15 Times Unexpected Actors Played Hollywood Icons — And Nailed It

With his soulful eyes and innate charisma, Robert Downey Jr seems, in hindsight, to be the perfect person to play Charlie Chaplin, arguably one of the most important stars and directors of early Hollywood. At the time the film came out, however, he’d mostly been in such teen films as Weird Science. 

In Chaplin, however, Downey Jr. showed signs of becoming the larger-than-life star he would become in later decades (particularly once he began playing Iron Man in the MCU). He captures so much of what made Chaplin such a contradiction, at once a tremendously versatile performer yet also a man with a decidedly cold soul. Particularly remarkable is Downey Jr.'s ability to embody Chaplin even in his persona as the Tramp, arguably the film star’s most recognizable creation.

It can sometimes be difficult to remember a time when Jim Carrey wasn’t respected as both a dramatic and comedic actor. For much of the early 1990s, he was primarily recognized for his elastic and exuberant comedy stylings in such films as Ace Ventura. With Man on the Moon, however, he made a decisive shift into drama, portraying Andy Kaufman, arguably one of the most complex and enigmatic figures in American comedy.

What is particularly remarkable about Carrey’s performance in the film is how skillfully he subsumes his own comedic stylings and desires to those of Kaufman. He doesn’t just disappear into the role; he invites the audience to forget this is Carrey they are watching and instead allows them to truly believe they are watching Kaufman’s life story unfold before their eyes. There is, moreover, something emotionally agonistic about Carrey, and he allows the viewer insight into Kaufman’s comedic persona.

Taron Egerton first rose to prominence in Kingsman: The Secret Service, in which he plays a young man who is recruited to become a spy. This role established him as an up-and-coming young performer, particularly since he clearly possessed an undeniable charisma. However, it was still somewhat surprising to see him cast as Elton John in the biopic/musical reverie Rocketman, particularly as he bore only a passing resemblance to the renowned singer. 

However, it quickly became apparent just how spot-on the casting truly was. Egerton immersed himself in the nuances of the role, even going so far as to perform his own vocals. As a result, he managed to bring Elton John to life to an extraordinary degree. He doesn’t shy away from the uglier aspects of John’s personality and life, and there are even times when his character becomes downright unlikeable. At the same time, he also conveys just what it is which has made John one of the most successful and beloved singer-songwriters of all time.

These days, the film Mommie Dearest is known for being an object of high camp. Much of this is due to Faye Dunaway’s performance as Joan Crawford, but it’s also because the film, in adapting the tell-all memoir of Crawford’s adopted daughter Christina, tends to lean more into the salacious than the truly illuminating.

Nevertheless, there’s no doubt of Dunaway’s commitment to her performance as Crawford. Though some might look at Dunaway’s performance as excessive, it actually works in a strange way. After all, Crawford was herself a larger-than-life personality, someone who clawed her way to prominence in the cutthroat world of Hollywood, and she knew her worth. By this point in her career, Dunaway was famous for such roles as Bonnie in Bonnie and Clyde - a role which called for at least a measure of subtlety and understatement - so it’s all the more remarkable to see her really lean into the excess.

Before appearing in Pam & Tommy, the miniseries examining what was arguably the most infamous sex tape of the ‘90s, Lily James was perhaps best known for appearing in relatively light roles in such outings as Downton Abbey and the live-action remake of Cinderella. In Pam & Tommy, however, she is transformed into a remarkable likeness of the real-life Pamela Anderson. 

What allows James’s performance to achieve something other than mere parody, however, is how she allows the viewer to see Anderson as something more than just her body. In James’s capable hands, Anderson is a woman trying to establish a career for herself in an industry - and a culture - that fetishizes women’s bodies and all too frequently renders them into nothing more than their physical assets. Though the miniseries as a whole sometimes verges on becoming as exploitative as the culture it critiques, James’s authenticity as Anderson manages to rise above the shortcomings.

Throughout her career, Renee Zellweger has shown a chameleon-like ability to shift between different genres. She has been in everything from musicals to dramas to comedies, and each time she has managed to adapt herself to the needs of the moment. 

In Judy, however, she delivers one of the best performances of her career. Though she has always had a knack for physically transforming herself for a role (in, for example, Bridget Jones’s Diary), she takes it to the next level in Judy. She seems to inhabit the mind, body, and spirit of Judy Garland, giving audiences potent and affecting insight into the struggles of a diva at the end of her rope. Zellweger digs deep into the fading star’s tortured and broken psychology, and in doing so, allows viewers to see just how much she was suffering toward the end of her life, as she desperately tried to mount a comeback. It’s a painfully honest performance from one of her generation’s best actresses.