32 Actors And Actresses Who Managed To Rebrand Themselves Both Drastically And Successfully
I recently came across a movie called The Number 23, a psychological thriller from the mid-'00s with Jim Carrey starring. And, I must say, his performance was great. Yes, that's right - one of the greatest screen comedians of all time is at home in a dramatic role.
It must be said that the history of cinema actually knows many examples when actors and actresses, previously perceived exclusively in one type of role, over time successfully “restarted” their careers, achieving significant success in a new look. And this viral thread in the AskReddit community is dedicated to just such a “rebranding” of movie stars, a selection of the best ideas from which we present to your attention today.
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Robert Downey Jr is the obvious answer.
When his son was arrested for doing/having weed (I forget) RDJ released a very sweet and supportive statement talking about how addiction has a genetic component and that the family would be rallying around the son in this difficult time to support him. He's a good guy.
For me it's Brendan Fraser. The whale as his comeback was amazing.
Tom Hanks. There was a time he was only seen as a comedic actor. Then he did Philadelphia.
A powerful film, and not to take anything away from Denzel either.
The author of the original thread, the user u/Vegas_off_the_Strip, cites Matthew McConaughey as the clearest example of such “rebranding.” An actor who, at the start of his career, starred mainly in rom-coms, and producers actively exploited his appearance. However, the actor didn’t get hung up on one type of role (even if he was well paid for them), and from 2011 to 2014 he racked up a spectacular collection of serious dramatic roles, the crown of which was Dallas Buyers Club and a well-deserved Oscar for Best Actor.
And now, remembering Interstellar, the roles in the first season of True Detective and The Wolf of Wall Street, we are sincerely surprised - how could this brilliant master spend so much time just on rom-coms? This means that the personal rebranding was a great success.
Not movies, but Bryan Cranston was pretty much just thought of as the goofy dad from Malcom in the Middle before his turn as Heisenberg.
Daniel Radcliffe has created a pretty impressive amount of distance from his Harry Potter days.
I wouldn't say he's "re-branded" himself so much as just continuing his acting career after Harry Potter. He will not be able to shake "that's the guy that played Harry Potter" for many generations. It's what he is known for and will be remembered for.
Went deep into this without seeing Robin Williams name pop up? From coke-fuelled Mork & Mindy and Mrs Doubtfire to the body of work he eventually created?
In the other direction, you have Robert De Niro.
One Hour Photo, Jacob the Liar, Insomnia, What Dreams May Come, Patch Adams, The Fisher King and more. So much depth in so many of his characters and some of these films really cemented for me how great an actor he was.
For some, changes in acting roles were simply a test of their own talent. For some, it was a vital necessity, like for Robert Downey Jr., who restarted his career in general at the turn of the century. Someone like Daniel Radcliffe is desperately trying to get away from the 'one-role wonder' look - and doing it quite successfully.
And others simply demonstrate that they can not only show off impressive muscles on screen, but are also good, versatile actors. Like Dave Bautista, who can now quite possibly be called the best film actor to come from wrestling (sorry, Rock!)
Woody Harralson coming out of Cheers and still ending up in big time movies today.
I think it's a testament to how charismatic he is. I rewatched Wag the Dog the other day and he was so funny in such a small role. You want to watch him. It reminds me of RDJ or Ryan Reynolds where you almost feel like he IS the character. A lot of their own personality comes out in the roles and Woody is the same. It's an exaggerated version but you feel like he's not playing completely against type. And even if they're annoying characters, they're somewhat likable. Will and Grace was never the same because Nathan was such an amazing character and such a good fit for Grace. Every guy that they tried to pair her with after that sucked.
Leslie Nielsen. Also, if you look up his upbringing, the man had quite the rough childhood.
Olivia coleman
Started off as tv comedy actress and has turned that into being regarded as one of the best actors in the world currently and an Oscar win.
I remember seeing her in Broadchurch and Black Books, gotta start somewhere.
“In fact, almost any actor throughout their career - even at the beginning - starred in many small roles in a wide variety of films, and serious dramatic talent is immediately visible,” says Dmytro Kosygin, a Ukrainian film director and cameraman, whom Bored Panda asked for a comment. “Another thing is that producers are interested in the film not only and not so much as a piece of art, but as a commercial product. And if a person who can play Hamlet also has the appearance of a classic heartthrob, then he is guaranteed to star in numerous romantic comedies.”
"Just take the career of Leonardo DiCaprio, for example. He became known to the general public for his roles in Titanic and Romeo + Juliet, but as a teen he played brilliantly alongside Johnny Depp in the independent movie What's Eating Gilbert Grape. And despite the fact that the producers saw in him, first of all, a handsome guy, the directors understood what dramatic talent was hidden in him."
There was a time when Bruce Willis was a strictly comedic actor. The whole reason he was cast in Die Hard is that he wasn't the action star type.
Kurt Russell went from being mostly known as a former Disney child actor and successfully gained acclaim as an actor with Elvis (1979), Used Cars (1980), Escape From New York (1981), and The Thing (1982). After that, he just solidified it with Big Trouble In Little China, Overboard, Tequila Sunrise, Tango & Cash, and so much more. All that with a brief baseball career between his child actor days and his breakthrough as a serious actor.
John Travolta with Pulp Fiction, people don’t remember how much of a box office pariah he was before then, and generally viewed as a handsome but limited actor.
Another one would be Marlon Brando for several years until The Godfather and Last Tango in Paris, the difference there behind he burst onto the scene as one of the greatest to ever do it but then had an entire decade of flops and a reputation for being difficult on set.
“Therefore, movies by Scorsese and Spielberg completely changed the perception of DiCaprio as a dramatic actor for a wide range of cinema-goers. And movie connoisseurs already knew what he was capable of, already from the early ‘90s. By the way, regarding Hamlet - did you know that Mel Gibson also played this role? In the film by Franco Zeffirelli, and the director realized that he wanted to see Gibson in this role after seeing him in the Lethal Weapon action movie! This is how acting destinies sometimes turn out strangely..." Dmytro ponders.
Well perhaps it doesn't quite answer your question since I wouldn't say it strictly involves typecasting but I figure I should mention Jimmy Stewart. In 1940 he won an Oscar for The Philadelphia Story and then enlisted in the Army Air Corps despite already being 32. By the time V-E Day came around he was a colonel which is amazing already going from an enlisted private to a commissioned colonel in just four years, but in any case pretty much nobody including him thought he'd be able to break back into Hollywood.
If it weren't for Capra (who also went into the Army for the duration of the war) offering him the starring role in It's a Wonderful Life, he likely wouldn't have come back either. Of course that film was a financial failure so it mostly had Stewart doing radio and some Broadway. Then in 1950 pretty much out of nowhere he successfully rebranded as a Western star with Winchester '73. Then in 1954 he seemed to shift again into a true leading man with Hitchcock's Rear Window and later Vertigo.
His military career is of course impressive, but it's always impressed me how he managed to survive breaking back into Hollywood right around the downfall of the studio system and did more than just compete with the younger generation of stars like James Dean.
No real surprise, he's a terrific actor with bundles of charisma. I inherited a deep love of Jimmy Stewart from my mum
Not to the same degree but Colin Farrell has really been making great films lately, he’s gone from trying to make “ big blockbusters” to thoughtful independent films and has really done well, I’ve always been a fan so it’s good see.
Zac Efron seems to be well on his way to being taken more seriously, especially after The Iron Claw.
Well, no matter what changes the acting careers of this or that star undergo, we, ordinary movie lovers, will always be the winners. After all, it’s always interesting to see how your favorite actor or actress demonstrates new facets of their great talent. So now please sit back, open a bag of popcorn and make sure to scroll this selection to the very end. And, of course, share your thoughts about those screen stars who could also join this list.
Danny Devito joining Its always sunny.
Dave Bautista from WWE to arguably the most talented actor of the wrestlers who've moved to Hollywood. .
As an off and on wrestling fan I've definitely been impressed with Dave Bautista's transition to Hollywood. He was a star, he was given championship runs, he was a part of big storylines and stables but he was never "the man" so to see him where he is now is awesome. He was the best part of Guardians of the Galaxy 3.
Oh no joke. Sick move
How about Ryan Gosling
Disney actor to major a lister.
Don't forget he looked really good wearing a fur coat and multiple sunglasses (at the same time).
Bob Odenkirk went from being a sketch comedy guy to a freaking action movie actor.
Keanu Reeves.
I'm not sure he qualifies. He's always gone between interesting films that may, or may not, make money and seemingly out of character action or thriller blockbuster films.
Michael Keaton, but I feel like his still did the fun movies like Spider-Man: Homecoming
Birdman
Spotlight
The Founder
Trial of the Chicago 7
And Dopesick.
I feel like Walton Goggins is at the start of his now.
He was “the guy with the teeth”, who showed up for a few episodes in a show every now and then. And in just a few years he’s now known baby billy in the Righteous Gemstones, the ghoul in Fallout, and is in the next season of The White Lotus. .
Not at all the same but I love how both James Spader and Hugh Grant had almost exact growths in their career. Both spent the first half of their career playing kind of geeky, feeble characters that stumble over their words but are our loveable losers we cheer for, mostly doing rom-coms, then both transitioned into being the slightly evil, overly confident, cryptic, sexy older man who is usually the smartest person in the room.
Robert Pattinson has so much clout in Hollywood he could pick pretty much any role he wants now...which is exactly what he does.
That's a big shift from the days of sniffing Voldemort's toes and sparkling in the sunlight.
He's a genuinely good actor. Twilight just kinda hid that for a while.
I would offer that DiCaprio's 2002-2006, albeit only 4 movies in that span, was also critically important to changing his perception from heartthrob to elite actor.
I guess 3 Scorsese films and a Spielberg film will do that to you lol.
Eric Bana. But only Australians will get it. Guy was a staple on a comedy skit show then Boom! serious breakout role as criminal gangster Chopper Reed, then off to Hollywood. .
First saw him in the first modern "Hulk" movie and then in "Black Hawk Down" - especially his role as "Norm „Hoot“ Gibson" was very strong
Jamie Foxx.
One of his co-stars, Channing Tatum! Went from a guy who was mostly known for dance movies to a comedy superstar, and working with the Cohen Brothers and Tarantino.
Before any of these roles he was mostly known for She's The Man, Step Up movies, and Dear John. All movies where he's mostly just eye candy. But then 2012 hits:
2012 - 21 Jump Street AND Magic Mike
Two great movies for very different reasons and he plays a lead role in both.
2013 - This Is The End
Small cameo that showed some self awareness and one of the funniest bits of the movie.
2014 - Foxcatcher, 22 Jump Street, The Lego Movie
Family friendly comedy role, "my name yeff" and a critically acclaimed movie he played a big role in.
2015 - Hateful Eight, Magic Mike XXL
Good role in one of Tarantino's best scripts, and takes a bit of a backseat in XXL's more ensemble feel but still good.
"He was just eye candy", proceeds to cite all the Magic Mike movies. For sure.
This is weird, but Tom Cruise. He was kinda joke after the whole Oprah couch thing and a bunch of misses at the box office. Scientology is still a joke, but he was seen as the terrible face of it and had that Matt Lauer interaction during the Today show. Paramount told him so long.... His long time Partner Paula Wagner left him. And the Mission Impossible Ghost Protocol was huge. Then Live, Die Repeat was sooooo good, even if it didnt do well box office wise, I think that really turned things around for how the public saw him. And then he has just been on the mission impossible train until Top Gun Maverick and that was crazy.
Shocked no one mentioned Ryan Reynolds pre-Deadpool. Like, the only reason he touched that project was because he needed a deep reset to cleanse the flavour of Green Lantern :P
He had some great comedic roles before that too.
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Noah Wylie (ER) and John Krazinski (sp?) (The Office): The cute, safe, smart, newbie at work becomes an adventurer. OK, The Librarian isn't exactly Jack Ryan, but still...
Those are both great examples (better than many of the examples in this list, actually).
Load More Replies... Shocked no one mentioned Ryan Reynolds pre-Deadpool. Like, the only reason he touched that project was because he needed a deep reset to cleanse the flavour of Green Lantern :P
He had some great comedic roles before that too.
Load More Replies... Noah Wylie (ER) and John Krazinski (sp?) (The Office): The cute, safe, smart, newbie at work becomes an adventurer. OK, The Librarian isn't exactly Jack Ryan, but still...
Those are both great examples (better than many of the examples in this list, actually).
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