Can you think of an actor who has little to no charm, is not a very good actor, yet still manages to find work and moderate success? My friend and I were trying to think of someone who would fit this description and I figured that this would be the perfect question for the Straight Dope!
Would Rob Schneider count? Very little acting talent, and very little charm. Plenty of minor work.
As a bonus, very few females would think he was handsome or dreamy.
OH! Why didn’t I think of that.
Rob Schneider is…A CARROT!
And yes, I should add relatively un-attractive to the list of qualifiers, considering that Keanu has gotten by on looks alone for a good deal of his roles.
:D, that episode crossed my mind, right after I ruled out Tom Cruise and Keanu Reeves as good candidates. They only qualified as bad actors.
Jim
Bill Paxton… definitely.
I do like him in Big Love though, but more because he really can play a bland Morman man (albeit with “issues”) a little too wel
Colin Farrell. The guy who played Alexander, remeber?? Tho many apparently disagree, I fail to see any evidence of good looks, charisma, or talent. Yet he not only gets jobs, he stars in movies! Truly the anti-Depp to me.
John Glenn. Worst actor ever. Ugly as ugly gets. Still gets big parts. Will never understand.
The astronaut/Senator? When has he acted?
He’s probably talking about Scott Glenn. I wouldn’t call him as ugly as ugly gets, though - he’s got a unique, if not conventional, look. I remember him as being alright in The Right Stuff, but I haven’t seen him in anything else.
Um, lissener, I’m going to take a wild guess here that you actually mean Scott Glenn.
I would agree with you if it weren’t for a guest-starring role on Scrubs that made me think twice about him.
Alexander was cheese, but it might not be fair to judge him by the worst work he’s done. Even Depp was in 21 Jump Street.
Another vote for Bill Paxton.
I’ve seen buckets of sand with more grace, charm and acting ability.
I’d have to say Will Ferrell. He isn’t conventionally handsome, he isn’t convincing as a dramatic actor, and he’s funny only in the kind of humor culled from the pile of scripts marked “TOO DUMB AND GROSS FOR ADAM SANDLER.” Yet in spite of all this, he’s in tons of movies, most of which do very well. He must have the best agent on the planet.
Either that or there are people out there who find him funny.
I’m not one of them, I’m just saying.
More importantly, has anyone ever realized the American Dream more thoroughly? I mean seriously, next thing we know he’ll be playing for the Diamondbacks.
As a TV personality, I gotta go with Byron Allen. Twenty years ago, he was hosting a bland interview show that only got play in syndication at 4AM. Twenty years later, he’s hosting a different bland interview show that only gets play in syndication at 4AM.
The man just reeks of mediocrity on every level.
I’ve always felt vaguely this way about Kevin Kostner.
It seems to me he doesn’t ‘act’ at all. He just plays himself reading the script (albeit in a relaxed manner)
After seeing a rerun of 1986’s “Babes in Toyland” last night, I was going to come in here to say Keanu Reeves, too. You’d think that, after 20 years, his acting style would at least have changed, if not improved. But…nothing. He doesn’t even look much older.
Whoa…
My pick would be John Lithgow. I’m sure a lot of people would disagree about the acting ability, but I’ve never really been impressed.
I’d have to agree about Will Ferrell, too.