# Comedians who turn out to have good dramatic acting skills **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** comedian-jokes\ **Created:** [April 8, 2022, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comedians-who-turn-out-to-have-good-dramatic-acting-skills/962515 "2022-04-08T12:57:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2022, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comedians-who-turn-out-to-have-good-dramatic-acting-skills/962515/41 "2022-04-08T15:12:04Z")
From the OP. šŸ™‚ > [@solost](#): > > Robin Williams is the other obvious choice; I liked him better in some of his dramatic roles than i did his comedy, such as his role in ā€˜Good Will Huntingā€™, or when he played the doctor based on Oliver Sacks in ā€˜Awakeningsā€™. He brought a real sense of compassion and humanity to his dramatic roles. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2022, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comedians-who-turn-out-to-have-good-dramatic-acting-skills/962515/42 "2022-04-08T15:12:38Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > From the OP. _facepalm_ And, here, I skimmed the thread to see if heā€™d been mentioned. Mea culpa. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2022, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comedians-who-turn-out-to-have-good-dramatic-acting-skills/962515/43 "2022-04-08T15:20:10Z")
> [@solost](#): > > Robin Williams is the other obvious choice; I liked him better in some of his dramatic roles than i did his comedy, such as his role in ā€˜Good Will Huntingā€™, or when he played the doctor based on Oliver Sacks in ā€˜Awakeningsā€™. He brought a real sense of compassion and humanity to his dramatic roles. My fave dramatic role was his guest appearance on \*Homicide: Life on the Streets" as the husband of a woman shot and killed by a mugger. Emotionally harrowing. ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2022, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comedians-who-turn-out-to-have-good-dramatic-acting-skills/962515/44 "2022-04-08T15:33:34Z")
I thought Andrew Dice Clay did a fine job with his non-comedic roles in **Blue Jasmine** and **A Star Is Born**. ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2022, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comedians-who-turn-out-to-have-good-dramatic-acting-skills/962515/45 "2022-04-08T15:43:57Z")
Tiffany Haddish is an excellent standup comedian, but she is also an excellent actress. She was a real hard ass in ā€œKitchenā€, which is the total opposite of her comedic personality. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2022, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comedians-who-turn-out-to-have-good-dramatic-acting-skills/962515/46 "2022-04-08T15:52:27Z")
I tuned into _Ozark_ hoping for some good Michael Bluth-type yuks, but after a few episodes I had to conclude that it wasnā€™t a comedy. Jason Bateman, how could you do this to me? ---
**Author:** ![Hamlet](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hamlet/32/2818_2.png) [@Hamlet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hamlet)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2022, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comedians-who-turn-out-to-have-good-dramatic-acting-skills/962515/47 "2022-04-08T15:53:34Z")
I donā€™t want to hijack this thread, but does anyone else believe that, assuming a certain level of being able to perform (like a vast majority of comedians have), dramatic acting really isnā€™t that difficult? I can name many more comedians that have succeeded (like those in this thread) than have failed miserably (Dane Cook? Ashton Kutcher?). ---
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2022, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comedians-who-turn-out-to-have-good-dramatic-acting-skills/962515/48 "2022-04-08T15:56:41Z")
> [@dorvann](#): > > Hugh Laurie was most known for doing comedy in Great Britain before he took a dramatic role as the title character in _House_ . I think there are a lot of British examples. [Ben Miller](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben_Miller), for instance. I first saw him doing comedy in Armstrong&Miller sketches on YouTube, but he did really well in Death In Paradise, and Primeval. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2022, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comedians-who-turn-out-to-have-good-dramatic-acting-skills/962515/49 "2022-04-08T15:57:20Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > Jason Bateman, how could you do this to me? Even though he started in sitcoms, and was great in Arrested Development, I think of him as more of a classic straight man than a full-fledged comedian. Not that thereā€™s anything wrong with that! In Vaudeville, the straight man of a comedy duo (Abbott of ā€˜Abbott & Costelloā€™, for example) got the bigger slice of a 60-40 split. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2022, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comedians-who-turn-out-to-have-good-dramatic-acting-skills/962515/50 "2022-04-08T15:58:55Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > You underestimate the popularity of _Quincy, M.E._ šŸ™‚ _Quincy_ has recently started running on one of my classic TV channels, and Iā€™ve caught an episode or two. I still associate Jack Klugman most strongly with _The Odd Couple_, but your mileage may vary. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2022, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comedians-who-turn-out-to-have-good-dramatic-acting-skills/962515/51 "2022-04-08T16:05:53Z")
The ever-charming and -folksy Andy Griffith, in his turn as the charming and folksy monster Lonesome Rhodes in _A Face in the Crowd_. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2022, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comedians-who-turn-out-to-have-good-dramatic-acting-skills/962515/52 "2022-04-08T16:08:36Z")
Iā€™m under the impression that Griffith was a singer first, actor second and then went on to legendary fame as the lead in the Andy Griffith Show. I seem to think most of his acting in the 50s was dramatic. ---
**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2022, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comedians-who-turn-out-to-have-good-dramatic-acting-skills/962515/53 "2022-04-08T16:10:38Z")
> [@Hamlet](#): > > I donā€™t want to hijack this thread, but does anyone else believe that, assuming a certain level of being able to perform (like a vast majority of comedians have), dramatic acting really isnā€™t that difficult? I can name many more comedians that have succeeded (like those in this thread) than have failed miserably (Dane Cook? Ashton Kutcher?). Whenever I watch award shows like the Oscars and they give Best Acting awards to people like mentioned in this thread (no real acting background, no formal training, no years spent doing plays, etc) if the career actors in the audience who spent years going to acting school, years on stage, years going to auditions have any form of resentment for comediennes/singers who nab an award on their first or second try. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2022, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comedians-who-turn-out-to-have-good-dramatic-acting-skills/962515/54 "2022-04-08T16:12:16Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > The under-rated _Nothing in Common_ 1986 as Tom Hankā€™s father is another good example. Wow, serious Mandela Effect here: Iā€™ve been thinking of this movie lately, for no particular reason, but Iā€™d have bet money it was Billy Crystal, not Tom Hanks, who starred opposite Jackie Gleason. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2022, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comedians-who-turn-out-to-have-good-dramatic-acting-skills/962515/55 "2022-04-08T16:22:45Z")
Surprised that nobody has mentioned that Tom Hanks played a standup comic in the movie [Punchline](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0095927/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_76). Once again art imitates art. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2022, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comedians-who-turn-out-to-have-good-dramatic-acting-skills/962515/56 "2022-04-08T16:37:33Z")
2 posts were split to a new topic: [Serious actors, or non-actors, doing comedy later onā€¦](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/serious-actors-or-non-actors-doing-comedy-later-on/962529) ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2022, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comedians-who-turn-out-to-have-good-dramatic-acting-skills/962515/57 "2022-04-08T16:27:29Z")
In the few films Iā€™ve seen him in, Johnny Knoxville does a decent job, but I guess he likes the Jackass stuff more-and it regularly earns money, soā€¦ ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2022, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comedians-who-turn-out-to-have-good-dramatic-acting-skills/962515/58 "2022-04-08T16:28:34Z")
I remember Stephen Colbert being surprisingly good in this or that _L&O_ episode as a guy who may or may not be a forger and may or may not be a murderer ā€” but who isnā€™t, yā€™know, one of the playful suspects they get from time to time: maybe heā€™s hiding something, or maybe heā€™s wearing his heart on his sleeve, but thereā€™s nothing funny about it. ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2022, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comedians-who-turn-out-to-have-good-dramatic-acting-skills/962515/59 "2022-04-08T16:45:19Z")
Kevin Hart is really good in _Fatherhood_ as a traumatized single dad. ---
**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:** [April 8, 2022, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comedians-who-turn-out-to-have-good-dramatic-acting-skills/962515/60 "2022-04-08T16:50:14Z")
What about his comedy albums and _No Time for Sergeants_? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comedians-who-turn-out-to-have-good-dramatic-acting-skills/962515.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comedians-who-turn-out-to-have-good-dramatic-acting-skills/962515.md?page=4)