My Favorite Actors
by KaDaWe | created - 29 Oct 2013 | updated - 15 Sep 2015 | PublicA list of my favorite actors. If you look at this list, please remember that this are MY FAVORITE ones. I know that guys like Adam Sandler are not one of the BEST actors in the world, it's about my FAVORITE thespians.
1. 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...
MOVIES I WATCHED
- American Gangster
- Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom
- Takers
- The Wire
- Luther
- The Office (US)
2. Ricky Gervais
Writer | The Office
Ricky Dene Gervais was born in a suburb of Reading, Berkshire, to Eva Sophia (House) and Lawrence Raymond Gervais, who was a hod carrier and labourer. His father was born in Ontario, Canada, of French-Canadian descent, and his mother was English. He was educated at Ashmead Comprehensive School and ...
MOVIES I'LL WATCH
- Life on the Road
- The Office
- Derek
- Life's Too Short
- Extras
- An Idiot Abroad
3. Aidan Gillen
Actor | Game of Thrones
Aidan Gillen is an Irish actor. He is best known for portraying Petyr "Littlefinger" Baelish in the HBO series Game of Thrones (2011), CIA operative Bill Wilson in The Dark Knight Rises (2012), Stuart Alan Jones in the Channel 4 series Queer as Folk (1999), John Boy in the RTÉ Television series ...
MOVIES I WATCHED
- The Dark Knight Rises
- Calvary
- The Wire
- Game of Thrones
- Queer as Folk
- Love/Hate
- Identity
4. Kevin Spacey
Actor | L.A. Confidential
Kevin Spacey Fowler, better known by his stage name Kevin Spacey, is an American actor of screen and stage, film director, producer, screenwriter and singer. He began his career as a stage actor during the 1980s before obtaining supporting roles in film and television. He gained critical acclaim in...
MOVIES I WATCHED
- The Men Who Stare At Goats
- Margin Call
- 21
- Horrible Bosses
- The Life of David Gale
- American Beauty
- State of Mind
- Recount
- L.A. Confidential
- Seven
- House of Cards
5. Matthew McConaughey
Actor | Interstellar
American actor and producer Matthew David McConaughey was born in Uvalde, Texas. His mother, Mary Kathleen (McCabe), is a substitute school teacher originally from New Jersey. His father, James Donald McConaughey, was a Mississippi-born gas station owner who ran an oil pipe supply business. He is ...
MOVIES I'LL WATCH
- Dallas Buyers Club
- The Wolf of Wall Street
- Interstellar
- Mud
- We Are Marshall
- The Lincoln Lawyer
- A Time To Kill
- True Detective
6. Leonardo DiCaprio
Actor | Inception
Few actors in the world have had a career quite as diverse as Leonardo DiCaprio's. DiCaprio has gone from relatively humble beginnings, as a supporting cast member of the sitcom Growing Pains (1985) and low budget horror movies, such as Critters 3 (1991), to a major teenage heartthrob in the 1990s,...
MOVIES I WATCHED
- Inception
- Blood Diamond
- The Departed
- Django Unchained
- Virunga (as Producer)
- The Wolf of Wall Street
- Body of Lies
- Aviator
- Catch Me If You Can
7. Daniel Radcliffe
Actor | Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Daniel Jacob Radcliffe was born on July 23, 1989 in Fulham, London, England, to casting agent Marcia Gresham (née Jacobson) and literary agent Alan Radcliffe. His father is from a Northern Irish Protestant background, while his mother was born in South Africa, to a Jewish family (from Lithuania, ...
MOVIES I WATCHED
- Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
- Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
- Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
- Harry Potter and the Order of Phoenix
- Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1
- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
- Kill Your Darlings
- What If
- My Boy Jack
- David Copperfield
- Brooklyn Bridge
- A Young Doctor's Notebook
- Extras
- How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying
8. Robert Downey Jr.
Actor | Iron Man
Robert Downey Jr. has evolved into one of the most respected actors in Hollywood. With an amazing list of credits to his name, he has managed to stay new and fresh even after over four decades in the business.
Downey was born April 4, 1965 in Manhattan, New York, the son of writer, director and ...
MOVIES I WATCHED
- Iron Man
- Iron Man 2
- Iron Man 3
- The Avengers
- Sherlock Holmes
- Sherlock Holmes 2
- Due Date
- The Avengers: Age of Ultron
- Sherlock Holmes 3
- The Judge
9. Kevin James
Actor | Paul Blart: Mall Cop
Kevin James was born Kevin George Knipfing on April 26, 1965, in Mineola, Long Island, New York, to Janet (Klein), an office worker, and Joseph Valentine Knipfing, Jr., an insurance agency owner. He was raised in Stony Brook, and attended SUNY Cortland, where he played fullback on the football team...
MOVIES I WATCHED
- Here Comes The Boom
- Hitch
- Grown Ups
- You Don't Mess With The Zohan
- Paul Blart: Mall Cop
- I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry
- The Dilemma
- Grown Ups 2
- Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2
- The King of Queens
10. Jon Hamm
Actor | Mad Men
Jon Hamm is an American actor and producer from St. Louis, Missouri who is known for playing Don Draper in Mad Men. He also played Mister Sinister in a deleted scene of The New Mutants and Legion, Brogan from Shrek Forever After, and other films and shows including Sucker Punch, Million Dollar Arm,...
SERIES I WATCHED
- Mad Men
- Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp
- Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
- A Young Doctor's Notebook
- Parks and Recreation
- Black Mirror
- 30 Rock
11. Ewan McGregor
Actor | Moulin Rouge!
Ewan Gordon McGregor was born on March 31, 1971 in Perth, Perthshire, Scotland, to Carol Diane (Lawson) and James Charles McGregor, both teachers. His uncle is actor Denis Lawson. He was raised in Crieff. At age 16, he left Morrison Academy to join the Perth Repertory Theatre. His parents ...
MOVIES I WATCHED
- The Ghost Writer
- The Impossible
- The Men Who Stare At Goats
- Star Wars I: The Phantom Menace
- Star Wars II
- Star Wars III
- A Million Ways To Die In The West
- Long Way Round
- Long Way Down
- Rallye To Dakar
12. James Franco
Actor | Spring Breakers
Known for his breakthrough starring role on Freaks and Geeks (1999), James Franco was born April 19, 1978 in Palo Alto, California, to Betsy Franco, a writer, artist, and actress, and Douglas Eugene "Doug" Franco, who ran a Silicon Valley business. His mother is Jewish and his father was of ...
MOVIES I WATCHED
- 127 Hours
- Rise of the Planet of the Apes
- Oz the Great and Powerful
- This is the End
- Homefront
- Milk
- True Story
13. Denzel Washington
Actor | Fences
Denzel Hayes Washington, Jr. was born on December 28, 1954 in Mount Vernon, New York. He is the middle of three children of a beautician mother, Lennis, from Georgia, and a Pentecostal minister father, Denzel Washington, Sr., from Virginia. After graduating from high school, Denzel enrolled at ...
MOVIES I WATCHED
- The Book of Eli
- The Taking of Pelham 123
- Unstoppable
- American Gangster
- Flight
- 2 Guns
- The Great Debaters
- Remember the Titans
14. Martin Freeman
Actor | Black Panther
Martin Freeman is an English actor, known for portraying Bilbo Baggins in Peter Jackson's The Hobbit film trilogy, Tim Canterbury in the original UK version of sitcom mockumentary The Office (2001), Dr. John Watson in the British crime drama Sherlock (2010) and Lester Nygaard in the dark ...
SERIES I WATCHED
- The Office
- Sherlock
- Fargo
15. Jim Belushi
Actor | Red Heat
James Adam Belushi was born June 15, 1954, in Chicago, to Agnes Demetri (Samaras) and Adam Anastos Belushi, a restaurant owner. His father was an Albanian immigrant, from Qytezë, and his mother was also of Albanian descent. The third of four children - his brother was comedian John Belushi - he ...
MOVIES I WATCHED
- The Ghost Writer
- According To Jim
- The Defenders
- Show Me A Hero
16. John Oliver
Writer | Last Week Tonight with John Oliver
John Oliver was born on April 23, 1977 in Birmingham, England, UK. He is a writer and producer, known for Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (2014), The Lion King (2019) and The Smurfs (2011). He has been married to Kate Norley since October 2011. They have two children.
SERIES I WATCHED
- Community
- Last Week Tonight With John Oliver
17. Ryan Gosling
Actor | Blue Valentine
Born Ryan Thomas Gosling on November 12, 1980, in London, Ontario, Canada, he is the son of Donna (Wilson), a secretary, and Thomas Ray Gosling, a traveling salesman. Ryan was the second of their two children, with an older sister, Mandi. His ancestry is French-Canadian, as well as English, ...
MOVIES I WATCHED
- Drive
- The Ides of March
- Gangster Squad
- Only God Forgives
- The Place Beyond The Pines
- Half Nelson
- Remember the Titans
- State of Mind
18. Timothy Olyphant
Actor | Justified
From Timothy Olyphant's first screen appearances, such as his two-minute bit in The First Wives Club (1996), to "Nicko", whose presence at times dwarfed the island in A Perfect Getaway (2009), he has been a force to be reckoned with.
Born in Hawaii, Timothy David Olyphant was raised in Modesto, ...
MOVIES I'LL WATCH
- Hitman
- Deadwood
- Justified
19. Michael Kenneth Williams
Actor | The Wire
Emmy-nominated actor and producer Michael Kenneth Williams was one of his generation's most respected and acclaimed talents. By bringing complicated and charismatic characters to life--often with surprising tenderness--Williams established himself as a gifted and versatile performer with a unique ...
MOVIES I WATCHED
- The Road
- 12 Years a Slave
- The Wire
- Boardwalk Empire
- Community
- The Spoils Before Dying
- Boston Legal
- The Sopranos
20. Vince Vaughn
Producer | The Break-Up
Vincent Anthony Vaughn was born on March 28, 1970, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA, and was raised in Lake Forest, Illinois. His parents, Vernon Vaughn (a salesman and character actor), and Sharon Vaughn, née Sharon Eileen DePalmo (a real-estate agent and stockbroker) divorced in 1991. He has two ...
MOVIES I WATCHED
- The Break-Up
- The Dilemma
- Into the Wild
- Mr. & Mrs. Smith
- Dodgeball
- True Detective
21. Wendell Pierce
Actor | The Wire
Wendell Edward Pierce is an American actor and businessman. He is known for roles in HBO dramas such as Detective Bunk Moreland in The Wire and trombonist Antoine Batiste in Treme; as well as portraying James Greer in Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan, high-powered attorney Robert Zane in Suits, and Michael ...
SERIES I WATCHED
- The Wire
- Treme
- Ray Donovan
22. Tim Allen
Actor | Toy Story
Timothy Allen Dick was born on June 13, 1953, in Denver, Colorado, to Martha Katherine (Fox) and Gerald M. Dick. His father, a real estate salesman, was killed in a collision with a drunk driver while driving his family home from a University of Colorado football game, when Tim was eleven years old...
MOVIES I WATCHED
- Wild Hogs
- Christmas with the Kranks
- Cars
- The Santa Clause
- The Santa Clause 2
- The Santa Clause 3
- Home Improvement
- Last Man Standing
23. 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...
MOVIES I WATCHED
- The Dark Knight
- The Dark Knight Rises
- Batman Begins
- The Shawshank Redemption
- Bruce Almighty
- Evan Almighty
- Invictus
- Oblivion
- Last Vegas
- Olympus Has Fallen
- Gone Baby Gone
- Lucky # Slevin
- Seven
- Through the Wormhole
24. Aaron Paul
Actor | Breaking Bad
Aaron Paul was born Aaron Paul Sturtevant in Emmett, Idaho, to Darla (Haynes) and Robert Sturtevant, a retired Baptist minister. While growing up, Paul took part in church programs, and performed in plays.
He attended Centennial High School in Boise, Idaho. It was there, in eighth grade, that Aaron ...
MOVIES I'LL WATCH
- Need for Speed
- A Long Way Down
- Breaking Bad
25. Gary Oldman
Actor | The Dark Knight
Gary Oldman is a talented English movie star and character actor, renowned for his expressive acting style. One of the most celebrated thespians of his generation, with a diverse career encompassing theatre, film and television, he is known for his roles as Sid Vicious in Sid and Nancy (1986), ...
MOVIES I WATCHED
- The Dark Knight
- The Dark Knight Rises
- Batman Begins
- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
- Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
- Harry Potter and the Order of Phoenix
- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
- The Book of Eli
- Lawless
- Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
26. Josh Radnor
Actor | Liberal Arts
Josh Radnor was born in Columbus, Ohio, the son of Carol Radnor, a high school guidance counselor, and Alan Radnor, a medical malpractice lawyer. Radnor has two sisters, Melanie Radnor and Joanna Radnor Vilensky. He grew up in Bexley, Ohio, a small city nested inside Columbus. Radnor attended ...
MOVIES I WATCHED
- Liberal Arts
- How I Met Your Mother
27. Joel McHale
Actor | Community
Joel Edward McHale was born in Rome, Italy, to a Canadian-born mother, Laurie (Jackson), and an American-born father, Jack McHale. His father, from Chicago, is of Irish descent, and his mother, from Vancouver, has Norwegian, Finnish, and English ancestry. Joel was raised in Seattle, Washington, and...
MOVIES I WATCHED
- Ted
- Community
- The Soup
- Sons of Anarchy
28. Pablo Schreiber
Actor | 13 Hours
Pablo Tell Schreiber was born in Ymir, British Columbia, Canada, to Lorraine Reaveley, a Canadian psychotherapist, and Tell Schreiber, an American actor. His paternal half-brother is actor Liev Schreiber. Pablo, who is named after Chilean poet Pablo Neruda, was raised in Ymir, and moved to Seattle,...
SERIES I WATCHED
- The Wire
- Orange Is The New Black
- The Brink
- Weeds
- Person of Interest
- The Good Wife
29. Dan Aykroyd
Writer | Ghostbusters
Daniel Edward Aykroyd was born on July 1, 1952 in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, to Lorraine Hélène (Gougeon), a secretary from a French-Canadian family, and Samuel Cuthbert Peter Hugh Aykroyd, a civil engineer who advised prime minister Pierre Trudeau. Aykroyd attended Carleton University in 1969, where...
MOVIES I WATCHED
- The Blues Brothers
- Blues Brothers 2000
- Celtic Pride
- Christmas with the Kranks
- I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry
- According To Jim
- Home Improvement
30. David Bradley
Actor | The World's End
David Bradley was born on April 17, 1942 in York, Yorkshire, England, UK. He is an actor, known for The World's End (2013), Hot Fuzz (2007) and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011). He has been married to Rosanna Bradley since 1978. They have three children.
MOVIES I WATCHED
- Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
- Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
- Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
- Harry Potter and the Order of Phoenix
- Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
- Game of Thrones
- Broadchurch
31. Louis C.K.
Writer | Louie
Louis C.K. was born on September 12, 1967 in Washington, District of Columbia, USA. He is a writer and producer, known for Louie (2010), American Hustle (2013) and Horace and Pete (2016). He was previously married to Alix Bailey.
SERIES I WATCHED
- Louie
- Lucky Louie
32. Ray McKinnon
Writer | Rectify
Ray McKinnon is a writer, actor, director and producer. He served from 2012 through 2016 as creator, showrunner, writer and director of the Peabody Award winning, Sundance TV series, "Rectify."
As an actor, McKinnon has created a canon of unforgettable, offbeat and richly textured characters. In a ...
MOVIES I WATCHED
- The Blind Side
- Mud
- Deadwood
- Rectify (as creator)
- Sons of Anarchy
- Justified
33. 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 ...
MOVIES I WATCHED
- Drive
- Argo
- Total Recall
- Madagascar 3
- The Lincoln Lawyer
- Breaking Bad
- The King of Queens
- How I Met Your Mother
34. Bob Odenkirk
Actor | Nobody
Robert John Odenkirk was born in Berwyn, Illinois, to Barbara (Baier) and Walter Odenkirk, who worked in printing. His ancestry includes German and Irish. He grew up in Naperville, IL, the second of seven children. He worked as a DJ for WIDB, his college radio station at Southern Illinois ...
MOVIES I'LL WATCH
- Nebraska
- Breaking Bad
- How I Met Your Mother
- Fargo
- Better Call Saul
35. Neil Patrick Harris
Actor | How I Met Your Mother
Neil Patrick Harris was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on June 15, 1973. His parents, Sheila Gail (Scott) and Ronald Gene Harris, were lawyers and ran a restaurant. He grew up in Ruidoso, New Mexico, a small town 120 miles south of Albuquerque, where he first took up acting in the fourth grade. ...
MOVIES I WATCHED
- A Million Ways To Die In The West
- How I Met Your Mother
36. Benito Martinez
Actor | The Shield
Benito Martinez (actor/producer)
Benito has been busy in front of and behind the camera.
He is currently working as Executive Producer on the Amazon Prime feature A MILLION MILES AWAY starring Michael Peña as "José Hernandez." The film is based on the inspirational true story of an immigrant farm ...
SERIES I WATCHED
- The Shield
- American Crime
- House of Cards
- Sons of Anarchy
- 24
37. Benedict Cumberbatch
Actor | The Imitation Game
Benedict Timothy Carlton Cumberbatch was born and raised in London, England. His parents, Wanda Ventham and Timothy Carlton (born Timothy Carlton Congdon Cumberbatch), are both actors. He is a grandson of submarine commander Henry Carlton Cumberbatch, and a great-grandson of diplomat Henry Arnold ...
MOVIES I'LL WATCH
- Star Trek: Into Darkness
- The Imitation Game
- Sherlock
38. Stephen Merchant
Producer | Extras
Stephen James Merchant is an English actor, comedian, director, presenter and writer.
Alongside Ricky Gervais, Merchant was the co-writer and co-director of the British TV comedy series The Office (2001-2003), and co-writer, co-director, and co-star of both Extras (2005-2007) and Life's Too Short (...
SERIES I WATCHED
- Hello Ladies
- Life's Too Short
- Extras
- The Office (UK)
- Modern Family
39. 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...
SERIES I WATCHED
- Deadwood
- Game of Thrones
- Ray Donovan
- American Horror Story
- The West Wing
40. 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 ...
SERIES I WATCHED
- Deadwood
- House of Cards
- Longmire
- Southland
- Justified
- The West Wing
41. James Ransone
Actor | It Chapter Two
James Ransone attended Carver Center for Arts and Technology in Towson, Maryland from 1993-1997. The school is a "magnet school" that allows students to specialize in subjects such as theater, dance, writing, fine arts, and film as well as all the required academic classes. Ransone specialized in ...
SERIES I WATCHED
- The Wire
- Generation Kill
- Treme
- Low Winter Sun
42. Sam Waterston
Actor | The Killing Fields
Sam Waterston was born on November 15, 1940 in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for The Killing Fields (1984), The Great Gatsby (1974) and Law & Order (1990). He has been married to Lynn Louisa Woodruff since January 26, 1976. They have three children. He was ...
SERIES I WATCHED
- The Newsroom
- Grace and Frankie
- The Civil War
- Homicide
43. Clark Johnson
Actor | S.W.A.T.
Clark Johnson was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. He is an actor and director, known for S.W.A.T. (2003), The Sentinel (2006) and Homicide: Life on the Street (1993). He was previously married to Heather Salmon.
SERIES I WATCHED
- The Wire
- Alpha House
- Homeland
- The Shield
- Homicide
44. Walton Goggins
Actor | Justified
Walton Goggins is an actor of considerable versatility and acclaim who has delivered provocative performances in a multitude of feature films and television series. He won a Critics' Choice Award for his performance in the HBO comedy series "Vice Principals" and landed an Emmy nomination for his ...
MOVIES I WATCHED
- Django Unchained
- Lincoln
- The Shield
- Justified
- Community
- Sons of Anarchy
45. Michael Kelly
Actor | Chronicle
Michael was born in Philadelphia but raised in Lawrenceville, Georgia by parents Michael and Maureen Kelly. He has two sisters, Shannon and Casey, and one brother, Andrew. He went to college at Coastal Carolina University in South Carolina with the original intention to study law, but changed his ...
MOVIES I'LL WATCH
- Man of Steel
- House of Cards
- Generation Kill
- The Shield
- Person of Interest
- The Good Wife
- The Sopranos
46. Stephen Dillane
Actor | The Hours
Stephen Dillane was born on March 27, 1957 in London, England, UK. He is an actor, known for The Hours (2002), Game of Thrones (2011) and Darkest Hour (2017).
SERIES I WATCHED
- Game of Thrones
- John Adams
47. Martin Sheen
Actor | The Departed
Multiple Emmy- and Golden Globe-winner Martin Sheen is one of America's most celebrated, colorful, and accomplished actors. Moving flawlessly between artistic mediums, Sheen's acting range is striking.
Sheen was born Ramón Antonio Gerard Estevez in Dayton, Ohio, to Mary-Ann (Phelan), an Irish ...
MOVIES I WATCHED
- Departed
- The West Wing
- Grace and Frankie
- Two and a Half Men
48. John Goodman
Actor | 10 Cloverfield Lane
John Stephen Goodman's an American film, TV & stage actor. He was born in Affton, Missouri to Virginia Roos (Loosmore), a waitress and saleswoman & Leslie Francis Goodman, a postal worker who died when he was a small child. He's of English, Welsh & German ancestry. He's best known for his role as ...
MOVIES I WATCH
- Flight
- Argo
- Evan Almighty
- Cars
- Hangover 3
- Inside Llewyn Davis
- Treme
- Alpha House
- Community
- The West Wing
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