My favorite actors
by freeko3 | created - 02 Apr 2011 | updated - 18 Aug 2014 | PublicBased on personal preferences.
1. James Gandolfini
Actor | The Sopranos
James Gandolfini was born in Westwood, New Jersey, to Santa (Penna), a high school lunchlady, and James Joseph Gandolfini, Sr., a bricklayer and head school janitor. His parents were both of Italian origin. Gandolfini began acting in the New York theater. His Broadway debut was in the 1992 revival ...
As Anthony Soprano in 'The Sopranos', as Mickey in 'Killing Them Softly' and as Douglas Riley in 'Welcome to the Rileys'.
2. Ian McShane
Actor | Deadwood
A natural at portraying complex villains, anti-heroes, and charming heavies, Ian McShane is the classically trained, award-winning actor who has grabbed attention and acclaim from audiences and critics around the world with his unforgettable gallery of scoundrels, kings, mobsters and thugs.
And, now...
As Al Swearengen in 'Deadwood' and as Waleran Bigod in 'The Pillars of the Earth'.
3. Anthony Hopkins
Actor | The Silence of the Lambs
Anthony Hopkins was born on December 31, 1937, in Margam, Wales, to Muriel Anne (Yeats) and Richard Arthur Hopkins, a baker. His parents were both of half Welsh and half English descent. Influenced by Richard Burton, he decided to study at College of Music and Drama and graduated in 1957. In 1965, ...
As Col. William Ludlow in 'Legends of the Fall', as Ted Crawford in 'Fracture' and as Charles Morse in 'The Edge'.
4. Jack Nicholson
Actor | Chinatown
Jack Nicholson, an American actor, producer, director and screenwriter, is a three-time Academy Award winner and twelve-time nominee. Nicholson is also notable for being one of two actors - the other being Michael Caine - who have received an Oscar nomination in every decade from the '60s through ...
As Edward in 'The Bucket List', as Dr. Buddy Rydell in 'Anger Management' and as Frank Costello in 'The Departed'.
5. Steven Van Zandt
Actor | The Sopranos
Steven Van Zandt (né Lento; born November 22, 1950), also known as Little Steven or Miami Steve, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, producer, actor, activist and author. He is best known as a member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, in which he plays guitar and mandolin. He is also ...
As Silvio Dante in 'The Sopranos' and as Frank Tagliano in 'Lilyhammer'.
6. Gerald McRaney
Actor | Focus
McRaney holds the distinction of being the last guest star to meet "Matt Dillon" in a gunfight on Gunsmoke (1955) - in the episode, Gunsmoke: Hard Labor (1975), first broadcast on February 24, 1975 (he lost). In fact, in the early portion of Gerald McRaney's career he almost always played the ...
As Johnston Green in 'Jericho'.
7. Pierce Brosnan
Actor | Mamma Mia!
Pierce Brendan Brosnan was born in Drogheda, County Louth, Ireland, to May (Smith), a nurse, and Thomas Brosnan, a carpenter. He lived in Navan, County Meath, until he moved to England, UK, at an early age (thus explaining his ability to play men from both backgrounds convincingly). His father left...
As Harry Dalton in 'Dante's Peak', as Allen Brewer in 'The Greatest' and as Gideon in 'Seraphim Falls'.
8. Liam Neeson
Actor | Kinsey
Liam Neeson was born on June 7, 1952 in Ballymena, Northern Ireland, to Katherine (Brown), a cook, and Bernard Neeson, a school caretaker. He was raised in a Catholic household. During his early years, Liam worked as a forklift operator for Guinness, a truck driver, an assistant architect and an ...
As Carver in 'Seraphim Falls', as Ottway in 'The Gray' and as Bryan Mills in 'Taken'.
9. Morgan Freeman
Actor | Driving Miss Daisy
With an authoritative voice and calm demeanor, this ever popular American actor has grown into one of the most respected figures in modern US cinema. Morgan was born on June 1, 1937 in Memphis, Tennessee, to Mayme Edna (Revere), a teacher, and Morgan Porterfield Freeman, a barber. The young Freeman...
As Ellis Boyd 'Red' Redding in 'The Shawshank Redemption' and as Carter in 'The Bucket List'.
10. Russell Crowe
Actor | Les Misérables
Russell Ira Crowe was born in Wellington, New Zealand, to Jocelyn Yvonne (Wemyss) and John Alexander Crowe, both of whom catered movie sets. His maternal grandfather, Stanley Wemyss, was a cinematographer. Crowe's recent ancestry includes Welsh (where his paternal grandfather was born, in Wrexham),...
As Ben Wade in '3:10 to Yuma', as Capt. Jack Aubrey in 'Master and Commander' and as Maximus in 'Gladiator'.
11. Clint Eastwood
Actor | Million Dollar Baby
Clint Eastwood was born May 31, 1930 in San Francisco, to Clinton Eastwood Sr., a bond salesman and later manufacturing executive for Georgia-Pacific Corporation, and Ruth Wood (née Margret Ruth Runner), a housewife turned IBM clerk. He grew up in nearby Piedmont. At school Clint took interest in ...
As Walt Kowalski in 'Gran Torino'.
12. Tom Hanks
Producer | Cast Away
Thomas Jeffrey Hanks was born in Concord, California, to Janet Marylyn (Frager), a hospital worker, and Amos Mefford Hanks, an itinerant cook. His mother's family, originally surnamed "Fraga", was entirely Portuguese, while his father was of mostly English ancestry. Tom grew up in what he has ...
As Viktor Navorski in 'The Terminal', as Chuck Noland in 'Cast Away' and as Captain Richard Phillips in 'Captain Phillips'.
13. Nick Offerman
Actor | Devs
Nick Offerman was born in Joliet, Illinois, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for Parks and Recreation (2009), The Founder (2016), 21 Jump Street (2012), 22 Jump Street (2014), We Are The Millers (2013), and Fargo (2014). He has been married to Megan Mullally since September 20, 2003.
As Ron Swanson in 'Parks and Recreation'.
14. Robin Williams
Actor | Mrs. Doubtfire
Robin McLaurin Williams was born on Saturday, July 21st, 1951, in Chicago, Illinois, a great-great-grandson of Mississippi Governor and Senator, Anselm J. McLaurin. His mother, Laurie McLaurin (née Janin), was a former model from Mississippi, and his father, Robert Fitzgerald Williams, was a Ford ...
As Bob Munro in 'Runaway Vacation', as Mrs. Euphegenia Doubtfire in 'Mrs. Doubtfire' and as Sean Maguire in 'Good Will Hunting'.
15. Ed O'Neill
Actor | Married with Children
Ed O'Neill is an American actor best known for playing Al Bundy on Married... with Children (1987), the most iconic working class character on television since Archie Bunker. Upon his debut on the world stage in Youngstown, Ohio on April 12, 1946, he was christened Edward Philip O'Neill, Jr. Both ...
As Jay Pritchett in 'Modern Family'.
16. Tony Sirico
Actor | The Sopranos
Tony Sirico was born in New York City on July 29, 1942 to a family of Italian descent. He grew up in the Brooklyn neighborhoods of East Flatbush and Bensonhurst. His brother, Father Robert Sirico, is a Catholic priest and co-founder of the Acton Institute for the Study of Religion and Liberty. The ...
As Paulie 'Walnuts' Gualtieri in 'The Sopranos'.
17. Nicolas Cage
Actor | Face/Off
Nicolas Cage was born Nicolas Kim Coppola in Long Beach, California, the son of comparative literature professor August Coppola (whose brother is director Francis Ford Coppola) and dancer/choreographer Joy Vogelsang. He is of Italian (father) and Polish and German (mother) descent. Cage changed his...
As Jack Campbell in 'The Family Man'.
18. Bryan Cranston
Actor | Breaking Bad
Bryan Lee Cranston was born on March 7, 1956 in Hollywood, California, to Audrey Peggy Sell, a radio actress, and Joe Cranston, an actor and former amateur boxer. His maternal grandparents were German, and his father was of Irish, German, and Austrian-Jewish ancestry. He was raised in the Canoga ...
As Walter White in 'Breaking Bad'.
19. Eric Stonestreet
Actor | The Loft
Eric Stonestreet was born on September 9, 1971 in Kansas City, Kansas, USA. He is an actor and writer, known for The Loft (2014), Modern Family (2009) and Almost Famous (2000).
As Cameron Tucker in 'Modern Family'.
20. Christoph Waltz
Actor | Django Unchained
Christoph Waltz is an Austrian-German actor. He is known for his work with American filmmaker Quentin Tarantino, receiving acclaim for portraying SS-Standartenführer Hans Landa in Inglourious Basterds (2009) and bounty hunter Dr. King Schultz in Django Unchained (2012). For each performance, he won...
As Dr. King Schultz in 'Django Unchained' and as Col. Hans Landa in 'Inglourious Basterds'.
21. Robert De Niro
Actor | Cape Fear
One of the greatest actors of all time, Robert De Niro was born on August 17, 1943 in Manhattan, New York City, to artists Virginia (Admiral) and Robert De Niro Sr. His paternal grandfather was of Italian descent, and his other ancestry is Irish, English, Dutch, German, and French. He was trained ...
As James Conway in 'Goodfellas', as Paul Vitti in 'Analyse This' and as Fred Blake in 'Malavita'.
22. Al Pacino
Actor | Serpico
Alfredo James "Al" 'Pacino established himself as a film actor during one of cinema's most vibrant decades, the 1970s, and has become an enduring and iconic figure in the world of American movies.
He was born April 25, 1940 in Manhattan, New York City, to Italian-American parents, Rose (nee Gerardi)...
As Michael Corleone in 'The Godfather', as Benjamin 'Lefty' Ruggiero in 'Donnie Brasco' and as Tony Montana in 'Scarface'.
23. Idris Elba
Actor | Beasts of No Nation
An only child, Idrissa Akuna Elba was born and raised in London, England. His father, Winston, is from Sierra Leone and worked at Ford Dagenham; his mother, Eve, is from Ghana and had a clerical duty. Idris attended school in Canning Town, where he first became involved in acting, before he dropped...
As Russell 'Stringer' Bell in 'The Wire'.
24. Brad Pitt
Actor | Fight Club
William Bradley "Brad" Pitt was born on December 18, 1963 in Shawnee, Oklahoma and raised in Springfield, Missouri to Jane Etta Pitt (née Hillhouse), a school counselor & William Alvin "Bill" Pitt, a truck company manager. At Kickapoo High School, Pitt was involved in sports, debating, student ...
As Tristan Ludlow in 'Legends of the Fall' and as Paul Maclean in 'A River Runs Through It'.
25. Sean Connery
Actor | The Rock
The tall, handsome and muscular Scottish actor Sean Connery is best known as the original actor to portray James Bond in the hugely successful movie franchise, starring in seven films between 1962 and 1983. Some believed that such a career-defining role might leave him unable to escape it, but he ...
As James Bond in 'Goldfinger'.
26. Alec Baldwin
Actor | The Departed
Alec Baldwin is the oldest, and best-known, of the four Baldwin brothers in the acting business (the others are Stephen Baldwin, William Baldwin and Daniel Baldwin). Alexander Rae Baldwin III was born on April 3, 1958 in Massapequa, New York, the son of Carol Newcomb (Martineau) and Alexander Rae ...
As Jake Adler in 'It's Complicated' and as Robert Green in 'The Edge'.
27. Dominic Chianese
Actor | The Sopranos
Dominic Chianese is an American actor, singer, and musician. He is best known for his roles as Corrado "Junior" Soprano on the HBO series The Sopranos (1999-2007), Johnny Ola in The Godfather Part II (1974), and Leander in Boardwalk Empire (2011-2013). Chianese was born in the Bronx, New York. His ...
As Corrado 'Junior' Soprano in 'The Sopranos'.
28. Mel Gibson
Actor | Braveheart
Mel Columcille Gerard Gibson was born January 3, 1956 in Peekskill, New York, USA, as the sixth of eleven children of Hutton Gibson, a railroad brakeman, and Anne Patricia (Reilly) Gibson (who died in December of 1990). His mother was Irish, from County Longford, while his American-born father is ...
As Benjamin Martin in 'The Patriot' and as William Wallace in 'Braveheart'.
29. Jonathan Banks
Actor | Mudbound
Versatile veteran character actor Jonathan Banks was born in Washington, D.C. in 1947. While growing up he always had an interest in acting and stage work, so decided to pursue a career in entertainment. To this day he is a very accomplished stage actor. While acting in film, he usually plays ...
As Mike Ehrmantraut in 'Breaking Bad'.
30. Sean Bean
Actor | The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
Sean Bean's career since the eighties spans theatre, radio, television and movies. Bean was born in Handsworth, Sheffield, South Yorkshire, to Rita (Tuckwood) and Brian Bean. He worked for his father's welding firm before he decided to become an actor. He attended RADA in London and appeared in a ...
As Eddard Stark in 'Game of Thrones'.
31. Tommy Lee Jones
Actor | The Fugitive
Tommy Lee Jones was born in San Saba, Texas, the son of Lucille Marie (Scott), a police officer and beauty shop owner, and Clyde C. Jones, who worked on oil fields. Tommy himself worked in underwater construction and on an oil rig. He attended St. Mark's School of Texas, a prestigious prep school ...
As Arnold in 'Hope Springs' and as Thaddeus Stevens in 'Lincoln'.
32. Logan Lerman
Actor | The Perks of Being a Wallflower
One of today's leading talents across both independent and mainstream film, Logan Lerman is an immensely talented actor who takes on challenging roles and brings dynamic characters to life on screen.
Logan was born in Beverly Hills, to a Jewish family. His parents are Lisa (Goldman), who worked as ...
As Charlie in 'The Perks of Being a Wallflower'.
33. Steve Carell
Actor | The Office
Steve Carell, one of America's most versatile comics, was born Steven John Carell on August 16, 1962, in Concord, Massachusetts. He is the son of Harriet Theresa (Koch), a psychiatric nurse, and Edwin A. Carell, an electrical engineer. His mother was of Polish descent and his father of Italian and ...
As Andy in 'The 40 Year Old Virgin'.
34. Mandy Patinkin
Actor | Homeland
Mandy Patinkin was born Mandel Bruce Patinkin in Chicago, Illinois, to Doris "Doralee" (Sinton), a homemaker and cookbook writer, and Lester Patinkin, who operated two scrap metal plants. He is of Russian Jewish and Latvian Jewish descent. Growing up, he began singing in synagogue choirs at the age...
As Saul Berenson in 'Homeland'.
35. George Clooney
Actor | The Ides of March
George Timothy Clooney was born on May 6, 1961, in Lexington, Kentucky, to Nina Bruce (née Warren), a former beauty pageant queen, and Nick Clooney, a former anchorman and television host (who was also the brother of singer Rosemary Clooney). He has Irish, English, and German ancestry. Clooney ...
As Matt King in 'The Descendants'.
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