Just pick Kevin Bacon - then you can watch everything!
Seriously though, my first thought was Meryl Streep, because not only has she done lots of work, with lots of different types of movies, but I always just enjoy the hell out of watching her.
Johnny Depp or Kate Winslet.
Best answer IMHO. You’ve got romantic comedies, drama, westerns, and suspense. You’ve got everything you could possibly want right there.
Tom Hanks- his movies are always high quality and enjoyable. Even the clunkers!
I could go for Kate Winslet. I practically have Titanic on infinite loop these days anyway.
Tom Hanks could do also. I love Forrest Gump.
John Cusack might be a good choice because I like quirky movies especially from the 80’s.
My taste in movies just isn’t that sophisticated.
Except for anything recent.
Cary Grant. It’s impossible for me to flip through channels, spot him in a movie, and keep flipping.
(More recently, Johnny Depp. He’s done drama, comedy, and fantasy, and I just know he’s got years and years of great work ahead of him.)
Bette Davis. (please see: Cary Grant).
(More recently - that’s tougher, I’ll have to think of a more contemporary female…)
Since my first choices have been listed, I’ll go with Harry Dean Stanton.
He was my second choice. Some good solid classics on his resume, worked a lot, pretty versatile. I just didn’t see as much new going forward.
I picked a good prolific character actor who is in a lot of really good stuff. I would get tired of looking at Johnny Depp or Brad Pitt, but if I ever get tired of Brendan Gleeson it’s ok because he’s not the star in most of his movies, but he’s always awesome and his characters are different enough that you forget it’s him.
Maybe Gene Hackman. A lot of variety and a lot of classics in his career.
By the way, has he retired from acting? I haven’t seen him in anything in years.
Ben Johnson. Or Cary Grant. Definitely no living actor.
Looks that way. According to his IMDB entry, he’s made 2 movies since 2001, the last being “Welcome to Mooseport” in 2005 (though, he’s done a little bit of voiceover / narration work, and a few “himself” appearances since then). According to his Wikipedia entry, he says he’s retired from acting (and is apparently now writing novels).
ETA: He’s been doing the voiceovers for Lowe’s advertising for several years now.
I’ll second this. I enjoy Billy Crystal, as well.
Clint Eastwood. By far my favorite actor.
Is he your brother or something? Because he’s a video game voice actor.
Anime, Justin. Anime. He’s one of two guys who is ‘in everything’, for the dub, and I can’t remember the other. And I mean starting with Mobile Suit Gundam and carrying on to today.
Of those not mentioned, Morgan Freeman. He isn’t my favorite actor, although he’s quite respectable, he’s in enough movie I enjoy watching that I’d be satisfied with him for a while.
I also don’t know why Kevin Bacon isn’t a serious answer. He’s in a lot of very watchable movies.
Ben Johnson is a good one. That way I can have She Wore a Yellow Ribbon AND Red Dawn!
Not to mention Stripes and The Wild Bunch and The Last Picture Show. 