Character actor

{{Short description|Actor who predominantly plays distinctive or eccentric characters}}

{{Redirect|That guy|the New Zealand comedian also known as "That Guy"|Leigh Hart}}

File:Ernie Weckbaugh & Claude Rains.jpg (right) was sometimes a leading actor, sometimes a character actor, often cast as a sophisticated, sometimes "morally ambiguous" man.]]

A character actor is an actor known for playing unusual, eccentric, or interesting characters in supporting roles, rather than leading ones.Oxford Dictionaries, [https://web.archive.org/web/20140811102011/http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/american_english/character-actor character actor], Retrieved 7 August 2014, "...An actor who specializes in playing eccentric or unusual people rather than leading roles...."Macmillan Dictionary, [http://www.macmillandictionary.com/us/dictionary/american/character-actor Character actor], Retrieved 7 August 2014, "...an actor who plays unusual, strange, or interesting characters instead of being one of the main characters..."28 April 2013, The New York Acting School, [http://actingschoolny.blogspot.com/2013/04/ten-best-character-actors-of-all-time.html Ten Best Character Actors of All Time], Retrieved 7 August 2014, "..a breed of actor who has the ability to be almost unrecognizable from part to part, and yet play many, many roles convincingly and memorably. .." The term is somewhat abstract and open to interpretation.{{cite news|first1=Lloyd|last1=Grove|first2=Elisa|last2=Lipsky-Karasz|title=Busting on the 'Cult Buster'|date=13 January 2004|work=New York Daily News|url=http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/gossip/busting-cult-buster-article-1.612152|access-date=7 August 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131230082753/http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/gossip/busting-cult-buster-article-1.612152|archive-date=2013-12-30|url-status=live |quote=... definitions for acting are always very tricky. What is a 'character actor'? What is a 'lead'? What is 'supporting'? ... It drives me nuts...}} While all actors play "characters",{{cite web|first=David|last=Knox|date=4 April 2014|work=TV Tonight|url=http://www.tvtonight.com.au/2014/04/good-cop-bad-cop-and-jack-irish.html|title=Good cop, bad cop and Jack Irish|access-date=7 August 2014|quote=... co-leads and cameos ... character actors. But every part plays a character...}} the term character actor is often applied to an actor who frequently plays a distinctive and important supporting role.{{cite web|website=Digital Polyphony|url=http://www.digital-polyphony.com/top25characteractors.htm|title=Top 25: Great Character Actors|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150513181426/http://www.digital-polyphony.com/top25characteractors.htm |archive-date=13 May 2015 |access-date=7 August 2014|quote=...often in supporting roles - rarely are they leading men or leading ladies, and often times they're put into a certain type of role over and over again...}}{{cite web|first=Adam|last=Pockross|date=28 March 2014|website=Yahoo! Movies|url=https://movies.yahoo.com/blogs/yahoo-movies/jon-polito-guy-thing-definitely-know-225543635.html|title=Jon Polito: That Guy From That Thing (Who You Definitely Know)|access-date=7 August 2014|quote=...Jon Polito: I think a character actor ... is someone off to the side ... the baddie ... the best friend. A mother role ... stuff that fills in the plot from the center of the movie...}} In another sense, a character actor may also be one who specializes in minor roles.{{fact|date=November 2024}}

A character actor may play a variety of characters in their career, often referred to as a "chameleon", or may be known for playing the same type of roles. Character actor roles are more substantial than bit parts or non-speaking extras. The term is used primarily to describe television and film actors, as opposed to theater actors.Stephen Tobolowsky, Discovery, [http://curiosity.discovery.com/question/what-is-defined-character-actor What does it mean to be defined as a character actor?] {{webarchive|url=https://archive.today/20140811234419/http://curiosity.discovery.com/question/what-is-defined-character-actor |date=11 August 2014 }}, Retrieved 7 August 2014, "In theater, they almost never use the term "character actor." ... leading actors have two names, like, Captain Jack Sparrow ... Richard Kimble{{snd}}parts I play ...Officer Johnson" An early use of the term was in the 1883 edition of The Stage, which defined a character actor as "one who portrays individualities and eccentricities".Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., character, n., 19. Actors with a long career history of playing character roles may be difficult for audiences to recognize as being the same actor.

Overview

File:The Wizard of Oz Margaret Hamilton Judy Garland 1939.jpg (left) in real life was a "sweet, gentle woman" who even taught kindergarten prior to working on Broadway and Hollywood, which was different from her on-screen persona of the Wicked Witch in the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz.{{cite news|first=Susan|last=King|date=28 May 2010|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|url=http://herocomplex.latimes.com/uncategorized/wicked-witch-of-the-west/|title=Hats off to the Wicked Witch of the West and Margaret Hamilton|access-date=2 September 2015|quote=...became one of Hollywood’s most dependable supporting actresses playing, as she once described, "women with a heart of gold and a corset of steel.}}]]

In contrast to leading actors, they are generally seen as less glamorous.{{cite news|first=Craig|last=McLean|date=21 September 2013|newspaper=The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2013/sep/22/james-mcavoy-filth-irvine-welsh|title=James McAvoy: 'There will be people who walk out of the cinema I'm sure|access-date=7 August 2014}}{{cite book|title=A Practical Guide to Working in Theatre|first=Gill|last=Foreman|date=2009|publisher=A & C Black|location=London, England|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=p185iMLoK7UC&dq=%22character+actor%22+theater&pg=PA47|page=8|isbn= 9780713687675|quote=... much less glamorous effect on their audiences ... chameleon-like ability to play a great variety of roles ... subsuming themselves into the part until they are almost unrecognisable... good character actors are rarely out of work.}} While a leading actor often has the physical attractiveness considered necessary to play the love interest, a character actor typically does not. In fact, some character actors are known for their unusual looks. For example, Chicago character actor William Schutz's face was disfigured in a car accident when he was five years old, but his appearance after reconstructive surgery helped him to be distinctive to theater audiences.{{cite news|date=28 May 2009|first=Trevor|last=Jensen|newspaper=Chicago Tribune|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/2009/05/28/william-schutz-1961-2009/|title=William Schutz 1961–2009: Veteran character actor on Chicago theater scene|access-date=7 August 2014|quote=...When he was 5, a horrific car crash ... reconstructive surgeries followed, yet could not entirely match the right side of his face with the left...}} Generally, the names of character actors are not featured prominently in movie and television advertising on the marquee, since a character actor's name is not expected to attract film audiences.{{cite news|date=23 March 2014|first=Brian|last=Lowry|newspaper=Chicago Tribune|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/2014/03/23/james-rebhorn-remembering-the-quintessential-character-actor/|title=James Rebhorn: Remembering the Quintessential Character Actor|access-date=7 August 2014|quote=Rebhorn worked constantly, but seldom above the marquee.}} Some character actors have been described as instantly recognizable despite their names being little known.{{cite web|date=3 July 2013|website=Indiewire|url=http://www.indiewire.com/2013/07/oh-that-guy-15-character-actor-villains-you-love-to-hate-96358|title=Oh, That Guy: 15 Character Actor Villains You Love To Hate|access-date=7 August 2014|quote=...oversized personalities and penchant for playing villainous goons made them unforgettable (even if you couldn't quite place their names)}} They are colloquially referred to as "that guy", or "that guy" actors,{{cite web|url=https://eu.houmatoday.com/story/news/2010/08/11/eddie-marsan-a-go-to-actor-for-that-guy-roles/26929370007/|title=Eddie Marsan, a go-to actor for 'that guy' roles|last=Anderson|first=John|date=11 August 2010|website=The Houma Courier|access-date=20 March 2024}}{{cite web|url=https://eu.starnewsonline.com/story/news/2013/12/05/ben-on-film-that-guy-actor-lauter-dies-quietly/30949429007/|title=Ben on Film - 'That guy' actor Lauter dies quietly|date=5 December 2013|website=Star-News|access-date=20 March 2024}} as in the 2014 documentary That Guy Dick Miller;{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/03/movies/review-that-guy-dick-miller-pays-tribute-to-a-character-actor.html|title=Review: 'That Guy Dick Miller' Pays Tribute to a Character Actor|last=Rapold|first=Nicolas|date=2 April 2015|website=The New York Times|access-date=20 March 2024}} with a prime example of a "that guy" actor being John Carroll Lynch.{{cite web|url=https://gazette.com/arts-entertainment/colorado-native-john-carroll-lynch-on-being-a-that-guy-actor-a-broncos-fan-and/article_d9975102-2524-11eb-ae9c-43362aa25eb7.html|title=Colorado native John Carroll Lynch on being a "that guy" actor, a Broncos fan and his new ABC series|last=Terrones|first=Terry|date=15 November 2020|website=The Gazette|access-date=20 March 2024}}{{cite news|url=https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/tv-radio-web/that-guy-the-actor-everyone-recognises-but-no-one-can-name-1.4481303|title=That Guy: The actor everyone recognises but no one can name|last=Clarke|first=Donald|date=15 February 2021|newspaper=The Irish Times|access-date=20 March 2024}}{{cite web|url=https://www.avclub.com/john-carroll-lynch-on-playing-the-president-a-killer-c-1818773751|title=John Carroll Lynch on playing the president, a killer clown, and the Coen brothers' warmest character|last=Dowd|first=A.A.|date=27 September 2017|website=The A.V. Club|access-date=20 March 2024}}

Over the course of an acting career, an actor can sometimes shift between leading roles and supporting roles.{{cite news|first=Elysa|last=Gardner|newspaper=USA Today|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/theater/2014/01/04/jude-law-discusses-devotion-to-stage/4178429/|title=Jude Law's new stage: Maturing lead, character actor|date=4 January 2014|access-date=7 August 2014|quote=...one of Hollywood's most prominent rising stars ... the emergence of a great character actor ... beautiful men and women can have the public get past their looks ...}} Some leading actors, as they get older, find that access to leading roles is limited by their age. Sometimes character actors have developed careers based on specific talents needed in genre films, such as dancing, horsemanship, acrobatics, swimming ability, or boxing.{{cite news|first=Matt|last=Schudel|date=22 January 2014|newspaper=The Washington Post|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/tom-quinn-boxer-and-character-actor-dies-at-79/2014/01/22/e132a362-7f9f-11e3-95c6-0a7aa80874bc_story.html|title=Tom Quinn, boxer and character actor, dies at 79|access-date=7 August 2014}} Many up-and-coming actors find themselves typecast in character roles due to an early success with a particular part or in a certain genre, such that the actor becomes so strongly identified with a particular type of role that casting directors and theatrical agents steer the actor to similar roles. Some character actors are known as "chameleons", able to play roles that vary wildly, such as Gary Oldman{{cite web|first=Mark|last=Butler|url=https://inews.co.uk/culture/film/gary-oldman-oscar-132006|title=Gary Oldman: the 'jobbing actor' whose Oscar recognition is long overdue|website=inews.co.uk|date=5 March 2018|access-date=14 June 2022}} and Christian Bale.{{cite web | url=https://www.slashfilm.com/913607/getting-into-character-is-a-punishing-process-for-christian-bale/ | title=Getting into Character is a Punishing Process for Christian Bale | date=30 June 2022 }}

File:Margo Martindale MFF 2016.jpg is an example of a character actress.]]

Many character actors tend to play the same type of role throughout their careers, like Harvey Keitel as tough, determined characters; Christopher Lloyd as eccentrics; Claude Rains as sophisticated, sometimes morally ambiguous men; Abe Vigoda as aging criminals;{{cite web|agency=Associated Press|date=26 January 2016|work=NBC News|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/abe-vigoda-beloved-character-actor-dead-94-n504621|title=Abe Vigoda, Beloved Character Actor, Dead at 94|access-date=26 January 2016}} Fairuza Balk as moody goth girls; Doug Jones as non-human creatures; and Forest Whitaker as composed characters with underlying volatility. Ed Lauter usually portrayed a menacing figure because of his "long, angular face", which was easily recognized in public, although audiences rarely knew his name.{{cite news|agency=Associated Press|date=17 October 2013|newspaper=USA Today|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/people/2013/10/16/veteran-character-actor-ed-lauter-dies/2997877/|title=Character actor Ed Lauter dies|access-date=7 August 2014|quote=...long, angular face and stern bearing made him an instantly recognizable figure..}} Character actors can play a variety of types, such as the femme fatale, gunslinger, sidekick, town drunk, villain, hooker with a heart of gold, and many others. Prolific character actors, such as Margo Martindale, are rarely out of work, and they often have long careers that span decades. They are often highly esteemed by fellow actors.{{cite news|last=Alvin|first=Klein|date=20 October 1985|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1985/10/20/nyregion/theater-a-leading-character-actor.html|department=Theater|title=A Leading Character Actor|access-date=7 August 2014|quote=...consummate professional who evokes admiration and awe in his colleagues...}}

Character actor

Overview

See also

References

Further reading