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The 2025 film awards season is in full swing. As in most years, some good performances will get loads of buzz, while others will be overlooked. People will argue about who deserved which award and who had no business even being nominated.
Online, people are getting into a conversation about films, too, but from a different angle. Recently, one netizen wanted to know which actors people think are way too underrated. So, they asked: "Who is such a gifted actor who was absolutely wasted in their acting role?"
And folks had a lot of names to share—from well-known actors who didn't quite fit one role or another to thespians who might've disappeared into obscurity after one convincing but unpopular role. See people's opinions below, and don't forget to share the talented actors you'd like to see in more roles!
Bored Panda also got in touch with the netizen who posted this thread, u/sheerduckinghubris. We chatted about why some actors get pigeonholed into certain roles and discussed the actors who managed to get out of this curse. The Redditor also shared which recent performance by an actor surprised him with its range. Read our conversation below!
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#1
Henry Cavill was so wasted in the Witcher series. Man was born to play that role but the stupid writers who thought they knew better wasted him.
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#2
John Leguizamo as Tybalt in Romeo + Juliet (1996). He outshone every other actor in any scene he was in. And compared to the utterly wooden performances of DiCaprio and Danes, it was a stark contrast.
Joshua David 18 hours ago (edited)
His best role, in my opinion was ChiChi in To Wong Foo. He slayed. He was also amazing in Spun with Brittany Murphy.
#3
Hayden Christensen and Ewan McGregor are actually two very good actors who tried their very best during the Star Wards prequel trilogy but were given scripts so bad that it felt like it was written by a an 8 year old going through dementia lol.
It can be hard to be an actor. A lot can depend on the way you look, or how your voice sounds. Your past work also often defines you: some people can't imagine an actor outside of the one role they've seen them in once. That's how they get typecast – that's the bane of any ambitious actor's career.
The author of this thread, u/sheerduckinghubris, believes that no actor wants that. "I think in most cases, actors choose roles they're passionate [about], only for the project to change in one way or another to a point that it no longer resembles what was initially marketed to them."
"Or, in the case of actors like John Boyega, who was amazing in the Star Wars sequels and had such a good character arc, only to end up sidelined by poor writing and direction in The Rise of Skywalker," the Redditor told Bored Panda. "It's just an unfortunate reality that we will eventually see talented actors pushed to the wayside in favour of more recognisable stars."
#4
I wish Henry Cavill had been allowed to play Superman in any other live-action continuity that wasn't the DCEU.
BeesEelsAndPups 14 hours ago
The problem he will always have is that he's too good looking for serious roles. But too good an actor for action roles. He's amazing in Enola Holmes
#5
I’d say many of the A-list actors in *Cats*. Judy Dench, Ian McKellen, Idris Elba just to name a few.
Paul Donahue 1 day ago (edited)
RELEASE THE SPHINCTER VERSION. Good luck sensoring that BP you wankers
#6
Peter Capaldi in Doctor Who
Jodie Whittaker in Doctor Who
Both were *fantastic* at their craft and both were enormously let down by writing and direction. Both manage to take some of the dreck they were given and actually make a meal out of it but if they had gotten better scripts those performances would be as iconic as Tenants.
Luckily, not all movie stars get stuck acting one type of role their whole careers. u/sheerduckinghubris thinks that Wedding Crashers actor Vince Vaughn is a good example. "Vince Vaughn brought life back into his career with more serious movies like Hacksaw Ridge and Brawl in Cell Block 99 and showed how ranged he truly is, able to prove he can command any scene he's in."
"Though, "I have liked a lot of his comedy movies like Dodgeball and Wedding Crashers," the netizen admits. "Like [with] Adam Sandler, I prefer his more serious roles where he's able to add more gravitas and immersion," the Redditor tells Bored Panda.
#7
Raul Julia in Street Fighter, he had just been diagnosed with cancer when he was offered the role, and since his children loved the game, he accepted as a last gift for them. So far so good, but the problem is he was the only person treating the movie and his role with any respect. He was bending over with pain between takes, and still playing his role like it was Shakespeare, while Jean Claude Van Damme was snorting coke and arriving 8 hours late for filming, and nobody confronted him about it cause he was the “big name” attached to the movie.
April Pickett 1 day ago
Raul Julia was a gifted actor. Who is that other guy? You know, the cokehead?
#8
Christian Slater was on his way to greatness. And then he decided that Jack Nicholson was the greatest actor ever, and from that point on, all he did was Jack Nicholson impersonations.
#9
Matt Smith can act, it's just that every-time he tries to become a bigger name by being in a blockbuster movie he's gotten stuck with roles where he can't really do his thing or is barely present to do anything, and it's mostly in movies with no hype behind them or they end up being forgettable.
We also wanted to know if any recent films showcased an actor's talent in a new light for u/sheerduckinghubris. The Redditor points to Hugh Grant in the 2024 movie Heretic. "[It] was most definitely a surprise for me, though he has been taking a wider range of roles in recent times," the author says.
"Seeing him in a darker role than what I've seen him in was honestly a thrill and he was utterly great in Heretic. I also loved seeing Brendan Fraser back in The Whale," the Redditor adds. "Though I've been a Fraser fan for a while, The Whale became my favourite movie of all time because of his emotional performance," the netizen praises the actor.
#10
A lot of international actors get typecast in typically villainous or stereotypical roles. I think of Mads Mikkelsen or Antonio Banderas or Hiroyuki Sanada or Marion Cotillard. When you see the work they do and the kinds of roles they get in their native languages, you realize just how much Hollywood wastes them.
My number one actor for this kind of thing is always Hong Chau. Chameolonic, tremendously talented and she’s always in like 5 minutes of a movie. Drives me crazy.
#11
I think John Boyega got s***wed in the sequel movies as Finn.
#12
Alexander Siddig as Doran Martell, Prince of Dorne in Game of Thrones
Utterly wasted in one stupid plot line and then disrespectfully [ended] by another character butchered by horrible writing in another stupid plot line.
#13
The fact that Alyson Hannigan never did drama after Buffy is truly wild. I think it was her choice, as she much preferred working on sitcoms, but she was a devastatingly incredible serious actor. NO ONE can cry like Alyson Hannigan can cry.
#14
I feel bad that Sean Williams Scott played Stiffler ***so f*****g well*** that he was only ever allowed to play that role with another name.
#15
John C. Reilly in basically every project he's ever done with Will Ferrell. He's basically a case study in being too good but not taking yourself seriously about it.
#16
Robin Williams was far, far better as a serious actor than a comedian.
April Pickett 1 day ago
He could do anything. A good man, a fabulous comedian, terrific actor. You believed him when he put a character on.
#17
Alexander Dane in Galaxy Quest. The man played Hamlet!
Nathaniel He/Him Cis-Het 1 day ago
"By Grabthar's Hammer, by the Suns of Warvan, you shall be avenged."
#18
I always feel bad watching Teri Garr playing such a nothing role in Dumb and Dumber. You’re talking about one of the biggest and most talented stars of the 80s, and she plays the old stepmom who has like two throwaway lines.
Daniel Atkins 1 day ago
Who sees a movie named Dumb and Dumber and thinks a great dramatic actor is going to blow you away in it?
#20
I'm consistently amazed at the number of s**t movies that Sir Ben Kingsley signs on to.
#21
Adam Driver as Kylo Ren is the most obvious one I can think of.
Absolutely brilliant actor, f*****g horrible directing and screenwriting.
#22
Rufus Sewell in Man in the High Castle. He was exquisite in his role, but the show as a whole was pretty bad.
iseefractals 23 minutes ago
84% on rotten tomatoes, 7.9/10 on IMDB, based off one of the most significant sci-fi writers that ever lived. That show was a masterpiece, and Rufus played the role beautifully
#23
James McAvoy has been largely wasted in his career, I think. I was impressed by his performance in SciFi's *Frank Herbert's Children of Dune* miniseries, and he's gone a good job playing Professor Xavier, but that role didn't utilize him fully.
RamiRudolph 19 hours ago
He was great in Split and Glass. The movies itself weren't all that great, be played those personalities perfectly.
#24
Sarah Michelle Gellar in everything that's not Buffy. Someone give her a good role in a continuing show! (I know she's in the Dexter prequel right now, but haven't heard anything positive about the show).
Beth Wheeler 12 hours ago
She was on All My Children years ago, that's the first thing I remember seeing her in.
#25
Christian Bale in "Thor: Love and Thunder".
Demon4SL: The mood whiplash was ridiculous. One scene played by Christian Bale in a super tragic and dramatic tone, followed up by screaming goats in the next scene.
They tried too hard and couldn't get the right balance of drama and lighthearted that Ragnarok had.
#26
Andrew Garfield as Spider-Man.
So many bad creative decisions in those movies, but Andrew Garfield is an amazing actor.
He was my favorite of the three Spider-Men in No Way Home.
#27
Jeremy Irons in the 2000 Dungeons and Dragons movie.
Nathaniel He/Him Cis-Het 1 day ago
From IMDB When asked why he did this film, Jeremy Irons replied, "Are you kidding? I'd just bought a castle, I had to pay for it somehow!"
#29
Adam Sandler was great in the few serious roles I've seen him in, but the general public doesn't want serious Adam Sandler so he just gets paid $20 million to film movies in exotic locations with his best friends. I would do the same.
Nathaniel He/Him Cis-Het 1 day ago
Don't watch That's my boy. Would have been bad taste in th nineties, how it got made in 2012 is beyond me.
#30
Richard Burton, albeit his wasted talent was down more to his chronic alcoholism.
Bela Lugosi was a very talented actor who got typecasted in horror roles and abused by the studios
Harry H Corbett was considered Britain’s Marlon Brando, yet after Steptoe was typecast as Steptoe like characters.
#31
Gary Oldman in The Hitman’s Bodyguard
He is given like 1 good scene to really portray his character and its great but then he’s just a background piece the rest of the movie
Complete waste of Gary Oldman right there.
#32
Cate Blanchett in Borderlands. She's won multiple Oscars for drama and now at 55 they want her to be an action star??? WTF.
Jaya 17 hours ago (edited)
Why shouldn't she also be an action star at 55? Why should she be confined to serious heavy stuff because that's what she's brilliant at? Let her do what she likes, and I think it's awesome to have an older female action star. I haven't seen that movie so I have no idea if she could pull that off, but in either case I think it's great that she tried it.
#33
I was really looking forward to seeing Wes Chatham in Ahsoka because he was so good in The Expanse and then he was not only barely in it, he was stuck inside a helmet.
#34
Lee Jung Jae in The Acolyte.
The guy tries his hardest but if you get a trash script, there is not much you can do. Still can't believe they had this Squid Game superstar on hand and didn't do anything with him, just randomly [ended him].
#35
Zendaya in the Spiderman movies. Like please give the girl something to work with.
Note: this post originally had 51 images. It’s been shortened to the top 35 images based on user votes.
What do you think ?
JB 1 day ago
Eddie Redmayne in “Jupiter Rising”. That man can act! He’s convincingly played one of the first trans characters. He owned the role of Stephen Hawking, the bad as well as the good. He’s totally adorable in fantastic beasts. But in “Jupiter Rising” he did his best to be convincing with an absolutely awful script.
LonelyLittleLeafSheep 5 hours ago
Just finished "The Day of the Jackal" tv series and he was so good!
Load More Replies...
Panda McPandaface 1 day ago
All the Oscars do for the most part is give awards to good perfomances in 'less popular' movies, ie. boring 'meaningful' stuff that we plebs are told is fantastic because ther critics said so.
JB 1 day ago
Eddie Redmayne in “Jupiter Rising”. That man can act! He’s convincingly played one of the first trans characters. He owned the role of Stephen Hawking, the bad as well as the good. He’s totally adorable in fantastic beasts. But in “Jupiter Rising” he did his best to be convincing with an absolutely awful script.
LonelyLittleLeafSheep 5 hours ago
Just finished "The Day of the Jackal" tv series and he was so good!
Load More Replies... Panda McPandaface 1 day ago
All the Oscars do for the most part is give awards to good perfomances in 'less popular' movies, ie. boring 'meaningful' stuff that we plebs are told is fantastic because ther critics said so.
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