poitier’s best movies after he passed. Also starring Harry Belafonte as the “Preacher” (I put it in quotes since he’s not really a preacher), and Ruby Dee as Buck’s wife, the film is action-packed and humorous in all the best ways.

One thing I love about Buck is that he sticks to his guns and doesn’t run from his duties to help other African Americans. I also like that he always seems two steps ahead, and that he has formed a sort of kinship with the indigenous people, as they both find a common adversary who they can rally against.

There may be more recognizable Sidney Poitier movies, but when it comes to westerns featuring Black characters, Buck and the Preacher is certainly one of the best.

Daniel Holt (Jeffrey Wright) - Ride With The Devil

Ang Lee's Ride With the Devil is a western like no other.

Telling the story of the warring factions between the Jayhawks and the Bushwackers back in Civil War times, Ride With the Devil tells a complicated tale of white men killing each other.

So why, pray tell, is it on this list, then? Well, because of Jeffrey Wright's character, Daniel Holt, a former slave who is fighting on the Confederate side since his freedom was bought by his Southern friend.

This is definitely one of Jeffrey Wright's best roles because he plays such a complex character. And this is because he's not conflicted about which side he's chosen. He'd rather fight beside his friend than fight for his potential future, which is a unique perspective, to be sure.

Django Freeman (Jamie Foxx) - Django Unchained

In this revisionist western from Quentin Tarantino, a former slave (Jamie Foxx) is enlisted by a bounty hunter (Christoph Waltz) to hunt down some suspects, only to eventually become a bounty hunter himself; unchained, as it were.

I like to watch Django Unchained during Black History Month, because it's just so satisfying to watch as a Black man.

Django goes from being shackled to shooting a plantation owner dead in his own mansion. What's not to love?

Django is a particularly fascinating character, though, since he flourishes so wonderfully. My favorite part is when he's decked out in that fancy blue outfit, and he kills a racist jerk with gusto. I mean, seriously. How cool can you possibly get?

Major Marquis Warren, "The Bounty Hunter" (Samuel L. Jackson) - The Hateful Eight

In yet another western by Tarantino (which was supposedly a sequel to Django Unchained before Tarantino scrapped the idea), a collective of people with different motives are stuck in a cabin together during a snowy winter day. Violence ensues.

Some might say that Tarantino did Jackson dirty in Django by making him an Uncle Tom-esque character, but if so, he did right by him in The Hateful Eight, where Jackson is arguably the coolest character in the movie.

Playing a bounty hunter this time around, Jackson manages to get one up on pretty much everybody he encounters. This makes an argument for Major Marquis Warren being one of the greatest characters in Jackson's lengthy career.

Not everybody adores The Hateful Eight when considering Tarantino's filmography, it's actually my second favorite movie of his (right after Pulp Fiction, of course), and Jackson's character is definitely the reason why.

For more news on any future westerns, be sure to swing by here often!

When you think of Morgan Freeman, TV is not the first thing to come to mind; Freeman’s legendary movies are. However, that’s starting to change, because following his first season on Lioness, he was upgraded to a regular for Season 2 – which is the first time that’s ever happened to him. Now, he’s opening up about why he joined the Paramount+ series, and his answer makes complete sense.

As you well know if you follow any of the Yellowstone shows or Taylor Sheridan’s various other series, the list of A-listers he has roped in for them is remarkable. The cast of Lioness is no exception, either. Led by Zoë Saldaña, it also features Nicole Kidman, Michael Kelly and, of course, Freeman. While speaking to TV Insider about his part in the drama, The Shawshank Redemption star explained why he said yes to it, and his two-word answer mirrors the reason why just about everyone decides to join these projects:

Over the years, I’ve heard many big-time movie actors talk about why they said yes to a Taylor Sheridan show, and almost always, they’ll cite the prolific writer, director and producer. Morgan Freeman is no different.

Elaborating on why he was drawn to Sheridan’s CIA thriller, the Se7en actor said:

Let it be known that Morgan Freeman saying yes to a scripted, dramatic TV series is a super big deal. Early in his career, he was a regular on the variety show The Electric Company, and he’s appeared in a few miniseries here and there. Outside of that, he’s had small roles on shows like The Twilight Zone, The Kominsky Method and Madam Secretary. However, Lioness marks his first time starring in an episodic drama for more than one season.

In Lioness, The Bucket List actor plays the U.S. Secretary of State, Edwin Mullins. In Season 2 specifically, he has a much bigger role to play, seeing as he was upgraded to a regular. The Oscar winner explained that he was excited to join the drama in part because Sheridan wrote this role for him, and that was incredibly “flattering:”

So, the mix of Sheridan’s writing and specific vision for Freeman’s character is what pulled him into Lioness, which is the case for many of the prolific writer's shows.

To prove that point, at the moment, Taylor Sheridan has two other dramas airing on the 2024 TV schedule alongside Lioness.

On one hand, he has the final episodes of Yellowstone – the Western that began his wild run of series and starred Kevin Costner (who is no longer there) – dropping weekly on the Paramount Network. Over the years, the cast has prised Sheridan’s writing, specifically, plus, their roles in the modern Western have turned them into stars.

Meanwhile, Season 1 of Landman is also airing, and it stars Billy Bob Thornton in a role that was literally written specifically for him, as the actor told CBS News.

So, Morgan Freeman’s reasoning for joining Lioness is right in line with a bunch of other A-listers who have been cast in various other Taylor Sheridan shows. Plus, I’d assume that when your roster of actors across a whole slew of projects includes names like Harrison Ford, Helen Mirren, Sam Elliott, Kevin Costner, Jeremy Renner and literally so many more, there’s a good reason to join.

All-in-all, this beloved actor’s reasoning for saying yes to Lioness makes a ton of sense. And if you’d like to see him performing in the series, you can stream it now with a Paramount+ subscription and catch new episodes there every Sunday.

Now that those with an Amazon Prime subscription can stream the brand-new adaptation of James Patterson’s popular Alex Cross books, the bestselling author is getting real about his thoughts on the previous iteration of the thriller novels starring Tyler Perry. In a recent interview, Patterson shared he thinks Perry was “screwed” by Alex Cross director Rob Cohen.

Tyler Perry took a break from the Madea movies in 2012 to star in an adaptation of James Patterson’s 2006 novel Cross to re-introduce audiences to the great Black detective character after Morgan Freeman previously played him in two films, 1997’s Kiss The Girls and 2001’s Along Came A Spider. Here’s what the author had to say as Aldis Hodge now takes up the role for the latest series on the 2024 TV schedule:

When Tyler Perry played the role in 2012, CinemaBlend gave the movie one out of five stars in our Alex Cross review, with Eric Eisenberg sharing it had a “ridiculous story,” and a “waste of talent” as well. The movie also earned an 11% on Rotten Tomatoes, and the audiences didn't like that much more, with the aggregator website having it a 47% on that side of things.

The movie also bombed at the box office, making just $34 million worldwide off a reported $35 million production budget. While Summit Entertainment had planned to make a sequel called Double Cross, its poor reception led to it being cancelled. During James Patterson’s interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the author also said this:

The Alex Cross director previously had made the first The Fast and the Furious movie, along with XXX and the third The Mummy movie with Brendan Fraser. James Patterson did not mince words regarding his thoughts on how Cohen handled the second iteration of his Cross books, but he certainly did not blame Tyler Perry for his performance. As he continued:

The latest adaptation of the Alex Cross books is poised to be a success for the material, as Season 1 has already landed as No. 1 in the United States for Prime Video, earned positive reviews from critics, and has already been renewed by the streamer for a second season. All eight episodes of Cross can be streamed now! You can check out what other upcoming book adaptations are on the way here on CinemaBlend. There are two other books of Patterson’s, Eruption and Run, Rose, Run, which are currently in development as well.

Hollywood is a tough place to get your big break. Many actors struggle for years before they finally hit it big. These stars put in the effort and stuck with it until they finally became huge stars after they turned 40. Stars like Steve Carell, Kathy Bates, Alan Rickman, and many more actors like them are household names now, but it took them years to get there.

Steve Carell

Like so many other people Steve Carell started his career at Second City in Chicago. He then kicked around television for a while, with roles on the Dana Carvey Show and eventually at The Daily Show. It's when he left that show to head the cast in The Office that his career exploded and he became one of the most beloved stars on earth.

Samuel L. Jackson

Samuel L. Jackson has one of the most impressive resumes in Hollywood, but it took him a long time to get there. His first credit came in 1972 when he was 24, but it would take another two decades or so, after a series of smaller roles in the late '80s, that he would land the role of Jules Winfield in Pulp Fiction and have his career completely explode.

Alan Rickman

The late, great Alan Rickman started acting in theater in the mid-70s, finding regular roles throughout the early '80s. Then, in 1988, at age 42, he made his feature film debut in a little movie called Die Hard. To this day, Hans Gruber is a legendary villain. He would go on to star in dozens of movies, most notably the Harry Potter films, before passing away in 2016 at age 69.

Betty White

Though Betty White had a little success in her 30s with her eponymous TV show for NBC in the '50s and minor hit Life with Elizabeth in the same decade, it really wasn't until after her 40th birthday in 1962 that she really rose to big stardom. After her 50th birthday, she was cast in the Mary Tyler Moore Show, and after her 60th birthday, she teamed up with Bea Arthur, Rue McClanahan, and Estelle Getty in the role she's probably best known for today in Golden Girls.

Morgan Freeman

Morgan Freeman was born in 1937, but it would take almost 50 years for the legend to truly break out in film. After working here and there as a dancer and as a stage actor in the 1960s and '70s, he scored his breakout role in 1987's Street Smart, starring alongside Christopher Reeve. His performance earned him the first of his Oscar nominations and by 1989's Glory, Freeman was a bonafide star.

Bea Arthur

Like her Golden Girls co-star Betty White, major success came later for the great Bea Arthur. Though she was a steadily-working actor starting in the 1940s, it wasn't until she played the character Maude Findlay, first in All In The Family, then her own spinoff called Maude, that Arthur reached the heights of fame. She was nearly 50 at that point, but her star never faded after that.

Brian Dennehy

Brian Dennehy didn't set out to be an actor. After serving in the Marines and graduating from Columbia University in 1965 with a degree in history, he caught the theater bug and started working in regional theater. In 1983, after a few smaller roles, he scored his first big role as the sheriff in First Blood at age 45.

Kathryn Joosten

Kathryn Joosten is best known for playing the beloved Mrs. Landingham in The West Wing and like her character, her real-life story is truly inspiring. She spent the first half of her life first as a nurse, then as a stay-at-home mom, raising two kids. At the age of 42, after divorcing her husband, Joosten began working in local theater in her hometown of Chicago. At age 53, she moved to Orlando and became a performer at Disney World. Soon after she moved to Hollywood and started landing parts in TV. Amazing.

Kathy Bates

Though she made her film debut in 1970, it would be more than two decades later, after working in theater and in bit TV parts, before Kathy Bates would become a star. It was, of course, he now-legendary performance as Annie Wilkes in Misery that would vault her to stardom. Truly one of the best female villains in Hollywood history.

Bryan Cranston

Most people certainly think first of Breaking Bad when they hear the name Bryan Cranston and with good reason. Cranston was 52 when he first starred as Walter White. Of course, that wasn't his breakout role, which came eight years earlier when he starred as the dad in Malcolm In The Middle ]. While he has been acting in movies and TV for years, it was that role, after his 40th birthday, that really put him on the map.

Viola Davis

EGOT winner Viola Davis found success on the stage first, winning two Tonys before turning 40. In 2008, at age 43, she was nominated for an Oscar for her role in Doubt, but it was 2011's The Help, for which she was nominated for another Oscar, that vaulted her to superstardom.

Rodney Dangerfield

Rodney Dangerfield has one of the best stories of perseverance in Hollywood history. Though technically his career started in the 1930s, his stand-up was so bland that he eventually gave up and became a salesman. In the 1960s, he re-invented himself and his act and it was a hit, with some of the best one-liners of all time. Suddenly the guy that got no respect was getting respect by talking about how he got no respect! It wasn't until 1980, at almost age 60, that Dangerfield landed his first starring role in a movie, in Caddyshack.

John Mahoney

John Mahoney started his career as the "old guy" at the Steppenwolf Theater in Chicago. After years as an English teacher, the future Frasier star gave up his career and started acting in his late 30s. By the late 80s, well into his 40s, he was landing roles in movies like Say Anything... and Moonstruck.

Jane Lynch

It's easy to say that Glee was the project that really made Jane Lynch famous, but she got her big break before that when she found her way into the Christopher Quest universe, where she was responsible for some of the wittiest one-liners in Best In Show.

Ricky Gervais

Ricky Gervais took a roundabout way to comedic fame. He started in music, moved to radio, and eventually found his way onto the popular British show The 11 O'Clock Show. It was in 2001, however, at age 40 when he co-created and starred in The Office. The rest is well-known history.

Michael Emerson

Michael Emerson took the very long trail to fame, and his story is inspirational. He struggled for years as an actor, first in New York, then later in Florida where he taught acting as well. He stsarted landing work in the theater in the late '90s, but got his big break in a guest spot on The Practice in 2001. Of course, he's best known for playing Ben on Lost.

Peter Dinklage

Though he found steady work in the early '00s, Peter Dinklage really shot to superstardom when he was cast as Tyrion Lannister in Game Of Thrones when he was 42. Today, that character is still, and will likely always be, one of the most beloved in TV history. Tyrion also happens to the character who appeared in the most episodes of Game of Thrones.

Larry David

Larry David's career had a lot of ups and downs in the early years. His first major gig was as a writer on SNL, though he didn't find much success there. At age 42, in 1989, he co-wrote a TV pilot for what became Seinfeld and his career took off. On screen, after playing a few minor roles onSeinfeld, he found even more fame with HBO's Curb Your Enthusiasm.

Melissa McCarthy

While she did have some big supporting roles in her 30s in Gilmore Girls and Samantha Who?, Melissa McCarthy's career exploded when she started as Molly in Mike & Molly, in 2011, at age 41, she co-starred in Bridesmaids, where she completely stole the show, earning an Oscar nomination in the process.

Margo Martindale

Margo Martindale has become one of the best character actors in Hollywood, but it took her a long time to get there. She worked in community theater for years before she regularly started landing TV roles in her late 30s. After her 40th birthday, her career took off with dozens of memorable supporting roles in both film and TV.

Leslie Jones

Saturday Night Live is generally thought of as a young person's game. Most cast members join very early in their careers and by the time they are 30, they are moving on to other things. Leslie Jones is an exception to that. She didn't join the cast until she was nearly 50, but she made an immediate impact. Since leaving the show, she's continued to star in things like 2016's Ghostbusters and Coming 2 America in 2021.

Ty Burrell

Modern Family took the world by storm when it debuted in 2007 and one of the leads of the show, Ty Burrell, became a huge star. This came after years in Hollywood in supporting roles and, eventually, a starring role in the short-lived show Out of Practice. It was Modern Family that made him a household name.

Octavia Spencer

Octavia Spencer started landing bit parts and supporting roles in the mid-90s, but it was 2011's The Help that put the Academy Award-winner on the map, after her 40th birthday. Not only did she win for her role in The Help, but she's been nominated for others as well, including for her work in Hidden Figures and The Shape of Water.

Patrick Stewart

While Patrick Stewart steadily found work in the theater and in smaller supporting roles in TV and film, it wasn't until he was cast as Captain Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation in 1987 that he became a household name. He was 47 at the time and he's only gotten more famous as he's gotten older.

Billy Bob Thornton

Billy Bob Thornton basically made his own fortune in Hollywood after years of smaller supporting roles, he wrote, directed, and starred in Sling Blade. The movie was a low-budget masterpiece and he's been starring in big roles and winning awards ever since.

Hannah Waddingham

Many actors get their start in the theater, just like Hannah Waddingham. With a fantastic singing voice and wonderful acting chops, it makes sense that this is where Waddingham would first find success. It would take a couple of decades for her to equal that on screen with roles in shows like Game of Thrones, and, of course, her greatest claim to fame, Ted Lasso.

Richard Farnsworth

Without a doubt, the late Richard Farnsworth had one of the most incredible careers in Hollywood history. He had uncredited roles in some of the most famous Hollywood epics including Gone With The Wind, The Ten Commandments, and Spartacus. He didn't earn his first credited role until he was 46 in a movie called Texas Across the River in 1966. Then in the 1970s, he became a well-known character actor in projects like Roots, The Natural, and Misery.

F. Murray Abraham

After scoring a handful of supporting roles in movies in the 1970s, F. Murray Abraham became a household name after his Oscar-winning performance as Antonio Salieri in 1984's Amadeus. It was truly a career-making role and one that is still loved today by fans.

Liam Neeson

Liam Neeson was 41 when he starred in one of the greatest movies ever made, even if it's a movie you can only watch once. As Oscar Schindler in Schindler's List, Neeson immediately became world famous. It's safe to say that role will always keep him famous, too.

Lucille Ball

It's really hard to believe that Lucille Ball was over 40 when she became famous on I Love Lucy, but it's true. The comedian worked in show business for decades before she and her husband Desi Arnaz created the now-legendary TV show and her fame never faded for the rest of her life.

Tommy Lee Jones

Like a lot of actors from Texas, Tommy Lee Jones does things his way. The Harvard grad worked for decades, even winning a Golden Globe and an Emmy before he truly found fame and became a leading man in the 90s with movies like The Fugitive and Under Siege.

Ken Jeong

it's not often that someone switches careers from medicine to drama, but that's exacting what Ken Jeong did. Though he always had a love of acting, he originally pursued a more traditional career as a doctor, while acting and doing standup on the side. By the mid-2000s he was earning enough to leave medicine behind, and in 2011, at age 40, he broke out in a huge way in the Hangover.

We see it all the time, serious actors with some major dramatic skills tearing it up in lighter, more comedic roles. Actors who’ve made us cry in Best Picture winners have gone on to make us fall over with side-splitting laughs, which can sometimes be harder than you’d think.

In the past, we’ve talked about some of the great dramatic performances by comedians, but today we’re going to turn our attention to the other side of that coin and highlight 32 serious actors who crushed in in comedic roles.

Robert De Niro (Meet The Parents)

Robert De Niro, an Oscar-winning actor known for serious parts in some of Martin Scorsese’s best movies, including Raging Bull and Goodfellas, as well as his turn as a young Vito Corleone in The Godfather Part II, showed the world that he was also one of the funniest stars in Hollywood with his portrayal of the iron-fisted Jack Byrnes in Meet the Parents. The deadpan expressions, the playing on his gangster roles, and his chemistry with Ben Stiller make this an all-time classic.

George C. Scott (Dr. Stranglelove)

George C. Scott will always be remembered for his portrayal of U.S. General George S. Patton in Franklin J. Schaffner’s Patton, but the acclaimed actor also crushed it in a more comedic role a few years earlier. His take on General Buck Turgidson in Stanley Kubrick’s Dr. Strangelove is nothing short of magnificent and hilarious as it gets. The satirical tone of this iconic anti-war film is biting, as is Scott’s legendary performance.

Philip Seymour Hoffman (Along Came Polly)

Though we could have included Rusty from Twister or Brandt from The Big Lebowski, Philip Seymour Hoffman’s performance in Along Came Polly is just too good to overlook. Though he’s atrocious at basketball (and in most social situations), Sandy Lyle is a force of comedic nature. It’s crazy that Hoffman went from Cold Mountain to this 2004 rom-com to Capote in the span of three years.

Tom Cruise (Tropic Thunder)

Tom Cruise steals the show in Tropic Thunder, which is no easy feat considering Ben Stiller, Jack Black, and Robert Downey Jr. sit atop the cast of this outrageous 2008 action comedy. But hey, Les Grossman, Cruise’s over-the-top and ill-tempered Hollywood exec is unforgettable in every single one of his scenes, especially whenever he dances.

Meryl Streep (Death Becomes Her)

Though not a slapstick or “laugh-a-minute” comedy, Death Becomes Her does feature some wild and hilariously comedic performances from the likes of Bruce Willis, Goldie Hawn, and Meryl Streep, who kills it with her portrayal of Madeline Ashton. The Oscar winner does get to show off her serious skills in the movie, but her character’s darkly humorous personality is worth a watch.

Leslie Nielsen (Airplane!)

It’s wild to think that Leslie Nielsen, an actor mostly remembered for spoof films, started out as a very serious dramatic actor. But that all changed with landmark comedies like Airplane!, where his deadpan humor and signature charm truly shined.

Kate Winslet (The Holiday)

Kate Winslet is known for dramatic movies like Titanic, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and Revolutionary Road, but the talented dramatic actress was able to show off her comedy chops in The Holiday. This 2006 Nancy Meyers romantic comedy showed off a different side of Winslet, one we haven’t forgotten nearly 20 years later.

James Caan (Elf)

James Caan wasn’t really known for his comedy. Sure, his characters had some humorous lines in The Godfather and Thief, but drama was always his bag. And that’s what makes his performance in Elf so great. We weren’t used to seeing Caan share the screen with someone like Will Ferrell, and that juxtaposition of personalities made it so much fun to watch.

Morgan Freeman (Bruce Almighty)

Morgan Freeman will go down as one of the best dramatic actors of all time, and for good reason. His work in The Shawshank Redemption, Glory, and countless other movies is the stuff of legend. However, let’s not forget that he also put on one of the funniest performances when he played God in Bruce Almighty.

Ralph Fiennes (The Grand Budapest Hotel)

A little more than two decades after playing the vile Amon Goeth in Schindler’s List (and only a few years after portraying Lord Voldemort in the Harry Potter movies), Ralph Fiennes proved he was a great comedic actor with his take on M. Gustave in The Grand Budapest Hotel. Equal parts hilarious and charming, this performance was a breath of fresh air.

Danny Glover (Lethal Weapon)

After playing more serious roles in films like The Color Purple, Witness, and Silverado, Danny Glover showed off his comedy skills in Richard Donner’s iconic buddy cop action film, Lethal Weapon. Though he was more straight-laced compared to Mel Gibson’s Martin Riggs, Roger Murtaugh gave us some laughs.

Arnold Schwarzenegger (Kidergarten Cop)

Kindergarten cop isn’t just one of the funniest Arnold Schwarzenegger movies, it’s also one of his best. Featuring some of the actor’s most memorable one-liners, this 1990 action comedy showed that the Austrian bodybuilder-turned-actor was more than an ice-cold robot or trained killer.

Jeff Daniels (Dumb & Dumber)

Two years after playing Colonel Joshua Chamberlain in Gettysburg, one of the best Civil War movies ever made, Jeff Daniels played a vastly different type of character in Dumb and Dumber. The obnoxious and absurdly dim-witted Harry Dunne would end up becoming one of the more dramatic actor’s most famous roles.

Jack Nicholson (As Good As It Gets)

Jack Nicholson, one of the most well-known dramatic actors of the 20th century, has popped up in comedies over the years. Perhaps the best of the bunch, As Good as It Gets earned the One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest and Terms of Endearment star his third Oscar.

Jeff Bridges (The Big Lebowski)

Whenever the topic of the best Jeff Bridges movies comes up, it doesn’t take long for the conversation to turn to The Big Lebowski. Still considered to be one of his most iconic roles, the performance also showed that the largely dramatic actor could pull off an incredibly funny and beloved character.

Liam Neeson (Extras)

Liam Neeson is best known for his work in dramas like Schindler’s List and the Taken action movie franchise, but the decorated actor with that ice-cold delivery has shown off his funny side over the years. His attempt at improv on Extras is the stuff of legend, as is work in The Lego Movie.

George Clooney (O Brother, Where Art Thou?)

George Clooney often rides the line between comedy and drama in the likes of the Ocean’s movies and several Coen Brothers projects, and one of the best examples of that is found in O Brother, Where Art Thou?, a 2000 loose adaptation of The Odyssey. The scheming and conniving Ulysses Everett McGill is one of the all-time great movie characters.

Dustin Hoffman (Tootsie)

The Graduate, Kramer vs. Kramer, Midnight Cowboy, and All the President’s Men were just a few of the movies that showed off Dustin Hoffman’s incredible dramatic acting skills. It’s a similar story with Tootsie, the beloved 1982 comedy in which Hoffman plays an unlikeable and hirable actor who decides to dress like a woman to land a gig on a daytime soap opera.

Cuba Gooding Jr. (Jerry Maguire)

Cuba Gooding Jr. was out of this world in early 1990s dramas like Boyz n the Hood and A Few Good Men, but he was even better in Jerry Maguire as Tom Cruise’s titular character’s temperamental and needy client Rod Tidwell. The over-the-top performance was hilarious beyond belief.

Timothy Dalton (Hot Fuzz)

Timothy Dalton, an actor best known for playing James Bond and showing up in adaptations of Jane Eyre, got to show off his comedy chops in Hot Fuzz, Edgar Wright’s satirical action comedy. His take on Simon Skinner is just as great all these years later.

Leonardo DiCaprio (The Wolf of Wall Street)

Leonardo DiCaprio teamed up with Martin Scorsese for the fifth time in 2013 to make The Wolf of Wall Street. While previous collaborations like Gangs of New York and The Departed were far more dramatic, this hopped-up and raucous biopic allowed the actor to be outrageously funny on screen, and it paid off.

Billy Bob Thornton (Bad Santa)

Up until starring in Bad Santa, Billy Bob Thornton was mostly known for dramatic roles in films like Monster’s Ball and Sling Blade, but this 2003 R-rated comedy changed all of that. Over the line, vulgar, and one of the funniest performances of the 2000s, Thornton’s take on a mall Santa was an instant classic.

Brad Pitt (Burn After Reading)

Burn After Reading isn’t the best Coen Brothers movie, but it does feature one of Brad Pitt’s funniest performances. Chad Feldheimer, Linda Litzke’s (Frances McDormand) lovable yet moronic coworker is just so silly, so memorable, and so dumb. You just can’t help but love him.

Michael Caine (Dirty Rotten Scoundrels)

On top of being an actor who’s appeared in the most Christopher Nolan movies, Michael Caine is also one of the all-time greats of screen and stage, with dozens of iconic films to his name. And while he’s mostly known for his dramatic work, his portrayal of the dastardly Lawrence Jamieson in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels is so dang good.

Matt Damon (Dogma)

Long before he showed up as an actor playing Loki in Thor: Ragnarok, Matt Damon did it for real in Kevin Smith’s 1999 comedy, Dogma. Sandwiched between Rounders and The Talented Mr. Ripley, the actor’s portrayal of a fallen angel banished to Wisconsin was great and showed a funnier side.

Samuel L. Jackson (The Other Guys)

Samuel L. Jackson in The Other Guys is on a whole other level and is funnier than anything else the actor has done over the years. Sure, Pulp Fiction and Jurassic Park are better movies, but his short yet memorable performance as a gung-ho cop who throws caution (and himself) into the win is comedy cold.

Alan Rickman (Galaxy Quest)

Alan Rickman’s portrayal of Alexander Dane, a Shakespearean actor fed up with life and his career direction in Galaxy Quest, is so funny yet so heartbreaking. The way the Die Hard actor (who was also classically trained) finds the balance between comedy and tragedy is perfection.

Russell Crowe (The Nice Guys)

Russell Crowe made a career out of giving commanding, and largely dramatic, performances in everything from Romper Stomper to Gladiator, so it was great to see him play a more comedic role in The Nice Guys. This 2016 Shane Black film also starring Ryan Gosling, felt like a throwback to buddy action movies of yesteryear, and allowed Crowe to try a different approach to character-driven stories.

Mandy Patinkin (The Princess Bride)

Tony and Primetime Emmy Award-winning actor Mandy Patinkin has given incredible dramatic performances in movies like Yentl and shows like Homeland, but he’s probably best known for his portrayal of Inigo Montoya in The Princess Bride. The skill with a sword, the dashing good looks, and a killer backstory make this not only a great cinematic character but also a hilarious icon of the fantasy genre.

Kevin Kline (A Fish Called Wanda)

Kevin Kline is great in just about everything (especially The Big Chill and Dave), and that includes some great comedies. One of the best featuring a serious and dramatic actor’s work is A Fish Called Wanda. The despicable and charismatic Otto West steals the show whenever on screen.

Christian Bale (The Big Short)

Though not the most standard comedy of the past few years, The Big Short is funny in a frightening and thrilling kind of way. Adam McKay’s biographical crime dramedy about the events that led to the 2007 housing market crash and subsequent economic crisis does feature one of Christian Bale’s most interesting and hilarious performances with his take on hedge fund manager Michael Burry. Not a totally likable guy, but a great character without a doubt.

Chris Hemsworth (Thor: Ragnarok)

Thor: Ragnarok is still considered one of the best Marvel movies years after its release, and that’s mostly because of Chris Hemsworth’s new and improved portrayal of the “God of Thunder.” While the character was more serious in the first two movies (and two Avengers films), the more light-hearted and silly superhero was a comedy tour de force.

Your favorite movie and TV star had to start somewhere and, sometimes, that somewhere is appearing in commercials. There have also been some cases in which an actor has already made it to the top but decided to lend their star power to a TV ad. You can find both kinds in the following collection of TV commercials featuring some huge celebrities.

Ben Affleck (Burger King)

An early blip in Ben Affleck's acting career was a commercial for the popular fast food chain, Burger King. The future live-action Batman actor and Academy Award-winning filmmaker plays a teen who accidentally invents Door Dash when his car phone intercepts a car from a girl who wants to order a whopper.

Cameron Diaz (Coca-Cola)

When Cameron Diaz was still a model primarily, one of her first experiences with acting – before making her feature debut in The Mask – was in a TV ad. The future Shrek movie star shines in an early '90s Coca-Cola commercial that feels a lot more like a perfume ad from the era in its alluring direction.

Paul Rudd (Super Nintendo)

All of Paul Rudd's versatile talents – from making us laugh in movies like The 40-Year-Old Virgin to thrilling us as Ant-Man in the Marvel movies – can be traced back to a Super Nintendo commercial he did in the early '90s. He plays a very enthusiastic video gamer who attracts a crowd when he, somehow, hooks up his console to a drive-in theater projector for the ultimate experience of playing The Legend of Zelda and other favorites.

Jennifer Lawrence (My Super Sweet 16)

Jennifer Lawrence got to be the original My Super Sweet 16 girl without appearing on the actual reality TV series that documented wealthy young women's extravagant birthday celebrations. MTV ran dramatized promos for the then-new show starring the future Academy Award winner and Hunger Games movie star as the birthday girl who encounters a few mishaps during her festivities.

Brad Pitt (Pringles)

Years before he starred in Super Bowl Heineken ad helmed by his Fight Club director, David Fincher, the then-up-and-coming Brad Pitt got a taste of commercial acting by starring in a 1988 Pringles spot. He plays one of three surfer dudes who become stranded on the side of a California road when a trio of lovely women approach them for an impromptu Pringles party.

Amy Adams (Commercial Federal Bank)

Mainstream audiences first became aware of Amy Adams' impeccable singing talent in 2007's Enchanted but customers at Commercial Federal Bank were really the first to discover her. In 1997, the multi-Oscar nominee starred as an Olvia Newton-John lookalike in a parody of 1978's Grease for the bank.

Steve Carell (Brown's Chicken)

Steve Carell's channeled his inner Michael Scott long before leading NBC's The Office cast when he was just starting out acting in commercials. In the early 1990s, he played a Brown's Chicken employee whose clumsy mistake while setting up a marquee advertising "cholesterol-free cooking" accidentally convinces customers the food will cost them nothing.

Drew Barrymore (Pillsbury)

It must have been clear to anyone who spotted Drew Barrymore in her early Pillsbury commercial that she was destined to capture our hearts in E.T. the Extra-terrestrial just a few years later. The 1979 ad stars the then-four-year-old as a little girl whose mother cheers her up on a rainy day by making chocolate chip cookies.

Leonardo DiCaprio (Bubble Yum)

Before breaking out with his supporting role in Growing Pains and really hitting big leading the Titanic cast, the up-and-coming Leonardo DiCaprio did a few commercials. One sees the future Oscar winner demonstrate his natural charisma while demonstrating the powerful flavor of Bubble Yum bubble gum.

Arnold Schwarzenegger (Alinamin V)

You may never be able to look at Arnold Schwarzenegger the same way again after witnessing the series of gobsmackingly bizarre ads the Terminator star filmed in Japan long after his big break. As the spokesperson for an energy drink called Alinamin V, the future California governor puts on a maniacally large smile and is sometimes seen riding the beverage's bottle into space or popping out of it like a genie.

Mila Kunis (Telephone Tammy)

Had Mila Kunis' Jackie Burkhart been a child of the '90s, Telephone Tammy – a doll who responds to your call with an included play phone – sounds like the kind of toy she would have grown up with. Not to mention the fact that the future That '70s Show cast member appeared in a commercial for Mattel when she was just starting out.

Morgan Freeman (Polaroid)

Future Academy Award winner and voice-over extraordinaire Morgan Freeman starred in a number of TV commercials early on in his career. One such ad was a 1970s spot for Polaroid, not as the man holding the camera that instantly prints out photos but the man telling the amateur photographer to cool it with the reshoots.

Britney Spears (Maull's)

Die-hard fans of pop superstar Britney Spears know that she started out as a child actor who worked with Ryan Gosling on The Mickey Mouse Club, among other rising stars. One of her earlier roles was a young girl who was apparently very excited to eat a home-cooked hamburger in a commercial for Maull's Barbecue Sauce, a local St. Louis brand.

Mark Hamill (Kodak)

Before playing Luke in the Star Wars movies made him familiar with technology from a galaxy far, far away, Mark Hamill represented what must have felt like a futuristic innovation at the time. He starred in a 1975 commercial for a Kodak camera that takes high-resolution photos from far away, allowing him to snap a shot of his girlfriend (and her mother) on a balcony while he stays on the ground.

Anne Hathaway (Better Homes And Gardens Real Estate)

Academy Award winner Anne Hathaway first showed her talent for performing in romantic dramas like One Day and The Idea of You in a 1996 commercial for Better Homes and Gardens. She plays a young woman who believes she and her boyfriend will still have time to spend before his family moves away until they learn the real estate agency has already sold the house.

J.K. Simmons (Farmers Insurance)

From his memorable roles in HBO's Oz and Sam Raimi's Spider-Man movies, J.K. Simmons was pretty well known by the time he was cast as Professor Nathaniel Burke of the University of Farmers for a long-running Farmers Insurance ad campaign. When he won his Oscar for Whiplash, host Neil Patrick Harris sang an impromptu parody of the company's commercial jingle.

Harrison Ford (Kirin)

Playing Han Solo in Star Wars and the title hero of the Indiana Jones movies made Harrison Ford an international star and one of the highest-grossing actors of all time. He would also increase his notoriety in Japan by starring in a series of commercials for a regional brand of lager called Kirin.

Keanu Reeves (Corn Flakes)

Before playing a master of kung fu in The Matrix, a master of gun-fu in the John Wick movies, and a master of excellency in the Bill & Ted movies, Keanu Reeves played a master of sneaking a bowl of cereal for himself. The role of a waiter who enjoys some of the breakfast food he has been hired to serve comes from an '80s-era ad for Kellogg's Corn Flakes.

Betty White (Snickers)

Snickers had a funny ad campaign starring well-known actors as metaphorical representations of the out-of-character behavior of hungry people. One of the earliest, and funniest, stars the legendary Betty White as a dude who needs a bite of the protein-loaded candy bar when his performance in a casual football game is off.

Bruce Willis (Seagram's Coolers)

When he was best known for Moonlighting and before starring in one of the all-time greatest action movies, Die Hard, Bruce Willis had another claim to fame: Seagram's Golden. He served as the adult beverage's spokesperson in a series of ads, some of which utilized his musical talents.

Jeff Goldblum (Apartments.com)

It's a little strange how a performer as widely recognized and beloved as Academy Award nominee Jeff Goldblum would be hired to star in an ongoing ad campaign as an original character and not just as himself. Nevertheless, the star of Jurassic Park and The Fly is dazzling and dazzling in the Apartments.com commercials as Brad Bellflower.

Sharon Stone (Finesse)

In the 1990s, films like Basic Instinct and her Academy Award-nominated role in director Martin Scorsese's Casino made Sharon Stone one of the most esteemed, and desirable, actors of her time. In the 1980s, her looks helped sell Finesse shampoo as one of the most desirable brands in the hair care market.

Jack Black (Pitfall)

It appears that Jack Black's charismatic, high-energy sense of humor was something he possessed from a young age. Exhibit A: his appearance in a 1982 commercial for Atari's Pitfall, as a wide-eyed child in a safari hat enthusiastically recalling his experience in the jungle-set video game, years before he played a jungle-set video game character in Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle.

Sarah Michelle Gellar (Burger King)

No one would have believed, in 1983, that an adorable six-year-old girl who became a recurring spokesperson for Burger King would grow up to become one of the fiercest horror Scream Queens in the genre's history. Yet, that would become Sarah Michelle Gellar's destiny after leading the Buffy the Vampire Slayer cast as the titular defender against evil.

Tobey Maguire (Tropicana Twister)

In 1991, when he was still a teen, Tobey Maguire did an ad for a blended juice drink from Tropicana called Tropicana Twister. The future Spider-Man actor only briefly appears as a kid who breaks the fourth wall, suggesting that broccoli be added to the next unique flavor combination.

Courteney Cox (Tampax)

Before starring in the Friends cast as Monica Gellar, Courteney Cox was best known in the 1980s for dancing with Bruce Springsteen in the "Dancing in the Dark" video. However, did you catch the future Scream movies star's appearance in a Tampax ad as a gym patron?

Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Pop-Tarts)

Joseph Gordon-Levitt is one of the most acclaimed former child stars who still act, with film and TV credits that back to the late '80s and early '90s like Angels in the Outfield and, of course, 3rd Rock from the Sun. If you go back even earlier than those classics, you can see the future Looper and Inception star in a 1991 ad for Kellogg's Pop-Tarts as a child who child urging his father to have breakfast before he leaves for work and offers him the toaster pastry.

Bryan Cranston (Preparation H)

Four-time Emmy winner and one-time Academy Award nominee Bryan Cranston has worn many faces throughout his career, from a hapless suburban dad in the Malcolm in the Middle cast to a ruthless drug lord as the lead of the Breaking Bad cast. Years before then, he wore the face of a spokesperson for Preparation H in a commercial from the early 1980s.

Willem Dafoe (Mercedes Benz)

With roles like one of the best Spider-Man movie villains, Green Goblin, and others, Willem Dafoe has proven time and time again that he plays an exceptional bad guy. Thus, he was the perfect choice to star in a Super Bowl ad for Mercedes Benz as the Devil, who almost convinces a young man to trade his soul for the car until he learns how affordable it is.

Geena Davis (WMET)

With an eclectic career that includes her Academy Award-winning role in The Accidental Tourist, the horror-comedy movie favorite Beetlejuice, and plenty more, it is clear Geena Davis can be anything. So, we imagine early '80s TV viewers who lived in the region where WMET broadcasted had no trouble accepting her as the voice of the local rock radio station when she starred in its enchanting commercial.

Jeremy Renner (Duracell)

Before he was defending the Marvel Cinematic Universe with the Avengers, Jeremy Renner made a living as a commercial actor. One of his greatest hits was a 90s-era Duracell ad in which he plays a tourist in Mexico whose stereo battery harnesses the power of a herd bulls.

John Travolta (U.S. Army)

Years before he played Santa in a Capital One ad and sent up his role in Grease for T-Mobile, John Travolta starred in an Army recruitment promo in 1973. Just four years later, his Academy Award-nominated lead role in Saturday Night Fever made him one of the biggest stars on the planet.

The list of Taylor Sheridan’s shows feels like it's neverending, and the so the Rolodex of famous actors he’s also gotten into said series also feels infinite. From Kevin Costner’s role as John Dutton in the game-changing Yellowstone to Zoë Saldaña and Jeremy Renner’s turns in shows from Sheridan that aren’t about the Dutton family, the group of actors he’s gathered for these projects is staggering. 

Kevin Costner - Yellowstone 

Kevin Costner is kind of the man who started it all. At the time, he was the most famous person in the Yellowstone cast, and for five seasons he played the patriarch of the modern Dutton family, John Dutton. While he did leave Taylor Sheridan’s flagship western after the first half of Season 5, there’s no denying how much this character gave to the show and his career. 

Sam Elliott - 1883 

Some of Sam Elliott’s best movies, like Tombstone, are Westerns. And while Elliott has dabbled in television, there’s no doubt 1883 is a standout moment in his career. He joined Sheridan’s show as Shea Brennan, a Union Civil War veteran who agrees to take a group of immigrants West. He leads the group of pioneers on a journey from Texas to Montana, and Elliott gives a standout performance as the no-nonsense yet emotionally complex leader of the caravan. 

Harrison Ford - 1923 

Harrison Ford had never led a TV show until 2022 when he starred in 1923 as Jacob Dutton. While he’s known and beloved for playing Indiana Jones and Han Solo in film franchises, the Yellowstone prequel series was a fantastic turn in his career as he reunited with Helen Mirren, and led the spectacular cast of 1923. 

Zoë Saldaña - Lioness 

There are so many actors on this list who we likely never thought we’d see leading a TV series because they’re big movie stars. Well, if you’ve seen the Avatar movies or the Marvel movies in order, you’re aware that Zoë Saldaña has been busy for years between those and other projects. However, she joined the cast of Lioness in 2023 Joe, a CIA operative. 

Helen Mirren -1923 

Cara Dutton is one of the leaders of the Dutton household, and Helen Mirren plays her perfectly. She’s a confident Irish woman who knows how to run her household, and she and her husband Jacob are a perfect pair. Part of the reason why is Mirren and Harrison Ford are an excellent couple is they came back together for this project after working together on The Mosquito Coast in 1986. 

Tim McGraw - 1883 

When you think of Tim McGraw, country music is likely the first thing that comes to mind. However, he’s also a great actor, and 1883 proved that as he led the series as James Dutton, the man who moved his family from Tennessee to Montana to the ranch that is known today as The Yellowstone. McGraw played the character – alongside his wife Faith Hill who plays Margaret Dutton – for the first time in Yellowstone, and then after that, he signed on to make this miniseries about the Dutton’s big move. 

Kelly Reilly -Yellowstone 

Kelly Reilly was an established character actor before this, but Yellowstone made her a star. Her turn as Beth Dutton is magnificent, and watching her spar with Wes Bentley’s Jamie Dutton and fall in love with Cole Hauser’s Rip Wheeler are two of the reasons why she’s one of the major highlights of Taylor Sheridan’s flagship series. 

Billy Bob Thornton- 1883 

If you want to see the power of Taylor Sheridan and his casts, look no further than the fact that he got Billy Bob Thornton to make a cameo as Marshal Jim Courtright in Episode 2 of 1883. After that, he went on to sign up to lead Sheridan’s show Landman. However, the television journey within this Paramount universe began on the Yellowstone prequel.  

Jeremy Renner - Mayor Of Kingstown 

After starring in Taylor Sheridan’s film Wind River, Jeremy Renner collaborated with him again by joining the cast of his and Hugh Dillon’s show Mayor of Kingstown. The Avengers actor plays the titular Mayor, Mike McLusky, and he helps broker power between law enforcement, the prison and the power players in the town.  

Cole Hauser - Yellowstone 

Rip Wheeler was branded with the Y when he was young, and he’s given it to many ranch hands who live and work on the Yellowstone. While he’s not a Dutton by blood (though he is by law since he married Beth), he’s arguably one of the most loyal members of the family. Cole Hauser is the man behind this beloved character. While he had roles in big movies like Good Will Hunting, Dazed and Confused and 2 Fast 2 Furious, this part is arguably what made him a star.  

Faith Hill - 1883 

Faith Hill and Tim McGraw have been married since 1996, and in 1883 they played the married couple Margaret and James Dutton. Hill is best known for her music and she had a few minor acting roles earlier in her career. However, this Yellowstone prequel was her first leading role, and she killed it as the surefire, tough and loving pioneer and mother.  

Tom Hanks - 1883 

You’ll probably do a double take when you see Tom Hanks as General George Meade in Episode 2 of 1883. The iconic actor appeared in a flashback that showed Tim McGraw’s character fighting in the Civil War. While we know him for starring in massive movies like Saving Private Ryan and Sleepless in Seattle, in this Taylor Sheridan show, he played a small yet impactful part in this sweeping story.  

David Oyelowo - Lawmen: Bass Reeves 

From The Butler and Selma, David Oyelowo is a formidable actor known best for his roles in these historic dramas. In 2023, he joined Sheridan’s series Lawmen: Bass Reeves, to play the titular man who was the first Black deputy U.S. Marshall. 

Wes Bentley - Yellowstone 

Jamie Dutton is a fascinating character. He’s not a cowboy like his brothers, and he’s always butting heads with his sister Beth. His story is complex and driven by his confusion about his place in his family. Wes Bentley plays this complex and often villainous character so well, and it’s a great addition to his already impressive career that includes films like American Beauty and The Hunger Games.  

Rita Wilson - 1883 

In Episode 6 of 1883, Rita Wilson appears to play a shop owner named Carol. Both she and her husband Tom Hanks had small cameos in this Yellowstone miniseries, and it goes to show how many incredibly famous and talented actors and singers will show up for these shows, even for a small part. 

Shea Whigham - Lawmen: Bass Reeves 

Colonel George Reeves was the Confederate army leader who cheated Bass Reeves out of his freedom. He’s played by Shea Whigham, a fantastic character actor who is known for his roles in TV shows like Perry Mason, Boardwalk Empire and more. It’s also worth mentioning that Lawmen isn’t the first time he’s worked with Sheridan as he had a role in Sicario: Day of the Soldado, which the Yellowstone creator wrote. 

Luke Grimes - Yellowstone 

Much like his on-screen siblings played by Kelly Reilly and Wes Bentley, Luke Grimes had a solid career before Yellowstone. However, his turn as Kayce Dutton made him a household name. Also, on top of his successful acting career, which involves this massive modern Western, he’s a country singer, and his music has been featured in Taylor Sheridan’s show.  

Nicole Kidman - Lioness 

Nicole Kidman plays CIA senior supervisor Kaitlyn Meade in Lioness. Before this, she made an impact in the TV space through the HBO hit Big Little Lies. She also starred in the shows The Undoing and Nine Perfect Strangers before signing on to be part of Taylor Sheridan’s political thriller that airs on Paramount+. 

Sylvester Stallone - Tulsa King 

Other than a few cameos and guest spots here and there, Sylvester Stallone hasn’t really done TV in a big way. However, that changed when he signed on to play Dwight "The General" Manfredi in Taylor Sheridan’s gangster drama Tulsa King. 

Will Patton - Yellowstone 

If you haven’t watched Yellowstone, be warned, there’s a major spoiler ahead! You’ve been warned.

One of the big reveals in Yellowstone came when Jamie found out that John Dutton wasn’t his biological father, and he was adopted. In Seasons 3 and 4, Wes Bentley’s character reconnected with his birth father, Garrett Randall, and he’s played by Will Patton, who is also known for movies like Remember the Titans and Armageddon.  

Morgan Freeman - Lioness 

Of course, Morgan Freeman plays a powerful character in Lioness. The actor with the most illustrious career and seriously iconic voice, joined the Taylor Sheridan show to play Secretary of State Edwin Mullins. 

Dennis Quaid - Lawmen: Bass Reeves 

In Lawmen: Bass Reeves, Dennis Quaid plays Sherrill Lynn. He is one of the series regulars, and like the titular character, he’s a deputy U.S. Marshall. 

Josh Holloway - Yellowstone 

Typically, in a Yellowstone show, one of the Dutton's adversaries is some sort of outsider who is trying to take their land. In Season 3, that guy was named Roarke, and Lost’s Josh Holloway played him. 

Aidan Gillen - Mayor Of Kingstown 

You know and likely love to hate Aidan Gillen as Littlefinger in Game of Thrones. I guarantee you’ll also know and love to hate him as the evil Milo in Mayor of Kingstown too. 

Michael Kelly - Lioness 

Michael Kelly is well known for his roles in action-packed and political thrillers like House of Cards and Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan. So, his joining Lioness to play the CIA’s deputy director Byron Westfield feels very fitting.  

Donald Sutherland - Lawmen: Bass Reeves 

The late great Donald Sutherland’s final role was as Judge Parker in Lawmen: Bass Reeves. From M*A*S*H to The Hunger Games to Pride and Prejudice, and so much more, his career was truly legendary and he capped it off with this Taylor Sheridan show. 

Josh Lucas - Yellowstone 

When you think of John Dutton, Kevin Costner is understandably probably the first person you think of. However, he’s not the only actor who plays the Yellowstone’s patriarch. In flashbacks, he’s portrayed by Josh Lucas, an actor who is also known for his parts in films like Sweet Home Alabama and Ford v. Ferrari. 

Graham Greene - 1883 

In the finale of 1883, Graham Greene plays Spotted Eagle, a Native American leader who helps guide James Dutton toward what will become his home in Montana. Before this, Greene worked with Sheridan on the film Wind River, and he has a history with other members of the Yellowstone cast as he performed alongside Kevin Costner on Dances with Wolves. 

Jacki Weaver - Yellowstone 

Jacki Weaver – an actress known for her roles in films like Silver Linings Playbook and Animal Kingdom – joined Yellowstone in Season 4 as Caroline Warner. She’s one of the folks who works at Market Equities, and she’s trying to obtain part of the Dutton’s ranch to build an airport.

Jerome Flynn -1923 

Jerome Flynn is best known for playing Bronn – a killer and cynical mercenary – on Game of Thrones. In 1923, he plays Banner Creighton, a rancher who gets into a partnership with a businessman who is trying to take the Dutton’s ranch. 

Andrea Savage - Tulsa King 

You likely know Andrea Savage as a comedic actress because of her roles in shows like I’m Sorry, Episodes and Veep. However, she turned into the dramatic genre and showed off a different side of her range by playing Stacy Beale in Tulsa King. 

Neal McDonough - Yellowstone

You can always count on Neal McDonough to play a really good bad guy. He did it in DC’s Arrowverse as Damien Darhk. He did it in Justified as Robert Quarles. Of course, he did it in Yellowstone too, as he played one of Season 2’s antagonists, Malcolm Beck. 

Overall, the list of performers who have worked on one of Taylor Sheridan’s many shows is overwhelming and growing. From A-listers to legendary character actors, many have said yes to working on these series, and that will likely keep happening as the super producer and writer continues to create. 

Few films have offered a captivating and inspiring meditation on the power and importance of hope quite as effectively as 1994’s The Shawshank Redemption. Writer and director Frank Darabont’s adaptation of Stephen King’s novella, “Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption,” chronicles the friendship between two incarcerated men and how their bond serves as a much-needed silver lining while serving at the titular penitentiary.

Nominated for seven Academy Awards and currently sitting at #1 on IMDb’s Top 250 Movies (as voted by users), the drama is widely considered to be one of the best movies of the 1990s (if not the best) and some of the most essential reasons why are the powerful performances by its talented ensemble. Let’s take a look back at the Shawshank Redemption cast, who they played in the classic Stephen King movie, and what they have been up to since they were released.

Tim Robbins (Andy Dufresne)

Leading the Shawshank Redemption cast as Andy Dufresne, a banker convicted of murdering his wife and her lover, is Tim Robbins. Two years later, he received his first Oscar nomination for directing Dead Man Walking and later won for 2003’s Mystic River.

Other notable credits since Shawshank include Arlington Road, the funny spoof movie Austin Powers the Spy Who Shagged Me (as the President), and the classic music movie High Fidelity with friend John Cusack. Robbins more recently returned to the world of Stephen King with a role in Season 2 of the horror anthology TV show, Castle Rock, and revisited themes of isolation as part of the Silo cast for Apple TV+.

Morgan Freeman (Ellis Boyd "Red" Redding)

Playing contraband smuggler and Andy’s friend, “Red,” earned Morgan Freeman his third of five Academy Award nominations. The rest were for 1987’s Street Smart, Best Picture Oscar winner Driving Miss Daisy, 2004’s Million Dollar Baby (which he won), and Invictus in 2010.

Some of his many other acclaimed post-Shawshank performances include playing two iconic Black detectives (Somerset in Se7en and Alex Cross in two films), portraying God in Bruce Almighty and Evan Almighty, Lucius Fox in three live-action Batman movies, and narrating the likes of March of the Penguins and Steven Spielberg’s War of the Worlds (which also starred Robbins) in 2005. Freeman recently starred in director Zach Braff’s A Good Person and is set to star in the upcoming Now You See Me 3, reprising Thaddeus Bradley.

Bob Gunton (Samuel Norton)

The corrupt, sadistic warden of Shawshank is played by Bob Gunton, who starred in an adaptation of King’s Delores Clairborne the following year. Some of his most notable cinematic credits since include 2000’s The Perfect Storm, The Lincoln Lawyer with Matthew McConaughey, and Argo in 2012.

You may recognize him from the small screen for his recurring role on Desperate Housewives, playing Ethan Kanin on 24, and the first season of Daredevil. Gunton more recently filled in for the late Harold Ramis as Egon in Ghostbusters: Afterlife, starred in a new horror movie in 2024 called The Inheritance, and has a couple of other spooky titles in the works called Purgatory Station and Ghostkiller.

William Sadler (Heywood)

Starting with his role in Shawshank as fellow longtime inmate Heywood, William Sadler (whose ad-libbing had major effects on the role) has starred in multiple Stephen King adaptations, most of which were helmed by Frank Darabont. He would portray Klaus Detterick in the 1999 adaptation of The Green Mile, later starred in Darabont’s devastating take on The Mist as Jim in 2007, and plays Constable Parkins Gillespie in the new Salem’s Lot movie, which will be available with a Max subscription on October 3, 2024.

He would also earn Scream King status for flicks like Tales from the Crypt: Demon Knight and his starring role on Roswell, became part of the MCU as President Ellis in the 2013 Marvel movie Iron Man 3, and also appeared in several made-for-TV Jesse Stone adaptations opposite Tom Selleck. Sadler more recently reprised the Grim Reaper in 2020’s Bill & Ted Face the Music, played Michael Flynn in Showtime’s The Comey Rule that same year, and was in a Max original miniseries called Full Circle in 2023.

Clancy Brown (Byron Hadley)

One of Warden Norton’s most brutal guards is Byron Hadley, played by Clancy Brown, who has played his fair share of villains outside of Shawshank. He was The Kurgan in 1986’s Highlander, voiced Lex Luthor in several animated DC adaptations, was Surtur in Thor: Ragnarok (one of two MCU roles he played), and joined the Dexter: New Blood cast as the main antagonist, Kurt Cadwell.

Modern audiences probably know the actor best, however, as the voice of Mr. Krabs on SongeBob Squarepants. Some of Brown’s most notable recent credits include the Oscar-winning Promising Young Woman, the fourth John Wick movie as The Harbinger, and the fact-based dramedy Dumb Money. He is portraying another comic book villain, Salvatore Maroni, in the upcoming DC TV show, The Penguin.

Gil Bellows (Tommy Williams)

Young, doomed Shawshank prisoner Tommy Williams was one of the first major movie roles for Gil Bellows. He would go on to star in films like 2005’s The Weather Man, the fact-based Parkland in 2013, and the 2019 horror anthology movie, Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark.

The Canadian actor would become even better known for his small screen work, such as playing Billy Thomas on Ally McBeal, his recurring role on Patriot as Lawrence Lacroix, and earning an Emmy for producing the HBO movie, Temple Grandin, in 2010. Bellows most recently earned stints on hit series Alert: Missing Persons Unit and Chucky.

Mark Rolston (Bogs Diamond)

Another one of Shawshank’s most notorious villainous faces is Bogs Diamond, which is one of the best known roles of Mark Rolston, which is really saying something. He had previously played Private Drake in Aliens and Hans in Lethal Weapon 2, for instance, and went on to work in hit films like Rush Hour, Martin Scorsese’s The Departed, and a few installments of the Saw movies.

Some of Rolston’s other most notable credits include cop shows like FX’s The Shield, several voice acting gigs in shows like Young Justice and video games like PlayStation’s Spider-Man franchise, and an episode of the recent Star Wars TV show, Ahsoka, in 2023. Rolston is set to voice James Gordon in the upcoming video game, Batman: Arkham Shadow.

James Whitmore (Brooks Hatlen)

One of Shawshank’s longest-serving inmates, librarian Brooks Hatlen, was played by James Whitmore. The veteran actor had previously earned two Academy Award nominations for this performances in 1949’s Battleground and as Harry S. Truman in 1975’s Give ’em Hell, Harry!

After appearing in the 1997 horror flick, The Relic, he would work with Darabont again when he starred in 2001’s The Majestic but most of his acting work since was appearances on TV shows like The Practice and the short-lived Mister Sterling. He gave his final performance in a 2007 episode of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation before he passed away in 2009 at the age of 87.

The Shawshank Redemption is rightfully considered a movie that will effectively inspire you to stay out of jail. However, it also makes prison life look somewhat tolerable if you have people like Andy, Red, or Heywood by your side. Be sure to also check out what other movies like The Shawshank Redemption are available to stream now.

Whenever we talk about the best ‘90s movies, it doesn’t take long before the conversation turns to the most iconic actors of the final decade of the 20th century and their most beloved performances. But what are Will Smith’s, Julia Roberts’, or Keanu Reeves’ best movies for the unforgettable and transformative 10-year stretch? 

We’re being totally subjective here (Because why not?), but here are the best ‘90s movies for these 32 actors. Best Picture winners, a handful of the best action movies of all time, and other films that turned up-and-comers into overnight megastars can all be found below.

Will Smith (Independence Day)

Will Smith was already a household name by the time Independence Day was released and became the biggest movie of 1996, but this massive sci-fi flick took him to new heights. Electric, magnetic, and charismatic beyond belief, the Fresh Prince became the King of the summer blockbuster with his portrayal of Captain Steven Hiller.

Leonardo DiCaprio (Titanic)

Is there a bigger ‘90s movie than Titanic, both in terms of financial returns and cultural prominence? Yeah, James Cameron’s story of the ill-fated ship, his special effects, and the rest of the cast made this 1997 disaster movie a must-see, but Leonardo DiCaprio, with his “King of the World” moment, made this an all-timer. 

Tom Cruise (Jerry Maguire)

Picking the best ‘90s movie for Tom Cruise is no easy task, considering some of the actor’s best performances took place that decade. However, despite Magnolia and Mission: Impossible being great in their own ways, this has to go to Cruise’s dynamic portrayal of the struggling sports agent in Jerry Maguire. “Show me the money,” is a quote we keep in our repertoire nearly 30 years later. 

Sandra Bullock (Speed)

Sandra Bullock put herself on the map with her performance in Speed, one of the most iconic 1994 movies. Though she was great in Demolition Man the year before, Bullock’s take on Annie Porter made her an overnight sensation and quickly became one of her best roles to date, even outside the ‘90s.

Morgan Freeman (The Shawshank Redemption)

How Morgan Freeman didn’t win an Oscar for his performance in The Shawshank Redemption is one of the biggest mysteries, and travesties, in Hollywood history. His portrayal of Ellis "Red" Redding in this spectacular Stephen King adaptation is so strong and so believable that you don’t see him as an actor playing an inmate, but more like an aging prisoner trying to “get busy living or get busy dying.”

Samuel L. Jackson (Pulp Fiction)

As much as we would have loved to argue for Jurassic Park being Samuel L. Jackson’s best ‘90s movie, Ray Arnold has nothing on the bad mother [redacted] that was Jules Winnfield from Pulp Fiction. Easily Quentin Tarantino’s best movie, this 1994 classic is essentially a master class in dialogue and non-linear storytelling.

Meg Ryan (Sleepless In Seattle)

A few years after leading the best romantic comedy of all time with When Harry Met Sally, Meg Ryan teamed up with Nora Ephron (who was directing this time around) for Sleepless in Seattle in 1993. The chemistry between Ryan and Tom Hanks as Annie Reed and Sam Baldwin, is incredible, even if they only share a couple minutes of screentime.

Julia Roberts (Pretty Woman)

It’s hard to imagine what Julia Roberts’ career and Hollywood in general would be like if the actress didn’t play Vivian Ward in Pretty Woman. Sure, Roberts already had some hits and would have gone on to land big roles, but this 1990 rom-com instantly made her one of the brightest stars on the planet and showed off her dynamic range and impeccable comedic timing.

Angela Bassett (What's Love Got To Do With It)

Angela Bassett’s best movie, What’s Love Got to Do with It saw the celebrated actress take on the role of the legendary Tina Turner in this 1993 biopic about the late singer’s life, career, and toxic relationship with husband and music partner Ike Turner. Bassett had some pretty iconic ‘90s roles throughout the decade, but this is at the tippy top of the mountain.

Keanu Reeves (The Matrix)

Picking Keanu Reeves’ best movie of the 1990s is more difficult than you’d think. Point Break, My Private Idaho, and Speed are all contenders, but none come close to the heights of The Matrix and his performance as Neo, aka, the One. Watching Reeves’ character develop throughout this great ‘90s sci-fi film never gets old.

Robin Williams (Good Will Hunting)

Robin Williams had SO many good movies in the ‘90s, but Good Will Hunting was in a league of its own, at least in terms of performances by the late comedian. The richness, range, and emotion found in his portrayal of Sean Maguire is something to behold. No wonder he took home an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor.

Bruce Willis (The Sixth Sense)

The ‘90s saw Bruce Willis play everything from his most iconic character in the second and third Die Hard movies to the leads in multiple blockbusters. However, none of those compare to his work in The Sixth Sense. There is just something so warm and refreshing about his portrayal of a child psychiatrist trying to help a young boy make sense of life and his strange gift.

Harrison Ford (The Fugitive)

Have you gone back and watched The Fugitive lately? If not, do so now. If you have, you’re all too familiar with Harrison Ford’s performance as Richard Kimble, the Chicago doctor trying to clear his name after being wrongfully convicted of murdering his wife. Air Force One and Clear and Present Danger are great, but this 1993 thriller is one of Ford’s career-best.

Frances McDormand (Fargo)

Frances McDormand’s portrayal of Marge Gunderson in the Coen Brothers' Fargo earned the actress the first of her three Academy Awards, and for good reason: she’s the heart and soul of the 1996 crime comedy.  

Gary Oldman (The Fifth Element)

Gary Oldman played some of the meanest ‘90s villains in movies like Air Force One, Leon: The Professional, and The Fifth Element, the latter of which features his best work of the decade. Jean-Baptiste Emanuel Zorg is one of those characters that you love to hate and enjoy watching as much as the 1997 sci-fi film’s hero, which is saying something.

Wesley Snipes (White Men Can't Jump)

In the years following his breakout performance in Major League, Wesley Snipes became one of the dependable faces in Hollywood thanks to unforgettable turns in New Jack City, Demolition Man, and Jungle Fever. But let’s be real, Snipes’ take on Syd Deane is one of the most iconic ‘90s characters and essentially carries this all-time great basketball movie.

Tom Hanks (Saving Private Ryan)

Tom Hanks dominated the ‘90s with Oscar-winning performances in Philadelphia and Forrest Gump as well as other decade-defining films like Toy Story and A League of Their Own. But in terms of the BEST movie, that has to go to Saving Private Ryan, Steven Spielberg’s harrowing World War II epic about heroism, survival, and the hope of a better tomorrow.

Robert De Niro (Cape Fear)

We could have listed Goodfellas, Heat, or even A Bronx Tale as Robert De Niro’s best movie from the ‘90s, but his performance as Max Cady in Cape Fear is on a whole other level. Easily one of the Oscar winner’s most menacing characters, the psychopathic ex-con with a bone to pick is a force of pure evil here.

Al Pacino (Heat)

After playing all-time great gangsters in the ‘70s and ‘80s, Al Pacino was on the other side of the law in Michael Mann’s 1995 crime epic, Heat. Sure, Scent of a Woman earned him that elusive Oscar for Best Actor, but his take on Lieutenant Vincent Hanna is the stuff of legend. Plus, we also got to see Pacino and Robert De Niro share a scene for the first time.

Anthony Hopkins (The Silence Of The Lambs)

Anthony Hopkins' portrayal of Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs is one of the greatest performances of all time. That said, it should be no surprise that this great horror film gets the call here. Though there was some stiff competition.

Philip Seymour Hoffman (Boogie Nights)

As much as we would love to break down all the awesome ways Philip Seymour Hoffman stole the show in Twister and My Boyfriend’s Back, the late actor really came into his own in Paul Thomas Anderson’s 1997 drama, Boogie Nights. Hoffman’s sympathetic take on Scotty J. was nothing short of brilliant and showed what was to come.

Jodie Foster (The Silence Of The Lambs)

If you were to break down Jodie Foster’s best performances, her portrayal of Clarice Starling would be at or near the top of that list. A movie that has been quoted or referenced countless times over the years, this 1991 thriller remains one of the best ever made.

Brad Pitt (Seven)

David Fincher’s Seven is Brad Pitt’s best movie from the ‘90s for a variety of reasons: 1) the movie about a serial killer taking lives based on the seven deadly sins is violently unique, 2) it was the start of a partnership between actor and director, and 3) Pitt showed he was more than a pretty face and really had what it took.

Arnold Schwarzenegger (T2: Judgment Day)

Terminator 2: Judgment Day is not only a decade-defining action movie or a landmark achievement in visual effects, it’s also Arnold Schwarzenegger’s best movie of the ‘90s and perhaps all time. James Cameron’s sequel is bigger and louder than its predecessor and epic beyond compare.

Whoopi Goldberg (Sister Act)

Whoopi Goldberg won her first Academy Award for her role as Oda Mae Brown in Ghost, a film that kicked off an impressive decade for the comedian and actor. Her spiritual guide for Patrick Swayze’s ghostly Sam Wheat in this supernatural thriller helped anchor the film and turn it into the biggest movie of 1990.

Matt Damon (Good Will Hunting)

Matt Damon went from a relatively unknown actor to one of the brightest faces (and voices) in Hollywood thanks to Good Will Hunting. His tortured performance as a young math prodigy in South Boston is still captivating more than 25 years later.

Eddie Murphy (The Nutty Professor)

Eddie Murphy did a little bit of everything in the ‘90s, but The Nutty Professor shows off some of the comedian’s best work. Playing multiple characters (heroes, villains, and in between) really showed off Murphy’s dynamic range and varied comedic styles.

Adam Sandler (Happy Gilmore)

Though Big Daddy proved that Adam Sandler could handle slightly more dramatic roles, there’s no denying the fact that Happy Gilmore is the former SNL star’s best ‘90s movie. His take on a failed hockey player finding new purpose (and fortune) in the world of golf was a game-changer and created one of the best sports characters of all time.

Denzel Washington (Malcolm X)

Denzel Washington is another actor who had more great roles in the ‘90s than we can count, but at the top of his “best” list is Spike Lee’s 1992 biopic, Malcolm X. The movie about the controversial civil rights icon was eye-opening, enchanting, and epic.

Joe Pesci (Goodfellas)

We could have talked about My Cousin Vinny, we could have talked about Home Alone, and we could have even made a case for Casino, but none of that is possible without Goodfellas. The movie, which introduced the world to Joe Pesci’s Tommy DeVito, is one of the greatest gangster movies of all time and an influential piece of cinema we still rave about 30-plus years later.

Susan Sarandon (Thelma & Louise)

Ridley Scott’s Thelma & Louise, a movie featuring one of the best female friendships with Susan Sarandon and Geena Davis’ titular characters, helped kickstart the decade back in 1990. Easily Sarandon’s best movie of the ‘90s, this crime drama about two friends on the run from the law is just so dang great.

Jim Carrey (Dumb & Dumber)

Jim Carrey absolutely dominated the ‘90s comedy scene, and the box office in general back in 1994. While Ace Ventura Pet Detective and The Mask both have their moments, we have to be real for a second and admit that Dumb and Dumber is some of Carrey’s best work.

Movie fans had lots to love in the '90s and these actors and their best movies of the decade will never be forgotten.

Hollywood has a long history with the military. During World War II many actors and directors served and aided in the war effort in different ways. It goes way beyond that, however. Here is a list of actors who have served in the military, either in the US or in other countries. 

Drew Carey

Funnyman Drew Carey is not someone you expect would be a marine, but that's exactly what he was before making it big on television. The Price Is Right host served six years as a field radio operator in the Marine Reserves in his home state of Ohio after dropping out of college. You have to imagine being a radio operator would be a good experience for talking into a microphone, right?

Bea Arthur

During World War II, an entire generation of men were expected to do their part in the war effort. Women, on the other hand, were not expected to join the service. Bea Arthur thought differently and enlisted in the Marines. Of course, the world being what it was at the time, meant she served stateside, doing jobs like typing and later working in the motor pool. 

Jamie Farr

Though he is most famous for playing a corporal in MASH who did all he could to undermine the authority of his superiors, Jamie Farr served with distinction in the 1950s after being drafted in 1957. He was already in show business at the time, so much of his work involved USO shows. 

Mel Brooks

EGOT winner Mel Brooks served in the US Army during World War II and participated in the Battle of the Bulge. He joined almost straight out of high school in 1943 and was sent to Europe at the end of '44. He was honorably discharged in '46 and embarked on one of the most legendary careers of all time. 

Adam Driver

Like many in his generation, Adam Driver was inspired to join the military in the wake of the 9/11 attacks in 2001. Shortly after the attack, Driver signed up for the Marine Corps. The Star Wars actor is very proud of his service, though it was cut short after he injured himself off-duty and was medically discharged due to his injury. 

Robert Duvall

One of Robert Duvall's most famous roles was as the psychopathic Colonel Kilgore who loved the smell of napalm in the morning in 1978's Apocalypse Now. He probably drew on his experience in the United States Army, where he served for a year in the 1950s, just after the Korean War. 

Don Knotts

Don Knotts might be most famous for goofballs on The Andy Griffith Show and Three's Company, but his time in the army was anything but goofy. Knotts served three years in the army during World War II and earned a slew of medals for his service in the Pacific theater. After the war, he embarked on what would become a legendary career in Hollywood. 

Morgan Freeman

It took a long time for Morgan Freeman to get famous, but once he did, he's been an ever-present voice in everyone's head. After high school Freeman enlisted in the U.S. Air Force, where he served for four years in the 1950s. After leaving the service, he moved to LA and got into acting, though it would really be another couple of decades of hard work before he found fame. 

Paul Newman

Few actors define "movie star" like Paul Newman. As one of the biggest stars of his generation, he is beloved for all of his roles over the years. Before heading to Hollywood, Newman served in the Navy during the Second World War, mostly on the aircraft carrier Bunker Hill. 

Richard Pryor

Comedy legend Richard Pryor made his business to ruffle feathers whenever and wherever he could. That includes during the two years he served in the army in the late 1950s. According to The New Yorker, he spent much of those two years incarcerated in a military jail after he and other soldiers stabbed a white soldier for a racial incident. 

Rob Riggle

Comedian Rob Riggle is one of the most dedicated Marines in Hollywood history. He joined in 1990 and served overseas multiple times throughout his 23-year career, including his time in the reserves. While most stints in the military were only a few years for the people on this list, Riggle served well enough and long enough to retire as a lieutenant colonel.

Jennifer Marshall

Jennifer Marshall might not be a household name yet, but fans of Stranger Things, know her as Max's mom Susan. Before becoming an actress, Marshall served five years in the Navy, including on the USS Theodore Roosevelt during Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Jimmy Stewart

Jimmy Stewart was already one of the biggest stars in the world, having won an Oscar for The Philadelphia Story before he joined the army after the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941. Unlike some actors like Ronald Reagan, Stewart was in the thick of the fighting as a member of the Army Air Force and was well-decorated for it, including winning the Distinguished Flying Cross. He remained in the reserves until well after the war, retiring in 1968 with the rank of brigadier general. 

Ice-T

Ice-T is not only an actor but one of the pioneers of hip-hop. He first got interested in music in the late '70s, while serving in the army. His time in the army wasn't exactly filled with glory, however. He was charged with theft while serving and eventually was found in dereliction of duty as a result. He cut his time short because he was already a single father and was honorably discharged in 1979. 

Gal Gadot

In Israel, most citizens are required to serve in the Israeli Defense Force and Gal Gadot was no different when she was drafted at age 20. She served her mandatory two years in the army as a combat fitness instructor. She was famously part of a Maxim Magazine spread of female Israeli soldiers during her time in the service before trying her hand at acting and landing her breakthrough role in Fast & Furious. 

Bob Ross

Famous for his calm demeanor and his big hair (a hairstyle he came to hate), Bob Ross doesn't seem like the military type. For most people, Ross is all about vegging out and destressing while watching him paint like magic on TV. Before all that though, he was a master sergeant in the Air Force. 

Robin Quivers

Robin Quivers is most famous for being Howard Stern's sidekick on his notorious radio show and co-starring with him in Private Parts, but long before she became a key part of Stern's team, she was an officer in the Air Force. She joined after college in 1975 and eventually rose to the rank of captain before leaving the military and starting her radio career. 

Arnold Schwarzenegger

Like a few actors, Arnold Schwarzenegger's time in the army was somewhat undistinguished. He, of course, served in his native Austria, which required one year of service from all young men. During his time, he was already a rising star in the bodybuilding world and he even went AWOL to compete. After he was discharged, he entered his first Mr. Universe competition, placing second, and the rest is history. 

Sean Connery

Though he just missed World War II, Sean Connery joined the Royal Navy in 1946 at just age 16. No, he didn't serve on a submarine, and the James Bond star wasn't a spy. His time in the service was somewhat short-lived as he was discharged for a medical issue less than three years later. He remained proud of his service for the rest of his life, however. 

Caitlin Bassett

Quantum Leap star Caitlin Bassett is a rarity in Hollywood, a female combat veteran. Bassett served for seven years in the army, including three overseas deployments to Afghanistan before being honorably discharged in 2017 and embarking on her acting career. 

Gene Hackman

Hollywood legend Gene Hackman enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1947 at just age 16. He served for almost five years as a radio operator, including for a year in China. After he was honorably discharged, he went to college and finally at age 30 started acting. it was a long road, but Hackman couldn't have imagined the success he'd find as one of the most beloved actors of his generation. 

Tom Selleck

Tom Selleck served for six years in the California Army National Guard during the height of the Vietnam War. By serving in the National Guard, it meant he didn't end up going overseas to fight, but that should diminish his service. The Blue Bloods star began his career with bit parts on TV shows and in commercials while serving, though it was years before he famously had to turn down the role of Indiana Jones. 

Marlene Dietrich

Though she never formally served in the armed services, we could not make this list without Marlene Dietrich's fascinating story. The German-born actress renounced her German citizenship in 1939 when World War II began and she worked vigorously for the USO during the war years, supporting American GIs. Later in the war, she was recruited by the OSS to record songs used for propaganda against German soldiers. After the war, Dietrich was awarded the Medal Of Freedom for her service. 

Gregory Gadson

Battleship star Gregory Gadson is more famous for his service than his acting, which is unique on this list. Gadson is a West Point graduate who was injured by a roadside bomb in Iraq in 2007. He lost both legs but learned to walk again using cutting-edge prosthetics and later, incorporating his injury into his character in Battleship. 

James Doohan

Star Trek legend James Doohan served bravely with the Canadian army during World War II and participated in the Normandy invasion on D-Day in 1944. He collected a number of medals for bravery during his time in the war and was even shot six times in the battle on Juno Beach on that fateful day. He later flew planes during the war as well. 

Charles Bronson

One of Charles Bronson's most beloved roles is that of an officer in one of the best war movies ever, The Great Escape. Though he was Polish in the movie, he served in the US Army Air Force during World War II as a gunner on a bomber. He served with distinction, flying on 25 missions in the Pacific during the war and earning a Purple Heart. 

Kris Kristofferson

As a singer-songwriter and actor, Kris Kristofferson has usually been connected to the counterculture, but it wasn't always that way. Kristofferson grew up an army brat and despite being a Rhodes scholar in college, he was pressured by his proud military family to join the service. He was commissioned as an officer and served in Germany after completing Ranger training. He left the army in '65 and moved to Nashville, and the rest is history.

Mark Valley

Fox's Human Target was a short-lived, underrated TV show with an all-star that included  Chi McBride, Jackie Earle Haley, Indira Varma, and Janet Montgomery. It was led by Mark Valley, who played Christopher Chance, based on a DC comic character from a book also called Human Target. Valley himself is a graduate of West Point who saw combat in the first Gulf War.  

Jake McLaughlin

One of the more interesting stories on this list belongs to Quantico star Jake McLaughlin. McLaughlin joined the army after high school and served in the Iraq war, seeing combat in the earliest days of the invasion. After getting out, he worked a few odd jobs before landing a role in In the Valley of Elah. From there, he's never looked back, landing roles in multiple TV shows and movies. 

Jesse Ventura

While Jesse Ventura, star of the wrestling squared circle and movies like Predator, never saw combat in Vietnam, he did have an impressive service career. He completed BUD/S school, which is SEAL training, and served as part of an Underwater Demolition Team, the predecessors to the SEALs. Later he would become a politician and a member of the WWE Hall of Fame. 

J.W. Cortés

Fans of the Fox Batman prequel show Gotham will recognize J.W. Cortés as Detective Carlos Alvarez, who works with Jim Gordon in the Gotham PD. Cortés served for 13 years in the Marine Corps, including during Operation Iraqi Freedom. 

Remi Adeleke

2023's Plane is somewhat under-appreciated because it's a great action flick. Part of what makes it great is the breakout performance from Remi Adeleke. Adeleke plays part of a private military unit charged with rescuing passengers in a disabled plane stuck in the Philippines. Adeleke plays the part well because, well, he's a former SEAL in real life. 

The $2 billion lifetime box mark for all their movies is a major milestone for actors and only the most popular ones have reached that level. The full list, per The Numbers, includes a lot of names you'd expect, and a few you wouldn't. Many on the list play major characters in the MCU, though we've limited those somewhat here, to get a fuller picture. So here it is, our list of actors who've topped the $2 billion mark all-time at the box office.

Daniel Radcliffe

There are some huge franchises out there, and few are bigger than the Harry Potter series, so naturally, the actor who played its protagonist, Daniel Radcliffe, is going to find his way onto this list. With a box office total climbing north of $2.6 billion, Radcliffe has supplemented Harry Potter with big movies like Now You See Me 2 and The Lost City.

Tom Cruise

For four decades Tom Cruise has been one of, if not the, most bankable stars in Hollywood. The biggest chunk of the more than $4 billion he's earned has come from the Mission: Impossible movies, but almost every one of his movies, from Top Gun to War of the Worlds and beyond are usually big money makers. 

Harrison Ford

When you star in two of the biggest franchises in Hollywood history, you're going to make this list. As Han Solo in the Star Wars movies and as the titular character in the Indiana Jones series, Harrison Ford has been raking in box office receipts for decades.  He's also had big money earners outside those series as well, like the two Jack Ryan movies he starred in, and movies like The Fugitive and the two Blade Runner flicks.  

Tom Hanks

It's hardly a surprise to see Tom Hanks on this list. With a total box office of over $5 billion, Hanks has consistently crushed it in some of the most iconic roles in Hollywood history. The list of Hanks' best movies includes Saving Private Ryan, Forrest Gump, Philadelphia, Big, and many more, but the movies that make the biggest contribution to that box office number come from the Toy Story franchise. 

Jack Black

Jack Black movies have brought in more than $2.7 billion. Before you wonder where that has come from, you have to remember just how huge the Kung Fu Panda series of movies have been. They all have collected huge box office numbers. Throw in School of Rock, and the Jumanji series, and all of a sudden, you're climbing in some pretty rarified air. Oh - and it might surprise you that the Super Mario Bros. Movie earned more than a billion on its own.  

Morgan Freeman

Is there a more beloved actor in Hollywood than Morgan Freeman? With movies like The Shawshank Redemption, Driving Miss Daisy, and Unforgiven he's proven he's one the best actors, and with huge movies like The Dark Knight trilogy, he's brought in a ton of money, with over $2 billion total. 

George Clooney

There isn't anyone in Hollywood who quite personifies a classic movie star than George Clooney. He's brought in more than $2 billion lifetime, with only one superhero movie on his resume (and a forgettable one at that, with Batman & Robin). Of course, the Ocean's movies have been his biggest box office successes, but he mostly has just put out great movie after great movie. 

Liam Neeson

While Liam Neeson isn't alone in actors we'd like to see in the MCU one day, he's still earned bank at the box office. He's appeared in a number of other big franchises, like Star Wars, The Dark Knight, and The Chronicles of Narnia, and the franchise he's most known for, the Taken movies. 

Steve Carell

It may surprise you to see Steve Carrell on this list until you remember how huge the Despicable Me franchise is. Those movies print money and Carell has been a monster piece in that puzzle. Of course, he's also had huge hits like The 40-Year-Old Virgin and the Anchorman movies. 

Meryl Streep

It's hard to argue against Meryl Streep being the finest actress of a generation, and perhaps even ever. With more than 20 Oscar nominations, she's built a career that is unparalleled. She has also managed to kill it at the box office despite not being a part of any huge franchises. The Mamma Mia! movies are the closest she's come to something like that, which makes her $2 billion+ that much more impressive.  

Eddie Murphy

Year after year Eddie Murphy just cranks out hit after hit. Sure, he's a long way away from his peak as a comic in the '80s, but you can't argue against the results, with over $3.5 billion in total receipts. The biggest contributors, of course, are the Shrek movies. 

Johnny Depp

Of course, Johnny Depp has to be on this list. Depp led one of the biggest franchises of the early 21st Century with the Pirates of the Caribbean movies. He's had a lot of hits outside of his work for Disney, but the role of Jack Sparrow has translated to a big chunk of his more than $3.6 billion total box office. 

Jennifer Lawrence

Jennifer Lawrence hasn't been in the MCU proper, but in full disclosure, she did appear in the X-Men franchise when it was outside of the MCU proper. So there is that. Still, she's also got another franchise under her belt with the Hunger Games movies. Outside of that, she's known for taking on serious roles in movies like Winter's Bone and Mother. It all adds up to more than $2.6 billion.

Robert De Niro

Robert De Niro has been one of the most famous actors in Hollywood for more than 50 years and with that has come a lot of success at the ticket window. in total, his movies like Cape Fear, The Godfather II, Killers of the Flower Moon, and, the films that have contributed the most to his more than $2.6 billion lifetime box office sales, the Meet The Parents movies. 

Emma Watson

As one of the key cast members of eight Harry Potter movies, it's hardly a surprise to see Emma Watson on this list. That franchise alone has made billions. She also appeared as Belle in the Disney live-action remake of Beauty and the Beast in 2017, which made a cool billion as well. 

Leonardo DiCaprio

The great Leonardo DiCaprio is another actor on this list who has built remarkable box office numbers – well over $2 billion – without the benefit of a major franchise. It helps to have Titanic on your resume though. 

Julia Roberts

Since the late '80s, Julia Roberts has been box office gold. In all, her movies have made more than $2 billion, and without the benefit of a major franchise, aside from the first two Ocean's movies. Instead, she's built her legendary career on movies like Pretty Woman, Erin Brockovich, and Eat Pray Love.

Bruce Willis

There are few action stars as loved as Bruce Willis. Before he retired due to aphasia and dementia, he not only starred in the Die Hard series, but he consistently churned out hits like Pulp Fiction, 12 Monkeys, and one of his biggest movies, Armageddon. He also popped in two of the Expendables movies, earning an overall $3 billion or so. 

Dwayne Johnson

Dwayne Johnson may have started out in professional wrestling, but he's owned Hollywood since making the transition to acting. In addition to the Fast and Jumanji franchises, Johnson's box office totals include two Mummy movies and a slew of other hits. It all adds up to well over $3 billion. 

Owen Wilson

There is a small caveat here. Owen Wilson has technically appeared in the MCU, but it was on the Disney+ show Loki and he's never been in one of the movies, so nothing in the MCU is reflected in his box office numbers. What does count is movies like Meet The Parents, Night At The Museum, and The Cars franchise. It all adds up to more than $2.3 billion.

Adam Driver

While he may not have the MCU on his resume, Adam Driver does have three huge Star Wars movies on it. That's a great way to pad your box office numbers. Driver is hardly a one-hit wonder though. House of Gucci, BlacKkKlansman, and others all add up to more than $2.3 billion.

Sandra Bullock

Sandra Bullock has put together an impressive career that's spanned over three decades. Despite not starring in many major franchises aside from Ocean's 8 and Minions. Still, over her career, she's generated more than $2.6 billion in box office totals. Impressive, to say the least. 

Kevin Hart

Everyone loves Kevin Hart, but it's sort of surprising just how successful his movies have been over the years. He's in rarified air here with over $2.4 billion in tickets sold to movies he's appeared in. It certainly helps that's his popped up in the Fast franchise, as well as the Jumanji movies, of course. 

Jim Carrey

Other than Batman Forever Jim Carrey has avoided major franchises over the years. Still, at one point, he was Hollywood's highest-paid actor because his movies almost always make big bucks, bringing in more than $2.9 million overall. Movies like Bruce Almighty and the Sonic movies have contributed greatly to that haul. 

Will Ferrell

What can you say about Will Ferrell that hasn't already been said? Frankly, he's the premier comedic actor over the last couple of decades. With movies like the Anchorman series, Elf, Step Brothers, and maybe his biggest contributor to his more than $2.8 billion in receipts, the Lego franchise, Farrell movies continue to clean up in theaters. 

Will Smith

Before the infamous "slap" at the Oscars in 2023, Will Smith was one of America's most beloved movie stars. His reputation has taken a hit, but his box office numbers over the years don't lie. With franchises like Bad Boys and Men In Black, in addition to a huge number of other hits over the years, Smith's total take is among the highest ever at over $3.8 billion. 

Keanu Reeves

You don't need comic book movies when you've got monster franchises like John Wick and The Matrix. Those two series have contributed a huge part to Keanu Reeves' amazing box office numbers, which stretch over $2 billion now. Throw in one of the Toy Story movies and a handful of other big hits and you're on top of the world. 

Denzel Washington

Until The Equalizer series, Denzel Washington had never even starred in a sequel, much a franchise. He has still managed to rack up more than $2.5 billion in box office numbers though. Washington has been one of the world's most famous actors for decades and has won a slew of awards, including two Oscars, so it's hardly a surprise, but it's still darn impressive. 

Brad Pitt

If Brad Pitt's Ocean's franchise co-star George Clooney isn't the most famous movie star in the world, Brad Pitt might be. Like Clooney, he's mostly built his box office record without the help of any major franchise, aside from Ocean's. It is worth mentioning that he had that infamous cameo in Deadpool 2, but that's still technically outside of the MCU. 

Adam Sandler

He's not everyone's cup of tea, sure, but Adam Sandler has put together one of the most impressive careers in Hollywood history with his unique brand of humor. Movies like Big Baddy, Mr. Deeds, You Don't Mess with the Zohan and Grown Ups have all tucked away huge amounts of money, as have others, meaning Sandler's overall box office is up over $2.8 billion. 

Ben Affleck

Ben Affleck does benefit from his time as Batman in the ill-fated DCEU, which has since been replaced with the reboot DCU. Those movies, despite mostly middling reviews, did all make a lot of money. When you add in movies like Armageddon, Pearl Harbor, and Gone Girl, it's easy to see how his total haul adds up to more than $2.4 billion. 

Mark Wahlberg

Mark Wahlberg might be the most surprising person on this list, believe it or not. Then you remember he was in some of the Transformer movies, and think about how much the Ted and Daddy's Home movies made, and you realize it's not actually all that shocking. In total, his movies have brought in well over two and a half billion dollars. 

One of the most iconic Black detectives in pop culture history is also one of Eddie Murphy’s funniest characters, Axel Foley, whom he's reprised in the 2024 Netflix movie, Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F. To celebrate Axel’s latest return to 90210, let’s take a look back at more of our favorite Black detectives from movies and TV shows, starting with the man of hour.

Axel Foley (Beverly Hills Cop)

The original Beverly Hills Cop from 1984 and its sequels are some of the funniest Eddie Murphy movies ever, particularly for Axel Foley’s blistering wit. Yet, he is also the right kind of detective you would want on your side for his commitment to getting the job done, even if he has to break a few rules along the way.

Virgil Tibbs (In The Heat Of The Night)

In 1967, trailblazing Academy Award winner Sidney Poitier gave one of his most inspiring performances in the Best Picture Oscar winner, In the Heat of the Night, as Virgil Tibbs, who falls prey to racial prejudice when he is wrongfully accused of a murder while visiting his mother in a small Mississippi town. However, the Philadelphia cop’s arrival proves to be a godsend, as Chief Bill Gillespie (Rod Steiger) would have never solved the crime without the expert investigation skills and resilience of the one they call “Mister Tibbs.”

John Luther (Luther)

The title character of the long-running British crime drama, Luther, could be called the Sherlock Holmes of his time, in the sense that his unusual methods of investigation and alienating personality traits often rub his colleagues the wrong way and even put him in legal trouble. Audiences, however, cannot get enough of the Detective Chief Inspector — who returned for Netflix’s feature-length spin-off, Luther: The Fallen Sun — his brilliant criminal perception and the charming Idris Elba’s captivating, Golden Globe-winning performance.

John Shaft (Shaft)

The crown jewel of Richard Roundtree’s best movies is Shaft — the story of a suave, streetwise detective from New York City. The Oscar-winning 1971 classic and its sequels made this bad mother— “shut yo mouth” — the undisputed king of the Blaxploitation era.

Mike Lowery And Marcus Burnett (Bad Boys)

As the title — borrowed from Inner Circle’s 1987 reggae hit — suggests, Mike Lowery (Will Smith) and Marcus Burnett (Martin Lawrence) from director Michael Bay’s directorial debut, Bad Boys, are not ones to be messed with. What really makes the 1995 buddy cop movie favorite and its sequels such a fun time is the two detectives’ unbreakable bond, both on and off duty.

Faith Mitchell (Will Trent)

When GBI Special Agents Will Trent (Ramon Rodriguez) and Faith Mitchell (Iantha Richardson) were forced to work together, they could not stand each other, with Faith being especially ticked off by his uptight attitude and connection to her own mother’s stunted law enforcement career. However, the title hero of ABC’s fun detective drama came to respect and admire his partner — a single mother to a college student with a big heart, a strong intuition, and a powerful kick — just as she warmed to him for his keen eye for evidence.

Ricardo Tubbs (Miami Vice)

One of the most dynamic duos in the history of TV cop dramas is that of Ricardo “Rico” Tubbs (Philip Michael Thomas) and James “Sonny” Crockett (Don Johnson) on one of the best mystery TV shows of the ‘80s, Miami Vice. Between the two, Tubbs was the one whom audiences would hope to identify with the most, being the more laid back undercover detective.

Alex Cross (Kiss The Girls)

As a forensic psychologist, Dr. Alex Cross knows how to get into the mind of the most disturbing criminals in Washington D.C., which often comes in handy during the many times the perpetrators make his cases a personal matter. Author James Patterson’s flagship character was first brought to life on screen by Morgan Freeman in 1997’s Kiss the Girls and again in Along Came a Spider four years later, before Tyler Perry took over the role in Alex Cross in 2012.

William Somerset (Se7en)

Two years before he became the (first) face of Alex Cross, Academy Award winner Morgan Freeman was cast in David Fincher’s breakthrough masterpiece, Se7en, as William Somerset — a veteran detective showing the younger David Mills (Brad Pitt) the ropes while working on what is meant to be his last case. However, despite how much the increasingly unsettling investigation tears him up inside, Somerset apparently decides to stay on the force by the end, based on his agreement with the second half of Ernest Hemingway’s belief that “the world is a fine place and worth fighting for.”

Misty Knight (Luke Cage)

One of the most influential comic book characters with a disability is Mercedes “Misty” Knight, who became equipped with a bionic right arm after losing it in an attempt to defuse a bomb. The brave, intuitive, hard-fighting New York detective was portrayed wonderfully on Luke Cage by Simone Missick.

Easy Rawlins (Devil In A Blue Dress)

One of the few and most esteemed Black characters in old-fashioned noir fiction is Ezekiel “Easy” Rawlins — first introduced in Walter Mosley’s 1990 novel, Devil in a Blue Dress. In the book’s 1995 adaptation, Academy Award winner Denzel Washington portrayed the World War II veteran who falls into the world of private investigation when his street smart intellect gets him enlisted to find a politician’s missing lover.

Roger Murtaugh (Lethal Weapon)

We wish we had a nickel for every time Roger Murtaugh (Danny Glover) proclaimed he was “getting too old for this shit” in one of the all-time greatest action movies, 1987’s Lethal Weapon, and its sequels. However, despite his age and no matter how uproarious his cases with his loose-canon partner, Martin Riggs (Mel Gibson), would get, the L.A. cop continued to fight.

Neal Washington (Hill Street Blues)

One of the best cop dramas of its time, if not all time, is Hill Street Blues, which boasted a diverse cast of characters, including standout Neal Washington (Emmy nominee Taurean Blacque). Known for his trademark toothpick and cap, the undercover veteran officer was a stern individual, but with a track record that earned him much respect and admiration from his peers.

Cleopatra Jones (Cleopatra Jones)

While the aforementioned John Shaft was the King of Blaxploitation, its queen would have to be… well, Pam Grier, who never actually played a cop in any of her most iconic roles from the era. However, when it came to ass-kicking Black females in official law enforcement positions in the 1970s, no one was better and badder than the title character of Cleopatra Jones — an undercover government agent played by Tamara Dobson in the 1973 hit and its 1975 sequel, Cleopatra Jones and the Casino of Gold.

Ron Stallworth (BlacKkKlansman)

In the early 1970s, Ron Stallworth became the first Black cadet at the Colorado Springs police department before going on to lead a secret operation to infiltrate the local chapter of the Ku Klux Klan. He later chronicled this previously classified operation in his memoir, which was adapted into director Spike Lee’s Oscar-winning film, BlacKkKlansman, in which Stallworth was portrayed by John David Washington.

These are only some of our favorite examples of Black detectives in pop culture. Follow the clues and seek more of them out!

Morgan Freeman has been an iconic Hollywood figure for over five decades. The actor’s diverse career is prolific, exploring roles in serious dramas, laugh-out-loud comedies and several action films. With such a varied filmography, it’s hard to imagine Freeman fearing being kept in a box career-wise, but the Oscar winner feels differently. Freeman opened up about the consequences of immense success in the movie business, especially when it comes to being offered roles.

The 86-year-old actor recently gave a candid interview to El País, where he discussed his viewpoints on his image as the non-traditional Hollywood actor, his rise to fame as one of the few Black actors landing roles when he first started his career, and the roles he is being offered at this point in his career. He explained that while he has been able to experiment with many types of characters in his lifetime, diverse roles became few and far between as he got more famous. Freeman said:

From his perspective, once you become a movie star, people are no longer interested in you being an actor, but rather an archetype. While this may be harsh, considering the kinds of roles he’s been able to play, it’s hard not to see his point.

Freeman’s earlier roles were much more varied, taking on character actor parts in movies like Unforgiven and Driving Miss Daisy. Even The Shawshank Redemption, one of Morgan Freeman’s best films, was somewhat of a departure from his previous work. However as he got older, he was cast in many similar roles, playing the role of a leader or a president several times, often typecast as a calming, steady presence amidst chaos. Then, of course, his memorable voice voice has made him a staple for playing God on film.

Even if some of his later work has been similar, Morgan Freeman is awfully good at these roles, which is why people want him to continue playing them. Even Robert De Niro, who, Freeman name-drops in his quote, has taken on “Robert De Niro” parts in recent years. He has played a mobster and a criminal numerous times, and has another gangster flick coming up. He also often works with the same co-stars and directors repeatedly. While audiences can’t get enough of this, it’s understandable how this can be limiting for a star who is looking to work outside of their comfort zone, even after their legacy cements them in history.

This doesn’t mean that experimentation in acting isn’t possible for “typecast” actors later in their careers. Henry Winkler was known for sitcom comedies for years before taking on his darkest role yet in his 70s for HBO’s Barry. Jack Nicholson also surprised everyone when he brought arresting sensitivity to About Schmidt in his 60s. Morgan Freeman may be in his 80s, but his legend cements him as a Hollywood staple. There’s always time to be cast against type.

You can see Morgan Freeman this year in My Dead Friend Zoe, which premiered at South by Southwest and is expected to head to theaters in November. For more information on other movies coming to cinemas in the near future, make sure to consult our 2024 movie release schedule.

Eddie Murphy's return to the iconic role of Axel Foley in the highly anticipated sequel Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F has fans buzzing with excitement. First donning the badge at just 21 years old in the original classic action movie, which Sylvester Stallone famously walked away from, Murphy has had a prolific career spanning decades and some truly iconic movies like 48 Hours. Now 63, he brings a wealth of experience and a touch of seasoned humor to his role. But it seems the Nutty Professor star’s age has afforded him a new perspective, leading to a notable ‘Morgan Freeman’-related request during the filming of the fourth installment.

Speaking with TODAY, the Saturday Night Live superstar shared a humorous yet poignant anecdote about his experience on the new film's set. Having told Al Roker that he felt like an "old man" as modern-day Axel, Murphy reflected on a particular scene that required a bit more physical exertion than he anticipated. He said this, recounting his conversation with the director.

Murphy's candid response is not only hilarious, but also underscores a significant shift in how he approaches his roles. While the 48 Hrs. star’s earlier career was marked by high-energy performances and physically demanding scenes, his recent performances reflect a preference for more sophisticated and nuanced characters. It's a change that aligns perfectly with his self-proclaimed Morgan Freeman standar is not the first time the actor has opened up about the struggles he faced at his age while filming the next Beverly Hills Cop.

The fourth installment in the long running comedy franchise is set to dazzle fans with the return of some beloved actors and their characters. John Ashton, Judge Reinhold, Paul Reiser, and Bronson Pinchot are back in action, joined by heavyweights Kevin Bacon and Joseph Gordon-Levitt, who add even more star power to the mix.

John Ashton slips back into his role as Taggart, while Judge Reinhold reprises his role as Rosewood. These two Beverly Hills cops, who once found Axel Foley’s methods unorthodox, have come to embrace his quirky yet effective style. And for those who cherish the original film’s classic moments, the movie offers a delightful throwback. There’s a new stakeout scene that pays homage to the memorable moment when Foley sneaks into the back seat, surprising Taggart and Rosewood and sparking laughter. It’s a perfect blend of nostalgia and fresh excitement for both old fans and new audiences. And is possibly an indicator that Ashon and Reinhold won't have any gigantic stunts themselves.

Producer Jerry Bruckheimer has hinted that the new movie won't just be packed with laughs; it's also going to tug at the heartstrings. It seems longtime Beverly Hills Cop fans might want to have some tissues on hand for this one. And with as much as Murphy has brought up his age ahead of the upcoming Netflix release, one can only wonder if this might be the end of Axel’s cinematic journey.

Age ain’t no thing but a number when it comes to comedic timing and Eddie is a comedy legend, so we know he can still bring the funny. Axel F hits the 2024 movie schedule on July 3. While you wait, consider revisiting the original comedy trilogy by streaming the first three Beverly Hills Cop movies with a Paramount+ subscription.

Now You See Me is about to be a trilogy, as the third movie in the franchise is in the works.

For some time, we didn't really know if Now You See Me 3 was going to happen. While the second film was released in 2016 to mixed reviews, it was a commercial success, and a sequel for a third film was confirmed only a short time after. However, we didn't get much news about the movie until 2024.

Now You See Me 3 is officially happening and taking huge steps forward, and there is so much we know. Let’s get into it.

What Is The Now You See Me 3 Release Date?

At the time of updating this in December 2024, Now You See Me 3 will be released on November 14, 2025, according to Deadline. This means that it’ll be a part of our 2025 movie schedule.

The Now You See Me 3 Cast

We do have an idea of who will return for Now You See Me 3. According to an article from The Hollywood Reporter released in April 2024, four cast members from previous Now You See Me films are expected to return:

Jesse Eisenberg as J. Daniel Atlas

Jesse Eisenberg is expected to return as J. Daniel Atlas in Now You See Me 3. Since 2016's release of the sequel, Eisenberg has appeared in Justice League, Vivarium, The Hummingbird Project, Resistance, Manodrome and many other films. He also was the star of the Fleishman is in Trouble cast on Hulu.

Woody Harrelson as Merritt McKinney

Woody Harrelson is expected to return as Merritt McKinney for Now You See Me 3. Harrelson has since appeared in films like Wilson, War for the Planet of the Apes, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, Solo: A Star Wars Story, Midway, Triangle of Sadness, and Champions. He also had a starring role in True Detective and a main role in The Freak Brothers.

Dave Franco as Jack Wilder

Dave Franco is expected to return as Jack Wilder for Now You See Me 3. Since the second film, plenty of Dave Franco movies have been released, including If Beale Street Could Talk, 6 Underground, Day Shift, The Disaster Artist, Nerve, and more. He was even in the 2024 film Love Lies Bleeding.

Isla Fisher as Henley Reeves

Isla Fisher is expected to return as Henley Reeves in Now You See Me 3. She wasn't in the second film but is expected to return for the third. Since the first movie, she's appeared in movies like Tag, Grimsby, Greed, Strays, Godmothered, and more. She also holds a lead role in the show Wolf Like Me.

Morgan Freeman as Thaddeus Bradley

At first, we didn't know if Morgan Freeman would return for Now You See Me 3, but The Hollywood Reporter said in May 2024 that he's expected to return as Thaddeus Bradley for the third film. Morgan Freeman's best films span decades, but since the 2016 sequel, he's appeared in movies like Coming 2 America, Paradise Highway, Vanquish, and more.

So far, it's been unconfirmed if Mark Ruffalo will return as Dylan Rhodes, although according to IMDB, it does say he’ll be back. Right now, it’s still up in the air, as no official first look of him in the movie has been released. GamesRadar also reported in an interview with Eisenberg in October 2024 that Ruffalo is a part of the cast, so we just might see him again.,

We actually have some additional cast members who have signed on for Now You See Me 3, some of whom are newer-ish faces to the industry and will be welcome additions to the franchise.

Ariana Greenblatt

According to The Hollywood Reporter article above, Ariana Greenblatt is set to appear in Now You See Me 3. The young actress has been on a roll the last few years with several small but meaningful roles – like Avengers: Infinity War, Ahsoka, In The Heights, and more – and has only since grown into more prominent roles, like her big part in the Barbie cast, and the upcoming Fear Street: Prom Queen.

Justice Smith

According to The Hollywood Reporter, in April 2024, it was confirmed that Justice Smith had signed on for a part in Now You See Me 3. The actor has appeared in various movies, including Paper Towns, All The Bright Places, Pokemon Detective Pikachu (which I still want a sequel for), Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, Sharper, and many more. I know him best from the underrated and canceled too-soon TV show The Get-Down.

Dominic Sessa

Also confirmed by The Hollywood Reporter article in April 2024 regarding Justice Smith was that Dominic Sessa had also joined the NYSM3 cast. Sessa is a fresh face to Hollywood, as his debut role was in The Holdovers.

Rosamund Pike

As said in The Hollywood Reporter article in May 2024, Rosamund Pike is set to join the cast of Now You See Me 3. The actress has appeared in Gone Girl, Saltburn, A United Kingdom, A Private War, I Care a Lot, and more.

Talk about a stacked cast – one that's only going to get bigger.

What Is Now You See Me 3 About?

So far, there are really no plot details out there that we can dig into deeply. However, the Hollywood Reporter articles said that the third film would follow what the last two films did – the lives of the illusionists known as the Four Horsemen, who use their tricks for their heists. Beyond that, we'll have to wait and see what challenges the characters are facing next.

Ruben Fleischer Will Direct The Third Film

It was confirmed by Deadline back in September 2022 that Ruben Fleischer will direct Now You See Me 3. He has directed films like Zombieland, Venom, Uncharted, Gangster Squad and more. Also confirmed in that Deadline article is that Seth Grahame-Smith wrote the script for the film.

Filming Is Complete

The last thing we know is that filming for Now You See Me 3 has officially concluded. The official X (formerly Twitter) for the film tweeted out a few first-looks of the movie now that filming had wrapped, showing off the cast:

This just makes me more excited for 2025 to come.

What are you the most excited about when it comes to Now You See Me 3? I'm so eager to witness where it goes from here – or at least attempt to, as they do tricks beyond my very eyes.

How many times have you watched an incredible acting performance and looked up to see how many awards it won only to find out that the Oscar went to someone else that year? It’s shocking how many times this has happened over the years for some of the greatest actors and actresses of all time. Here are 32 times an incredible performance didn’t win an Academy Award for one reason or another.

Samuel L. Jackson (Pulp Fiction)

Though he was nominated for Best Supporting Actor for his role as Jules Winnfield in Pulp Fiction, Samuel L. Jackson’s name wasn’t called at the 67th Academy Awards. This is nothing against Martin Landau’s performance from Ed Wood, but Jackson’s foul-mouthed and righteous hitman is an all-time great character that should have been recognized.

Robert De Niro (Taxi Driver)

Robert De Niro received an Oscar nomination for his career-defining portrayal of Travis Bickle in Martin Scorsese’s 1977 psychological thriller, Taxi Driver, but the unhinged and memorable performance wasn’t enough to win Best Actor. It’s hard to be mad, as Peter Finch’s Academy Award-winning turn in Network is the stuff of legend.

Harrison Ford (Witness)

One of the best actors without an Oscar, Harrison Ford has only one Academy Award nomination to his name, the 1985 crime thriller, Witness. Though not Ford’s most iconic character, his take on Philadelphia detective John Book as he goes to great lengths to protect a young boy is nothing short of amazing.

Morgan Freeman (The Shawshank Redemption)

Morgan Freeman gave the performance of a lifetime as Ellis Boyd “Red” Redding in The Shawshank Redemption. If the movie would have come out any other time besides 1994, a year dominated by Forrest Gump, there’s a good chance the aging prisoner and accomplished smuggler would have earned Freeman an Oscar.

Bill Murray (Lost In Translation)

Bill Murray’s portrayal of cynical, washed-up actor Bob Harris in Lost in Translation will forever be one of the comedian’s most beloved roles. While Sean Penn’s performance in Mystic River is more than deserving of an Oscar, it’s a shame the iconic comedian didn’t get properly recognized for a once-in-a-decade showing.

Whoopi Goldberg (The Color Purple)

Whoopi Goldberg showed off a more dramatic side with her lauded portrayal of Celie Harris-Johnson in Steven Spielberg’s 1985 adaptation of The Color Purple. It’s absurd that the emotional, dynamic, and powerful performance didn’t win Goldberg a much-deserved Oscar, which went to Geraldine Page in The Trip to Bountiful, instead.

Ralph Fiennes (Schindler's List)

Schindler’s List features one of the best Ralph Fiennes performances with his portrayal of Nazi work camp commandant Amon Goeth in Steven Spielberg’s 1993-defining film. And while the movie won seven Oscars, including Best Picture, Fiennes’ unforgettable turn was not among them. Instead, he lost out to Tommy Lee Jones from The Fugitive.

Dustin Hoffman (Tootsie)

If you’re looking for one of the best New York City movies, Tootsie has you covered. If you’re looking for a movie featuring an acting performance that should have won an Oscar but didn’t, Sydney Pollack’s 1982 comedy has you covered there as well. Seriously, how Dustin Hoffman’s portrayal of Michael Dorsey wasn't awarded is something we just don’t get.

Denzel Washington (Malcolm X)

Denzel Washington eventually won a Best Actor Oscar for his unforgettable turn in Training Day, but the actor was robbed nearly a decade earlier after not winning the big prize for his take on the titular Civil Rights leader in Spike Lee’s Malcolm X.

Florence Pugh (Little Women)

Florence Pugh was already a rising star at the time of Little Women’s release, but her portrayal of Amy March in Greta Gerwig’s coming-of-age drama took her to new heights. Though she was nominated for Best Supporting Actress at the Oscars, Pugh lost out to Laura Dern from Marriage Story.

Jamie Foxx (Django Unchained)

Here’s something wild to think about – Jamie Foxx not only didn’t win an Oscar for his performance in Django Unchained, he wasn’t even nominated for Best Actor. Admittedly, it was a stacked list of actors – Daniel Day-Lewis, Bradley Cooper, Hugh Jackman, Joaquin Phoenix, and Denzel Washington – but not even being named is just something.

Mickey Rourke (The Wrestler)

The Wrestler felt like Mickey Rourke’s big redemption arc, more so than the character he portrayed in Darren Aronofsky’s great wrestling movie. Despite pushing himself to the breaking point from both a physical and emotional standpoint, Rourke lost out to Sean Penn’s take on Harvey Milk in Milk.

Michael Keaton (Birdman)

Michael Keaton gave the performance of a lifetime in the 2014 mind-bending drama film, Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance), one that seemed to channel the actor’s past in such a way it felt like an autobiography. However, stealing the show as Riggan Thomson, a.k.a., Birdman, wasn’t enough, as the prize went to The Theory of Everything’s Eddie Redmayne instead.

Saoirse Ronan (Lady Bird)

Saoirse Ronan has been nominated for an Oscar on four separate occasions, but not a single win, which is something. One of the performances that deserved an Academy Award the most was that of Christine "Lady Bird" McPherson in Greta Gerwig’s Lady Bird. The portrayal of a confused high school senior on the verge of entering the next stage in her life lost out to Frances McDormand in Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.

Tim Curry (Clue)

Tim Curry’s portrayal of Wadsworth in Clue, a butler or undercover FBI agent depending on which ending you watch, is a role that is beloved by fans of the classic murder mystery comedy. However, it wasn’t recognized at the Academy Awards or other ceremonies, which is the real crime.

Rosamund Pike (Gone Girl)

Rosamund Pike’s take on Amy Elliott-Dunne earned the sole Academy Award nomination for David Fincher’s Gone Girl, a nod that was more than deserved. However, the incredibly nuanced and dynamic performance failed to win the Best Actress Oscar, which went to Still Alice’s Julianne Moore instead.

Jimmy Stewart (Rear Window)

Jimmy Stewart is one of Hollywood’s most iconic actors of all time and his portrayal of L. B. "Jeff" Jefferies in Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window is one of the his top-tier performances. However, his take on an injured photographer who uncovers a murder mystery didn’t even get a nod at the Academy Awards.

Kate Winslet (Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind)

Kate Winslet gave one of her most powerful and unique performances in the 2004 sci-fi dramedy, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Her take on Clementine Kruczynski, a woman who had all memories of her ex-boyfriend wiped from her brain, was rich, beautiful, and iconic, but just wasn’t enough to win Best Actress.

Al Pacino (The Godfather)

Al Pacino put himself on the map with his portrayal of reluctant crime boss Michael Corleone in The Godfather. The gradual evolution of the character over the course of the film’s three-hour runtime should have been enough for an Oscar, but like co-stars James Caan and Robert Duvall, who were also nominated for Best Supporting Actor, he didn’t get the win.

Gloria Swanson (Sunset Boulevard)

Gloria Swanson’s "All right, Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my close-up." line from Sunset Boulevard is one of the most iconic quotes in all of Hollywood and part of an Oscar-worthy performance. While Swanson was nominated for her take on aging film star Norma Desmond, she didn’t take home the top prize.

Jack Nicholson (The Shining)

Though considered one of Jack Nicholson’s best roles, his portrayal of Jack Torrance in The Shining didn’t result in an Oscar win. In fact, Nicholson wasn’t even nominated for the unforgettable performance. 

John Cazale (The Godfather Part II)

John Cazale’s Fredo Corleone in The Godfather Part II is one of cinema’s great tragic figures as well as one of the late actor’s best characters. What’s even more of a travesty is the fact that the late actor didn’t even receive an Oscar nomination for his efforts. Tragically, Cazale would never receive an Academy Award nomination prior to his shocking death in 1978.

Angela Bassett (What's Love Got To Do With It?)

Angela Bassett received her first Oscar nomination for her portrayal of Tina Turner in What’s Love Go to Do with It?, but the miraculous turn as one of American music’s most famous and influential figures didn’t earn her a Best Actress win. 

Edward Norton (American History X)

Reformed neo-Nazi Derek Vinyard is one of Edward Norton’s most controversial and complex characters of his career, and the American History X performance earned him a Best Actor nod at the 71st Academy Awards. However, Roberto Benigni from Life Is Beautiful ran away with the top acting prize.

Ingrid Bergman (Casablanca)

Somehow, Ingrid Bergman, who was astonishing as Ilsa Lund in Casablanca, not only didn’t win Best Actress at the 16th Academy Awards, she wasn’t even nominated for her iconic portrayal of a woman caught between two men and two different lives in the 1943 black-and-white classic.

Paul Giamatti (Sideways)

In a perfect world, Paul Giamatti would have won the Oscar for Best Actor in Alexander Payne’s Sideways, but alas, that is not the reality in which we live. Miles Raymond is one of Giamiatti’s best characters and carried the movie about two friends on a wine trip they’ll never forget.

Henry Fonda (12 Angry Men)

An amazing courtroom drama, 12 Angry Men is still arguably one of the best movies of all time. While its star, Henry Fonda, received a Best Picture nomination as a producer, his dynamic and rich portrayal of a juror who insisted on getting things right didn’t earn him an acting nod, which is a real miscarriage of justice.

John Goodman (The Big Lebowski)

You can add John Goodman to the list of great actors who have never received an Oscar nomination, which just doesn’t make sense. It’s especially maddening when you consider his legendary portrayal of Walter Sobchak in The Big Lebowski, a character loosely based on John Milius, per Far Out Magazine.

Joaquin Phoenix (Walk The Line)

Joaquin Phoenix has since won an Oscar, but his portrayal of Johnny Cash in James Mangold’s 2005 biographical drama, Walk the Line, was more than deserving of the top acting prize at the Academy Awards. What’s interesting is the fact that Phoenix was beat by his future The Master co-star, the late Philip Seymour Hoffman, who won for his take on Truman Capote in Bennett Miller’s Capote.

Ellen Burstyn (Requiem For A Dream)

A little more 25 years after winning an Academy Award for Best Actress thanks to her outstanding performance in Martin Scorsese’s Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, Ellen Burstyn had another shot at capturing an Oscar with her turn as Sara Goldfarb in Requiem for a Dream. Her take on a woman battling unchecked depression, anxiety, and a diet of weight loss pills gave audiences one of the most incredible and sympathetic characters of the early 21st century. Unfortunately, this also happened to be the same year Erin Brockovich was released. 

Paul Dano (There Will Be Blood)

There Will Be Blood is remembered more than a half-decade after its release because of the Academy Award-winning performance by Daniel Day-Lewis, but one of the three-time Oscar winner’s castmates was also deserving of recognition. Paul Dano’s Eli Sunday (he also played the smaller part of Eli’s twin brother, Paul) is one of the more fascinating characters of modern cinema, and he should have received an Oscar for his troubles. Dynamic is an understatement for this overzealous, petty, and temperamental preacher.

Robert Shaw (Jaws)

Steven Spielberg’s 1975 summer blockbuster, Jaws, won three Academy Awards – Best Filming Editing, Best Original Dramatic Score, and Best Sound – but Robert Shaw, who acted his tail off as the boat captain, Quint, wasn’t recognized. This shameful act by the Academy, especially after watching the USS Indianapolis monologue, still stings nearly 50 years after the fact. That scene alone deserved a Best Supporting Actor nomination and win.

Many of these actors won an Academy Award either before or after these movies and performances we just covered, but it’s just wild to think about how some of these roles didn’t take home the big prize at the Oscars.

Some movie teachers genuinely change not only the characters' lives but our lives as well. Today, we'll be talking about a specific kind of movie character – the teachers from movies that have made a real impact. Here are thirty-two fictional teachers who left their mark, whether on the character or the world. 

John Keating (Dead Poets Society)

When I think of the best fictional teachers out there, there is no one better to bring up than John Keating from Dead Poets Society. In one of his best roles, Robin Williams delivered the performance of a lifetime as John Keating and made us all want to have a teacher like him who taught us lessons and inspired us to do more in our lives. To go after what we believed in. 

Ms. Frizzle (The Magic School Bus)

As someone who grew up watching The Magic School Bus, there were many days when I wished that Ms. Frizzle was my science teacher or that science was nearly as cool as she made it out to be. With her school bus that seemed to morph into anything for her lessons, Ms. Frizzle was the teacher we all wanted, making teaching look like the adventure of a lifetime. 

Ms. Rain (Precious)

Precious is an Academy Award-winning movie about a young woman from a troubled background hoping to reroute her life, and the first person who helps Precious is Ms. Rain. Played by the incredible Paul Patton, Ms. Rain teaches Precious the essentials she needs to know. She has been an encouraging source from day one and helps her through everything. She was sweet, kind, and all Precious needed when it felt like the world had given up on her. 

Professor Stromwell (Legally Blonde)

As someone who could spend years watching the best Reese Witherspoon movies, Legally Blonde is most certainly one of them. And the best teacher in that was, hands down, Professor Stromwell. While strict at first, Elle comes to care for Professor Stromwell, as the teacher pushes her to her limits so she can be at her best. 

Mr. George Feeny (Boy Meets World)

Out of everyone, we all know Mr. George Feeney in Boy Meets World. While Feeny was a strict man, he had a heart of gold underneath his grumpy exterior and became one of the best mentors. Everyone still tears up when he says in the finale, "I love you all. Class dismissed." Jeez, I'm still getting emotional. 

Mr. Miyagi (The Karate Kid)

While not the kind of teacher you would meet in a school, Mr. Miyagi from The Karate Kid franchise is as much of a teacher as anyone else here. Because of his patience, diligence, and skill, he taught Daniel LaRusso the art of karate and truly made him into the man we know all these years later in Cobra Kai. His teachings live on, even if the actor who played him, Pat Morita, passed on in 2005. 

Pete Dixon (Room 222)

Room 222 was an ABC series about the life of students and teachers at a Los Angeles high school and focused on Pete Dixon's history class most of the time. Lloyd Hanes played Pete Dixon, the kind, innovative, and educational teacher who always seemed to have the best lessons for his students and viewers, especially on relevant topics at the time. The series lasted five seasons, and Pete Dixon cemented his name in history. 

Gabe Kotter (Welcome Back, Kotter)

Sitcoms were some of the biggest television shows in the 1970s and Welcome Back, Kotter was one of them, telling the story of Gabe Kotter (played by Gabe Kaplan). He's a teacher who returns to his alma mater to teach a remedial class of troubled students, but his attitude and teaching methods win him favor with the students. In the end, many of these kids end up doing so well because of him. 

Erin Gruwell (Freedom Writers)

I recall watching Freedom Writers as a kid and respecting Erin Gruwell, played by Hilary Swank. As someone who has had a lot of trouble with patience and perseverance, I admired Gruwell's persistence and tenacity to never give up on her students despite them hating her initially and making her feel unwelcome. Ultimately, because of her diligence, everyone was given the chance to graduate and live successful lives. 

Mr. Hand (Fast Times At Ridgemont High)

There's something about history and English teachers in movies and T.V. because Mr. Hand, the history teacher from Fast Times at Ridgemont High, is one of the most memorable. While he usually had a frown on his face, he was a softer person underneath that gruff exterior. He will do anything to help his students succeed, even spending time after school to help his kids understand lessons, which I'm sure they appreciate. 

Severus Snape (Harry Potter)

As someone who loves the Harry Potter franchise, I couldn't make this list without including Severus Snape, played by Alan Rickman in one of his best roles. While Snape was a bit of a jerk to everyone, there's no denying that underneath that, he was an older man with a lot of trauma and someone who did everything in his power to protect the students and those he cared about. Even in the end, he could give Harry his tears to show him that he always loved Lily, Harry's mother. 

Dr. Frank Bryant (Educating Rita)

Michael Caine has delivered some incredible performances over his time in Hollywood, and personally, Dr. Frank Bryant in Educating Rita, is one of my favorites. The story is about a woman going back to university years later, and the movie shows that sometimes, all a teacher needs to rekindle their love for their subject is that one student, and watching how both Bryant leaves his impact on Rita (Susan) and vice versa is lovely to see. 

Mr. Collins (The Wonder Years)

The Wonder Years is one of the most iconic sitcoms of the '80s and '90s, and of course, I must mention Mr. Collins. Steven Gilborn played the teacher and worked with the main character, Kevin Arnold, to push him to be the best he could be, never quitting for a single moment. Gilborn was a professor before becoming an actor, making this role more special. 

Minerva McGonagall (Harry Potter)

Minerva McGonagall was one of the most impactful teachers in Harry Potter's life in the Harry Potter movies. I mean, not only did she teach him several lessons in magic, but it was because of her that he could do so many things – join the Quidditch team, get him a broomstick, etc. Plus, she did everything she could to protect the students of Hogwarts during the war, consistently putting her life on the line as one of the best witches there. 

Coach Fredericks (Freaks And Geeks)

Are there teachers in Freaks and Geeks? Of course, there are, but I have to give this spot to Coach Fredericks, played by Tom Wilson. He starts as a pretty stereotypical bad guy P.E. teacher, but throughout the show's one season, we get to know the teacher and understand who he is as a person. 

Mark Thackeray (To Sir, With Love)

Starring Sidney Poitier, To Sir, With Love is a British drama film about Mark Thackeray, an immigrant who takes a teaching position despite never teaching before, to find some income where he is told to teach delinquents who have been rejected from other schools. And through his teaching ability, he wins over the class, treating them more like adults than children, trying to reach them on a different level. 

Miss Honey (Matilda)

Whether you watch the 1990s version of Matilda or you check out the underrated Netflix musical version, Miss Honey in both is the kind of teacher that we hear about in fairytales. Not only is she sweet as honey and teaches her children so many things, but she takes it upon herself to raise Matilda at the end of both films because she cares that much about the girl, giving her the life she always wanted. 

Lydia Grant (Fame)

I'm one of the biggest fans of the best dance movies, but watching dance on television is also a great pastime, and Fame gave me that and more. In Fame, a show about high school students at a performing arts school in NYC, we meet Lydia Grant, a dance teacher. Indeed, her moves and teaching style are memorable, keeping her kids in a tight line and making sure they were the best they could be. 

LouAnne Johnson (Dangerous Minds)

Michelle Pfeiffer is LouAnne Johnson in Dangerous Minds, the story of a former marine who takes on a teaching position where she must handle a classroom of low-income, challenging teenagers involved in gangs and drugs. I think what makes Johnson such a great teacher is that she goes out of her way to teach with unconventional methods, such as giving everyone an A that they must maintain or using the lyrics of Bob Marley to get into poetry. That's what makes her extraordinary. 

Mr Chips (Goodbye, Mr. Chips)

Goodbye, Mr. Chips is a movie from the classic period of Hollywood and stars Robert Donat as Mr. Chips, an aging teacher who reflects on his life through the decades. There's too much here to say how Mr. Chips was a great teacher, as he impacted not only one student's life but many over several years. 

Remus Lupin (Harry Potter)

Harry Potter had some great teachers, and one that most certainly comes to mind is Remus Lupin, one of the best Defense Against the Dark Arts Teachers in the series. While his time as the teacher only lasted for a year (as is tradition with most teachers there), Lupin left his mark on Harry as the kindest DADA teacher he had and taught him one of the most valuable charms there is – the Patronus charm. 

Jaime Escalante (Stand And Deliver)

Starring Edward James Olmos, Stand and Deliver is all about Jaime Escalante, who becomes the math teacher at a high school in East Los Angeles and has a class full of Latino students. Through his teaching methods, he can make them achieve great things in calculus and stand up for them when no one else will. 

Joe Clark (Lean On Me)

Joe Clark in Lean On Me, played by Morgan Freeman, is a teacher who does not mess around with his students. The movie is based on a true story about a teacher named Joe Clark, who becomes the principal and uses his past and much more to bring his school up to standards. While radical at first, the students grow to care for him in all that he does, both in the school and outside. 

Ms. Norbury (Mean Girls)

Mean Girls is more of a comedy than anything else, but Ms. Norbury, played by Tina Fey, is a great teacher. She's one of the few who stands up for Cady, and in the end, she still stands by her side despite what Cady wrote about her in the Burn Book, leading to Norbury being investigated as a drug dealer. 

Mr. Medina (Gilmore Girls)

Gilmore Girls had plenty of grown-up characters, but Mr. Medina, played by Scott Cohen, was one of the most prominent. He was Rory's beloved English teacher, who taught her many valuable lessons and ended up getting romantically involved with Lorelai. 

Dr. Larabee (Akeelah And The Bee)

Akeelah and the Bee stars Keke Palmer and Laurence Fishburne, and this film focuses on the relationship between Akeelah and her mentor, Dr. Joshua Larabee. And while their partnership at first is tenuous, they grow because of each other and truly leave an impact. 

Manish Kulkarni (Never Have I Ever)

Never Have I Ever is a hilarious Netflix teen romance series; Devi's English teacher is a great part of that. He is the definition of an excellent and honest teacher who sugarcoats nothing – and what's even better is that he winds up dating Devi's cousin later anyway. 

Dewey Finn (School Of Rock)

While he initially faked his way into the role, having no teaching experience, Dewey Finn left his impact on his students in School of Rock, so much so that a new program was created for students for music. It's undoubtedly one of Jack Black's best films. 

Annalise Keating (How To Get Away With Murder)

Played by the talented Viola Davis, How To Get Away With Murder introduced audiences to Annalise Keating, a law professor and criminal defense attorney, who not only leaves her mark on her students but works with them to solve a murder case together. And through it all, she aims to keep them safe and sound despite everything turning upside down. 

Sister Mary Clarence (Sister Act 2: Back In The Habit)

Sister Act 2 saw Whoopi Goldberg return as Sister Mary Clarence, now serving as a choir teacher who takes a group of students from a failing school and turns them into a choir that could knock the socks off of anyone out there. 

Miss Bliss (Good Morning, Miss Bliss)

Many people know Saved By The Bell, which was a spinoff of Good Morning, Miss Bliss. The one-season Disney Channel series is all about Miss Bliss, a junior high teacher who is a great educator and a source of calmness and delight to her students, who often turn to her for the problems they face. 

Glenn Holland (Mr. Holland's Opus)

Starring Richard Dreyfuss, Mr. Holland's Opus is the definition of a movie teacher that left an impact. The movie follows a high school music teacher who makes his music, but throughout the film, we see how much his dedication to his craft has impacted his students. Guaranteed, you will cry. 

We could talk about many excellent teachers in movies and on TV, but these truly stand out as some of the best. Now, I need a movie and a T.V. marathon to appreciate them again—time to grab a box of tissues. 

When Michelle Yeoh won her Oscar for Everything Everywhere All At Once, she told the ladies watching at home never to let anyone tell them when they’re past their prime. She’s not old enough to be on this list, but her words of wisdom apply to everyone that follows. 

Some of these actors had success their entire careers and then just kept having success as they got older. Some of these actors didn’t find a ton of success until much later than life. All reached the mountaintop of acting past the point when many others stop working because they kept pushing and doing groundbreaking work. Here's a look at great actors who had Oscar success later in life...

Anthony Hopkins

Anthony Hopkins didn’t get his first Oscar nomination until his mid-50s, but once he got his first recognition, the praise did not stop. His work was consistently recognized well into his eighties when he was nominated in consecutive years for The Two Popes and The Father in which he gave very different performances. 

Bill Nighy

Nighy mostly acted in theater productions for the early portion of his career, but he turned to films later in life and found incredible success with Love Actually. That led to key roles in a variety of huge franchises like Pirates Of The Caribbean and Harry Potter, and eventually in his mid-70s, it led to Living, which netted the popular actor his first Oscar nomination. 

Bruce Dern

Bruce Dern worked from the sixties forward on a wide variety of interesting projects in many different genres. He picked up his first Oscar nomination back in ‘79 for his work in Coming Home and got another surprise nomination at 77 more than three decades later for his work in Nebraska, a fantastic Alexander Payne road trip movie shot in black and white.

Charlotte Rampling

Charlotte Rampling made a fantastic career for herself as a model and actress drawn to unusual and daring projects, but it was her work much later in life that attracted huge recognition. Her performance in Swimming Pool was particularly popular with critics and awards voters, but it was 2015’s 45 Years that finally broke through at the Oscars and gave her a well deserved first nomination at age 69.

Clint Eastwood

There aren’t many total people who have had more Oscar success than Clint Eastwood. Over the course of his life, he picked up more than ten nominations, but only two of those were in the acting categories. He got one in ‘93 for Unforgiven and another in ‘05 for Million Dollar Baby. In both, he was also the director and clearly knew how to get the best out of himself as an actor. 

Henry Fonda

A movie based on a play about a couple in their mid-70s doesn’t sound like a likely box office winner, but On Golden Pond won seven weekends in a row at the box office in 1981. It also netted its leads late in life Oscar nominations including one for Henry Fonda at 76. It marked his second acting nomination, more than four decades after the first one for The Grapes Of Wrath in 1940.

Jessica Tandy

Jessica Tandy experienced a ton of success throughout her career in a variety of mediums, but it was her work on the stage that drew the most acclaim. At least that was the case until her 80s when she picked up two Oscar nominations for Driving Miss Daisy and Fried Green Tomatoes. She won for the former and the latter capped a fantastic six year run that also saw her earn raves for her work in Cocoon.

Jonathan Pryce

Jonathan Pryce was ten years younger than Anthony Hopkins when the two picked up acting nominations for their work in The Two Popes. It was his first recognition from The Academy, but it was far from his first recognition overall, as he netted both Emmy and Tony nominations earlier in his career. 

Judi Dench

Judi Dench didn’t pick up her first Oscar nomination until her 60s, but that’s mostly because she was too busy crushing the British theater scene. She somehow netted an astonishing eight nominations after her 62nd birthday, including one at age 78 for Philomena and age 87 for her performance in the touching Belfast. In between all that, she also found time to appear in eight James Bond movies, which introduced her to a new generation of fans.

Katharine Hepburn

Between 1934 and 1969, Katharine Hepburn was nominated for an astonishing eleven Best Actress Oscars. It’s arguably the greatest run in movie history, and yet, she wasn’t finished. At the age of 74, thirteen years after what everyone assumed was going to be her last nomination, she walked the red carpet one more time as a Best Actress nominee for On Golden Pond in 1982. The win made it that much sweeter. 

Laurence Olivier

There aren’t many people on this list that had more success throughout their careers than Laurence Olivier. The beloved thespian won Emmys, Oscars and now is the namesake for London’s version of the Tony’s. At 71, he picked up his last Oscar nomination for The Boys From Brazil but continued to act for another full decade.

Peter O'Toole

Peter O’Toole was nominated for acting Oscars in the '60s, '70s, '80s and '00s. The last of those recognitions came when he was 74, and while he famously lost all eight of his Best Actor nominations, he was given an honorary Oscar by The Academy, who recognized him for his entire body of work, including the fantastic performances he gave late in life.

Morgan Freeman

Many of the nominations on this list came as a bit of a surprise. Not Morgan Freeman’s for Invictus. Playing Nelson Mandela sounded like the sort of thing that could pick him up an Oscar nomination for Invictus, and that’s exactly what happened when the movie came out and at 72, he was quickly given a nomination. It was his fifth overall.

Christopher Plummer

Christopher Plummer’s entire career was accompanied by praise from critics and numerous nominations, including three at the Oscars, all past the age of 75. None were a bigger surprise than the one he got at age 88 for All The Money In The World. The role was originally shot with Kevin Spacey, but after allegations of misconduct surfaced, producers reshot everything with Plummer in just 8 days.

Judd Hirsch

From Taxi to Dear John to The Goldbergs, Judd Hirsch was a part of numerous popular television shows and worked constantly from the mid-70s forward. Along the way, he was in a ton of good movies, but it was his work first in Ordinary People in 1980 and then in The Fabelmans in 2022 that were singled out by Oscar voters. 

Robert Duvall

Robert Duvall was nominated for seven Oscars, but six of those came between 1973 and 1999. His last one was, by far, the biggest surprise, as it came for The Judge when he was 84. It was proof that the popular actor was still capable of greatness, and it was also a sign of how much fans and critics connected with his work at various stages of his life. 

Max Von Sydow

During his incredible career that spanned seven decades, Max Von Sydow played everyone from Jesus Christ to the Three-Eyed Raven on Game Of Thrones. He was nominated for an Oscar in 1987 for his work in Pelle The Conqueror, but he wound up getting recognized one more time at the age of 82 for his incredible work in Extremely Loud And Incredibly Close.

George Burns

George Burns had a fantastic run as a radio star and then an early huge name in television, but he started losing momentum as an actor and shifted to producing until he signed on for The Sunshine Boys in 1975. It was his first movie in 36 years and won him an Oscar at 80, as well as paved the way for the fantastic final act of his career.

Jack Palance

After a successful stage career, Jack Palance became a huge movie star in the early 1950s, picking up tons of fans and multiple Academy Award nominations. He later went to Europe and made a series of popular movies, but his career was starting to fizzle out by the 1980s. Then he was hired to host a revival of Ripley’s Believe It Or Not, and the popularity of that show, netted him a bunch of parts including in City Slickers, which proved so popular it won him an Oscar at 73.

Alan Arkin

Alan Arkin worked constantly for sixty years because what director wouldn’t want to hire him? He was seemingly always in very highly seen projects, often in key supporting roles. Little Miss Sunshine and Argo are, of course, the two most notable examples, as both netted him Oscar nominations in his seventies and the former landed him his only win. 

Ethel Barrymore

There aren't many, if any, bigger families in the history of Hollywood than The Barrymores. They were firmly established when Pinky came out in 1949 and netted Ethel Barrymore another Oscar nomination. For much of her career she focused on the stage, but she later shifted to mostly Hollywood and picked up four nods in her 60s and 70s. What a run.

Ruth Gordon

Ruth Gordon had a lot of success earlier in her career as a screenwriter. She picked up three nominations for her writing between 1947 and 1952. Later in her career, she found new life as an actress, picking up multiple Oscar nominations, the last at 72 for Rosemary's Baby, and starring in cult classics like Harold And Maude.

Youn Yuh-jung

With fantastic reviews and strong word of mouth, Minari made a lot of noise throughout award season. It eventually picked up six Oscar nominations, but it was the one for Youn Yuh-jung that fans were most delighted with. The 73-year-old wound up winning in the most feel good moment of the entire ceremony, becoming the first Korean actress to pick up a trophy at The Oscars. 

Helen Hayes

You won’t find many people on this entire list with more success than Helen Hayes. She’s an EGOT winner with at least one additional nomination from all four of those award shows. She picked up her last Oscar at age 70 for her work in Airport, where she stood out next to a ton of other acting legends including Dean Martin, Burt Lancaster, Jean Seberg, Jacqueline Bisset and more. 

June Squibb

Mostly a theater actress, she didn’t appear in her first movie until she was in her sixties. In her mid-80s, she found the perfect role opposite Bruce Dern in Nebraska. Audiences fell in love with her performance, and she picked up a surprise feelgood nomination. That opened the door for a ton of fun parts in everything from Pixar movies to Shameless. 

Gloria Stuart

I’m not sure there’s a single quote from Titanic referenced more often than Gloria Stuart’s “It’s been 84 years.” For her, it took 87 years to find a performance that resonated with that many people, but it was so good and connected with so many people that she picked up an Oscar nomination. Well deserved too. One of the most famous movies ever just wouldn’t have the same emotional punch without her. 

Peggy Ashcroft

Peggy Ashcroft made less than twenty film appearances during a career that was mostly dedicated to the stage, but despite that limited output, she was nominated for four BAFTAs and won an Oscar at 77 for her supporting work in A Passage To India. She then turned her focus toward television, where she was picking up Emmy nominations into her 80s. 

Hal Holbrook

Holbrook had plenty of success in his career with wins at the Tonys and Emmys, but it wasn’t until later in life when he was finally singled out by The Oscars for his work in Into The Wild. With more than 130 acting credits, his nomination at 82 was a good reminder that sometimes the best way to get acclaim isn’t by shopping for possible Oscar roles, it’s by consistently doing good, creative work and waiting for the right project to resonate. 

Don Ameche

Cocoon features a ton of fantastic performances from older actors, but it was veteran funnyman Don Ameche’s supporting role that voters most gravitated toward. He picked up a surprise win at 77 for his work as the revitalized Arthur Selwyn. It was a fantastic outcome, especially after the studio fired an early-in-his-career Robert Zemeckis from the director’s chair during pre-production.

Melvyn Douglas

If you want to have prolonged success in Hollywood, you need to find a way to reinvent yourself and start playing different kinds of roles. Melvyn Douglas had a great run early as a leading man, who acted opposite some of the industry’s top leading ladies, but it was later in his career, when he started playing more mature characters that he found Oscar success with three separate nominations, including one for Being There when he was 79.

John Houseman

Probably best known for his work alongside Orson Welles, John Houseman worked regularly as a director and especially producer, but he also found time to be an actor. Late in his career, he picked up an Oscar at 71 for The Paper Chase in a role fans loved so much he later played it on TV too.

Edmund Gwenn

You never know what your defining role as an actor is going to be until it happens. Edmund Gwenn carved out a really nice career for himself on the stage and screen, but his biggest success came when he was seventy. His role as Santa Claus in Miracle On 34th Street is still being watched decades later, and it also opened up the door for some great late career work, including another Oscar nomination in Mister 880.

Celebrities are just like us, especially because they have off days just like the rest of us. The unfortunate truth is that when people like George Clooney or Scarlett Johansson have those moments, it’s more visible than when the rest of us encounter them. Especially when those sour notes become the lowest rated movie from major Hollywood stars like them. How many of these acting performances in notable disasters -- based on the critics freshness scores on Rotten Tomatoes -- do you remember? 

Meryl Streep - Lions For Lambs (2007) - 27%

If a movie like Lions for Lambs is the lowest rated film in your canon, you’re probably a legend like Meryl Streep. And that just so happens to be the film that ranks in the last slot on her history with the Tomatometer. Then again, the also iconic Tom Cruise co-starred in this picture, and his lowest ranked film scored even lower on the same scale.

Tom Hanks - The Bonfire Of The Vanities (1990) - 15%

One of the most infamous box office disasters in history is still Brian De Palma’s adaptation of The Bonfire of the Vanities. There are many reasons that it flopped, and Tom Hanks has shared thoughts on the matter on occasion. He’d certainly know the subject inside and out, as even he called out his own miscasting, in this supposed lowest point of his filmography. 

Angelina Jolie - Original Sin (2001) - 12%

How bad could a movie be that pairs Angelina Jolie and Antonio Banderas in a torrid love affair? Well, it can apparently be horrific if you’re going by Jolie’s RT resume. 2001’s Original Sin sits as her lowest ranked film, with not even its unrated cut able to generate a sizzle around the picture.

Denzel Washington - Heart Condition (1990) - 10%

Try this on for size: Denzel Washington once haunted Bob Hoskins, as a lawyer whose donated heart goes into Hoskins’ hard living detective. That was an actual plot for the ‘90s comedy Heart Condition, and you can see why critics weren’t exactly kind to this one; even with the charms of Washington and Hoskins involved.

Amy Adams - Serving Sara (2002) - 4%

Some stars are collateral damage for other stars’ failed starring vehicles. When Matthew Perry and Elizabeth Hurley’s rom-com Serving Sara crashed and burned, it took Amy Adams along with it. Well, in the context that it’s her lowest rated film on Rotten Tomatoes. Other than that, Ms. Adams seems to still be riding high, as she totally should be.

George Clooney - Grizzly 2: The Revenge (1983) - 8%

On one hand, Grizzly 2: The Revenge is a campy horror movie that looks like it’s earned its 8% RT score. At the same time, it’s kind of unfair to Clooney, as well as co-stars Laura Dern and Charlie Sheen, to be lumped in with the film’s failings as their characters are a classic case of disposable young teen victims.

Viola Davis - The Architect (2006) - 11%

The Architect couldn't have possibly been someone's attempt at cashing in on Crash's Best Picture win, could it? It sure seems like it, and critics weren't biting at writer/director Matt Tauber's adaptation of this stage drama. Actor Viola Davis survived this metaphorical wreckage though, and two years later she'd find herself in Doubt, with her first Academy Award nomination to show for it. 

Matt Damon - Suburbicon (2017) - 28%

Suburbicon had a lot going for it: an all-star cast that included Matt Damon, Oscar Isaac, and Julianne Moore, a script with Coen Brothers involvement, and George Clooney in the director’s chair. And yet, this attempt at pitch black satire of the idyllic ‘50s collapsed under its own ambitions, acting as the rock bottom of Damon’s resume. 

Taylor Swift - Valentine’s Day (2010) - 18%

Sorry Swifties, but Taylor can’t always win. Case in point is her role in the ensemble rom-com Valentine’s Day; which acts as the lowest ranked project she’s racked up as an acting talent. Though if you count the record-breaking Eras Tour movie, that’s the absolute tops. It may be apples and oranges, but it's something fun to keep in mind.

Ryan Reynolds - R.I.P.D. (2013) - 12%

Admit it: you probably thought X-Men: Origins - Wolverine was going to be Ryan Reynolds’ lowest rated movie. As it turns out, that’s not even in Reynolds’ bottom 10 movies. What did happen to be the Deadpool star’s lowest rated film was the misguided comic book romp R.I.P.D. That’s right folks: it’s rated even lower than Green Lantern!

Sandra Bullock - Speed 2: Cruise Control (1997) - 4%

When a movie like Speed becomes a breakout hit, you’d be crazy not to try and make a sequel. That’s not a guarantee that you should make that next movie, as we saw with 1997’s Speed 2: Cruise Control; the movie that is the low water mark for Academy Award winner Sandra Bullock’s Rotten Tomatoes scores. 

Tom Hardy - This Means War (2012) - 26%

How does a romantic action-comedy where Tom Hardy and Chris Pine fight over Reese Witherspoon lose? If you’ve seen This Means War, you might have an answer to that question already handy. Tom Hardy’s lowest ranking effort on his own personal Tomatometer, it’s one of his rare losses when it comes to the world of movies. 

Julia Roberts - Mother’s Day (2016) - 8%

Actors, be careful when accepting roles in all-star ensemble rom-coms. It’s a genre that’s given us Love, Actually, but also gave us Valentine’s Day, New Year’s Eve, and Mother’s Day. Taylor Swift can count that first film as her lowest RT score, and Academy Award winner Julia Roberts has the last one in that line as hers. So live and learn.

Ben Affleck - The Last Thing He Wanted (2020) - 5%

What’s the last thing Ben Affleck wanted? A mid-profile flop like The Last Thing He Wanted. This is the absolute bottom of Affleck’s Rotten Tomatoes scored films, which may or may not surprise some film fans. Your range of shock probably depends on how you feel about Jersey Girl and/or Gigli. Which is saying something, as Gigli was disowned by its director.

Scarlett Johansson - The Spirit (2008) - 14%

After Robert Rodriguez’s Sin City and Zack Snyder’s 300 became surprise hits with audiences, author Frank Miller’s work seemed poised to take off. And then The Spirit came along, and cratered those hopes along with Scarlett Johansson’s Rotten Tomatoes scores. You Lucy apologists out there just scored an important victory for the next time someone questions your taste in movies.

Robert Downey Jr. - Johnny Be Good (1988) - 0%

Even at the height of his powers as a young performer, Robert Downey Jr. had his fair share of unsuccessful films. None of those flops had the power to counter the absolute 0 that 1988’s Johnny Be Good scored. To his credit, the movie was more of a starring vehicle for Anthony Michael-Hall, but this one still has to sting. 

Jennifer Lawrence - House At The End Of The Street (2012) - 12%

A survivor of many threats thrown at her on the big screen, Jennifer Lawrence can battle some tough forces and still come out the victor. Just look at her 2012 output, which saw her score her lowest RT result with the horror film House at the End of the Street; but also saw her on the road to winning her first Oscar in Silver Linings Playbook. 

Dwayne Johnson - Tooth Fairy (2010) - 17%

The failure of Black Adam was a humbling that some probably believed Dwayne Johnson had coming. Longtime fans of The Rock would know better though, as looking back a bit further in his career, you start to run into movies like Tooth Fairy. That practically makes Black Adam look like Batman vs. Superman if you think about it long enough.

Anne Hathaway - The Last Thing He Wanted (2020) - 5%

While Anne Hathaway's career highlights are abundant -- including The Devil Wears Prada, Interstellar, Rachel Getting Married (for which she was nominated for an Oscar), and Les Miserables (for which she won an Oscar) -- like every other actor on this list, she's not immune to the occasional poorly-received movie. In her case, it's a very low rating for the 2020 movie The Last Thing He Wanted. 

Henry Cavill - Hellraiser: Hellworld (2005) - 0%

We’re not going to say that Henry Cavill’s part in Hellraiser: Hellworld is part of his tough luck with James Bond. If an actor can star in a movie like this and still be invited to audition for Casino Royale, then maybe their acting chops were honed enough to be a part of the James Bond movies after all. 

Charlize Theron - The Last Face (2016) - 8%

A lineup like Jared Harris, Javier Bardem, and Charlize Theron is something a movie would kill for. Adding a director like Sean Penn just sweetens the pot if you’re a certain type of moviegoer. Well, that combination did work on 2016’s The Last Face, and it was a result so abysmal that it came in as Charlize Theron’s worst rated film on Rotten Tomatoes.

Bradley Cooper - Brother’s Justice (2010) - 0%

There was a time when Dax Shepard decided to co-direct a mockumentary where he pretended to try and become an action star. That movie was Brother’s Justice, and good luck remembering it ever existed past it being mentioned here and now, as Bradley Cooper’s lowest rated movie of his career. 

Halle Berry - Dark Tide (2012) - 0%

Even in the presence of infamous trash fires like Catwoman, there’s a movie that reigns even higher in Halle Berry’s not-so-greatest hits. 2012’s Dark Tide is the deep end of the pool for the X-Men alum, being thrashed by critics upon its release. Want to know what happens to a flop that’s struck by lightning? The same thing that happened to Dark Tide.

Will Smith - After Earth (2013) - 12%

“Wild Wild West was less painful than After Earth.” Will Smith’s dig at this infamous bomb is admittedly more entertaining than the movie itself, even if his slam of the M. Night Shyamalan directed picture unfairly slams Wild Wild West as anything but a silly fun house of comedy. Your mileage may vary on that gigantic spider adventure, but we can all agree that at least it isn’t After Earth, which is Smith's lowest rated movie.

Nicole Kidman - Grace Of Monaco (2014) - 9%

Going into its release window, Nicole Kidman’s Grace of Monaco looked like an awards season darling waiting to happen. But a last minute shift that robbed the movie of a domestic theatrical release, plus an infamous difference between the theatrical and “writer’s” cut changed those fortunes oh so quickly; and with an RT score to prove it.

Morgan Freeman - Just Getting Started (2017) - 4%

You can’t help but want to root for a movie like Just Getting Started. A comedy where Rene Russo, Tommy Lee Jones, and Morgan Freeman collide sounds like a fun night out on paper. Alas, that recipe doesn’t always cook up a winner, and this absolute stinker proves it, marking the tail end of the spectrum of films Freeman has starred in. 

Emma Stone - Movie 43 (2013) - 4%

Considering how many big ticket stars were suckered into making Movie 43, it’s surprising that it hasn’t cropped up as the nadir of more of the filmographies on this list. Which may be a compliment to Emma Stone, as if this is the movie that’s supposed to represent her “worst,” then maybe Aloha wasn’t as big of a misfire as we thought.

Tom Cruise - Cocktail (1988) - 9%

Out of all the movies that Tom Cruise is known for, Cocktail seems to be one that people rarely talk about. A dramedy digging into the highs and lows of being a hot shot bartender, it feels like Top Gun with a liquor license. This flick might hold its liquor, but its Tomatoes are scattered on the floor, resulting in the worst hangover on Cruise’s resume.

Natalie Portman - Planetarium (2016) - 15%

A Natalie Portman period drama can be hit or miss, and in the case of Planetarium, it apparently was the latter. You're probably wondering how you haven't heard about a movie where Portman and Lily Rose Depp play sisters that can see ghosts during the '30s. Well, this is the same year that Portman starred in Pablo Larrain's Jackie, and that film was the clear winner of the Black Swan star's year in 2016.

Brad Pitt - Cool World (1992) - 4%

How bad do you have to screw up to land a movie named Cool World with an insanely cool Brad Pitt all the way at the bottom of his filmography? If you really want the answer, you should see the film for yourself. Some bombs of great infamy just have to be experienced firsthand to truly understand the failure they brought upon their stars.

Jennifer Aniston - ‘Til There Was You (1997) - 5%

The “stable friend” is a character that can still provide a breakout hit for an actor, as even the balanced party of a movie like ‘Til There Was You gets some laughs. But not even a gag involving Jennifer Aniston and a kitten could save the film, which seems like a surefire formula that’s hard to pass up. Even in 1997, this movie’s response seems particularly harsh. 

Chris Hemsworth - Red Dawn (2012) - 15%

Remaking a Patrick Swayze classic like Red Dawn seemed like a match made in Hell since day one. Even though Chris Hemsworth was already the god of thunder in Thor, that didn’t make up for a movie so dubious that even the horribly photoshopped posters didn’t seem to care about selling it.

As you can see with the films we've just recalled, it didn't exactly crush the careers and dreams of these heavy hitters of the movies. At the same time, we'd recommend not mentioning them in polite conversation, unless you're absolutely sure that the situation is ripe for a fun story about some bad times. 

When you look at the landscape of Hollywood A-List actors, it’s hard to believe how many haven’t been nominated for an Oscar. Even crazier is looking back on previous nominees like Meryl Streep and Gary Oldman’s careers and seeing where their first brush with golden glory came from. That’s what we’re gathered together to do today, as we look back on a who’s who of acting talent, and those first projects that put them on The Academy’s map! 

Meryl Streep - The Deer Hunter

Where does one begin when talking about Meryl Streep’s own personal golden dynasty? Well, if you want to start at the beginning, you’d take it all the way back to 1978. That’s when Michael Cimino’s The Deer Hunter put Ms. Streep on the Academy’s radar for the first time. At the time of publication, Streep is the most nominated person at the Academy Awards, thanks to a whopping 21 nods.

Daniel Day-Lewis - My Left Foot

The year 1990 marked an important moment for iconic actor, and three-time Academy Award winner, Daniel Day-Lewis. The now-retired thespian found himself winning on his first time out, with his nomination for the role of Irish writer and painter Christy Brown in My Left Foot. His portrayal of Brown, who created art while living with Cerebral Palsy, was only the beginning of a legacy involving method acting, which led to several more nominations and wins in the process.

Amy Adams - Junebug

Let’s put aside the fact that Amy Adams and Arrival were failed by awards boards in the 2016- 2017 season. Outside of that grudge that some still hold dear, Adams has a total of six Oscar nominations to her credit. That’s pretty amazing, with the first nod coming from her performance in 2005’s Junebug. With that noted, we can go back to grousing about how she deserves to be at seven nods, thanks to Denis Villeneuve’s brain-breaking masterpiece.

Leonardo DiCaprio - What’s Eating Gilbert Grape

While Leonardo DiCaprio could finally call himself a winner as part of 2016’s Academy Award nominees, the path to that victory for The Revenant kicked off in 1994. A hot young talent, DiCaprio’s first nomination was for his role alongside Johnny Depp in the drama What’s Eating Gilbert Grape? Turns out, when it was winning time for Leo, the answer to that question was, “A bear.”

Sandra Bullock - The Blind Side

One of America’s sweethearts, Sandra Bullock can be counted as a member of the First Timer's Club. Her first nomination was also the one that won her the trophy, as the 2010 Academy Awards yielded a golden win for her role in The Blind Side. Despite the recent controversies and lawsuit from Michael Oher that have hit that film’s story about the football player and the Tuohys, this is a hard-earned win, and the first of two nominations so far for Ms. Bullock. 

Tom Hanks - Big

We all know that Tom Hanks is Academy Award-winning royalty, as America’s Dad has six nominations and two wins under his belt. Looking back at the fact that his first competition for Oscar glory came from 1988’s Big, it’s an impressive feat for happening so early in Hanks’ career as an actor. It’s even more stunning when you take into account that it was for a comedy performance, which isn’t as prevalent at the Oscars as one would hope.

Viola Davis - Doubt

Despite the title of the film she was first nominated for, there was absolutely no Doubt when it came to Viola Davis’ status as an Oscar contender. Her first round came in 2008, through that very film mentioned; and she would eventually be nominated three more times, at the time of this publication. Her first win came in 2016 after she starred with fellow Oscar titan Denzel Washington in the film adaptation of Fences. (It's also worth mentioning that this actress is also in the elite club of EGOT winners.)

Peter O’Toole - Lawrence Of Arabia

Tied with Glenn Close for the most Oscar nominations without a win, the late great Peter O’Toole banked his first Academy Awards nod with the movie you’d most expect. Thanks to the director David Lean’s 1962 epic Lawrence of Arabia, O’Toole began a dance with Academy voters that only saw him net a 2002 Honorary Academy Award. 

Jodie Foster - Taxi Driver

In the world of Disney actors turned Academy Award contenders, Jodie Foster will always be one of the most notable in that field. At the age of 15, Foster saw her first nomination through her only Best Supporting Actress nod to date. The eventual victor for films like The Accused and The Silence of the Lambs, Jodie first competed for Oscar glory through the role of child prostitute Iris Steensma in Martin Scorsese’s Taxi Driver. 

Morgan Freeman - Street Smart

Even movies with Oscar buzz can become buried in the sands of time. Just ask Morgan Freeman, who first saw himself nominated at the Academy Awards in 1987 for Street Smart. A crime drama starring Christopher Reeve as an ambitious reporter profiling Freeman’s pimp character Leo “Fast Black” Smalls Jr., it’s a movie that most wouldn’t remember; especially when compared to the other films the prestigious actor would be nominated for.

Cate Blanchett - Elizabeth

Playing royalty almost feels like a shortcut to winning big-time gold. However, Cate Blanchett is one of those exceptions that sets the rules. While she would later win trophies for The Aviator and Blue Jasmine, Blanchett’s first bid for an Academy Award came in 1999, thanks to the titular role in director Shekhar Kapur’s Elizabeth. 

Anthony Hopkins - The Silence Of The Lambs

Horror is one of those genres that doesn’t seem to get much love on the awards circuit. However, when the results are something as chilling as director Jonathan Demme’s adaptation of The Silence of the Lambs, containing Anthony Hopkins’ equally unsettling performance as Dr. Hannibal Lecter, it’s hard not to take notice. Score another First Timer’s Club victory, as Hopkins took home the gold his first time up.

Charlize Theron - Monster

Portraying the criminal mind provides such an allure for actors and auteurs alike. A case proving that point was Charlize Theron’s portrayal of convicted killer Aileen Wuornos in Patty Jenkins’ film Monster, her first nomination out of three at the time of this writing. Theron won the Best Actress trophy on the first try in 2004, all thanks to this tale of true crime. 

Christian Bale - The Fighter

Able to disappear completely in any character he plays, Academy Award winner Christian Bale has four nominations to his name. Equally split between Best Supporting Actor and Best Actor accolades, his first roll of the dice in 2011 landed him a win in the former category; thanks to David O. Russell’s The Fighter. 

Kate Winslet - Sense And Sensibility

The works of Jane Austen are another one of those sources that seem to periodically score nominations at the Oscars. Kate Winslet’s first is part of the proof, as the first of her current total of seven Academy Award nominations (and one win) came from 1995’s Sense and Sensibility. Ms. Winslet’s heart would go on to win Best Actress…in 2009, for Stephen Daldry’s The Reader.

Denzel Washington - Cry Freedom

Let’s see if King Kong knows this piece of movie trivia. Actor Denzel Washington has had 10 Oscar nominations, with two wins coming from that pool. While most would be tempted to cite his win for Glory as the first time he was nominated, that is incorrect. Washington’s first Academy Awards ceremony happened two years earlier in 1988, for his part in the film Cry Freedom. 

Kathy Bates - Misery

Frightening characters can make for the most golden of dreams, as was proven with 1991’s Academy Awards. Kathy Bates took home her first award on her first nomination, through the role of Anne Wilkes in Rob Reiner’s Misery. A “brilliant” adaptation of Stephen King’s novel, this fan favorite is one of many that’s seen the famed horror author’s work turning in some of the most well-regarded films and performances of all time.

George Clooney - Good Night, And Good Luck/Syriana

Here’s a wild story: George Clooney’s first Oscar nominations came from not one, but two films he was involved with. 2006’s Academy Awards saw the ER veteran land and win Best Supporting Actor for his role in Syriana, while one of CinemaBlend’s 100 best movies of the 2000s, Good Night, And Good Luck., netted him a Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay nod in that same contest.

Helen Mirren - The Madness Of King George

Did you know that half of Helen Mirren’s four Oscar nominations came from playing royalty? Surely most know of Mirren’s win in 2007 as Queen Elizabeth II in The Queen. But, dear readers, another queen marked the start of Dame Helen’s Academy Awards history. Her Best Supporting Actress nod in 1995 for The Madness of King George would be her initial foray into this circuit, playing Queen Charlotte to Nigel Hawthorne’s titular monarch.

Judi Dench - Mrs. Brown

Dame Judi Dench is another regal figure that practically screams “Oscar” when you see her. Another member of the club of actors winning as royalty, Dench would win in 1999 for her as Queen Elizabeth I in Shakespeare in Love. That was only on her second try, because in 1998 Dame Judi received her first nomination, playing Queen Victoria in the film Mrs. Brown.

Dustin Hoffman - The Graduate

And here’s to you, Mr. Hoffman; Oscar came a’calling very young. At 30 years old, Dustin Hoffman saw his first Academy Award nomination through starring in 1967’s The Graduate. What may be more surprising than the actual 6-year age gap between himself and co-star Anne Bancroft is that his first Oscar win would take place 12 years later, with 1980’s Kramer vs. Kramer.

Susan Sarandon - Atlantic City

Five nominations and one win are actor Susan Sarandon’s Academy Award legacy, at the time of this writing. But her first nomination was from an Oscar-buzzed title that most folks may not remember: 1981’s Atlantic City. With nominations in “The Big Five” categories, Sarandon and the film at large walked away empty-handed that year.

Russell Crowe - The Insider

Before his name was Maximus Decimus Meridius, Russell Crowe found himself heading to the Oscars under a different moniker: Jeffrey Wigand. Nominated for the first time in 2000, Crowe’s role in Michael Mann’s whistleblower drama The Insider gave the Australian actor his first golden thrill ride. One that he’d repeat in 2001, and win for through the strength and honor of Ridley Scott’s Gladiator.

Angela Bassett - What’s Love Got To Do With It

Surprisingly, Angela Bassett only received her second nomination as part of 2023's Academy Awards, thanks to Marvel Studio’s Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Bassett’s first nomination came from playing royalty of a different type, as her lead role in the Tina Turner biopic What’s Love Got To Do With It saw her walking the Oscar red carpet in 1994.

Gary Oldman - Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Count this as another shocker in Oscar nominations history: Gary Oldman only received his first Academy Awards nomination in 2012. You’d think the Bram Stoker’s Dracula actor would have had more than the three nods and one win he currently holds. However, his dreams of golden splendor only started after he played George Smiley in Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. 

Julia Roberts - Steel Magnolias

With three nominations and one win, Julia Roberts’ odds of firing you up or making you cry with her Academy Award-nominated projects are officially even. Her first time in the race came in 1990, in the dramedy classic Steel Magnolias. For those of you who haven’t seen the film, we’ll leave it to you to find out which bucket this particular nom falls into on your own time.

Al Pacino - The Godfather

Some roles are such an indelible part of an actor’s career, they just had to land an Oscar nomination for it. Al Pacino is certainly one of those cases, as he would turn his first Best Supporting Actor nomination for The Godfather into a Best Actor nod in The Godfather Part II. Both stem from his portrayal of Michael Corleone, the favorite son who descended into darkness and power.

Anne Hathaway - Rachel Getting Married

“It came true.” Those three words marked the end of Anne Hathaway’s journey to Oscar gold, with her second nomination and first win for Best Supporting Actress in Les Miserables. But the beginning of Ms. Hathaway’s Academy Awards journey was in 2009, when she was nominated for Best Actress in Rachel Getting Married. 

Matt Damon - Good Will Hunting

Matt Damon and Ben Affleck both won their first Oscars for Best Original Screenplay, thanks to 1998’s Good Will Hunting. But much like other members of the First Timers Club in this list, Damon’s first victory was also his first time at the dance. How ‘bout dem apples indeed.

Jennifer Lawrence - Winter’s Bone

The second time was the charm for Jennifer Lawrence, as her role in Silver Linings Playbook made her a winner in 2013. That wasn’t too long after her initial foray into Oscar victory, which came in 2011 thanks to her lead role in the neo-noir gem Winter’s Bone. Who’d expect any less from the eventual "girl on fire" that would lead The Hunger Games to box office domination?

Ben Affleck - Good Will Hunting

Sailing on the same current as his writing partner and longtime buddy Matt Damon, Ben Affleck’s first Oscar nomination came from his co-authoring of Good Will Hunting. And to think, if Damon and Affleck’s hijinks involving the script hadn’t worked, we may never have seen either contributor go on to the storied careers they enjoy today.

Samuel L. Jackson - Pulp Fiction

Fans of Samuel L. Jackson are about to engage in some harsh language, as the current MCU star only has one Academy Award nomination. While it’s rightful for his Best Supporting Actor-worthy role in Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction, the man’s gone on to deliver several other powerhouse performances worth at least a nod or two. This is something that not even the tastiest beverage could wash away.

As an actor, you never know where that first win or nomination is going to come from. And when you're an A-lister as iconic as the people we've just discussed, those initial impressions are all the more interesting to look at as time goes on. Who knows where these blockbuster draws will find their next brush with golden glory, and how it will compare to these humble beginnings? 

Like the great directors who came before and several of his contemporaries, Christopher Nolan is a filmmaker who likes to reuse certain creative elements in each of his movies. From messing with time to structuring nonlinear narratives to focusing on paradoxes (all three are present in his latest box office success, Oppenheimer), he seems to have some favorite techniques and he knows when to use them. At the same time, Nolan also appears to like to work with the same actors time and time again.

Similar to what we did with Wes Anderson’s go-to stars following the release of Asteroid City, today we’re going to break down 12 actors who show up in the most Christopher Nolan movies. With easy guesses and surprises alike, there’s a lot to go over, so let’s break down the director’s most prolific on-screen collaborators. 

Michael Caine - 8 Movies

Though Michael Caine does not appear in Oppenheimer, Christopher Nolan told CinemaBlend’s ReelBlend podcast that he was with the production in spirit before saying he and the two-time Academy Award winner have “had the most wonderful collaboration” over the years.

Together, Nolan and Caine have collaborated eight times over the course of the past 18 years. This started with the actor’s iconic portrayal of Alfred Pennyworth in Batman Begins (he would return for The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises), continued with The Prestige, Inception, Interstellar, Dunkirk, and Tenet. 

Cillian Murphy - 6 Movies

Having first entered each other’s orbits when Cillian Murphy auditioned for Bruce Wayne in Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins, the actor-director duo have worked together a staggering six times, putting the versatile actor just two movies behind the legendary Michael Caine.

Prior to landing the lead role in Oppenheimer, some of Murphy’s best performances have been in Nolan’s movies like the Dark Knight trilogy, Inception, and Dunkirk, his take on a shell-shocked WWII soldier in the 2017 all-time great military drama being one of the most harrowing of his career. 

Russ Fega - 5 Movies 

The first pair of names on this list are two of the most well-known actors in Hollywood. Though Russ Fega might not be as recognizable as Caine or Murphy, the Hollywood location manager and occasional actor has more appearances in Christopher Nolan movies than just about anyone else.

Starting with his appearance in the Memento cast, Fega has popped up in five of Nolan’s movies, including The Prestige, Inception, The Dark Knight Rises, and Interstellar. 

Christian Bale - 4 Movies

Christian Bale, who has worked with Christopher Nolan since first falling for the director’s vision for Batman Begins, has appeared in a total of four Christopher Nolan movies throughout his career.

After appearing in the 2005 superhero origin story, Bale gave an incredible performance in The Prestige, which he followed up with The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises. Interestingly enough, Bale hasn’t appeared in a Nolan movie in more than a decade, but hopefully that changes whenever the auteur starts planning out his next film. 

John Nolan - 4 Movies

John Nolan, not to be confused with Christopher Nolan’s brother and collaborator Jonathan, has appeared in just as many of his nephew’s movies as actors like Christian Bale and Gary Oldman (more on him next).

After landing a small role as a police officer in Christopher Nolan’s directorial debut, Following, in 1998, John Nolan would go on to land the role of Wayne Enterprises board member Douglas Fredericks in Batman Begins (he would reprise the role in The Dark Knight Rises) and then later on as a blind man in Dunkirk. 

Gary Oldman - 4 Movies

One of the dozens of Hollywood stars in the Oppenheimer cast, Gary Oldman, who plays U.S. President Harry S. Truman in a heated scene with Cillian Murphy’s titular character, has worked with Christopher Nolan a total of four times over the course of his career.

Prior to landing the brief yet impactful role in the 2023 book-to-screen adaptation, Oldman famously played Jim Gordon as “a man doing something as simple and reassuring as putting a coat around a young boy’s shoulders to let him know that the world hadn’t ended” in Batman Begins, the Gotham PD commissioner in The Dark Knight Rises, and a guilt-stricken cop in The Dark Knight Rises. 

Kenneth Branagh - 3 Movies

Academy Award-winning filmmaker Kenneth Branagh is another actor that Christopher Nolan has brought in for his movies more than once, as the Belfast writer and director has appeared in all three of Nolan’s most recent films in varying capacities.

From his stoic portrayal of Commander Bolton in Dunkirk, to his time-jumping villain Andrei Sator in Tenet to physicist Niels Bohr in Oppenheimer, Branagh has become one of Nolan’s go-to actors, and hopefully that trend continues.

Morgan Freeman - 3 Movies

Morgan Freeman is another actor who’s appeared in three Christopher Nolan movies, and unlike the rest of the list, all three are in the same franchise. 

From 2005 to 2012, Freeman portrayed Wayne Enterprises Executive Vice President Lucius Fox, a.k.a., one of Bruce Wayne’s closest confidants in Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, and The Dark Knight Rises. 

Tom Hardy - 3 Movies

If you were to look at the list of Tom Hardy’s must-watch movies, some of the titles near the top would all be collaborations with Christopher Nolan. In fact, one of the roles that started Hardy’s ascent was that of Eames in Inception.

Since then, he’s portrayed Bane in The Dark Knight Rises and Farrier in Dunkirk, bringing his total to three movies, even if his face was largely obscured throughout the latter two roles.

Larry Holden - 3 Movies

Larry Holden was a prominent player in some of Christopher Nolan’s earlier work and appeared in three movies in a row for the director in the early 2000s. From his portrayal of the drug dealer Jimmy in Memento to a cop named Farrell in Insomnia to Gotham City District Attorney Carl Finch in Batman Begins, he was one of Nolan’s go-to guys.

Sadly, Holden passed away at the age of 49 in 2011 after a battle with cancer, according to his obituary.  

Josh Stewart - 3 Movies

Josh Stewart has been a part of three Christopher Nolan movies throughout his career, but only physically appeared in one of those. You will probably recognize him from his portrayal of Bane’s right-hand man, Barsad, in The Dark Knight Rises, the first of three collaborations with the filmmaker.

Stewart provided the voice of CASE, one of the four robots that assisted Cooper (Matthew McConaughey) and his team in Interstellar, which he followed up with another vocal role in Tenet. 

Jeremy Theobald - 3 Movies

And then there is Jeremy Theobald, whose work with Christopher Nolan goes back to the director’s earliest productions. This includes the lead role in the director’s film debut, Following, a small part as a Gotham City worker in Batman Begins, and a brief appearance in Tenet.

It should also be noted that Theobald also appeared in Nolan’s first two short films – 1996’s Larceny and Doodlebug – prior to working with him on feature films. 

These are just the actors who have appeared in three or more of Christopher Nolan’s movies over the years, as Anne Hathaway, Tom Conti, Matthew Modine, Casey Affleck, David Dastmalchian, and multiple others have appeared in two of his previous efforts. If you want to go back and watch all of these actors’ performances, you can do that right now by checking our breakdown of how to watch Christopher Nolan’s movies streaming. 

For the past half-decade or so, Taylor Sheridan has mainly turned his attention to the American west with his exploration of the family dynamics and political ties of the Dutton family in his Yellowstone universe. And while his new Paramount+ original series, Special Ops: Lioness forgoes the life of ranchers and instead is set in the world of counterterrorism, its primary focus is still on a dynamic group of characters.

If you watched the new 2023 TV show when the first two episodes debuted on July 23rd, there’s a good chance you’re wanting to know where you’ve seen the actors before. Some names, like Zoe Saldaña and Nicole Kidman, are well-known, but other members of the Special Ops: Lioness cast may be a bigger mystery, so let’s unpack… 

Zoe Saldaña (Joe) 

Leading the Special Ops: Lioness cast is Zoe Saldaña, who takes on the role of Joe, the station chief who recruits and trains the operatives for the CIA’s “Lioness” undercover program.

Thanks to roles in four of the biggest movies of all time, there’s a very good chance just about everyone has seen Saldaña at some point over the years. Even outside of her portrayal of Gamora in some of the best Marvel movies of all time and take on Neytiri in James Cameron’s Avatar franchise, the actress has given some tremendous performances throughout her career. These include the more recent Star Trek movies, The Adam Project, and various titles in the Law & Order TV franchise. 

Laysla De Oliveira (Cruz Manuelos)

Next up is Laysla De Oliveira who plays Cruz Manuelos, a young Marine who is pulled into the Lioness program and tasked with going on a daring, and dangerous, undercover mission on Special Ops: Lioness.

If you were a fan of the Netflix original series, Locke & Key, then you should recognize De Oliveira from her portrayal of Echo/Dodge throughout the show’s run. Over the years, she has also appeared on shows like The Gifted, iZombie, and Covert Affairs, to name a few. Her film credits include the likes of In the Tall Grass, Code 8, and Needle in a Timestack. 

Dave Annabel (Neil)

Dave Annabel shows up on Special Ops: Lioness as Joe’s husband, Neil.

This isn’t the first time Annabel has worked on a Taylor Sheridan show, as he played Lee Dutton in a handful of episodes of Yellowstone over the years. But his work on the small screen goes much deeper than that thanks to major roles on shows like Brothers & Sisters, 666 Park Avenue, and Red Band Society. More recently, Annabel had a recurring role on Walker throughout the show’s second and third seasons.

Jill Wagner (Bobby)

Jill Wagner, who also executive produced the show alongside Taylor Sheridan, appears in the Special Ops: Lioness cast as Bobby, a rough–and-tough member of Joe’s team.

Seeing Wagner in a more hard-edged role will be something new for a large group of her fans, especially those who know her from the various Hallmark original movies she’s been a part of for nearly the past decade. Over the years, Wagner has also appeared on shows like Teen Wolf, Blade: The Series, and hosted Wipeout. 

James Jordan (Two Cups)

James Jordan pops up on Special Ops: Lioness as Two Cups, a highly experienced member of Joe’s CIA Special Activities Division team.

Jordan is without a doubt Sheridan’s biggest collaborator in the Lioness cast, as he has appeared on shows like Yellowstone, Mayor of Kingstown, and 1883, as well as a list of movies that includes Wind River and Those Who Wish Me Dead. You can also include Veronica Mars on that list, considering both appeared in acting roles throughout the show’s run. Jordan’s other credits include Fargo, True Blood, 24, CSI: Miami, and Cold Case. 

LaMonica Garrett (Tucker)

LaMonica Garrett is another actor who plays a member of Joe’s CIA team with his portrayal of Tucker.

Though he doesn’t have all that many film credits to his name, Garrett is a prolific actor on the small screen. Throughout his career, Garrett has played characters like Deputy Sheriff Cane on Sons of Anarchy, Mike Ritter on Designated Survivor, and Monitor/Anti-Monitor in the various Arrowverse series on The CW. Most recently, he had a major part on the 1883 cast with his portrayal of Thomas. 

Stephanie Nur (Aaliyah)

Stephanie Nur appears in the Special Ops: Lioness cast as Aaliyah, the daughter of a wealthy businessman with alleged ties to terrorism who becomes the target of the show’s undercover operation.

Though she's still making a name for herself as an actor, Nur has worked with Sheridan in the past, specifically on 1883, which saw her take on the role of Melodi in a pair of episodes back in 2021. 

Thad Luckinbill (Kyle)

Thad Luckinbill shows up on Special Ops: Lioness as Kyle, one of Joe’s old friends with whom she crosses paths out in the field.

Over the years, Luckinbill has appeared on shows like Law & Order Criminal Intent, Grey’s Anatomy, Ballers, and The Young and the Restless. However, in more recent years, he’s become a successful Hollywood producer, working on everything from La La Land to Sicario and 12 Strong to Devotion. 

Nicole Kidman (Kaitlyn Meade)

One of the heavy hitters of the Special Ops: Lioness cast, Nicole Kidman takes on the role of CIA senior supervisor Kaitlyn Meade.

An Academy Award winner (The Hours), six-time Golden Globe winner (Moulin Rouge!, To Die For, etc.), and two-time Primetime Emmy Award winner (Big Little Lies), Kidman has done a little bit of everything throughout her career, one that goes back to the early 1980s. Some of Kidman’s best movies could also be considered some of the landmark films of the past 40 years. 

Michael Kelly (Donald Westfield)

Next up is Michael Kelly, who takes on the role of CIA Deputy Director Donald Westfield. 

From his work on House of Cards to the Amazon original series Jack Ryan, Kelly has a lot of experience on shows dealing with political issues and terrorism, but that’s just a part of his career. With great performances in everything from Zack Snyder’s underrated Dawn of the Dead remake to one of the best Black Mirror episodes, he’s done it all. 

Morgan Freeman (Secretary Of State Mullins)

And then there is Morgan Freeman, who takes on the role of Secretary of State Edwin Mullins.

Freeman, one of the most recognizable actors on the planet, has a long and storied career that includes some of the best movies of all time like The Shawshank Redemption and Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy. A recipient of an Academy Award (Million Dollar Baby) and a Golden Globe (Driving Miss Daisy), Freeman has long been decorated for his impressive body of work.

You can watch Special Ops: Lioness streaming with your Paramount+ subscription, which also gives you access to a ton of other great shows and movies from Taylor Sheridan and countless other creators. 

How do you pick just one of the ‘80s movies for the biggest movie stars of the decade? It’s a challenging task, but we figure we’re up for the job. So if you find yourself only able to watch a single '80s film starring each of these icons, here’s the only list you’ll need. 

Tom Cruise - Top Gun

This one is obvious, right? Top Gun is the movie that made Tom Cruise a superstar and his career has never wavered since. It was such a cultural phenomenon at the time that not only did it make an astounding $357 million at the box office (against a $15 million budget), it became the best-selling VHS tape of all time, based on pre-orders alone! Everyone saw it that summer, and again when it was released on home video. He revived the franchise 36 years later and dominated at the box office again with Top Gun: Maverick. 

Steve Martin - Dirty Rotten Scoundrels

Steve Martin had a string of hits in the 1980s, but his best of the bunch was Dirty Rotten Scoundrels. It’s a perfect example of how varied Martin’s comedy could be. At times refined, at others completely physical and off the wall. Martin puts everything into this performance and it shows in the results. It’s just a brilliantly hilarious film. 

Whoopi Goldberg - Jumpin’ Jack Flash

Whoopi Goldberg burst onto the big screen in The Color Purple (more on that film in a minute). Her performance was lauded by critics, with Roger Ebert calling it “one of the most amazing debut performances in movie history.” It’s certainly a film worth watching for her Oscar-nominated performance, but if you really want to get a great idea of what Goldberg was all about in the ‘80s, check out  Jumpin’ Jack Flash. Goldberg is, after all, a comedian at heart, and she brings all her comedic skill to bare in this early tech/spy thriller. It’s another A+ performance from the star of The View.

Goldie Hawn - Overboard

Goldie Hawn was already a veteran in show business by the time the ‘80s started, but she saved some of her best performances for the decade. In her final movie of the decade, she teamed up with Kurt Russell for Overboard, and the chemistry between the two is right there on the screen for all to see. Both actors are amazing, and Hawn truly is one of America’s sweethearts. 

Morgan Freeman - Lean On Me

By 1989, Morgan Freeman had been steadily working in Hollywood for more than two decades, but it was that year that his career jumped to superstar levels. He starred in 4 films in the final year of the decade, including Driving Miss Daisy and Glory. Those two films garnered 14 Oscar nominations between them, including a Best Actor nod for Freeman. It was a third film though, Lean On Me that really lit the screen on fire. Based on the true story of a principal named Joe Clark who is charged with cleaning up a Paterson, NJ school. Freeman’s performance is powerful and set the stage for all that came after it in his career. 

Demi Moore - About Last Night

One of the actors to emerge out of the 1980s “Brat Pack,” Demi Moore forged a career that lasted well into the ‘90s and beyond, with some of her finest work coming in her first few films. One of those, About Last Night, holds up incredibly well. It’s a unique take on the rom-com and is at times much more serious than so many others from this era, due in large part to the grittier story it was adapted from (David Mamet’s play, Sexual Perversity in Chicago) and Moore’s excellent performance alongside Rob Lowe.  

Harrison Ford - Raiders Of The Lost Ark

Sure, there are a few movies that would fit here for Harrison Ford, like that one about the space wars or whatever it’s called. But for pure, distilled Ford, nothing beats Indiana Jones and nothing beats the OG Raiders of the Lost Ark. It’s Ford at his very best: snarky, charming, witty, and tough. No Nazi is safe with Indy after them. 

Oprah Winfrey - The Color Purple

Oprah Winfrey’s rise to all-powerful media queen began in the ‘80s and a very big piece of that was her acting performance in 1985’s The Color Purple. She was nominated for an Oscar in her film debut and almost four decades later, the film’s powerful message of overcoming abuse still resonates with audiences. It was nominated for 10 Academy Awards, though it shockingly didn’t win any, which is a shame. 

Chevy Chase - Fletch

Like Harrison Ford, you could go in a lot of directions with Chevy Chase, but, like Raiders, you need to go with the purest form of Chase and for that, there is nothing better than the original Fletch. He's at his sarcastic best as Irwin Fletcher. No one can quite be as charmingly condescending as peak Chase and no one is spared here. Order up a couple of steak sandwiches and some caviar; Fletch just hit a water buffalo.

Meryl Streep - Out Of Africa

In the 10 Academy Awards shows of the ‘80s, Meryl Streep was nominated seven times. She won her first (and only of the decade) for 1982’s Sophie’s Choice, but let’s get real, as amazing as she is in it, no one really wants to sit down with a bowl of popcorn and watch that one. Instead, consider a performance just as good, but slightly more upbeat (only slightly, though). Out of Africa is beautiful, as are Streep and Robert Redford in the lead roles, and the tragic story comes to life like magic with her performance. 

Geena Davis - Beetlejuice

Geena Davis made steady progress in her career in the early ‘80s but really found a new level in Beetlejuice. Her on-screen partnership with Alec Baldwin as two ghosts frustrated with the people living in their house is excellent, as they more or less play the “straight man” to Micheal Keaton’s titular character. It’s not an easy gig, but Davis is amazing. 

Jackie Chan - Police Story

Jackie Chan didn’t break big in the United States until the ‘90s and by then he was the biggest action star in Hong Kong. It was 1985’s Police Story that solidified his spot at the top and if you’ve never seen it, you definitely need to. While Chan has always been an amazing stuntman, it’s Police Story that brings all his skills to the forefront, from amazing fight scenes to the epic opening car chase with Chan hanging onto a bus with an umbrella as he pursues the baddies. It’s one of the most insane stunts in Chan’s history of insane stunts. 

Kathleen Turner - Romancing The Stone

Romancing the Stone is one of the great comedies of the 1980s and features some amazing performances from Michael Douglas and Danny DeVito, but Kathleen Turner’s Joan Wilder takes the cake. Or the bail of pot, as the case may be here. Walking that line between an intrepid explorer looking for her kidnapped sister and a damsel in distress, Turner shines. Her chemistry with Douglas and DeVito is so good, they made two more films together, the sequel Jewel of the Nile and the unrelated The War of the Roses, but it’s Stone that remains the best. 

Michael Douglas - Wall Street

Michael Douglas is great as Jack in Romancing The Stone, but it’s his portrayal of Gordon Gekko in Wall Street that makes for one of the greatest movie villains in cinema history. Of course, he won an Oscar for the performance, but it’s how quotable the movie and his character are that makes it one of the best of all time, even if those quoting don’t always understand the heavy-handed irony in each line. 

Edward James Olmos - Stand And Deliver

With Stand And Deliver, director Ramón Menéndez told the true story of math teacher Jaime Escalante who sought to raise the level of education single-handily in an East LA high school by daring to teach underprivileged Hispanic kids calculus. Edward James Olmos plays Escalante brilliantly, earning himself an Oscar nomination in the process. 

Tom Hanks - Big

Tom Hanks grew up with Big, literally and figuratively. It marks the point in his career when he jumped from a wild and wacky comedian to an actor who can take on any role, no matter how serious, and make it his own. There are the wilder moments, but there is also a real vulnerability to the man-child Josh Baskin that Hanks makes so authentic for the audience. It’s no wonder it earned him his first Oscar nomination. 

Daryl Hannah - Splash

Another Hanks movie also happens to be the great Daryl Hannah’s finest performance. Before Ariel, there was Madison, the mermaid who longed to walk on the land with humans and falls in love with an average Joe. Hannah’s performance magically convinces audiences that it’s exactly what a fish out of water would be like. 

Mel Gibson - Lethal Weapon

Back before Mel Gibson was a lightening rod for controversy, he played some pretty amazing roles and none more so that Martin Riggs in the Lethal Weapon series. From the very first scene, audiences see that classic “Mel Gibson Crazy Eyes” face and it sets the tone for the movie and the franchise, one that had remarkable life to it. That first scene is also why Lethal Weapon should be in the conversation for the best Christmas movie, alongside Die Hard. 

Arnold Schwarzenegger - The Terminator

The decade wouldn't be as big and as over the top as it was without Arnold Schwarzenegger. The Austrian bodybuilder took the movie world by storm and there are any number of enjoyable performances, but if you're looking at 1980s movies, you have to choose The Terminator. It launched him to superstardom, and it kicked off a franchise of Terminator movies that's lasted for decades. Sure, he only has a handful of lines, but no one could top his performance as a relentless killing machine that we all somehow fell in love with… later. 

Sylvester Stallone - First Blood

Not only did First Blood launch one of the most enduring franchises of the era, but it’s also just a really good film. It could be argued that it’s Sylvester Stallone’s best. His performance as a down-and-out Vietnam vet highlighted the plight of returning soldiers from that war. Brian Dennehy plays the antagonist perfectly as the angry sheriff that doesn’t take kindly to strangers in his town. A+. 

Michelle Pfeiffer - Scarface

Scarface really hasn’t aged all that well. Sure, the memes are fantastic, but as a film, it feels as dated as neon green headbands and electric typewriters. The lone exception is Michelle Pfeiffer’s performance. It’s still great, and made her one of the biggest stars of the 1980s. 

Molly Ringwald - Sixteen Candles

Molly Ringwald was once called John Hughes’ muse and it’s easy to see why she became such a mainstay in many of his hit movies from the era. Sixteen Candles is truly one of the funniest movies of the ‘80s, in part because of the side characters, but mostly it’s due to Ringwald’s fantastic performance as the girl the family forgot. 

Denzel Washington - Glory

Denzel Washington was nominated for his first Oscar for 1987’s Cry Freedom, but he won his first for 1989’s Glory. The cool thing about Glory is that it’s actually one of his most powerful performances, as audiences didn’t know him as DENZEL yet. The movie follows one of the few Black companies fighting for the Union during the Civil War and tells a story that had sort of been forgotten in the public consciousness at the time. The success of Glory and of Washington’s performance, especially in the scene where he is whipped, is one of the reasons that story will never be forgotten again. 

Jodie Foster - The Accused

The Accused is not an easy movie to watch. It begins with one of the most brutal rape scenes in cinema history and follows Jodie Foster’s character, Sarah Tobias, on the quest to get justice. The subject matter was so intense, the role was reportedly turned down by a number of A-listers at the time. It was fortuitous for Foster, who had struggled to re-ignite her career after attending Yale. Her performance won her an Oscar and the rest is history. 

Sally Field - Steel Magnolias

There are great Sally Field movies in every decade since she jumped from TV to the big screen in the mid-70s. For the ‘80s, you can’t go wrong with Steel Magnolias. It may be a tad melodramatic at times, but it stays grounded with the acting by Field and other stars like Julia Roberts, Dolly Parton, and Shirley MacLaine. 

Bill Murray - Ghostbusters

Bill Murray had so many great movies in the 1980s, it’s difficult to pick just one, but in the end, you have to go with Ghostbusters. His turn as Peter Venkman is so funny, so quotable, and so lovable, that without him, it would be a completely different movie. John Belushi in the role was the original plan, but after his death, Murray ended up in the role, and now we can’t imagine it any other way. 

Robin Williams - Good Morning Vietnam

Good Morning Vietnam was an important movie in Robin Williams' stellar career. It was the movie that truly showed audiences just how great his acting chops were. He was no longer just the frenetic comedian running around the stage inspiring laughs. Williams showed his dramatic side, especially after the bomb went off in his favorite cafe. Of course, there is plenty of off-the-wall zaniness from him that we all love, which makes it one of his most well-rounded performances. 

Glenn Close - Fatal Attraction

There are few more quintessential scenes from the 1980s than the boiling bunny in Fatal Attraction. Glenn Close’s performance as the unpredictable, jilted lover is just as iconic. Like the bunny in the pot, her character comes to a slow boil, getting more and more intense as the movie moves along. It’s a masterclass in acting from the legend. 

Micheal J. Fox - Back To The Future

No way we were going to leave Michael J. Fox off this list. Between Family Ties, and Teen Wolf, there is no actor that defines the decade quite like him. Of course, it’s no surprise that the essential movie for any Fox fan is the great Back to the Future. It’s a movie that has been introduced to, and loved by, countless people from Generation X and the following generations. It’s beloved by all. 

Jane Fonda - 9 To 5

Jane Fonda, like Sally Field, has decades of outstanding movies and performances, but when she teamed up with Dolly Parton and Lily Tomlin to make 9 to 5, she became an icon to a whole new generation. It’s been more than forty years since its release, but the chemistry between Fonda and Tomlin remains, as they proved last year with Moving On.

Eddie Murphy - Coming To America

Last, but certainly not least, we have one of the biggest breakout stars of the 1980s, Eddie Murphy. Like others, it’s hard to decide on just one, but in the end, it simply has to be Coming To America. It’s the quintessential Murphy film filled with memorable quotes and amazing performances from the entire cast, especially Murphy. 

This list could go on and on. The 1980s were a magical decade in theaters and crafting exhaustive list would prove to be impossible. Luckily, you can find the best ‘80s movies, and even '80s movies that don't get enough love if you need more. 

The opportunity to grace the stage at Studio 8H as a headliner for NBC’s premier sketch comedy series is a surefire sign that a celebrity has truly made it. However, the 32 A-listers we have named below stand out as an exception to the rule, having never hosted an episode of Saturday Night Live before.

Beyoncé

The pop superstar (an understatement here, really) has proven herself as a worthy actor and even showed solid comedic chops in her two SNL cameos, but Beyoncé Knowles-Carter has never headlined an episode before. Maybe, if and when she returns for her fifth musical guest appearance, she could do double-duty as host – for which an appearance alongside her frequent impersonator, Maya Rudolph, would be a necessity.

Angela Bassett

Thanks to her stint as a frequent American Horror Story cast member and her Academy Award nomination for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Angela Bassett is bigger than ever these days. Therefore, it would certainly be about time for the showbiz vet to finally grace the stage at studio 8H.

Johnny Depp

Johnny Depp is one of the most recognizable and critically acclaimed celebrities of his time, if not all time. Considering that and his decades in the industry – including the Pirates of the Caribbean movies – it’s surprising that he hasn’t ever hosted the long-running sketch comedy series. 

Angelina Jolie

Some might swear that they have seen Angelina Jolie on SNL before, but that could have been Abby Elliot’s pretty convincing impersonation. The Academy Award winner – last seen in Marvel’s Eternals cast – has never hosted the show, nor made any brief appearances.

James Marsden

With his charming wit and a successful career that includes blockbusters like the X-Men movies and the iconic romance drama, The Notebook, you would think James Marsden would have been on SNL by now, but not yet. Maybe his funny, self-effacive performance on the reality prank show, Jury Duty, will convince Lorne and co. he could lead a good show.

Zendaya

With her dual Emmy wins for leading HBO’s Euphoria cast and major roles in blockbusters like the Spider-Man movies and the Denis Villeneuve's Dune films, Zendaya is on top of the world and an established resident of it for sometime now. Maybe she has just been too busy to make time for an SNL hosting gig or her invitation got lost in the shuffle of her many other invitations to special events or casting calls.

Mark Hamill

Even though he was the top-billed star of one of the biggest movie franchises in the world, Mark Hamill's only appearance on SNL so far is a cameo in a sketch about a Star Wars-themed home shopping network program. The Luke Skywalker actor recently told Esquire that he suspects he has never been asked to host because he agreed to host an episode of rival sketch comedy series, Friday, in 1981.

Christian Bale

One of the few great live-action Batman actors to never host a Saturday Night Live episode is Christian Bale, who has worked with former series writer Adam McKay on acclaimed satirical films The Big Short and Vice, however. Intriguingly, the Academy Award winner was once impersonated on the show by his future American Hustle co-star, Bradley Cooper.

Sandra Bullock

Oscar winner Sandra Bullock has brought her killer acting skills and sharp sense of humor to many of her best movies, such as Miss Congeniality, or, more recently, The Lost City. However, she still has yet to utilize her comedic talents on an SNL episode, but did make headlines when former cast member Pete Davidson crashed a party of hers with her Bird Box co-star, Colson “Machine Gun Kelly” Baker, as the actor and musician revealed on The Tonight Show in 2022.

Carol Burnett

Few people are more beloved and influential in the world of sketch comedy as Carol Burnett, which is why it is shocking that none of the many great performances she has given in her long career include an SNL gig. That is, until you learn that the prospect of hosting the show she is said to have paved the way for does not interest her, as she told Fox News in April 2023.

Tom Cruise

As the lead of monster hits like the Mission: Impossible movies, among others, Tom Cruise is practically synonymous with the term “movie star,” but has never lit up Studio 8H. The closest we may ever get to seeing him in such a light is his bombastic performance as Les Grossman in Tropic Thunder alongside SNL vets Bill Hader and Ben Stiller — the latter of which also impersonated the Top Gun: Maverick star in a funny Celebrity Jeopardy! sketch in 1998.

Leonardo DiCaprio

Perhaps the reason behind Oscar winner Leonardo DiCaprio’s lack of hosting gigs is due to a lack of comedy for much of his career, unless you count The Wolf of Wall Street or Don’t Look Up. However, when his co-star from both of those films, Jonah Hill, hosted in 2017, DiCaprio made one of the most surprising SNL cameos in the monologue, in which they recreated a famous scene from Titanic.

Vin Diesel

Many Fast and Furious actors — including Dwayne Johnson and Gal Gadot — have hosted Saturday Night Live, but the franchise’s leading star, Vin Diesel, is not one of them. Yet, he has been impersonated on the show to hilarious effect a number of times, such as by Taran Killam in one of the most popular videos on SNL’s YouTube channel, which reimagines Bambi as an action movie.

Chris Evans

Out of the many actors who have poked fun at their own Marvel movies in great superhero sketches when hosting SNL — such as Scarlett Johansson and Chris Hemsworth — Chris Evans is not one of them. This is particularly surprising since the MCU’s former Captain America has proven his comedic chops plenty of times, such as in the underrated Not Another Teen Movie and, more recently, Apple TV+’s action-packed rom-com, Ghosted.

Morgan Freeman

Morgan Freeman appeared on a 2010 edition of “What Up With That?” as himself, being interrupted by Diondre Cole (Kenan Thompson) as he dishes on what modern education is lacking. That marks the renowned Academy Award winner’s sole SNL appearance so far, having never been on the show as a host.

Harrison Ford

Saturday Night Live might really benefit from having someone known for such remarkable, dry wit as Harrison Ford on as a host. However, the closest we have seen to the star of the Indiana Jones movies and Star Wars’ original Han Solo actor making an appearance was an impersonation by Fred Armisen in a fake movie trailer.

Al Pacino

One of cinema’s all-time greatest living legends, Al Pacino, has been impersonated several times on SNL and by multiple actors — including Bill Hader and Alec Baldwin. Yet, the Academy Award-winning star of The Godfather and Heat has never hosted the show, let alone made an appearance of his own.

Jordan Peele

Keegan-Michael Key hosted a great SNL episode in 2021, but fellow sketch comedy performer Jordan Peele — whom he met as part of the MADtv cast before starting their own hit series together — cannot say the same. However, according to THR, the Academy Award-winning horror movie maestro could have been a cast member if MADtv had relieved him of his contract and allowed him the opportunity.

Michelle Pfeiffer

Kate McKinnon dressed in Michelle Pfeiffer’s Catwoman suit alongside Zoë Kravitz when The Batman’s Selena Kyle actor hosted Saturday Night Live in 2022. However, the real star of Batman Returns and countless other classics throughout the decades has never set foot on Studio 8H's stage.

Brad Pitt

Brad Pitt has appeared in two SNL cold opens: first in 1998 as David Spade’s therapist when the former cast member came back to host, and secondly as Dr. Anthony Fauci in a pre-taped, Covid-era show. The Oscar-winning star of Fight Club and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood even introduced that latter episode’s musical performance by Miley Cyrus, but that still does not count as an official hosting gig.

Keanu Reeves

I think it would be hilarious to see Keanu Reeves cameo as himself going John Wick on the SNL cast out of revenge for the show’s many unflattering impersonations of him over the years. That would make up for the fact that we have never seen the beloved action movie star host an episode.

Julia Roberts

In an interview with Mario Lopez for Extra, Julia Roberts revealed that she once turned down the chance to host SNL out of fear that she would “blow it.” However, she later told Jess Cagle that she would do it if Alec Baldwin was involved.

Mark Ruffalo

Idris Elba once starred in an SNL sketch called “The Impossible Hulk,” in which his anger transforms him into an entitled white lady. How much funnier might that sketch have been if it was the MCU’s Bruce Banner himself, Mark Ruffalo, in the role? Hopefully, the Oscar nominee gets the chance to poke fun at his own superhero character as a host one day.

Zoe Saldaña

We know that Zoe Saldaña is funny from her roles in comedies like Guess Who and 2010’s Death at a Funeral, but hosting SNL would be the ultimate chance to prove her chops to the world. At least she can say that she is one of the top 10 highest grossing actors of all time with blockbuster credits like the Avatar movies and several MCU titles.

Susan Sarandon

Academy Award winner Susan Sarandon has been a movie star for as long as Saturday Night Live has been around, having made her breakthrough in 1975 with the musical horror comedy movie, The Rocky Horror Picture Show. However, her only contribution to the series so far is starring in Andy Samberg and Justin Timberlake’s follow-up to “Dick in a Box,” called “Motherlover.”

Arnold Schwarzenegger

After years of being imitated and idolized by Kevin Nealon and Dana Carvey as Hans and Franz, Arnold Schwarzenegger would appear alongside the fictional Austrian bodybuilders in a couple of iconic SNL cameos. That is the extent of appearances by the Terminator movies star for now. 

Will Smith

It is surprising that a performer of such radiant fame as Will Smith has never hosted SNL, nor made a cameo appearance a single time during his remarkable, versatile career, but it looks like he will never get the chance. According to RadarOnline, the Men in Black star was reportedly banned from the show after slapping series veteran Chris Rock for a joke he made at the Oscars on the same night Smith won his Academy Award for King Richard.

Meryl Streep

For someone like me, it is a real “Sophie’s Choice” to decide which is the greater honor in pop culture: winning an Oscar or hosting Saturday Night Live. Well, at the moment, Meryl Streep has three of the former (for Kramer vs. Kramer, Sophie’s Choice, and The Iron Lady), but zero of the latter.

Stanley Tucci

In 2018, SNL paid tribute to Stanley Tucci with a rap parody called “Tucci Gang,” performed by Pete Davidson and featuring host Sam Rockwell impersonating the actor, whom he worked with in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. However, while the Oscar nominee and restaurateur also made a brief cameo in the video himself, it remains his only appearance on the show to date.

Mark Wahlberg

Two weeks after Andy Samberg played Mark Wahlberg in a sketch called “Mark Wahlberg Talks to Animals,” the actor himself appeared on the show in a cameo-heavy episode pretending to be very unamused by the imitation. Because of this, I would love to see the one-time rapper and Oscar nominee host an SNL episode of his own.

Denzel Washington

Former SNL cast member Jay Pharaoh does an impression of Denzel Washington so spot-on that you might be easily convinced that you have seen him on the show before. In reality, the Oscar-winning star of Glory and Training Day has never even made a cameo, let alone appeared as a host.

Michelle Yeoh

Only a handful of Asian actors have hosted SNL (such as Jackie Chan, Awkwafina, and Simu Liu, for instance), but it is hard to believe that Michelle Yeoh is not included in that bunch, given her exceptional action star reputation over the last few decades. Perhaps her recent boost in popularity following her historic Oscar win for Everything Everywhere All At Once could change that.

I wonder if we will ever see any of these celebs finally get the call from Lorne Michaels (or agree to it) and, perhaps, go on to earn a spot among the greatest SNL hosts of all time or join the Five-Timers Club, even. I mean, considering all the non-actors who have made great hosts on Saturday Night Live, these high-profile performers could absolutely rock 30 Rock to its core.  

To call Morgan Freeman a legend when it comes to acting would be an understatement. Freeman's best movies -- such as The Shawshank Redemption, Driving Miss Daisy and Million Dollar Baby -- have more than proven that he's one of the greatest performers of all time. But his esteemed reputation didn’t stop his A Good Person director, Zach Braff, from asking him to do multiple takes. And as it turns out, the Oscar winner had a hilarious response to being asked.

It's true that whether Morgan Freeman is playing a world leader or lending his triumphant voice to the narration of his documentaries, he comes off as being relatively flawless. However, it doesn’t mean he won't be asked to perform multiple takes during a given production. Zach Braff spoke to our own ReelBlend podcast about what it was like directing Freeman on A Good Person. It would seem that the two creatives forged a strong relationship, which is why Braff could only chuckle after revealed Freeman's one-word response to doing more than one take:

I mean, guess the 85-year-old star felt he nailed it right the first time? In his defense, he has been doing this for over 50 years and would likely know when something feels good. Not to mention, he’s tried his hand at directing too, courtesy of the 1993 political drama Bopha! and three episodes of Madam Secretary. Still, you can't fault his director for wanting to have different options when he eventually gets into the editing process.

Zach Braff made his directorial debut with his indie project The Garden State and has worked with a number of great talents in front of and behind the camera. During the interview, he spoke more about his favorite part of working with such esteemed actors in a directorial capacity:

As suggested by his comments, asking someone to do multiple takes is absolutely not a way of critiquing their acting. It’s more about collaborating with an actor, sharing your point of view and how you see the scene working. Clearly things worked out in the case of Morgan Freeman. In A Good Person, Freeman plays a father, who forms a bond with his would-be-daughter-in-law (Florence Pugh) years after his son's death. 

Zach Braff was fortunate enough to get to see the Bruce Almighty actor shoot scenes at his hometown high school, as the Scrubs alum always tries to give his films a personal touch. If I saw my favorite high-profile actor roaming around my alma mater, I’d probably be excited myself. If you want to know more about the experiences Braff had while making his latest movie, take a look at the full ReelBlend interview below:

It may still sound somewhat weird that Zach Braff asked Morgan Freeman to do multiple takes, but surely it was all for the betterment of their movie. You can see Freeman’s performance for yourself in Braff's A Good Person, which is one of the most notable 2023 new movie releases, by checking it out in theaters now.

Zach Braff has a strong connection to his hometown of South Orange, New Jersey. The actor/writer/director made his directorial debut with a feature set and shot there (2004’s Garden State), and nearly 20 years later he’s made his second homecoming with his latest film, A Good Person. This time around, he brought the legendary, Oscar-winning talents of Morgan Freeman with him, and he shot scenes in some memory-filled places from his childhood – including the local park’s duck pond and the principal’s office in his alma mater high school.

I can personally relate to Braff’s hometown love because I grew up in South Orange’s sister town and graduated from the same high school. Watching the film, it’s wild to see Morgan Freeman in places I remember from growing up, and I told the filmmaker as much when I interviewed him last week during the virtual press day for A Good Person. I asked about the experience of shooting scenes with Freeman in his hometown and the reaction of locals to the beloved star, and Braff said,

In A Good Person, Morgan Freeman plays Daniel, a former cop and recovering alcoholic who reconnects with his former daughter-in-law to be, star Florence Pugh’s Allison, when she shows up at one of his support group meetings. Their relationship is strained because she was in a car accident that killed Daniel’s daughter and son-in-law (she was driving and they were passengers). In the months that followed, she broke off her relationship with Daniel’s son and became addicted to opioids. The drama centers on their respective attempts to deal with the consequences of the life-shattering event.

As noted by the director, A Good Person was shot on location in his hometown, and Zach Braff says that choice was an extension of his vision as a creative. A common piece of advice shared among writers is to “write what you know,” and what Braff knows is South Orange, New Jersey. He explained,

A Good Person is Zach Braff’s heaviest and most dramatic directorial effort to date, and in the challenge of taking it on, his connection to the location was his support system. He continued:

Also starring Chinaza Uche, Molly Shannon, Celeste O’Connor, Zoe Lister-Jones, and Alex Wolfe, A Good Person is now playing in limited release. If it’s not currently playing in a theater near you (check local listings via Fandango), you can stream many Zach Braff movies online. To learn about all of the films coming out between now and the end of the year, check out our 2023 Movie Release Calendar.

Remember the wonderfully weird Bruce Almighty? The 2003 comedy, which is now considered to be one of Jim Carrey’s best movies, told the story of a television reporter, who suddenly received the powers of God (played by Morgan Freeman). And the results were pure hilarity and chaos, as the character's new abilities overtook his life. But what if the concept was taken a step further and in a sequel, he received the powers of Satan? That was the the very idea that Carrey and his colleagues apparently intended to use for a sequel, but it never saw the light (er… dark) of day.  

The satanic sequel would have been called Brucifer (yes, really) and followed Jim Carrey’s Bruce Nolan turning to the forces of evil following the death of his wife, Grace (Jennifer Aniston). One of the movie’s screenwriters, Steve Koren, enlightened Syfy on the subject, saying this of Carrey’s involvement in the scrapped follow-up: 

Brucifer was apparently already being scripted by Koren and his Almighty co-writer, Mark O’Keefe, by the time their successful comedy hit theaters. The pair then officially pitched the idea to Universal Pictures back in 2010, but it “scared” the studio “a little bit,” especially because it sought to center on Bruce dealing with grief in a more serious manner while also injecting the big comedic elements audiences saw play out in its predecessor.

Universal likely didn’t bite because by that time, it had already made Evan Almighty. The spinoff centered on Bruce's co-worker, Evan Baxter, played by Steve Carell (who let the production fire up his hair for a Bruce Almighty scene that never made it into the finished movie). The 2007 comedy totally bombed, with the flick making around $175 million worldwide on nearly the same budget. 

While the screenwriters recalled their time pitching the project to Jim Carrey however, Koren said the actor “was laughing his ass off” and thought audiences would connect with the comedy bits they had planned. Mark O’Keefe also said this:  

Steve Koren also shared that Jim Carrey built on their pitch of Jennifer Aniston being resurrected by adding that she should look like a zombie when Bruce first resurrects her. As the writers explained, they thought that was “brilliant.”  It's unfortunate that none of this came to fruition, and it likely never will, especially considering Jim Carrey has mostly retired from acting. 

While promoting Sonic the Hedgehog 2 earlier this year, Carrey told a reporter that unless the “angels bring some sort of script that’s written in gold ink that says it’s going to be really important for people to see,” he’s not actively pursuing further movie and TV roles. The star said he enjoys his quiet life, spending time utilizing his incredible painting talents and also feels he’s “done enough.” He also has high standards when it comes to considering doing sequels to his iconic roles. But hey, he did do two Sonic movies in the past few years, so we can’t totally rule out the possibility of Carrey coming back around on an idea he was once passionate about. And angels... could technically be involved in Brucifer, ya know? 

While we imagine what could have been, you can check out Bruce Almighty by streaming it with a Peacock subscription. 

When any individual finds success, it’s always wonderful to see them turn around and work to try and help others in their field, and while Stephen King has made all kinds of support and outreach efforts to other creatives over the course of his career, one of the earliest moves he made in that regard was establishing what is referred to as the Dollar Baby Program. In the late 1970s, he was regularly getting requests from student filmmakers hoping to get permission to adapt his short stories, and while his lawyers saw it as a potential legal quagmire, the author created a policy that would allow select works be available for the price of $1 under three conditions: 1) King would retain all rights to the original story; 2) the resulting movie wouldn’t be exhibited commercially without permission; and 3) a copy of the finished work would be sent to him to watch.

In the last four decades, many young writer/directors have taken advantage of this program, but there is no question whatsoever that the standout work among all those completed is an adaptation of “The Woman In The Room” that was made in 1983. Featured in the collection Night Shift, the short story is an emotional and melancholy piece about terminal illness and euthanasia, and the 30-minute movie is a haunting and powerful incarnation. Stephen King was impressed and shocked by the quality, and made a point of remembering the name of the young filmmaker responsible for making it: Frank Darabont.

Around 1987, Darabont reached out to King again, but this time not about a Dollar Baby short; he wanted permission to take a crack at adapting “Rita Hayworth And Shawshank Redemption,” a prison-set novella from 1982’s Different Seasons. The author didn’t quite see the cinematic potential in the story, but he trusted the material in the hands of the man who made The Woman In The Room and granted the filmmaker the option. After years of procrastination, Darabont wrote the script on spec in the span of eight weeks, and when shopping it around to studios, he only ended up having to go to Castle Rock Entertainment – the production company behind Stand By Me, Misery, and Needful Things – to get a “yes.”

According to the Los Angeles Times, Frank Darabont was offered $2.4 million to sell the script to Castle Rock so that Rob Reiner could direct, but Darabont refused, wanting to direct the movie himself, and he instead took an offer for $750,000 plus a percentage of future profits. Thus began the journey making 1994’s The Shawshank Redemption – a film that is now regarded as one of the best movies of the '90s, most beloved of all time, and is the subject of this week’s Adapting Stephen King.

What “Rita Hayworth And Shawshank Redemption” Is About

The novella has never precisely been the most desired medium in the business side of the literary industry, but they have been a staple of the Stephen King canon nearly from the beginning. Being the exceptionally dedicated and prolific writer that he is, King fell into a pattern in the early years of his career that saw him complete a novel and then follow it up with a shorter work that was too long to be classified a short story. The first four in this pattern were ultimately collected in the aforementioned Different Seasons. Per Douglas Winter’s Stephen King: The Art Of Darkness, he wrote “The Body” after completing work on Salem’s Lot; “Apt Pupil” was penned after The Shining; “The Breathing Method” was imagined in the wake of Cujo; and “Rita Hayworth And Shawshank Redemption” poured from his exhausted mind after finishing the marathon that was The Stand.

According to Stephen King’s essay “Rita Hayworth And The Darabont Redemption” (included as an introduction in The Shawshank Redemption’s published screenplay), original inspiration for the story came out of a desire to echo the style of author Max Brand, a.k.a. Frederick Schiller Faust. Brand’s books would often feature a “plain-spun narrator” telling stories about their amazing friend – but at the same time be telling a story about themselves. Writes King,

As “Rita Hayworth And Shawshank Redemption” began to flow out of his mind and out through his fingertips, the narrator in question became Red, a veteran prisoner in a Maine penitentiary named Shawshank Prison, and his heroic secondary character was revealed as unassuming, determined banker Andy Dufresne. With those two spectacular protagonists, King weaved a remarkable journey about indelible friendship, the secret strength embedded in hope, and the powerful optimism understanding that “no good thing ever dies.”

Beginning in 1948 and spanning nearly 30 years, “Rita Hayworth And Shawshank Redemption” chronicles Andy Dufresne’s time as a convicted innocent man learning how to survive all the horrors that transpire inside prison walls. Written as a memoir from Red’s perspective, who during his time on the inside is known as a man who knows how to get things, the story goes from seeing Andy as an introverted loner, to impressive hero, to mythic figure.

How Frank Darabont’s The Shawshank Redemption Differs From “Rita Hayworth And Shawshank Redemption”

On the page, “Rita Hayworth And Shawshank Redemption” doesn’t come off the page as being particularly cinematic (as recognized by the author himself in the quote above), but when Frank Darabont read it, he saw something that even Stephen King didn’t recognize. The purest proof of this is that there is very little about the material that is changed in the journey across mediums – and the stuff that is altered is perfectly sensible.

The most sensible change made between the novella and The Shawshank Redemption is in the realm of character amalgamation. In the text, Shawshank Prison is overseen by multiple wardens during the tenure of Andy Dufresne (Tim Robbins), but the movie simplifies things by just having Samuel Norton (Bob Gunton) be the one in charge for the entire duration. Similarly, the role of Brooks (James Whitmore) has story bits that come from multiple sources in Stephen King’s novella, but he is constructed in the film to be the perfect personification of institutionalization.

Another significant modification involving the warden involves the fate of Tommy Williams (Gil Bellows), the young prisoner whom Andy helps get an education and could hold the key to his freedom. In a surprise twist, the film version is actually much darker than what Stephen King originally wrote, which simply sees Tommy transferred out of Shawshank to a minimum security prison. With this change, it was Frank Darabont’s intention to really drive home the extreme villainy of Warden Norton, and in that mission he is certainly successful.

One of the very few straight-up additions made by Frank Darabont to the story is the sequence where Andy locks himself in the warden’s office and plays Mozart’s “The Marriage of Figaro” over the PA system. The filmmaker was inspired to include the moment because he was listening to the music as he was writing the screenplay, though it’s a scene that Stephen King isn’t particularly enamored with, as he writes that he “never liked” it in his essay about the film in Stephen King Goes To The Movies.

Perhaps the most famous difference between the Stephen King story and The Shawshank Redemption is the ending. Red (Morgan Freeman) – who, it should be noted, is a white guy with red hair in the source material – never actually reunites with Andy in Zihuatanejo, Mexico; he simply rides the bus to El Paso, Texas with hope in his heart that he will see his friend again. Frank Darabont originally planned to have that be the ending of the film as well, but Castle Rock insisted that he at the very least shoot a scene with the characters reuniting. It was left to be the writer/director’s choice whether or not to keep or cut the moment on the beach, and he chose the former.

The last change I’ll note is the secretly established identity that Andy takes on following his prison escape. In the novella, Andy winds up going by “Peter Stevens,” but that was nixed by the production due to concerns of possibility of being sued by an actual person with that name. Frank Darabont fixed it to be “Randall Stevens” instead, with “Randall” being a direct reference to the villainous Randall Flagg from The Stand, Eyes Of The Dragon, and the Dark Tower novels.

Is It Worthy Of The King?

That header, a repeated feature of this column, seems silly in light of the reputation that Frank Darabont’s The Shawshank Redemption has earned in the 27 years since its original release, so I’ll be brief in directly addressing it: unquestionably. As a Stephen King adaptation, it is a film that uncovers and exposes the gorgeous and precious soul of the novella that inspired it, and every choice made in bringing it to life – casting, direction, cinematography, editing, and so on – is remarkable.

Its great power is in its earnestness. Hollywood has spent so many decades overloading us with schmaltz that our cynicism drives go into overload when faced with attempts at pure optimism, and more often than not the wholly appropriate reaction is a hefty and obvious eye roll. The Shawshank Redemption defies that instinct. The love that it has for its characters seeps out of the screen and infects the audience, creating a deep appreciation of their humanity and making it a pressing need to see them free. Its themes about institutionalization and, yes, redemption, are spectacularly complicated to convey, particularly when you’re talking about an ensemble of protagonists who have all been convicted of violent offenses, but it’s magical in its translation of perspective and in its stimulus of empathy.

Both Morgan Freeman and Tim Robbins deliver performances that they’ll be forever remembered for – which is an opinion meant to both express the extraordinary quality of their work in the movie, and also the wide-spread love that it has earned since it was declared a flop during its theatrical run. Stephen King touches on the phenomenon of ubiquitous appreciation in Stephen King Goes To The Movies, and credits a great deal of it to the man who originally inspired its creation:

The Shawshank Redemption may be less than 30 years old, but it’s not a controversial statement to say that it has already earned the status of timeless classic, and it will forever be recognized as a special title in the Hollywood legacy of Stephen King.

How To Watch Frank Darabont’s The Shawshank Redemption

It should be surprising to literally nobody that it is spectacularly easy in the internet age to watch Frank Darabont’s The Shawshank Redemption. It is currently streaming on HBO Max, but even if you don’t have a subscription you can rent or purchase it digitally via Amazon, Vudu, Google, or Apple. If you’re looking for the most pristine version available and/or you collect physical media, a 4K Blu-ray was just released a couple months ago.

Next week will be a very different edition of Adapting Stephen King, as we’ll be going from the Oscar-nominated prestige of The Shawshank Redemption to the grim/silly horror of Tobe Hooper’s The Mangler. Look for it here on CinemaBlend next Wednesday, and to explore all of the previous installments of this column, click through the banners below!

You’d think by now that during the course of his decades-long career, Morgan Freeman has pretty much seen and done it all. As it turns out, however, that’s not exactly true, as the actor spoke out about his role in The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard, noting the movie first that the action-comedy allowed him to do opposite Ryan Reynolds.

As part of a Blu-ray feature on The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard set, a spotlight was shone on the stunts in the film, which included a boat explosion and some choice fighting scenes on a yacht that had to be mapped out well in advance. Of course, Morgan Freeman was able to try his hand at some close and personal fight sequences for the 2021 movie and he revealed in a Blu-ray interview that this was actually a first for him in the realm of movie-making. He noted a time he’d thought through this type of action in the past.

Of course, Morgan Freeman has been in some action or at least some action-y movies, so it’s not like the action side of things is totally new. He’s in the Gerard Butler-led Has Fallen franchise, not to mention some older action films like Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, Unforgiven and Glory. These movies have occasionally had him handling guns, or in the case of Thieves, large scimitars.

But even within those, these types of setup scenes he’s mentioned apparently weren’t Freeman’s to film. It makes sense, as wracking my brain I certainly can’t think of another close hand-to-hand fight scene setup the actor has done with other action going on that required separate setups. The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard changed all that and gave the actor his own “saloon”-esque setup with complex close-up action alongside Ryan Reynolds while Samuel L. Jackson and Salma Hayek's characters were also engaged in separate brawls.

That said, Morgan Freeman’s character in The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard was a surprising addition to the sequel, given the role. Toward the end of the movie -- and spoilers -- there's an exceptionally fun yacht sequence in which Ryan Reynolds' character, Michael Bryce, works his way through a slew of baddies, throwing punches on the way. One of those baddies is even dispatched by a jukebox that amusingly plays "I Saw The Sign." At this point, the character is pretty worse for wear, but Bryce eventually shows up in the nick of time to save Darius Kincaid (Samuel L. Jackson); however, then Freeman's Senior fights him in close quarters, throwing some punches and behaving in a "spry" manner. Without giving the ending away, it sounds like it was a pretty fun -- albeit complex--scene to film.

It just goes to show you that you can be in the business of making movies for a helluva long time and still get to try new things. I'm not sure Morgan Freeman will be throwing a whole lot more punches in his career, but you'll definitely be catching him in a lot more projects, as the actor has four movies lined up, including Paradise Highway, which is now in post-production. In the meantime, The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard is out on Blu-ray and DVD starting on August 17. You can pre-order your copy now though!

I’m not going to lie. I teared up a little when Barack Obama became President. I mean, I didn’t full on cry—those tears are usually reserved only for Miyazaki movies—but I did wipe away a tear or two when Obama delivered his Inauguration speech. it’s mostly because I never thought I would ever see anything like that in my lifetime. What was that line in that old 2Pac song, "Changes"?: “And although it seems Heaven sent/we ain’t ready to see a black president.” Sure, I loved David Palmer on 24, but that was just television. That couldn’t really happen.

Flashforward to January 20, 2009, and yes it did indeed happen. Not only that, but think pieces were being written up at the time that theorized that maybe it was actors like Dennis Haysbert who made Americans more receptive to a black president. I don’t know if that’s true or not, but what I do know is that art can be very powerful. And these five fictional, black presidents couldn’t do anything but help create confidence in the idea of a black person running the country. So, here they are. The best black U.S. president movie and TV characters, ranked.

Oh, and minor spoilers up ahead.

5. President Sawyer (Jamie Foxx) - White House Down

White House Down is better than Olympus Has Fallen, and that is a hill that I am willing to die on. One thing that’s interesting about both films though is that they would both (at least eventually) feature a black president, as Morgan Freeman took over the reigns as POTUS in Angel Has Fallen. But enough about that inferior film, let’s talk about the superior one. White House Down is a silly movie about terrorists who break into the White House. Jamie Foxx plays President James Sawyer, and he is about as close to an Obama stand-in as you could possibly get.

Channing Tatum plays the Capital Police officer who saves him, but President Sawyer isn’t just some hopeless wuss. Far from it. In fact, he’s the kind of president who will take matters into his own hands… with a rocket launcher! He’s also the kind of president who will stay calm in a hostile situation and even drop a grenade if necessary. Look, I’m not saying that I support a hawkish warmonger of a president. Far from it. But I really do like when my fictional presidents are willing to jump into action and protect her or his life and country, and President Sawyer does that in spades!

4. President Wilson (Danny Glover) - 2012

Roland Emmerich, who also directed White House Down, specializes in disaster movies. That’s like, what he does. So, when he decided to tackle the supposed end of all time on the Mayan calendar, you knew he was going to deliver a big budget bonanza. Well, in the movie, 2012, it’s the end of the world as we know it, and a black man is running the country. And that black man just so happens to be Danny “I’m too old for this shit” Glover. He’s leading the charge, and making all the tough decisions so you don't have to.

I say “hard decisions” because President Wilson has the thankless job of working to initiate a plan for the eventual survivors of the end of the world. He authorizes an arc to be made that will be able to fit 100,000 people on it, meaning that millions upon millions of Americans wouldn’t be able to get on board. Granted, this kind of makes him sound like a bad President, since not everybody can be saved. But when it comes down to starting a new world once the old world is washed away, President Wilson is thinking of the future. A future he would never unfortunately get to see.

3. President Payton (Alfre Woodard) - State Of Affairs

I don’t want to get political since this is about movies and TV, but it kind of broke my heart when we didn’t receive our first female President back in 2016. Now, like I said, I’m not going to get into politics, since you can like who you like. I don’t care. But Alfre Woodard, who played President Constance Payton on the short-lived show, State of Affairs, is the kind of President I want when we do eventually get a female President elected. With her patient approach, and her steadfast adherence to her image as President, she kind of reminds me of Oprah. And look, I’m not saying that I want Oprah to be the POTUS. That said, I’m not saying that I don’t want her to be POTUS, either.

Now, State of Affairs wasn’t a great show. It lasted for one season and starred Katherine Heigl as a CIA agent who brings the President her morning briefing (and was also once engaged to the President’s slain son). That said, Woodard played a phenomenal leader. When intel is brought in that a wanted terrorist is out there and that the military wants to assassinate him, President Payton accepts that it may not be the right time if there isn't a much higher certainty that they'll get him. I just love how patient she is, which is something I always look for in my presidents. Patience.

2. President Beck (Morgan Freeman) - Deep Impact

Morgan Freeman is one of only a handful of actors who've played President more than once (In Angel Has Fallen and Deep Impact) and also God. I mean, Dennis Haysbert has only played the President ONCE and God (In Lucifer). But in all seriousness, Morgan Freeman was the first Black POTUS I’d ever seen, so he raised a high bar in that regard.

What’s great about him in Deep Impact, though is that he’s so calm. He’s the kind of president who can go on national TV and tell the American public simply and directly that because there was a failed mission to destroy a comet, that there will be a lottery for less than a million Americans to be brought underground for safety. And well, tough noogies for everybody else. But he says it in a reassuring way. He doesn't actually say "tough noogies" (though I'm sure Morgan Freeman could make even that sound elegant). One of the most important things an American President can do, at least in my mind, is to try to set its citizen's minds at ease. Morgan Freeman does that as President Beck, even in the face of annihilation, which makes him a president for the ages.

1. President Palmer (Dennis Haysbert) - 24

There was no question who had to be number 1, right? Though President Palmer doesn’t make it all the way to the end of the series -- because of reasons -- for the seasons he was there, he was the calmest, most collected person in the room. Jack Bauer (played by Kiefer Sutherland) could tell him that a bomb was likely to go off in the next seven hours, and President Palmer would simply nod, say in so many words, “I trust you, Jack. Make sure that doesn't happen,” and then pretend that everything is fine to the American public.

In many ways, President Obama was very much like President Palmer. Again, I’m not going to get into politics here, but I will say that for the most part, I felt relatively safe when Obama was in office, and I feel like I would have that same sense of security if President Palmer were my POTUS. Jack Bauer is over here torturing people and shouting, “WHO ARE YOU WORKING FOR?” while President Palmer is over there continuing to do his job as if business is usual. And that, my friends, is invaluable in a president.

And those are the 5 best black American Presidents in TV and movies. But what do you think? Out of the ones listed here, who do you think is the best? Make your opinion known in the poll below! And for news on 2021 Fall TV premiers and 2021 movies, make sure to stop by often.

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Morgan Freeman, the man who has warmed our hearts and brought joy to our ears with his distinct voice and its soothing cadence, has been a major fixture in film, television (both shows and commercials), and a growing number of documentaries over the years. This American treasure, having won over audiences with beloved movies like The Shawshank Redemption, March of the Penguins, and Million Dollar Baby (for which he won an Academy Award), looks to continue doing what he does best even as he approaches his mid-80s. And with upcoming movies like The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard on the way, it doesn’t look like we’ve seen the last of him yet.