• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Breakout stars from tv shows. The shockers who did and didn't

Status
Not open for further replies.
S

Sgt. Kabukiman

Banned
John Krasinski / Jim from The Office was in the running to play Captain America and I was really rooting for him to get the part. He has a goofy face but he could have been a good Steve Rogers I think. I was disappointed when Chris Evans was announced but he changed my mind when I saw First Avenger.
 
styl3s

styl3s

Member
SixMachine said:
Steven Yeun was great as Glenn in the Walking Dead but Hollywood still makes him audition to say 5 lines in a stoner comedy. Kind of sad that they regard him in the same tier as Bobby Lee, even Bobby Lee agrees.
Click to expand...
I didn't even think it was possible for someone to be the same tier as Bobby Lee but jesus christ you're right.

I always thought Michael Chiklis was gonna do big things from The Shield because his range is great but he is forever typecast as someone in law enforcement and the same goes for Walton Goggins which Walton has been doing some real good work recently even if it isn't headlining movies.
 
S

Slayven

Member
Speaking of Mad Tv

Mad-TV-cast.jpg
 
K

komarkaze

Member
I was a huge fan of the Joe Schmo Show, especially season 1. It was a reality show about a guy who thought he was competing on a reality show, except everyone around him were actors. One of the characters was a psychologist named Dr Pat. She was played by Kristen Wiig and it was several years before she joined SNL. I was pleasantly surprised to see her career blossom.

On the wrestling side, I wouldn't have predicted that the unpopular 3rd generation wrestler Rocky Maivia would become a top tier A-list movie star. Glad he was able to translate his charisma as The Rock to the big screen.
 
M

mrjohill

Member
Sgt. Kabukiman said:
John Krasinski / Jim from The Office was in the running to play Captain America and I was really rooting for him to get the part. He has a goofy face but he could have been a good Steve Rogers I think. I was disappointed when Chris Evans was announced but he changed my mind when I saw First Avenger.
Click to expand...

He has Emily blunt tho he made it
 
L

Lazy vs Crazy

Member
No one has Robin Williams turning a guest role on Happy Days into a whole tv series and then a massively successful film career beat, I don't think.
 
C

CloudWolf

Member
I just finished rewatching HBO's Rome. It's downright shocking how literally none of the actors became big stars. I mean, most of them are not doing badly, but they deserve to be much bigger than they are right now.
 
andythinkpad

andythinkpad

Member
CloudWolf said:
I just finished rewatching HBO's Rome. It's downright shocking how literally none of the actors became big stars. I mean, most of them are not doing badly, but they deserve to be much bigger than they are right now.
Click to expand...

What are you talking about. Niobi, Caesar and Brutus are on tons of UK/period shows. I just saw Brutus in The Night Manager. Lucious got his own show. Athough I haven't seen Mark Anthony in a while.
 
C

CloudWolf

Member
andythinkpad said:
What are you talking about. Niobi, Caesar and Brutus are on tons of UK/period shows. I just saw Brutus in The Night Manager. Lucious got his own show. Athough I haven't seen Mark Anthony in a while.
Click to expand...

That's why I said 'they're not doing badly, but should probably be bigger. I mean, Tobias Menzies is probably the most active and Kevin McKidd is the most successful (with him sitting comfortably in Grey's Anatomy), but I feel like they could all easily be doing big film roles. Yet here we are, seeing them pop up from time to time as side characters in UK shows, small roles in films (Ray Stevenson in Thor) and Game of Thrones.
 
andythinkpad

andythinkpad

Member
CloudWolf said:
That's why I said 'they're not doing badly, but should probably be bigger. I mean, Tobias Menzies is probably the most active and Kevin McKidd is the most successful (with him sitting comfortably in Grey's Anatomy), but I feel like they could all easily be doing big film roles. Yet here we are, seeing them pop up from time to time as side characters in UK shows, small roles in films (Ray Stevenson in Thor) and Game of Thrones.
Click to expand...

I think it has to do with established uk actors who don't want to relocate to the US.
 
S

Strax

Member
I was sure the entire teen cast of The O.C would be huge.
tbf Rachel Bilson and Ben McKenzie got another TV show out of it, now as leads.
 
B

Bread

Banned
flkraven said:
Man, the daily show can have it's own thread

daily-show-stephen-colbert9.jpg


maxresdefault.jpg


olivia-munn-daily-show-695x423.jpg


samantha_bee_a_beeautifullife.jpeg.size.custom.crop.720x650.jpg
Click to expand...
you forgot a big one
Ed-Helms-the-daily-show-1025108_640_480.jpg


i remember the episode where he got his mole removed. they cut to a "technical difficulties" sign and then cut back to him having it removed with a scalpel, it was hilarious.
 
jm89

jm89

Member
Wentworth miller kinda made it after prison break, and i don't know why.

Dude is such a terrible actor, it's hard to watch him as captain cold in the flash.
 
Dr. Zoidberg

Dr. Zoidberg

Member
Glix said:
Jim from the Office is great but he's either being typecast or has no range.

I thought he was great in that movie with Alec Baldwin and Meryl Streep, (It's complicated)

But he was still just playing Jim.
Click to expand...

I'm no connoisseur of The Office because I don't enjoy these "talk to the camera" sitcoms, but I've seen a few eps and Jim usually seems to be playing the low-key "straight man" to all of the other wacky personalities on the show. I never saw much acting range, but like I said, I've probably seen less than 20 eps so maybe he starts cutting loose later on.
 
C

Crazymoogle

Member
Lazy vs Crazy said:
No one has Robin Williams turning a guest role on Happy Days into a whole tv series and then a massively successful film career beat, I don't think.
Click to expand...

Hanks oscar count begs to differ. All great choices though.

Krasinski does his thing, just doesn't have to hustle as hard since his wife is a mega-star.
I would agree that Cardellini never hit it big, but she did get years of ER paychecks and an emmy nom from Mad Men.
 
L

lamaroo

Unconfirmed Member
Strax said:
I was sure the entire teen cast of The O.C would be huge.
tbf Rachel Bilson and Ben McKenzie got another TV show out of it, now as leads.
Click to expand...

I really thought Adam Brody would break out after, but I guess he only really has one role to play.

Chris Pratt was on the show for a couple of episodes, and Olivia Wilde probably has the best career out of the semi-regulars on the show, barring Sandy Cohen.
 
S

Strax

Member
lamaroo said:
I really thought Adam Brody would break out after, but I guess he only really has one role to play.

Chris Pratt was on the show for a couple of episodes, and Olivia Wilde probably has the best career out of the semi-regulars on the show, barring Sandy Cohen.
Click to expand...

Adam was cast as The Flash in the Justice League movie but then the writers strike happened and that went away.
 
N

Ninja Scooter

Member
When Always Sunny first started I would not have guessed that Charlie would become the biggest star of the group, and headlining major motion pictures.
 
Tal Shiar Agent

Tal Shiar Agent

Member
That 70's Show.

Aston Kutcher
Mila Kunis

Topher Grace (for a bit)

Except for Laura Prepon in OITNB none of the rest of the main cast did much after.
 
V

VAD

Member
Giovanni Ribsi, Phoebe's brother in Friends, is now the lead in Sneaky Pete, on Amazon
Karen Gillian, from extra in Doctor Who to co-star in Doctor Who to co-star in Guardians of the Galaxy.
 
F

Forsaken82

Member
SG-17 said:
That 70's Show.

Aston Kutcher
Mila Kunis

Topher Grace (for a bit)

Except for Laura Prepon in OITNB none of the rest of the main cast did much after.
Click to expand...

Both Danny Masterson and Wilmer Valdarrama have been pretty active in TV since That 70s Show, at least on the same level as Laura Prepon (i'd personally argue more, but Laura Prepon gets noticed now for OITNB). Both star in the new Netflix comedy The Ranch with Ashton Kutcher.
 
R

robochimp

Member
VAD said:
Giovanni Ribsi, Phoebe's brother in Friends, is now the lead in Sneaky Pete, on Amazon
Karen Gillian, from extra in Doctor Who to co-star in Doctor Who to co-star in Guardians of the Galaxy.
Click to expand...

He was also in an episode of the X files.
 
Dr. Zoidberg

Dr. Zoidberg

Member
SG-17 said:
none of the rest of the main cast did much after.
Click to expand...

Kurtwood Smith was a member of the main cast and he has been very active since. All TV roles for the most part but still very prolific. Of course he was a popular actor before that show started too. I assume you were mainly referring to the young noobs on the show.
 
I

IC5

Member
Kin5290 said:
Man, Linda Cardellini deserved a stronger career.
Click to expand...
Well, she did have a solid role later on, in Mad Men. It took me awhile to realize why I felt familiar with her.

Loxley said:
To this day I'm surprised that Josh Holloway didn't break out bigger after LOST.
Click to expand...
I think the rub is that he didn't want to be typecast and avoided a lot of similar roles. Including Gambit.
That TV show he did a couple of years ago, was TERRIBLE.
 
L

LoneTraveler

Member
8-simple-rules-for-dating-my-teenage-daughter-first-season.50082.jpg


Kaley Cuoco, while not exactly a heavyweight in Hollywood, is making and will continue making serious bank thanks to Big Bang Theory.

jennifer-lopez-in-living-color-fly-girl.jpg



From In living color to movie scripts to on the 6 to J.Lo to this....
 
C

Caddywompus

Member
This is such a weird thread.

you got the OP with Jim from Office "he did that Benghazi movie and then nothing" he did that movie from last year and hasn't done anything sense? What?

Granted Jim's career hasn't gone his way, if he had landed Captain America things would be very different for him.

Then you have people digging thru IMDB and posting big stars early roles as if most just materialize out of now where or something and never work before in their life. Like anyone here actually watched The Bill Engvall Show, let alone watched The Bill Engvall Show and thought that Jennifer Lawrence girl is going places.

And the surprise at all the Daily Show Corespondents? Really? The Daily Show is a minor league system for comedians, the number of people that pass through their turnstile and no one having success would be shocking. It's this generations SNL.

Some of these are spot on like Malcolm in the Middle, Gilmore Girls and Dawson Creek. If you were going to take bets on who would have the most success coming off those sets you'd probably lose a lot of money.

Lost was mentioned which is another good one. I thought Evangeline Lilly was going to climb to Scarlett Johansson levels before she exploded or at least Rachel McAdams levels

The misses are harder because it's like you're giving up on the person. It just takes one role to open doors. Everyone I'm thinking of are still young, like Jane Levy who might get type cased into horror movie genre but I think she'll become a bankable movie star yet.
 
C

Corpekata

Banned
Playing a part in a TV show and then eventually finding fame is not the same as breaking out.

Like someone suggested Ali for the 4400, when it's clear that his work on House of Cards is what has lead to his more recent bigger opportunities. It was an important stepping stone is his career, but nobody really broke out of the 4400.

Half the thread reads like a "Guess which star had a bit part nobody cared about a decade before they were famous" list.

Anyways, I'd add I am surprised Josh Holloway didn't really move on to something more notable after Lost. Seems to be making a solid career, I guess.
 
J

Jon Carter

Member
Grizzlyjin said:
Tim "Fuckin" Riggins aka Taylor Kitsch (Friday Night Lights)


He had his shot. He was basically the Christ Pratt of mid 2000s. Charming, not an amazing actor but good enough, fit, and on the younger side.


Oh all the people to successfully break out from Friday Night Lights, the biggest shocker has to be..


Breaking Bad, Fargo, and racking up some really good indie roles. Michael B Jordan breaking out and doing well was no surprise to me. After Fruitvale Station, I knew that dude was going to be eating well for awhile.
Click to expand...

Taylor Kitsch has had steady work in pretty great and/or high-profile stuff. The least active part of his career post-FNL was the period where he kept declining roles because he really wanted the role in season 2 of True Detective that he eventually landed. He has big roles coming up and is writing, directing and starring in a feature film based on one of his short films. I see him having a pretty long career.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

  • Locked
How The Last of Us became 'the greatest story' ever told in video games
Opinion Analysis 2 3 4 5
203
17K
Elysium44 replied
A record of Segas reactions, mistakes, missteps, poor or misguided decisions, JUST in 1996.
2 3
138
14K
kvltus lvlzvs replied
How Super Mario 64 changed the face of the games industry – 25th Anniversary
Retro 2
79
9K
IKSTUGA replied
Ex-Respawn lead developers form new AAA studio: Gravity Well
15
2K
Rest replied
A timeline of white-nationalist associations with Donald Trump
2
91
12K
Pizza replied
Top Bottom