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Featured Replies

48 minutes ago, McCroskey said:

How has J.T. Walsh (RIP) not been mentioned yet?

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He didn't want to be found...

David Morse

Paul Giammati

 

 

Edited by Underdog

And the Coen brothers have made damn good use of so many of the great character actors on this thread.

1 hour ago, slorch said:

He didn't want to be found...

Speaking of which, "A Few Good Men" had a plethora of character actors.

Mr. Walsh

Kevin Bacon (if he isn't to "big" to be a character actor)

Kevin Pollak

9 hours ago, Eskimohorn said:

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Ned Reyerson is a classic character actor. Grew up in South Dallas with the Vaughan brothers and had little Stevie play guitar in a recording session with his garage band. Additionally, he said he was there in Austin when Stevie and Jimmie reconciled and planned Family Style.

Doesn't Luis Guzman just play Luis Guzman in everything?

Richard Jenkins is perfect in everything 

 

 

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2 hours ago, Elvis said:

Richard Jenkins is perfect in everything 

 

 

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Looks small time. 

20 hours ago, DixonHur said:

No offense @TonyTexas, but based on your lists, I'm not sure you understand the concept of character actor.  Meryl Streep?  Jack Nicholson?  Al Pacino?

Think more Christoph Waltz.

Not to mention the ability to count. "Favorite" would mean ... one.

Edited by Rimbo

Does it mean not-lead actor?  Still confused. 
 

 

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5 hours ago, Parliament said:

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MV5BNTQzMDUwNjg1NF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwMzE0

This might be close to the definition. I don’t know their names. Second guy hooked up with HBO and worked his butt off. Boardwalk Empire, True Detective, and everything else. 

Wait, I’ve got it. 
 

B list actor? 
 

is that it?

I like this thread. Guy on the right agrees

 

 

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Scott Glenn deserves a mention.

Sorry if I missed it but the reference to John Cazale is not just a great character actor but THE actor with the greatest hit percentage ever:


He appeared in five films over seven years, all of which were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture: The Godfather (1972), The Conversation (1974), The Godfather Part II (1974), Dog Day Afternoon (1975), and The Deer Hunter (1978)

Character actor to me is a guy who is never in the starring role but just owns the character he plays and is a positive addition to every film they are in. 

On 8/5/2023 at 8:21 PM, HornOnTheBayou said:

Mark Boone, Jr needs some love here

Mark Boone Junior - Rotten Tomatoes

Double great

Ok I have a few:

William Sadler 

Kevin Bacon

Gary Sinise 

Stellan Sarsgaard 

 

Did I do that right?

 

On 8/5/2023 at 2:03 PM, mchookem said:

people use different definitions. i feel like we have this discussion every 2-3 years 🤔😄

someone who plays quirky secondary characters...

PSH was my personal champion and i continue to be sad at being deprived of more of his life's work 😒

Goggins and Tilda are both excellent picks. Stephen Root. Allison Janney. Jennifer Coolidge always manages to steal the scene. 

and with that definition... somehow Brad Pitt became an outstanding character actor when he's not the lead... Burn After Reading. Snatch. 12 Monkeys. Inglourious Basterds and OUATIH. fight me. lol 😋

It's when the creator is hiring the trope-character, not the actor.  The movie needs a: goon, father, bum etc. 

 

Can women be character actors?  Their roles seemed to be defined by age and race.  

 

 

On 8/5/2023 at 5:10 PM, DixonHur said:

No offense @TonyTexas, but based on your lists, I'm not sure you understand the concept of character actor.  Meryl Streep?  Jack Nicholson?  Al Pacino?

Think more Christoph Waltz.

 He does, Hollywood does not.  They say "Best Supporting Actor" means top billed who graciously took a supporting role.

 

Edit: Deadhank stole mine.  Strother Martin should be atop the list. 

Edited by notre dame joe

30 minutes ago, Billy Pilgrim said:

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Anytime you saw this guy in a movie you immediately knew he was a “bad guy”

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Start with these three:

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And throw in these two:

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And your movie will be filled with great characters.

 

9 hours ago, Butch Had Not said:

Ok I have a few:

William Sadler 

Kevin Bacon

Gary Sinise 

Stellan Sarsgaard 

 

Did I do that right?

Kevin Bacon doesn't qualify.  For one, he's had enough leading roles.  And, his supporting roles aren't really all that unique or eccentric to qualify as what most consider a character actor.  I'd consider him a solid supporting actor.

This guy. Everyone recognizes him and most people don’t know his name. 

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You guys are all so young....

Here are a few by the "old" man on Surly.

Ward Bond

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Elisha Cook Jr.

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Alan Hale Sr.

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Never really a lead or a star. Kind of always the simple every man in his roles

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Vincent Schiavelli.  Not the best looking mug in the lot but certainly recognizable.   Truly a face made for radio. 

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13 hours ago, notre dame joe said:

He does, Hollywood does not.  They say "Best Supporting Actor" means top billed who graciously took a supporting role.

Supporting Actor and character actor are not the same.

A true character actor would rarely, if ever, have a role large enough to warrant an Oscar nomination.  

 

4 hours ago, HornPhD said:

This guy. Everyone recognizes him and most people don’t know his name. 

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John Carroll Lynch. He treats Margie right. 
 

I submit Chris Cooper. 


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A Definition of Character Actor

1. Has rarely if ever held the leading role in a major motion picture (until 7 happens), and:

2. Has played mostly minor roles that are not the core main characters of a movie, and:

3. Has elevated those minor roles in a way so as to be highly noticeable and differentiated, and:

4.  You struggle for a second to  remember their name, but you do remember it because they are so awesome in everything they’ve been in that you forced yourself to remember their name so that you could actively look for them in movies since you love them so much, and:

5. You immediately know their face, and:

6. They present uniqueness on-screen, and:

7. They might graduate from character actor into a major star over time. 

Edited by Dbeasy

33 minutes ago, deadshank said:

Vincent Schiavelli.  Not the best looking mug in the lot but certainly recognizable.   Truly a face made for radio. 

IMG_8236.jpeg

 

Not in Lana Clarkson's eyes (yeah, that whack Phil Spector murdered her in 2003.)

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Edited by Wally Pryor

1 hour ago, deadshank said:

Vincent Schiavelli.  Not the best looking mug in the lot but certainly recognizable.   Truly a face made for radio. 

IMG_8236.jpeg

IMG_8235.jpeg

IMG_8234.jpeg

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He had a great Italian cooking show that I used to love to watch.

58 minutes ago, Cheeseweasel said:

He had a great Italian cooking show that I used to love to watch.

why was he cooking Italians?

On 8/6/2023 at 4:20 PM, HornPhD said:

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Is that for me, Dad?  
No, Son, that’s for me. 

3 hours ago, deadshank said:

Vincent Schiavelli.  Not the best looking mug in the lot but certainly recognizable.   Truly a face made for radio. 

IMG_8236.jpeg

 

Are you in my class? 

I am today... 

On 8/5/2023 at 8:05 PM, TwiceHorn said:

Supporting != character.

Character is usually lower profile than supporting.

Michael Kelly is doing solid work and building quite a resume these days.  Some of his stuff is more supporting than character of late.  Also Stephen Root and our own Bruce McGill.

Stephen Root is a great example

5 minutes ago, chainsaw said:

Stephen Root is a great example

Yes

image.jpeg.a7a0f018d561113005b9a5e5a1d4a43b.jpegit’s gotta be Cazale, but these actors were amazing in this one. And a few went on to bigger things. 

6 hours ago, Dbeasy said:

A Definition of Character Actor

1. Has rarely if ever held the leading role in a major motion picture (until 7 happens), and:

2. Has played mostly minor roles that are not the core main characters of a movie, and:

3. Has elevated those minor roles in a way so as to be highly noticeable and differentiated, and:

4.  You struggle for a second to  remember their name, but you do remember it because they are so awesome in everything they’ve been in that you forced yourself to remember their name so that you could actively look for them in movies since you love them so much, and:

5. You immediately know their face, and:

6. They present uniqueness on-screen, and:

7. They might graduate from character actor into a major star over time. 

Although not so much in film, Phil Hartman was the ultimate glue guy character actor extraordinaire on SNL.

Edited by Degenerate Gardner

16 hours ago, ConferenceRoom said:

John Carroll Lynch. He treats Margie right. 
 

I submit Chris Cooper. 


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Cooper was lead in Lonestar, which most cinephiles rank as John Sayles best film.

Anthony James (RIP) was a second tier bad guy and henchman in virtually everything 80s and 90s:

 

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