10 Comedy Actors That Perfectly Nailed Serious Roles
Plenty of actors best known as comedic performers have gone on to deliver amazing work in dramatic roles. Whether in pursuit of an Academy Award or simply wanting to try something new, the idea of comedic actors taking on more emotionally draining roles isn't new, yet it continues to impress audiences time and again. Here are 10 comedy actors who have perfectly nailed serious roles and left a lasting impact with their performances.
Jonah Hill In Moneyball (2011)
Moneyball/Best scene/Brad Pitt/Billy Beane/Jonah Hill/Peter Brand
Jonah Hill plays Peter Brand in Bennett Miller's biographical sports drama. Moneyball is a serious movie about A's general manager Billy Beane's use of sabermetrics to assemble a quality baseball team on a limited budget. The movie is rife with excellent dramatic performances from its A-list cast, but Jonah Hill stands out throughout the film as Assistant General Manager Peter Brand. Hill, who started in comedies like Knocked Up, Superbad, Get Him to the Greek, and Funny People, convincingly evolves Peter from a meek, fledgling baseball analyst, to one of the most competent professionals in Major League Baseball history. Moreover, his shared scenes with Brad Pitt sold the drama and tension in a way that earned both actors Academy Award nominations.
Jonah Hill as Peter Brand smiling and raising his hand in Moneyball
Moneyball is available to stream via AMC.
Steve Carell In The Big Short (2015)
Steve Carell plays businessman Mark Baum in Adam McKay's biographical crime drama. The Big Short tells the dramatic true stories of a group of investors who discover how corrupt the market is while betting against it shortly before the 2008 housing market crash. Steve Carell, best known for comedic roles in The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgandy, and TV's The Office, plays the perpetually disgusted Mark Baum, leader of the independent trading firm FrontPoint Partners. The actor perfectly embodies the stress of anyone who understands the corruption that many greedy investors benefit from, and he achieves this by scowling when not speaking and delivering his lines with a level of anger and tenacity that is palpable to audiences.
Jeremy Strong as Vinny Daniel, Steve Carell as Mark Baum, and Ryan Gosling as Jared Vennett converse in The Big Short.
The Big Short is available to stream on Paramount+.
Melissa McCarthy In Can You Ever Forgive Me? (2018)
CAN YOU EVER FORGIVE ME? | Full Scene | FOX Searchlight
McCarthy stars as infamous author Lee Israel in Marielle Heller's biographical drama. Based on the memoir of the same name, Can You Ever Forgive Me? stars Melissa McCarthy as the notorious author Lee Israel, who benefited from plagiarizing other writers' work during the 1990s. Although primarily known for her slapstick comedy work in movies like Bridesmaids and Spy, McCarthy delivers an engaging performance as Israel as the writer shamelessly steals more and more work throughout the film. McCarthy still infuses the role with a bit of humor that works incredibly well, particularly in her tirades against other successful writers, as it helps keep the movie grounded instead of just a pure trauma dump.
Melissa McCarthy as Lee Israel scowls at someone off-screen in Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Can You Ever Forgive Me? is available to rent on all major VOD platforms.
