Typecast Actors/Actresses

[ZantetsukenQ]

Lately, Johnny Depp. I mean, can you name one character in the last decade he did that wasn't quirky? Well, maybe Sleeping Hollow. I still need to see that to be sure.

Secret window, chocolat, finding neverland (mostly).

Jack Black

Didn't his character in Secret Window have a split personality, or am I getting it mixed up with Number 23? On that note, I add Jim Carrey to the list.

Yep was a split personality thing. Pretty cool film all in all, although not many people like it.

I think I'm going to add Ron Perlman. I've decided Hellboy was actually a biography of his life. He looks human at awards ceremonies and such to hide his identity.

 

[Puppeteer Putin]

Some people only have careers because of typecasting. Look at John Wayne, Al Pacino, or heck, even Mel Gibson. And both Wayne and Gibson typecast themselves. And that's mostly because we like the characters they always play, so we'll always pay to see them.

Maybe that's another question. Is it still typecasting when a leading man or woman always plays the same character? Or is that just what it means to "make it" as an actor?

Christian Bale? Really? I always thought they cast him as a cool, calm, and calculating sort of bloke who has rebelled against something or other. Equilibrium, Batman, 3:10 to Yuma, American Psycho (where he completely loses it), The Prestige. They're all similar characters he plays, so in that way he is type cast for portraying particular character traits.

Much like Russell Crowe. People think he's such a brilliant actor and yet he plays the same lead character who is having to face the worst odds. Master and Commander, American Gangster, Gladiator, Beautiful Mind (except it's all happening in his mind rather than RL =P). Certain actors tend to be naturals are conveying particular emotions, either through their preferred acting style or genre. Yes they can do variations on a theme but generally they stick to type-casting, that's why you have casting agents.

EDIT: They stick to roles so that casting agents pick them up. If they're not known for a particular style of acting, how is a casting agent going to know who to hunt for?

 

[AuntyEthel]

Nicolas Cage. He always just looks confused and wanders around.

Keanu Reeves and David Duchovny who are the greatest acting robots of all time.

 

[Zombie Badger]

Jean Reno.
Always, alway plays a French cop.

You've never seen Leon or Nikita then?

 

[Brokkr]

Every time I see Patrick Stewart I think "Hey, it's Captain Picard!"

Me too. I have a hard time seeing him as anything else. And Jason Statham definitely.

 

[Mr. Moose]

I can't see Statham as anyone other than Mr. Runandjumpoverthingswhilechasingsomeoneorrunningfromsomeone Man

It confused me in Death Race, where he SAT DOWN for most of the movie.

 

[gamshobny]

Dare I say Chuck Norris?

 

[Lamppenkeyboard]

Ricky Gervais even described himself as always playing a similar kind of "loser" character modeled after his role as the boss in The Office. I agree, and believe that he does so quite well.

 

[RatRace123]

Jesse Eisenberg will always be a gawky teen

Seth Rogen will always be an amiable every man

Megan Fox will always be a shallow sex appeal based character

 

[A Weary Exile]

Samuel L. Jackson. Same angry black guy saying "Mutha' fucka'" every alternate word in every movie.

 

[RebelRising]

Joe Pesci, with the exception of Home Alone, always plays a loud, violent, unsubtle, rude, unstable, bloodthirsty, wise-cracking mobster.

I never tire of it, by the way.

 

[A Weary Exile]

Seth Rogen will always be an unfunny person.

Edited for my convienience. I hate Seth Rogen and all of his movies. D:<

 

[JaredXE]

Summer Glau

How about we give her a role NOT consisting of an emotionally and mentally fucked-up person.....you know, for a change.

 

[Hollock]

Christopher Lee. Needs no explanation.

I see you're

Spoiler

and raise you

Spoiler

oh and basically every comedian out here today with the exception of Patton Oswalt who did something totally different in big fan.

 

[kerbouchard]

Alan Rickman always plays "interesting characters".

 

[SonicKoala]

I present Morgan Freeman. Sure he's an Oscar winning actor, but he plays the SAME EXACT CHARACTER in every single film he's ever been in.

Yeah, he always plays a total badass who is a million times cooler than everybody around him.

Seann William Scott always plays some incredibly obnoxious frat boy type, and Jason Biggs is always some awkward, pitiful geek. It worked for American Pie - it never worked for them EVER AGAIN (Role Models may be an exception for Seann william scott, I liked that movie).

 

[FalloutJack]

I call Tim Curry to the stand. Mr. Curry, you are mostly a villain and your roles mostly into areas where you can be creepy as hell. We don't fault you for that, but you are quire guilty.

And of course, Ed Norton is always a nutcase. As is Kevin Spacey. We love 'em, but CUCKOO!

 

[Vrex360]

On the topic of Ellen Page, yeah she often comes across as the smart type of girl but I figure that's what she's good at and at least there she at least varies her roles like in Hard Candy she was evil, in Juno she was strange and quirky, in Smart People she was acid tongued and in Whip It she was nervous and out of place.
So even though I agree she is somewhat typecast, she is at least varied.

..... which is more than I can say for poor Hugh Grant, who, no matter what the film he is in always has to be a dottering awkward but ultimatley charming english gentleman and even though he can sometimes change the hue of which kind of gentleman he is it's always the same in essence. I feel bad for him to be honest, maybe to get out of the reputation of being sweet what he needs to do is do what Elijah Wood did and suddenly take on the role of a psychopathic cannibalistic serial killer. That would at least be interesting.

 

[Asymptote Angel]

Jack Black, John Wayne, Clint Eastwood, Jim Carrey, Adam Sandler, Nicholas Cage, and Ben Stiller come to mind.

Sean Connery gets to play lots of different roles, but he's always the same damn character, so I guess he counts too.

I wanted to say Robin Williams, but then I thought of One Hour Photo and a shiver went down my spine. That movie, more than anything else, demonstrated to me that the man is actually talented and capable of very effectively playing more than a clown. Shame he almost never does.

 

[Nwabudike Morgan]

The only movie I can think of that had Ernie Hudson in it where he didn't play a cop was Ghostbusters, a movie where he played a character that would, for the most part, go around arresting ghosts.