# Your favorite character actor. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 4, 2002, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-character-actor/140479 "2002-12-04T17:26:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-character-actor/140479/21 "2002-12-05T16:23:52Z")
Christopher Lloyd, who is so typecast as the zany oddball that it overshadows a real talent. William Daniels (starred in 1776 but a supporting player in everything else), though I can’t imagine him playing a blue-collar character. Ditto Frances Sternhagen- she can play salty old farmwife, bookish intellectual, or snooty society matron with equal believability. I love the British staple-stable of character actors: Brian Blessed, John Hurt, Bernard Hepton, Leo McKern (he was Australian actually, but I’ll count him), Vivien Pickles, and Patrick Stewart )from before-he-was-Picard days). ---
**Author:** ![Mullinator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c2a13f/32.png) [@Mullinator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mullinator)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-character-actor/140479/22 "2002-12-05T17:06:43Z")
[R. Lee Ermey](http://us.imdb.com/Name?Ermey,+R.+Lee) [Eeeeeeeeaaarrrrrllll Holliman!](http://us.imdb.com/Name?Holliman,+Earl). OK, maybe not a character actor, but something about this thread really made me want to make that reference. ---
**Author:** ![gonzoron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a6a055/32.png) [@gonzoron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzoron)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-character-actor/140479/23 "2002-12-05T17:12:21Z")
Willaim H. Macy, although he’s starting to get some starring roles lately. And on the “mysterious asian man” front: Mako! ---
**Author:** ![KidCharlemagne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ed8c4c/32.png) [@KidCharlemagne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KidCharlemagne)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-character-actor/140479/24 "2002-12-05T17:56:59Z")
Too funny, I opened the thread to toss in M. Emmet Walsh myself. I like James Cromwell (Capt in LA Confidential) While I like David Morse alot I can’t say i think he’s a great actor. ---
**Author:** ![thermalribbon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@thermalribbon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thermalribbon)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-character-actor/140479/25 "2002-12-05T17:57:15Z")
You gotta like **John Turturro**. I know he has had lead roles in some small movies, but what we mostly know him from is his roles in **Spike Lee and Coen Brothers** movies. ---
**Author:** ![KidCharlemagne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ed8c4c/32.png) [@KidCharlemagne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KidCharlemagne)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-character-actor/140479/26 "2002-12-05T18:04:41Z")
Also Conchata Ferrell (Fat secretary in Erin Brochovich) And is it George Dzundza who played the wheelchair bound computer expert in “No Way Out”? If so, him too. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-character-actor/140479/27 "2002-12-05T18:15:24Z")
I think Philip Seymore Hoffman is pretty amazing. (my first choice to play Ignatius if they ever make a movie out of _A Confederacy of Dunces_.) ---
**Author:** ![Bomzaway](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e480ec/32.png) [@Bomzaway](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bomzaway)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-character-actor/140479/28 "2002-12-05T18:35:17Z")
Ditto on **Don Cheadle** I like **David Strathairn**. He played the rotten dad in Dolores Claborne, which was a masterful performance IMO. He also played the owner of the escort service in “LA Confidential”. And I don’t know if he qualifies for this or not, but I really think **Joaquin Phoenix** has a bright future. ---
**Author:** ![Q.N.Jones](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/3da27b/32.png) [@Q.N.Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.N.Jones)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-character-actor/140479/29 "2002-12-05T18:56:01Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by KidCharlemagne \* > \*\*While I like David Morse alot I can’t say i think he’s a great actor. \*\* I didn’t think so the first few times I saw him in movies. He’s had bit parts in many things, and often, they weren’t particularly memorable. He’s also got an Everyman look, which makes him less recognizable. It was only after I saw his entire body of work that I began to think he was very talented. His style is definitely not flashy–he does most of his work with his eyes, IMHO. What I think is notable about him is his range (he’s played everything from wimps to macho cops to ex-cons to child molesters). I always find him absolutely believable in every role, which I find pretty impressive. (Granted, I haven’t seen some of the crummy TV movies he did while he was on “St. Elsewhere” back in the '80s.) He’s considered an actor’s actor. Lots of very well-regarded directors have sought him out for parts because they admire his work, and other actors will cite him as someone they admire as well. He’s just not star material (his lead role in CBS’s “Hack” not withstanding), and I think that’s why most viewers don’t recognize or appreciate him. ---
**Author:** ![Anamorphic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/anamorphic/32/3057_2.png) [@Anamorphic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anamorphic)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-character-actor/140479/30 "2002-12-05T18:58:02Z")
[Paul Dooley](http://us.imdb.com/Name?Dooley,+Paul). “Refund? REFUND!?” ---
**Author:** ![Labdad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/439d5e/32.png) [@Labdad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labdad)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-character-actor/140479/31 "2002-12-05T19:00:53Z")
I’ve always been a fan of [Charles Lane](http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hc&id=1800011344&cf=biog&intl=us), who, incredibly, it seems is still alive (he’ll be 98 next month). When you watch “It’s a Wonderful Life” this season, he’s the guy who plays Mr. Potter’s assistant. He also plays the Constable in “The Music Man.” You’ve seen him a hundred times - he’s just one of those guys you recognize instantly, but whose name you never know. ---
**Author:** ![KidCharlemagne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ed8c4c/32.png) [@KidCharlemagne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KidCharlemagne)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-character-actor/140479/32 "2002-12-05T19:13:36Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Diogenes the Cynic \* > \*\*I think Philip Seymore Hoffman is pretty amazing. (my first choice to play Ignatius if they ever make a movie out of _A Confederacy of Dunces_.) \*\* He is fantastic but I don’t know that I would classify him as a character actor as much as an underappreciated one. **Q.N. Jones** , Perhaps I’m critical because I really try to keep the idea of liking the characters an actor plays and his actual acting skill seperate and sometimes I go overboard. I found his character in “The Green Mile” to be one of the most likeable in the history of cinema and he played that part well. Something didn’t strike me with his performance in “Proof of Life,” but like you said he is extremely versatile. From “The Green Mile” to his role in “The Negotiator” and “Lethal Weapon” (I think?) is a pretty far jump. Though interesting to note that he becomes the good guy in the end of “The Negotiator.” ---
**Author:** ![Motorgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e36b37/32.png) [@Motorgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Motorgirl)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-character-actor/140479/33 "2002-12-05T19:17:52Z")
I think these people qualify. They might get too much work to qualify, though: Ellen Albertini Dow Joan Cusack Don Cheadle William H. Macy Steve Buscemi ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-character-actor/140479/34 "2002-12-05T19:20:08Z")
Who was the guy with the mullet in the convenience store in _Ghost World_? That guy was awsome? ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-character-actor/140479/35 "2002-12-05T19:22:11Z")
please ignore that last question mark. ---
**Author:** ![KidCharlemagne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ed8c4c/32.png) [@KidCharlemagne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KidCharlemagne)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-character-actor/140479/36 "2002-12-05T19:31:22Z")
Come to think of it, Ronny Cox should probably be considered a character actor. He’s good. ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Tan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/charlie_tan/32/12582_2.png) [@Charlie\_Tan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Tan)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-character-actor/140479/37 "2002-12-05T19:53:52Z")
He might get to much work as a leading man now (still not a lot, mind you), but I think that [Giovanni Ribisi](http://us.imdb.com/Name?Ribisi,+Giovanni) is one of the younger, wothy of a mention. As Frank Buffay, Jr. _Pheobe’s_\* strange brother, and as Seth in [Boiler Room](http://us.imdb.com/Title?0181984), he’s already shown his range. I expect great things from this kid. ---
**Author:** ![waits](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/df788c/32.png) [@waits](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/waits)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-character-actor/140479/38 "2002-12-05T20:08:28Z")
Claude Raines. Hey, **Eve** , I’m surprised you didn’t also mention Eugene Pallette, Charles Coburn, or Everett Sloane… ---
**Author:** ![Q.N.Jones](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/3da27b/32.png) [@Q.N.Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.N.Jones)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-character-actor/140479/39 "2002-12-05T20:11:16Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by KidCharlemagne \* > \*\*He is fantastic but I don’t know that I would classify him as a character actor as much as an underappreciated one. > > **Q.N. Jones** , > Perhaps I’m critical because I really try to keep the idea of liking the characters an actor plays and his actual acting skill seperate and sometimes I go overboard. I see that. It can be tough, and recently (notably in _The Green Mile_), he’s played some characters I particularly liked because I’d read the book beforehand. Having seen the rest of his work, though, I don’t think that’s the only reason I think he’s a good actor, anymore. YMMV. > [@](#): > > Something didn’t strike me with his performance in “Proof of Life,” but like you said he is extremely versatile. This movie was hampered by so many things (Meg Ryan and the decision of Taylor Hackford to remove one of the pivotal plot points) that it’s hard to like anything about it. But once I’d seen it a few times (HBO runs it incessantly), parts of Morse’s performance really stand out to me. MINOR SPOILER: The part where he pulls the stick that’s pierced his foot–his acting here is so dead-on I can’t even begin to say how much I admire it. I once watched my sister, who (GROSS-OUT ALERT) pull a dinner fork out of her arm after she was stabbed with it in an accident in the kitchen. Her behavior in that real incident and Morse’s in the fake one were so uncannily similar that it made a huge impression on me. > [@](#): > > From “The Green Mile” to his role in “The Negotiator” and “Lethal Weapon” (I think?) is a pretty far jump. Not _Lethal Weapon_. Check out [http://us.imdb.com/Name?Morse,+David](http://us.imdb.com/Name?Morse,+David) for a full listing, but he’s been in everything from “St. Elsewhere” to “The Negotiator” to “Dancer in the Dark”. > [@](#): > > Though interesting to note that he becomes the good guy in the end of “The Negotiator.” \*\* Interesting that you point this out because, from his interviews, it becomes clear that he enjoys playing characters who are morally ambiguous. I encourage you to watch an episode or two of “Hack”. If you can get past the sometimes-cheesy production values and the need to seriously suspend disbelief (a crime-fighting cabbie?), the acting is first-rate (also starring George Dzundza and Andre Braugher, both excellent), and the writing is steeped in moral ambiguity. It’s hard to tell who the good guys and the bad guys are, and I think that’s why it doesn’t go down so easily with viewers. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2002, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-character-actor/140479/40 "2002-12-05T22:06:26Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Diogenes the Cynic \* > \*\*I think Philip Seymore Hoffman is pretty amazing. (my first choice to play Ignatius if they ever make a movie out of _A Confederacy of Dunces_.) \*\* He’d be good, but I think I’d go with Oliver Platt. [hijack1]I’d also love to see Lynn Redgrave as Ignatius’s mother, Joe Pesci as Patrolman Mancuso, Anna Nicole Smith as the stripper, and Lily Tomlin as Santa Battaglia.[/hijack1] [hijack2]Have you read [Ignatius Rising](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0807126802/qid=1039125746/sr=1-5/ref=sr_1_5/002-7861900-5483213?v=glance&s=books) , the new Toole biography? His mother’s letters were incredible- you know instantly where he got Ignatius’s writing style.[/hijack2] Speaking of Lynn Redgrave, she’s one of my favorite character actors as well. Her GODS AND MONSTERS co-star Ian McKellen would also be, but he’s become an unlikely late-in-life leading man. Other favorites: David Ogden Stiers (great range) Terence Mann Howard Morris William Sanderson (brother to Darryl and Darryl; also a licensed lawyer who always acts with a quarter in his ear) Conchata Ferrell (she made LA LAW when she was a regular) Katherine Helmond (also very versatile) Dan Hedaya Holland Taylor the late great LaWanda Page (Sanford and Son had almost no professional actors in its extended cast but they were the funniest players on television) Two of my least favorite character actors: Max von Sydow (just once I’d like to see him do slapstick) Teri Garr (who keeps giving her work?) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-character-actor/140479.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-character-actor/140479.md?page=3)