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50 Times Actors Nailed A Role So Flawlessly, Nobody Will Be Able To Live Up To It
They say hard work beats talent, and there’s plenty of truth to that. However, there’s no denying that some people have a natural gift for what they do.
Take the world’s greatest movie stars, for instance. It feels like they were made for the roles they play, leaving us completely spellbound every second they’re on screen.
Redditors recently weighed in on this and shared their thoughts about which actors delivered performances that can never be topped. Scroll down to see their picks and let us know if you agree!
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
Alan Rickman is Snape. Always.
#2
Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow.
Prof_Walrus:
The fact they're trying to replace/reboot him is a guaranteed box office flop.
anonymous:
The role was actually written for Hugh Jackman but Johnny Depp had more star power.
#3
Christopher Lloyd as Doc Brown.
enricopallazo22:
There's only one doc Brown and only Marty Mcfly and it should always be that way.
#4
Hugh Laurie as Dr Gregory House.
unstopablystoopid:
There can be only one!
#6
Harrison Ford. Indiana Jones and Han Solo.
Far-Government5469:
Harrison brought just the right amount of incredulity to his circumstance to sell them.
#7
Michael Keaton did great with Beetlejuice.
DeeVa72:
I also think he was the best Batman
#8
Gene Wilder will forever be Willy Wonka.
thegreatresistrules:
This... my little daughter loved the Johnny Depp version until she finally saw the original. Now she hates the Depp version.
#10
Viggo Mortensen in Lord of the Rings. That wasn't how I pictured the character reading the book 40 years ago, or any time re reading it before the films, but that is Aragorn for me now.
#11
Tim Curry as Frank N Furter in Rocky Horror.
DirtRockEngineer:
This is so true. He didn't cross my mind until I read this comment and now I can't forgive myself.
#12
Heath Ledger's Joker.
FloydsForked:
This is the one for me. The most epic performance of all time.
#13
Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool.
warchiefx:
Reynolds was practically born to play that role.
notlikeyou1971 6 days ago
Ryan Reynolds is the ONLY person that should play Deadpool. He's the ONLY person who should continue to write the movies as well because he stays true to the character and won't change anything to please Disney and their modern methods of changing characters and sticking ideology in things where they don't belong. He's fighting really hard for the future of the character and the whole Mutant Saga right now. In my opinion he's irreplaceable.
#15
Patric Stewart/Picard.
craigerstar:
Stewart is the biggest reason for the success of a Star Trek reboot. If not for Stewart's Picard, I believe every Star Trek vehicle made since would not have happened or been some low budget hatchet job, including the current Chris Pine movies.
Hanging_with_my_gnomies 6 days ago
I'll also throw in in Patrick Stewart as Charles Xavier. Nailed it 👍
#16
Sigourney Weaver as Ripley.
Jeff White 6 days ago
I understand, and hope it is actually true, that the role for Ripley was written as a male actor. Then they found Saint Sigourney and went with her. And didn't change the character dialog, actions, anything. Sigourney IS Ripley.
#18
David Suchet as Hercule Poirot. Everyone else pales in comparison.
#19
Hugh Jackman as Wolverine. if Hugh dies they should retire that character same with the Black Panther.
Sandra Angulo 6 days ago
I think Jackman is terrific as Wolverine, but I’d love to see other actors’ takes on the character. And Chadwick Boseman was great as Black Panther, but there’s no way he would’ve wanted the character retired after his death. It’s a very important character for many young people who don’t see themselves represented enough in superhero roles. Besides Shuri already took up the mantle of Black Panther in the sequel, but I’m not certain that will stick. And really Black Panther is a character that makes the most sense to change actors since it is a position passed down in their culture.
#20
Tom Hanks and in Forest Gump.
tojifajita:
Honestly for me it is actually Tom hanks in Cast away, I see that character in every other movie, lonely deranged man.
#22
Bryan Cranston as Walter White "Heisenberg".
Sharp_Ad_6336:
The fact that he was able to break the mental association we all had of him as Hal from Malcolm in the middle is the true tribute to how well he nailed that role.
#23
Kathy Bates as Annie Wilkes in 1990 film adaptation of Stephen King's 1987 novel "Misery".
mohksinats:
Just rewatched this at the local theater recently, and she is the reason that film holds up to this day.
#25
Alan Rickman as Hans Gruber in Die Hard.
#26
Jack Gleeson as Joffrey Baratheon. He played his role so well that fans of Game of Thrones made him quit acting all together.
#27
Henry Cavill as a Witcher.
#28
Arnold Schwarzenegger as The Terminator.
Rambo_1923:
No one else can be Terminator!
Sandra Angulo 6 days ago (edited)
I guess they mean the original Terminator, but Robert Patrick was excellent and scary as hell in the sequel as the T-1000
#29
John Cleese as Basil Fawlty.
PumpJack_McGee:
Was always surprised Cleese didn't give himself an aneurysm playing Fawlty. Imagine even just pretending to be that high-strung all the time.
Sandra Angulo 6 days ago
Cleese kinda comes off high strung in real life, too. Still, A Fish Named Wanda is one of my all time favorites (not to mention Monty Python).
#32
Jack Nicholson - "One flew over the cuckoos nest" and "The Shining".
LaserBrain 6 days ago
If you liked the movie, I recommend reading the book. It goes a few levels deeper, has a different ending, and is told from the perspective of the Chief, not McMurphy. Not talking about the Steven King book.
#33
Cristof Waltz/ Hans Landa.
Shumuu:
Actually Tarantino wrote Landa and after seeing actor after actor try it he believed the character to be "unplayable" because no one could pull it off. Well, thank God he found Waltz because wow!
#35
Jim Carrey as the Mask.
whineygingercat 6 days ago
Because of Jim Carey's natural facial features, and what he can do with them, the budget for visual effects was barely touched on that film
#37
Brandon Lee - The Crow.
Tiffany Marie 6 days ago
This should be higher up and not #66. It needs more up votes. There's already been a recent remake and it flopped. The dude died for the original film. He was absolutely perfect. Taken too soon.
#38
Hugo Weaving as Agent Smith.
#39
James McAvoy in Split.
Pitiful_Winner2669:
It's so good it makes me uncomfortable to such a degree. Incredible performance(s).
#41
Javier Bardem as Anton Chigurh.
Sayon7:
I think he’s the scariest villain ever
#42
Dustin Hoffman in Rainman.
Sarah Jones 6 days ago
Tom Cruise was really great in it too. I’m not normally a fan of his, but he was amazing in Rain Man
#43
Sylvester Stallone, Rocky.
KeyKick7759:
I agree I've enjoyed other boxer films but none have ever got to me like Rocky did.
#44
James Gandolfini. Tony Soprano.
DarthDregan:
All these takes I'm seeing and thinking "I can see someone else doing that."
And then I saw this post. And... yeah. That's all James.
LaserBrain 6 days ago
He was good in True Romance also. Classic movie, one of QT's earlier ones
#45
Milla Jovovich as Leeloo.
Hellcaste's Wife 6 days ago
Milla Jovovich as Alice (Resident Evil). She's why those are my favorite movies!
#46
All of the Harry Potter cast was perfect, it better not be redone. Not even that big of a fan but they're good movies with great casting.
Jaya 6 days ago
I think most of them were pretty unremarkable and very replaceable. Most roles could have been done by some random other good actor and turn out just as well. I feel like people are attached to those actors because they happened to see them as kids and the movies/books meant so much to them.
#47
Jeff Bridges as The Dude! There’s no way anyone else could play that roll.
#48
Gregory Peck in To Kill A Mockingbird.
Jeff White 6 days ago
Ooh, ooh. I can't remember how many times I said "This is the one" as I scrolled down the list. But THIS IS THE ONE! Best choice ever. Absolutely no one could have played that role better.
#49
Daniel Radcliffe as Harry potter.
#50
JK Simmons as J. Jonah Jameson.
Cuppieecakes:
He so good they just made him a multiversal constant
What do you think ?
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