# Actors that don't really act **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 18, 2011, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-that-dont-really-act/603343 "2011-11-18T14:56:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![FlyingDragonFan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c89c15/32.png) [@FlyingDragonFan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlyingDragonFan)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2011, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-that-dont-really-act/603343/41 "2011-11-18T22:27:50Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > If you really want an example of “not acting,” think about when a famous person—an athlete, a musician, a politician—has a cameo-type role in a movie or TV episode. Occasionally such people can actually act, but more often, they give a performance compared with which every one of the people named in this thread can and do act circles around. As soon as I read this, I thought of Lance Armstrong in _Dodgeball_. Such a silly, over-the-top movie, and he still stood out as totally NOT able to act. Even Laser, Blazer and Taser were better actors, and they had nothing to say. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2011, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-that-dont-really-act/603343/42 "2011-11-18T23:16:23Z")
But the intention of the OP was not “who does the same role everytime”. I think some actors get in a niche where they are acting but it is the same character. Like in my OP I used Richard Gere as an example. He plays the same roles over and over but I’ve seen him in interviews and he’s a different guy in real life. Now take Christopher Walken. Capt Koons in _Pulp Fiction_ is the exact same as Duane Hall in _Annie Hall_ and The Continental in SNL AND (here the important point) the same as Christopher Walken doing interviews on David Letterman. I’m looking for examples of the second kind. ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2011, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-that-dont-really-act/603343/43 "2011-11-18T23:19:50Z")
I read a quote from Spencer Tracy a long while back where he said he didn’t act, he just showed up and behaved like himself. I haven’t seen enough of his films to know if he played that broad a range… ---
**Author:** ![Steophan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steophan/32/9595_2.png) [@Steophan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steophan)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-that-dont-really-act/603343/44 "2011-11-19T00:08:01Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > But even guys who always SEEM to be playing the same character really aren’t. > > To use one of your examples… Jimmy Stewart was NOT always the same folksy, lovable doofus we often remember him as. Elwood P. Dowd in _ **Harvey** _ was NOTHING like Scotty Ferguson in\*\*\* Vertigo.\*\*\* Tom Destry was NOTHING like Ransom Stoddard in _ **The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance** _. Stewart had a LOT more range than we tend to remember. > > So did many actors we think of as being one-dimensional. James Stewart was one of the finest actors of the pre-Method era. I’ve got around 40 of his films on DVD, and there’s not one performance that’s disappointed me. For all the lovable charm, he could be a remarkable tough guy when the role called for it. Not in the blustering way John Wayne often was, but in a much quieter and subtler way. The best examples of this would be Rear Window, and the westerns he made in the early 50s with Anthony Mann. Speaking of Wayne, it’s true that he was often typecast. It wasn’t Ford that created that character - he’d been in probably 50 westerns before Stagecoach, but it was Ford that recognised it and took him out of b-movies into the mainstream. I have far too many of his films on DVD, probably approaching 100, and whilst there are some that are disappointing (the aforementioned The Conqueror chief among them), there are a good number of great performances. Watch The Shepherd Of The Hills, Sands Of Iwo Jima, Red River, She Wore A Yellow Ribbon, The Quiet Man, The Searchers, The Cowboys and The Shootist, then tell me he’s a one-note performer. ETA- I’m 34, and English, so not exactly in the demographic for blind adulation of John Wayne. ---
**Author:** ![slm2955](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c6cbf5/32.png) [@slm2955](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slm2955)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-that-dont-really-act/603343/45 "2011-11-19T01:01:41Z")
Even though she is hot, I’m going to have to go with megan fox, she is just not believable. ---
**Author:** ![VOW](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/vow/32/3043_2.png) [@VOW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VOW)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-that-dont-really-act/603343/46 "2011-11-19T01:09:11Z")
My vote goes to John Wayne. Whether a cowboy or a GI, IMHO, he played John Wayne. ~VOW ---
**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-that-dont-really-act/603343/47 "2011-11-19T01:17:55Z")
> [@Lancia](#): > > The secret to being a good actor is to make your character believable. John Wayne was not capable of doing that. Everyone I have ever met who likes John Wayne grew up during WWII or shortly thereafter. John Wayne made a bunch of patriotic films that people needed at the time. My theory is JW was presented as the Ultimate American Hero at a time when the country needed someone to fill that image. That does not mean his movies were good or he was a good actor. > > Porn stars create strong emotions in their audiences. Doesn’t mean they are good actors. Wayne could act. John Ford loved directing him, and even he thought Wayne was always playing variations of the same character until one day while on the set of “The Quiet Man” Ford remarked: “Who knew the big lug could act?” Well, Ford did. That was why he used Wayne whenever possible. Wayne did phone in a lot of movies, but he also made a lot of classics. Compare True Grit with Wayne and Bridges. Jeff Bridges did a great job acting in the remake, but he did not carry the movie, the little girl did. Wayne made the same character carry the same movie in the original next to the awful acting of the girl and Glenn Campbell. The original is quite watchable despite its flaws because Wayne played an interesting loser drunk that he had not played before. I didn’t like Wayne’s politics, but he was an excellent actor. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-that-dont-really-act/603343/48 "2011-11-19T01:21:19Z")
> [@Malthus](#): > > And then there was Wayne as Ghenges Khan … > > [Conqueror - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Conqueror_(film)) > > 😃 That was in a 50 worst movies ever book. I need to see if I can put it on my Netflix queue. If I’m ever in a self-hating mood. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-that-dont-really-act/603343/49 "2011-11-19T01:33:15Z")
> [@Saint\_Cad](#): > > But the intention of the OP was not “who does the same role everytime”. I think some actors get in a niche where they are acting but it is the same character. Like in my OP I used Richard Gere as an example. He plays the same roles over and over but I’ve seen him in interviews and he’s a different guy in real life. Now take Christopher Walken. Capt Koons in _Pulp Fiction_ is the exact same as Duane Hall in _Annie Hall_ and The Continental in SNL AND (here the important point) the same as Christopher Walken doing interviews on David Letterman. > > I’m looking for examples of the second kind. You think Walken isn’t acting on Letterman? If his PR people and he want to project a certain image, so that moviegoers won’t be surprised, he’ll stay in character during the interview. If he’s the same way on Fresh Air, then I believe he can only act like himself. I don’t watch late night shows these days, but almost everyone who came onto Carson stayed in character. People mostly aren’t as blatant about their characters as Jack Benny (or Colbert) but people care about those bookings. ---
**Author:** ![drastic\_quench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e36b37/32.png) [@drastic\_quench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drastic_quench)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-that-dont-really-act/603343/50 "2011-11-19T02:23:28Z")
Drew Barrymore. ---
**Author:** ![crypto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b3f665/32.png) [@crypto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crypto)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-that-dont-really-act/603343/51 "2011-11-19T02:26:38Z")
> [@Lancia](#): > > How 'bout John Wayne? Not only was he a tremendously shitty actor, he played _the exact same character_ in every film he ever made. > > Edit: Ninja’d! Substitute Nick Cage for John Wayne and you might have something! ---
**Author:** ![Terr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@Terr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terr)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 2:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-that-dont-really-act/603343/52 "2011-11-19T02:44:54Z")
Charlie Sheen (dammit, why did Chuck Lorre have to decide to go all “he hurt my pride” and ruin the best sitcom out there?) ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-that-dont-really-act/603343/53 "2011-11-19T03:08:36Z")
> [@jsc1953](#): > > Bill Murray. Does he ever do anything where he isn’t laconic, ironic, dead-pan, wry? He does, and people hated him for it. > [@The\_Second\_Stone](#): > > Compare True Grit with Wayne and Bridges. Jeff Bridges did a great job acting in the remake, but he did not carry the movie, the little girl did. Wayne made the same character carry the same movie in the original next to the awful acting of the girl and Glenn Campbell. The original is quite watchable despite its flaws because Wayne played an interesting loser drunk that he had not played before. First of all, the story of _True Grit_ is Mattie’s story, and Bridges was a good enough actor to embody the role while letting Hallie Steinfeld carry the film. Wayne was so larger than life that he overshadowed other performers even when he was not the main character. (This worked to his favor in _The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance_, where he basically undermined his stock cowboy routine by playing straight.) Second, Wayne played a loser drunk both before and after _True Grit_, albeit never quite with the gleeful embracement as in that role. Third, there are really two films where Wayne truly diverged from his stock persona: the previously mentioned _The Quiet Man_ and _The Shootist_, which doesn’t really speak to a great deal of range. Wayne was good at what he did, but mostly what he did is play John Wayne, or at least the public and screen persona of John Wayne, the movie star. My vote is Joe Pesci. He’s always shades of the same character, whether the sociopathic mobster in _Goodfellas_ or the joking Brooklyn mechanic-cum-lawyer in _My Cousin Vinny_, and is about the same abrasive wise-ass in real life. I always enjoy him, especially when played off against a good straight man, but his range is pretty narrow. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Jeffrey\_Lebowski](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_jeffrey_lebowski/32/215_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Jeffrey\_Lebowski](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Jeffrey_Lebowski)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-that-dont-really-act/603343/54 "2011-11-19T03:24:29Z")
> [@jsc1953](#): > > Bill Murray. Does he ever do anything where he isn’t laconic, ironic, dead-pan, wry? If I may, I’d like to suggest that he isn’t those things in: _Where the Buffalo Roam The Razor’s Edge What About Bob? Mad Dog and Glory Ed Wood Rushmore The Royal Tennenbaums Lost in Translation The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou Broken Flowers_ There are others as well, but this is a good list. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-that-dont-really-act/603343/55 "2011-11-19T03:30:53Z")
I always considered John Wayne as a cowboy who lucked out and hit the big time. That isn’t a dig, it’s why he filled those roles so perfectly. The same could probably be said of James Garner, and he’d probably admit it himself. (I think they’d both say it took a helluva lot of work to make it, though.) ---
**Author:** ![DxZero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@DxZero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DxZero)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-that-dont-really-act/603343/56 "2011-11-19T03:36:30Z")
> [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#): > > My vote is Joe Pesci. He’s always shades of the same character, whether the sociopathic mobster in _Goodfellas_ or the joking Brooklyn mechanic-cum-lawyer in _My Cousin Vinny_, and is about the same abrasive wise-ass in real life. I always enjoy him, especially when played off against a good straight man, but his range is pretty narrow. > > Stranger I was gonna get all set to argue with you, because I do love me some Pesci, but alas… Everyone of his major characters at their base levels reacts to stress in the same way- aggressively. The tactics might be different but the strategy is always - “Get challenged, over compensate aggressively.” Its such a core principle in his most of his roles that you can to see it as the defining feature of any character he puts forth. Now that’s not to say that he can’t make the character believable and empathizable, which I think should be the main goal of a actor. ---
**Author:** ![PlainJain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/5daacb/32.png) [@PlainJain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PlainJain)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-that-dont-really-act/603343/57 "2011-11-19T03:49:00Z")
> [@hogarth](#): > > I think Tom Hanks has a certain amount of range… The range of a Daisy BB rifle maybe. ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-that-dont-really-act/603343/58 "2011-11-19T04:08:42Z")
> [@PlainJain](#): > > The range of a Daisy BB rifle maybe. Yeah, if Hanks has any real range he hasn’t exercised it in a long time. Even in _Castaway_ it was kind of a toss-up between him and Wilson, and I was rooting for the ball. Nice guy, makes good choices in roles, but his acting range is small caliber. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-that-dont-really-act/603343/59 "2011-11-19T04:48:44Z")
> [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#): > > He does, and people hated him for it. > > First of all, the story of _True Grit_ is Mattie’s story, and Bridges was a good enough actor to embody the role while letting Hallie Steinfeld carry the film. Wayne was so larger than life that he overshadowed other performers even when he was not the main character. (snip) > > Stranger I would say that the Mattie was the main character in the latter because it was written, directed and edited that way. Same for the previous film only in favor of the Rooster character. Nothing to do with acting ability. ---
**Author:** ![Becky2844](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@Becky2844](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Becky2844)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-that-dont-really-act/603343/60 "2011-11-19T04:57:32Z")
> [@Saint\_Cad](#): > > I’m not talking about actors that are terrible actors (Julia Roberts) or those that are typecast into one role (Richard Gere). I’m talking about well-known actors that just show up on set and the director tells them to be themselves no matter what they do. My examples: > > Mickey Rourke: I think the director just tells him to hang aorund on the set and then shoots the scene without him knowing. Hell, I don’t think he goes to Costume but is wearing his regular street clothes. > > Jeff Goldblum: I met him about 25 years ago. What you see on the screen is him. > > James Spader: I think deep down in the recesses of his brain he truly thinks his last name is California and he is the CEO of a paper company after a top-secret career as an archaeologist (hence the name change) and after he got bored with practicing law. Jeff Goldblum: saw him on Jimmy Fallon. I was facinated that he was facinated with hands. I’m glad that he’s really that way. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-that-dont-really-act/603343.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-that-dont-really-act/603343.md?page=4)