25 Hilarious Comedic Actors Who Tried Doing More Serious Roles And Totally Landed On Their Feet

"She went from Superbad to winning an Oscar for Best Actress."

Recently, Reddit user 40oz_2freedom asked people, "Who is a good comedic actor that ended up being a great dramatic actor?"

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There were some absolutely ~spot-on~ responses! Let's take a look at a few of them, shall we?

1. Tom Hanks

TriStar Pictures

"He started on a sitcom and went on to a decade of comedy films — Splash, The Money Pit, Big, etc. Then the '90s came, and bam, Oscar for Philadelphia, Oscar for Forrest Gump, plus great performances in Saving Private Ryan, Green Mile, and more. Younger viewers may think he's only a drama actor, but it was a complete 180 for him."

—u/TheOvy

Here's a little bit of Tom in Philadelphia:

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2. Olivia Colman

Fox Searchlight Pictures

"She went from being the main female performer in David Mitchell and Robert Webb's sketches to being an Oscar-winning dramatic actor."

—u/UnnecessaryAppeal

"I really enjoyed her in Green Wing and Peep Show, but then I was blown away by what she did in Broadchurch. Incredible acting range!"

—u/galaxyWanderer

Check out Olivia as Queen Anne in The Favourite:

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3. Michael Keaton

Sony Pictures Releasing International

"The fact that he was seen as a comedian was precisely WHY fans of the comic book version of Batman were initially extremely ticked off when Keaton was cast. Needless to say, Keaton easily won them over with his broody performance."

—au/acarls

"He started out as a comedian, à la Beetlejuice, but as a reporter in Spotlight, he was so brilliant — the man is talented!"

—u/CCountryLady

Here's Michael in Spotlight:

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4. Bryan Cranston

Gregory Peters / ABC

"Does Hal Wilkerson ruin Walter White, or does Walter White ruin Hal Wilkerson? You can't watch him in one of these iconic roles without thinking of him in the other. It's a testament to his vast range."

—u/nstiger83

My fave Breaking Bad scene for ya:

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5. Woody Harrelson

Fox Searchlight Pictures

"Three Billboards Outside of Ebbing, Missouri is one of my favourite Woody movies, and he's also great in The Highwaymen. It's still funny to watch old episodes of Cheers where he plays the dimwitted Woody Boyd and then compare him with some of his roles now."

—u/SafewordisJohnCandy

Check out Woody in Three Billboards:

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6. Adam Sandler

A24

"I genuinely believe that he's a better dramatic actor than a comedic one. Punch Drunk Love was an absolute revelation, and Uncut Gems simply confirmed it too."

—u/dsiegel2275

Here's Adam in Uncut Gems, in case you haven't seen it:

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7. Jamie Foxx

Universal Pictures

"Going from In Living Color, where he was a sketch comedian, to his performances in Any Given Sunday and Ray definitely puts Foxx in this category."

—u/Confident-Pen2417

Take a look at Jamie playing Ray Charles:

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8. Steve Carell

Paramount Pictures

"I genuinely couldn't believe his performance in The Big Short. It seemed so different from what he usually does!"

—u/Doumtabarnack

"He went from The Office and 40-Year-Old Virgin to wonderful performances in Little Miss Sunshine and The Big Short."

—u/Gloomy_Heron1111

Here's Steve losing it in The Big Short:

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9. Robin Williams

Miramax Films

"He was a hilarious and ingenious comedian and comedy actor, and then he absolutely crushed Good Will Hunting, Dead Poets Society, and many other solid dramas, while STILL being one of the funniest comedians on the planet."

—u/mojovino

Watch one of the most iconic scenes from Good Will Hunting:

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10. Hugh Laurie

Fox

"He went from A Bit of Fry and Laurie to Blackadder, and then out of nowhere, he pulls out some incredible dramatic acting when he stars in House MD, and then again with Night Manager."

—u/Distinct-Coconut2512

Here's a bit of Hugh in House:

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11. Melissa McCarthy

Fox Searchlight Pictures

"Her performance in Can You Ever Forgive Me? is wonderful — I would've awarded her the Oscar that year."

—u/assistanttothefatdog

"She was one of the best characters in Nine Perfect Strangers; so much range and depth of emotion!"

—u/The_Pfaffinator

Take a peek at a full scene of Melissa in Can You Ever Forgive Me?

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12. John Goodman

Paramount Pictures

"He can be absolutely terrifying when playing a bad guy in films such as 10 Cloverfield Lane. You don't usually see that with actors known for comedic roles."

—u/qwertpoiuy1029

Here's a scary John Goodman in 10 Cloverfield Lane:

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13. Emma Stone

Lionsgate

"She was amazing in Birdman — there's one particular scene where she was going off at Michael Keaton's character that made me go 'Whoa'."

—u/gotthemondays

"She went from Superbad and Zombieland to winning an Oscar for Best Actress. That's all that needs to be said."

—u/-eDgAR-

Here's some of Emma and Ryan together in La La Land:

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14. Donald Glover

FX

"He's talented on a whole other level! I just watched the first episode of Atlanta Season 3; this guy writes, directs, and acts in a drama to a super-high level. Then you also find out he does hilarious stand-up, wrote for 30 Rock, and was a crucial piece in one of the most underrated comedy shows of the past decade: Community."

—u/ArcherChase

Donald doing his thing in Atlanta:

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15. Aubrey Plaza

Momentum Pictures

"She was and still is one of the funniest people in Hollywood. She’s done a lot of big studio movies and TV shows, but she also has such a love for small independent films. Films like Safety Not Guaranteed, Black Bear, and Emily the Criminal really showcase her range and proved to me what she was really capable of."

—u/omgyouc*nt

Check out the trailer for Aubrey's Black Bear:

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16. Bob Odenkirk

AMC

"He started out on Second City, Saturday Night Live, and short-lived shows like The Ben Stiller Show. He was writing for multiple comedy shows and then ultimately landed in drama. He has so much talent; I'm a huge fan."

—u/peonypanties

Settle down to some Saul Goodman:

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17. Matthew McConaughey

HBO

"People always talk about his True Detective days (which were definitely brilliant), but did you see him in Frailty? I think that was the first dramatic role I saw him in, and he is just downright chilling."

—u/Liz600

"Matthew has spoken about how he underwent a long battle to go from being a comedic actor to being taken seriously as anything else. He was determined to be more and reinvent himself, but it took effort and work on his part to get there."

—u/runningdownadream09

Here's one of Rust's pessimistic monologues in True Detective:

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18. Jonah Hill

Sony Pictures Releasing

"He was so great in Don’t Worry He Won’t Get Far on Foot with Joaquin Phoenix. He played his sponsor, and some of his lines and the feeling behind them stole that movie."

—u/CitizenEnceladus

"Just look at War Dogs, Wolf of Wall Street, and Moneyball. He's a phenomenal actor, and we definitely need to see more of him."

—u/ChronicCatathreniac

Take a look at Jonah being all strategical in Moneyball:

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19. Eddie Murphy

Netflix

"Every once in a while, he likes to remind people just how good an actor he is. Dolemite Is My Name was really good, and I'm shocked he didn’t get more love during awards season for it."

—u/interprime

Here's the trailer for the great Dolemite Is My Name:

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20. Sacha Baron Cohen

Netflix

"I loved SBC in The Spy. It was such a different character for him to play when everybody would only associate his name with the Borat movies. I believe his role in The Spy was perfect for him, and I was so happy to see him in a different role."

—u/CoffeePositive17

"Going from The Dictator, Borat, and The Brothers Grimsby to The Spy and The Trial of the Chicago 7 really shows his range. He's easily one of my favourite actors."

—u/Johnnyuwuwuw

Watch this iconic scene from The Trial of the Chicago 7 here:

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21. Catherine Tate

BBC

"She's mainly known as a comedian with her sketch comedy work on The Catherine Tate Show, but then she was cast as Donna Noble, a companion to the Doctor in Doctor Who. While there was a comedic side to her character, there were also a lot of really dramatic moments too, and she pulled it off brilliantly."

—u/EthanJoshua1994

This is one of the sadder scenes with Catherine as Donna:

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22. Jim Carrey

Focus Features

"He's a great comedian, but he's also shown his strength as a dramatic actor. He's come a long way since In Living Color and has evinced some brilliant dramatic acting skills in The Truman Show and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind in particular."

—u/Informal-Luck-5014

Watch the train scene from Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind:

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23. Katey Sagal

FX

"When I first saw her in Sons of Anarchy, I was like, 'Oh, come on...Peggy Bundy is here? Well, damn, I thought this show was gonna be good.' My mind was immediately changed within minutes — she was perfect."

—u/T00LJUNKIE

Here's Katey in Sons of Anarchy:

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24. Mary Tyler Moore

Paramount Pictures

"Everyone remembers her from The Dick Van Dyke Show and The Mary Tyler Moore Show. She was an incredible comedic talent, but then she starred in Ordinary People, and omg, her RANGE!"

—u/tonysbeard

Here's Mary stealing the show in Ordinary People:

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25. Will Smith

Sony Pictures Releasing

"He was obviously the Fresh Prince and has continued to do silly, fun stuff like Wild Wild West and Men in Black. However, he's also given excellent dramatic performances, like in Pursuit of Happyness and I Am Legend."

—u/ritswd

You must remember this famous scene in Pursuit of Happyness:

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Note: Some submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.

H/T to u/40oz_2freedom, who started this conversation on Reddit and gave us permission to use the thread for this post.

Who are your favourite comedy actors turned dramatic players? Let us know in the comments below!