# Bad actors who show up in good movies with surprising frequency **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 16, 2008, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-actors-who-show-up-in-good-movies-with-surprising-frequency/463853 "2008-09-16T16:29:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2008, 5:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-actors-who-show-up-in-good-movies-with-surprising-frequency/463853/41 "2008-09-18T05:46:47Z")
In my opinion, Scott Glenn is to acting what William Hung is to singing. Yet he continues to be taken seriously. I will never understand it. ---
**Author:** ![Greg\_Charles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/839c29/32.png) [@Greg\_Charles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greg_Charles)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2008, 9:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-actors-who-show-up-in-good-movies-with-surprising-frequency/463853/42 "2008-09-18T09:45:29Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > Anyway, I liked him in Dragonheart, though the movie would have been vastly improved by more redheaded-girl-whose-name-I-should-know-but-don’t nudity. Dina Meyer. See _Starship Troopers_ shower scene. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2008, 10:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-actors-who-show-up-in-good-movies-with-surprising-frequency/463853/43 "2008-09-18T10:04:04Z")
Peter Lorre was to Bogart as Dom DeLuise was to Burt Reynolds. He never seemed convincing as anything (although I have yet to see **M** ). ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2008, 12:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-actors-who-show-up-in-good-movies-with-surprising-frequency/463853/44 "2008-09-18T12:23:14Z")
“Forbidden Hollywood” did “We Shouldn’t Be In Pictures,” sung by Keanu, Juliette, and Melanie Griffin. Having seen the last one on stage, I can’t even think of her as an actor. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2008, 12:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-actors-who-show-up-in-good-movies-with-surprising-frequency/463853/45 "2008-09-18T12:29:36Z")
> [@Krokodil](#): > > Peter Lorre was to Bogart as Dom DeLuise was to Burt Reynolds. He never seemed convincing as anything (although I have yet to see **M** ). He’s exceptionally creepy in _M_, even though he always played a creep. Personally, I like Lorre a lot and I can’t imagine anybody else playing Joel Cairo. ---
**Author:** ![villa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/bc79bd/32.png) [@villa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/villa)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2008, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-actors-who-show-up-in-good-movies-with-surprising-frequency/463853/46 "2008-09-18T13:11:57Z")
> [@Green\_Bean](#): > > I liked Miss Congeniality too. A lot. I should have put some kind of smiley thing after my comment, but I hate them. I appreciate some people like Miss Congeniality. Hell, some people even like the Bears, I am led to believe. ---
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2008, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-actors-who-show-up-in-good-movies-with-surprising-frequency/463853/47 "2008-09-18T13:46:14Z")
I have always thought Steve Guttenburg was cute, and wondered why he always played in such bad movies. He seems so earnest and sweet, to me, and seemed just right for the Cocoon role. Now, what else has he been in that I’ve seen? Probably nothing … no wait, that “Number 5 Alive” movie, which I’ve watched lately on “family movie night.” But I’m not kidding anybody, that movie is in no way “art.” William Hurt is sexy is some undefined way; that’s why he keeps getting roles despite his limited range. I would, however, like to TAPE his bangs back. I can tolerate Keaneu Reeves in most movies, but I want to dynamite him out of Dangerous Liasions every time I see it. I adore that movie, but I think that _I_ could’ve played that role more convincingly that he. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2008, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-actors-who-show-up-in-good-movies-with-surprising-frequency/463853/48 "2008-09-18T14:21:54Z")
> [@Bosstone](#): > > Dennis is the man. He’s got a great [shit-eating grin](http://imagecache2.allposters.com/images/pic/MMPH/255095~Dennis-Quaid-Posters.jpg). Hells yes. I didn’t really know who he was when I first saw The Big Easy and the first shot of him was him turning around with that grin. Instant crush. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2008, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-actors-who-show-up-in-good-movies-with-surprising-frequency/463853/49 "2008-09-18T16:29:24Z")
> [@Greg\_Charles](#): > > Dina Meyer. See _Starship Troopers_ shower scene. Ah, that explains my inability to remember her. I have to use the neuralizer on myself every time I see that movie. ---
**Author:** ![TheMerchandise](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b487fb/32.png) [@TheMerchandise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheMerchandise)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2008, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-actors-who-show-up-in-good-movies-with-surprising-frequency/463853/50 "2008-09-18T17:05:00Z")
> [@villa](#): > > I should have put some kind of smiley thing after my comment, but I hate them. I appreciate some people like Miss Congeniality. Hell, some people even like the Bears, I am led to believe. Nope, too late. Your smilie-free insult of Miss Congeniality has made you my Enemy For Life. There is no taking it back now! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2008, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-actors-who-show-up-in-good-movies-with-surprising-frequency/463853/51 "2008-09-18T17:18:59Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > Ah, that explains my inability to remember her. I have to use the neuralizer on myself every time I see that movie. You’ve put yourself in an endless loop. Once you use the neuralizer you forget that you’ve seen the movie at all, and are doomed to see it again. If you repeat this too many times, your brain will explode. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2008, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-actors-who-show-up-in-good-movies-with-surprising-frequency/463853/52 "2008-09-18T17:22:28Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > You’ve put yourself in an endless loop. Once you use the neuralizer you forget that you’ve seen the movie at all, and are doomed to see it again. If you repeat this too many times, your brain will explode. Dude, you’re reading from the 2006 safety warnings, which are now obsolete. The solution to that problem is simply to include in the post-neuralization false memory implantation a directive NOT TO SEE THE MOVIE AGAIN, and a reminder that it sucks. Sheesh. No wonder you haven’t conquered the Earth yet. You have GOT to keep current. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2008, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-actors-who-show-up-in-good-movies-with-surprising-frequency/463853/53 "2008-09-18T19:04:26Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > Dude, you’re reading from the 2006 safety warnings, which are now obsolete. The solution to that problem is simply to include in the post-neuralization false memory implantation a directive NOT TO SEE THE MOVIE AGAIN, and a reminder that it sucks. > > Sheesh. No wonder you haven’t conquered the Earth yet. You have GOT to keep current. Well, if you’d SAID you used the post-neuralization false memory implantation, I wouln’t have been concerned. AND, there must still be something wrong, since you shouldn’t remember the post-neuralization false memory implantation was used. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2008, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-actors-who-show-up-in-good-movies-with-surprising-frequency/463853/54 "2008-09-18T19:21:51Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > AND, there must still be something wrong, since you shouldn’t remember the post-neuralization false memory implantation was used. He has a condition. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2008, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-actors-who-show-up-in-good-movies-with-surprising-frequency/463853/55 "2008-09-18T19:44:01Z")
I have you all beat: Clint Howard. God-awful actor. Looks creepy. Surprisingly, does not only get jobs because his brother’s the director. And the game, “Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon,” would be “Five Degrees of Clint Howard” because everybody seems to link to Bacon through him. ETA: Checking his IMDB profile, I guess he hasn’t done many GOOD movies. That shows how many BAD movies everyone else has done. ---
**Author:** ![villa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/bc79bd/32.png) [@villa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/villa)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2008, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-actors-who-show-up-in-good-movies-with-surprising-frequency/463853/56 "2008-09-18T20:29:38Z")
> [@TheMerchandise](#): > > Nope, too late. Your smilie-free insult of Miss Congeniality has made you my Enemy For Life. There is no taking it back now! Does said position come with a stipend. Because I could really get behind it if it did. Tell me what other movies you really like. I bet I think a lot of them suck too. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2008, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-actors-who-show-up-in-good-movies-with-surprising-frequency/463853/57 "2008-09-18T21:24:13Z")
> [@dropzone](#): > > I have you all beat: Clint Howard. > > God-awful actor. Looks creepy. Surprisingly, does not only get jobs because his brother’s the director. And the game, “Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon,” would be “Five Degrees of Clint Howard” because everybody seems to link to Bacon through him. > > ETA: Checking his IMDB profile, I guess he hasn’t done many GOOD movies. That shows how many BAD movies everyone else has done. I gotta agree, he’s right up there. I’ve never seen anyone who looks less like an actor either. I mean there are some creepy looking guys who get recurring roles as scary psychopaths. He just looks like a confused loser with poor personal hygiene who drinks too much. ---
**Author:** ![Green\_Bean](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/green_bean/32/1760_2.png) [@Green\_Bean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Green_Bean)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2008, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-actors-who-show-up-in-good-movies-with-surprising-frequency/463853/58 "2008-09-19T01:42:31Z")
> [@TheMerchandise](#): > > Nope, too late. Your smilie-free insult of Miss Congeniality has made you my Enemy For Life. There is no taking it back now! I’m afraid I have to agree with **TheMerchandise** , **villa**. You are now my Enemy For Life as well. The position does not come with a cash stipend, but you will be provided with ample supplies of green beans and miscellaneous merchandise. I hope that will suffice. Cause seriously dude–how can you not love a movie that involves a highly specialized team of federal manicurists!? I’m a total sucker for snarky beauty pageant movies. ---
**Author:** ![LurkMeister](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3da27b/32.png) [@LurkMeister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LurkMeister)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2008, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-actors-who-show-up-in-good-movies-with-surprising-frequency/463853/59 "2008-09-19T02:05:06Z")
> [@Green\_Bean](#): > > Cause seriously dude–how can you not love a movie that involves a highly specialized team of federal manicurists! Not to mention: Michael Caine demonstrating how to walk like a lady. A beauty pageant contestant whose talent is playing water glasses (I know there’s a name for this but UI can’t remember it offhand). And who, when someone ruins her act by drinking from the glasses, does an impromptu demonstration of how to take out someone who grabs you from behind. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2008, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-actors-who-show-up-in-good-movies-with-surprising-frequency/463853/60 "2008-09-19T15:12:45Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > Well, if you’d SAID you used the post-neuralization false memory implantation, I wouln’t have been concerned. AND, there must still be something wrong, since you shouldn’t remember the post-neuralization false memory implantation was used. No, because the PNFMI included the knowledge that the neuralizer was used, and why. It’s more of an PNRMI (the “R” is for redacted). You really need to catch up on your tech manuals. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-actors-who-show-up-in-good-movies-with-surprising-frequency/463853.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-actors-who-show-up-in-good-movies-with-surprising-frequency/463853.md?page=4)