Robert Downey Jr. in Iron Man (and the subsequent films where he played Tony Stark, too). They nailed that one so hard that nobody’s ever going to be able to beat him as Stark. Nobody.
Hugh Laurie as House. Ditto.
David Hyde Pierce as Niles Crane. To me, he was the show, far more than Frasier was.
Gene Wilder as Willy Wonka (the first and best): That’s my go-to for “absolutely knocked the casting out of the park.”
David Tennant as the Tenth Doctor. (I’d also make an argument for Matt Smith as Eleven).
Leonard Nimoy as Spock (and William Shatner as Kirk).
William Petersen as Gil Grissom on CSI. He had the perfect combination of intelligence and quirkiness to play that role.
Anthony Hopkins as Hannibal Lecter in Silence of the Lambs.
Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean–but only the first one. After the first he became kind of a parody of himself. In the first, he was perfect.
Viggo Mortensen as Aragorn.
Miscast:
Gary Oldman as Sirius Black. I’m sorry–I’m not arguing that he’s not a great actor. But Sirius was supposed to be extremely handsome. Even after he’d been in Azkaban for all those years, he should have looked like “extremely handsome guy who’s been languishing in prison for several years.” Not like some sort of wizarding porn producer. Seriously–who thought that mustache was a good idea?
Holy Cow, how was G’Kar still on the board? That’s an early first-round pick! Peter Jurasik as Londo Mollari is an early second rounder, or a sandwich pick. I’d watch those two do anything . . in B5 character, of course. Of Mice and Men: “Tell me again about the spoo, G’Kar.”
R.I.P. Andreas.
I’ll debate the Michael O’Hare choice. I think he was a good Sinclair - it’s just that Sinclair was sedate and mellow. I think he was cast because he fit the character as written, and they later realized an existentialist former Jesuit wasn’t the ideal lead character for an action-space series.
And jumpin’ jeebus on a gasoline-powered pogo stick, Michael O’Hare is dead! I didn’t know that!
Best:
Clint Eastwood “Unforgiven”. This was the perfect “epilogue” to all those “man with no name” movies, and only Clint could play that role.
Raymond Cruz “Clear and Present Danger”. From reading the Clancy books, Cruz’s “Domingo” was exactly as I’d pictured him.
Hillary Swank “Million Dollar Baby”. Can’t imagine any other actress giving the character more “authenticity”.
Al Pacino “Godfather” and “Godfather Part II”. Never read the book, but Al’s portrayal of going from the “above board son” to following in his father’s footsteps, and realizing he is the best one to do so, is amazing.
Worst:
Arnold “Conan the Barbarian”. Read the books or the comics - Conan has a brain !
Michael Keaton “Batman” (and sequel). Wrong for Bruce Wayne, even more wrong for the dark knight. 'nuff said.
As was mentioned, I don’t think Hayden was to blame for that. I’ve liked him just fine in other movies where he wasn’t being directed by a director who hates actors.
That makes sense. I thought Jessica Alba was just kind of a sucky actor, but maybe that’s why.
My nom for worst casting was Molly Ringwald as Fran Goldsmith in “The Stand” mini-series. The rest of the casting was surprisingly strong - Gary Sinise as Stuart Redman, Ossie Davis as the Judge, Ruby Dee as Mother Abigail, Ray Walston as Glen Bateman, Jamey Sheridan as Randall Flagg - the list goes on. The glaring exception was Molly - she wasn’t right as Fran, and she wasn’t right as Stu’s lover, and she wasn’t right as one of the leaders of the new community.
Tom Baker was perfect as The Doctor. Just the right mix of intense, whimsical, eccentric, goofy, serious, frustrating, and adorable. (I also liked Colin Baker, so go figure)
Mrs Columbo as Janeway left me wanting. It was the right role for a woman, just not for that woman.
For recent casting missteps, I gotta say: James Franco in “Oz.” He wasn’t really “The Wizard,” just…James Franco. In an old-timey suit.
That really seems like a role best played by a Bridges. Jeff or Beau. Maybe even Lloyd.
I’ve always thought Crispin Freeman would have made a good Anakin—he’s a few years older than Hayden, but still looks the part (even today!), and he’s the same height (though not as tall as Prouse). I don’t think he’s done much live-action acting, true, but he seems dynamic enough in person…and that voice. That sounds like “General Skywalker,” something that could become Vader…Christensen just, well, sounded like a snarling teenager.
What’s odder is that he plays a character with superpowers in Scott Pilgrim vs. the World…and actually comes off as impressive and imposing.
