# "The Best Actor of His Generation" **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 6, 2014, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-actor-of-his-generation/680683 "2014-02-06T18:39:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2014, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-actor-of-his-generation/680683/41 "2014-02-08T02:42:33Z")
> [@joebuck20](#): > > Johnny Depp would be up there, if for no other reason than his ability to totally disappear into a role. Wow when did he develop this ability? Because every fucking thing I’ve ever seen him in, he plays the same fucking guy: Johnny Depp as ------- -------. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2014, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-actor-of-his-generation/680683/42 "2014-02-08T02:51:17Z")
> [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](#): > > Don Cheadle’s in his 40s, aces all sorts of supporting roles, has great comic timing but can carry a drama whenever you need a leading man who shows a lot of emotion, and _nobody_ is better as the calm-voiced-but-cold-eyed guy playing it low-key sinister. Fantastic choice. I thought he should have been a Best Supporting Actor winner as Mouse in [Devil In a Blue Dress](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112857/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_55). Can’t believe he didn’t even get nominated. Bardem’s another solid choice. My own personal prejudices preclude me mentioning Leonardo or Joaquin. I’m sure they’re better than I think they are. And I like Mark Ruffalo, but after seeing him as Terry in [You Can Count On Me](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0203230/?ref_=nv_sr_1), it’s hard for me to see him as anything more than a slacker (Bruce Banner notwithstanding). How about Julianne Moore? She’s pushing the upper edge of “this generation” at 53, but she has 4 Oscar nominations, can play anything from comedy ([Nine Months](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0113986/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_59), [The Big Lebowski](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118715/?ref_=nm_knf_i2)) to serious drama ([Freedomland](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0349467/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_31), [Boogie Nights](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118749/?ref_=nm_knf_i4)), period drama ([The End of the Affair](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0172396/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_46)), and many others. I’ve yet to see her put in a bad performance (even counting the otherwise-abysmal [Body of Evidence](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0106453/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_66). She was the only redeeming quality of that movie.) ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2014, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-actor-of-his-generation/680683/43 "2014-02-08T02:51:47Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > Wow when did he develop this ability? Because every fucking thing I’ve ever seen him in, he plays the same fucking guy: Johnny Depp as ------- -------. Except for Jack Sparrow, I pretty much agree with you. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2014, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-actor-of-his-generation/680683/44 "2014-02-08T02:57:00Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > Wow when did he develop this ability? Because every fucking thing I’ve ever seen him in, he plays the same fucking guy: Johnny Depp as ------- -------. Guy Doing Vaguely British Accent and Cashing Giant Paycheck. ---
**Author:** ![Dale\_Sams](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/779978/32.png) [@Dale\_Sams](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dale_Sams)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2014, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-actor-of-his-generation/680683/45 "2014-02-08T04:13:56Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > Guy Doing Vaguely British Accent and Cashing Giant Paycheck. Edward Scissorhands Ed Wood Donnie Brasco ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_T-Cups](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ed655f/32.png) [@Sir\_T-Cups](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_T-Cups)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2014, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-actor-of-his-generation/680683/46 "2014-02-08T04:15:48Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > Guy Doing Vaguely British Accent and Cashing Giant Paycheck. …while being some kind of nut and over-exaggerating his gestures ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2014, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-actor-of-his-generation/680683/47 "2014-02-08T04:31:25Z")
> [@Dale\_Sams](#): > > Edward Scissorhands > Ed Wood > Donnie Brasco …were all made before he jumped into the more public lexicon with the Jack Sparrow character. ---
**Author:** ![syncrolecyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f08c70/32.png) [@syncrolecyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/syncrolecyne)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2014, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-actor-of-his-generation/680683/48 "2014-02-08T04:39:45Z")
For actors in the past, especially film actors, one might separate “generations” by changes in style and technique, the silent/talkie split is an obvious one, and a generation later, the rise of “method” acting in Hollywood in the late 1940s-1950s, and perhaps the “new Hollywood” generation starting in the late 1960s, and so forth. However, in the last 30 years or so, have there been any such shifts in acting? I mean we can see an obvious change from Charlie Chaplin to Humphrey Bogart to Marlon Brando…but what real technical or methodological divides exist (if any) between new actors and those who came of age in the 1970s? ---
**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:** [February 8, 2014, 5:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-actor-of-his-generation/680683/49 "2014-02-08T05:20:05Z")
Interesting question, **syncrolecyne**. How about body transformation? DeNiro’s fluctuating weight in _Raging Bull_ or Bale’s gaunt appearance in _The Machinist_ are arguably the most famous (a few other notables would be Renee Zelwegger, Grorge Clooney, and Matthew McConaughey). ---
**Author:** ![pancakes3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ba9def/32.png) [@pancakes3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pancakes3)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2014, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-actor-of-his-generation/680683/50 "2014-02-08T05:35:46Z")
2 guys not mentioned that deserves a nomination: Jamie Foxx Woody Harrelson ---
**Author:** ![Ibn\_Warraq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e19b73/32.png) [@Ibn\_Warraq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibn_Warraq)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2014, 6:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-actor-of-his-generation/680683/51 "2014-02-08T06:10:26Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > Wow when did he develop this ability? Because every fucking thing I’ve ever seen him in, he plays the same fucking guy: Johnny Depp as ------- -------. Really? To give two obvious examples I think him as Captain Jack Sparrow and Edward Scissorhands were both really fantastic, while still radically different roles. YMMV. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2014, 6:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-actor-of-his-generation/680683/52 "2014-02-08T06:46:48Z")
If we are going by age, what about Jodie Foster. She is only a few years older (51). Sure she had won 2 Oscars by the time she was 31 and Hoffman was early in his career at that age, but are they the same generation regardless of when they started in the business? ---
**Author:** ![jerez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c68b51/32.png) [@jerez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jerez)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2014, 10:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-actor-of-his-generation/680683/53 "2014-02-08T10:47:08Z")
> [@](#): > > \*How about body transformation? DeNiro’s fluctuating weight in Raging Bull or Bale’s gaunt appearance in The Machinist are arguably the most famous (a few other notables would be Renee Zelwegger, Grorge Clooney, and Matthew McConaughey). \* According to IMDB, an even bigger change in body weight was achieved by an actor who’s not yet been mentioned in this thread: Vincent D’Onofrio as Private Pyle in Full Metal Jacket. At 54/55, he’d be in the “older” category we seem to have established here. ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2014, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-actor-of-his-generation/680683/54 "2014-02-08T19:04:01Z")
> [@Ibn\_Warraq](#): > > Really? > > To give two obvious examples I think him as Captain Jack Sparrow and Edward Scissorhands were both really fantastic, while still radically different roles. > > YMMV. Last time he was a good actor was 10 years ago, and he hasn’t been great for 20 years. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2014, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-actor-of-his-generation/680683/55 "2014-02-08T19:12:47Z")
> [@The\_Other\_Jeffrey\_Lebowski](#): > > Interesting question, **syncrolecyne**. How about body transformation? DeNiro’s fluctuating weight in _Raging Bull_ or Bale’s gaunt appearance in _The Machinist_ are arguably the most famous (a few other notables would be Renee Zelwegger, Grorge Clooney, and Matthew McConaughey). Also: Matt Damon lost weight for _Courage Under Fire_ Leonardo DiCaprio gained weight for _J. Edgar_ Tom Hanks lost and gained weight for _Cast Away_ Charlize Theron gained weight for _Monster_ Jared Leto gained 70 pounds (!) for _Chapter 27_ ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2014, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-actor-of-his-generation/680683/56 "2014-02-09T01:39:26Z")
> [@Ibn\_Warraq](#): > > Really? > > To give two obvious examples I think him as Captain Jack Sparrow and Edward Scissorhands were both really fantastic, while still radically different roles. > > YMMV. He’s very talented and he’s done some great work in the past. Since Pirates of the Caribbean or so, he’s been mailing it in and just playing Weird Guys instead of creating characters who feel like human beings. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2014, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-actor-of-his-generation/680683/57 "2014-02-09T02:00:36Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > He’s very talented and he’s done some great work in the past. Since Pirates of the Caribbean or so, he’s been mailing it in and just playing Weird Guys instead of creating characters who feel like human beings. I sort of agree with that. As an example of his prior, and _great_, work, take a look at [Donnie Brasco](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119008/?ref_=nv_sr_3). He has it in him. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2014, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-actor-of-his-generation/680683/58 "2014-02-09T21:10:00Z")
John Cusack Billy Bob Thornton I’m having a difficult time coming up with a movie that either of them has been less than excellent in. Thornton gets a bad rap for his Jolie period, when he was acting out, but he has had stellar roles in films like Slingblade, Monster’s Ball, The Man Who Wasn’t There, A Simple Plan, Pushing Tin, and even Bad Santa. Okay there was The Alamo, which was a stinker. Cusack is almost always excellent, even in a small role like Denny Lachance in Stand By Me. ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2014, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-actor-of-his-generation/680683/59 "2014-02-09T21:41:31Z")
I humbly refer you to[this thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=659787) on this subject. Gary Oldman took it in a landslide. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2014, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-actor-of-his-generation/680683/60 "2014-02-10T00:15:21Z")
> [@drewtwo99](#): > > I humbly refer you to[this thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=659787) on this subject. Gary Oldman took it in a landslide. Not really the same generation as PSH. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-actor-of-his-generation/680683.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-actor-of-his-generation/680683.md?page=4)