Yahoo Lifestyle These 21 Actors Were Huge Stars Hiding In Plain Sight As Side Characters In Movies You Love
Sometimes, an actor hasn't made it big yet. Sometimes, the cast is so loaded that an actor gets lost in the shuffle. And sometimes, my memory is awful, and I forget that well-known actors are in popular films.
Here are 21 actors that you (or at least me, myself, and I) probably forgot were in popular films:
1.Owen Wilson in Armageddon
Say what you want, but wow, I totally forgot Owen Wilson was in this movie. Credit the deep cast or blame the movie's memorability, but when Wilson came on screen, it inspired this very list you are reading.
Wilson plays the "country-horse-riding-driller" Oscar. With five other drillers, a bunch of astronauts, NASA workers, Liv Tyler, and Aerosmith blasting in the background, I think I get a pass for blanking on this one.
2.Rami Malek in Night at the Museum
Night at the Museum is the perfect little substitute teacher school movie, and the cast is bubbling with a who's who group. The most eye-popping one has to be the talented Rami Malek.
Malek plays a massive part in the story, portraying Ahkmenrah. He wasn't a huge name then, but his face, although younger, is hard to miss now. He's played roles such as Freddie Mercury in Bohemian Rhapsody and, most notably, playing the lead in the hit TV series Mr. Robot.
3.Kat Dennings in Thor
The MCU is such a long list now that plenty of characters are easy to forget. The film Thor, like Captain America: First Avenger, came out right before the MCU boom of The Avengers. So, I think I get a pass for saying, "When the heck was Kat Dennings in these?"
She played Darcy, Jane Foster's friend and co-worker. She has been in more MCU content, but again, it's A LOT of content MCU has been pushing out, so forgive me if I'm rusty on my Thor lore.
I could do a whole list of forgotten MCU actors, but I feel like I will get nuked in the comments for my bad memory.
4.Glenn Close in Guardians of the Galaxy
Sticking with the Marvel theme, did anyone else totally forget Glenn Close played a high-ranking character in the MCU?
She plays Nova Prime of the Nova Corps in Guardians of the Galaxy. Close was a big-name figure in the '80s on the stage and big screen, including her performance in Fatal Attraction. It seems like it should be a bigger deal that she was in the MCU, but *spoiler* they wiped out the Novas for the sake of the plot, so it's a reasonable assumption that her character has flown to the big Marvel logo in the sky.
5.Keira Knightley in Star Wars: Episode I: The Phantom Menace
This one feels cheap, but every time I watch The Phantom Menace, I am reminded that Keira Knightley plays Padme's decoy. I'm a big Star Wars fan, but I won't remember Bothan #5's name in Scene 2,187, so whenever the decoy comes on screen for the first time, I'm like, "Oh, yeah, I forgot she was in this."
Knightley is known for many different leading roles, but most notable is the journey of Elizabeth Swan in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. It's a small role, but still important to the plot.
6.David Tennent in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Sticking to popular franchises from my childhood, why is Doctor Who in Harry Potter?
Barty Crouch Jr. is played by David Tennent, who plays Doctor Who, who is Doctor Who #10, and Doctor Who #14, who is also the mayor of Whoville...I think I'm having a mental breakdown.
Okay, so I lied about the Whoville part, but Tennent is still a very prominent face on British TV, so seeing him as a critical character in The Goblet of Fire is jarring. I also blame Robert Pattinson's presence because he seems like the "oh, yeah, you're in this movie" actor of this particular film...therefore, Tennent is easy to forget.
7.Michael Fassbender in 300
After you navigate all the Greek abs in 300, you will eventually find Fassbender as Stelios. This falls under the category of "before they hit it big," and that's a fair reason for not remembering he was in this movie...because how would you?
Since then, Fassbender has taken on countless leading roles, but his launch can be traced back to his charismatic performance as Stelios. He also gets the iconic line, "Then we will fight in the shade."
8.Lucy Liu in Chicago
Lucy Liu (aka 10-year-old me's future wife) plays Kitty Baxter in the Academy Award-winning adapted musical Chicago. Although her character gets little screen time, Liu was a prominent name when this film was released thanks to her role in Charlie's Angels.
The following year, she would star in Kill Bill: Vol I. Not having a singing role in a musical will make your part less memorable. Seriously, who could forget Liu in anything?
9.Octavia Spencer in Spider-Man...and Drag Me to Hell
Academy Award-winner Octavia Spencer plays a character who signs Tobey McGurie's Peter Parker to a fight with Macho Man Randy Savage's Bonesaw. That's an actual sentence I just wrote.
Spencer's role is a quick scene, but she was a good luck charm for Sam Rami, who also had her cast in a non-speaking role in the horror film Drag Me To Hell. I'm unsure if Rami knew he was sitting on gold with Spencer, but she has had a tremendous career with scene-stealing roles in movies like The Help and Hidden Figures.
10.Ryan Gosling in Remember the Titans
There was no mountain high (or valley low) for Ryan Gosling, who was known for his part in the Mickey Mouse Club and is also one of the football players (Alan) in Remember the Titans.
The big one I remember as a child actor was Hayden Paydentierre, but Gosling slipped my memory. He would play memorable roles in The Notebook, Drive, The Nice Guys, La La Land, and, of course, Ken in Barbie.
11.Daniel Craig in Lara Croft: Tomb Raider
Playing Alex West in Angelina Jolie's Lara Croft: Tomb Raider movie, Daniel Craig was the baddie with a heart. Craig would play 007 James Bond in Casino Royale five years later. Looking back, his role as Alex West was a breakthrough as far as American blockbusters were concerned, so without this role, we might not have been given five 007 films starring Craig.
Along with Craig, Iain Glen from Game of Thrones plays the lead villain.
12.Colin Farrell in Minority Report
Maybe you have not heard of Minority Report, but the sci-fi film starring Tom Cruise grossed $358M worldwide. Colin Farrell played a key role in the film, and I have no memory of him being in it.
Farrell has had a huge 2024 with the success of the HBO Max show The Penguin.
13.Alan Ruck in Twister
Alan Ruck is probably the least-known name on this list, but for those who have seen Ferris Bueller, seeing Cameron Frye in such a small role for a blockbuster makes you want to kick your dad's car.
Ruck has been a great character actor throughout his career (I loved him in the TV series The Exorcist), so seeing him in Twister as a glorified map-holder was very strange. With the success of Twisters, looking back at the original film left me stunned to see him.
14.Seth Rogen in Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy
The movie is probably most famous for its battle of news teams, which features a band of cameos from well-known actors and comedians. The biggest cameo might be one throughout the movie, a young Seth Rogen as the camera operated for Channel 4 News.
Rogen is no longer a background guy, featured in films like This is the End, but he is also a big-time producer in various projects like The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Superbad, and the TV series The Boys.
15.Matthew McConaughey in Tropic Thunder
The raunchy comedy Tropic Thunder is filled with a loaded cast of comedians and random cameos, especially Tom Cruise's role as Les Goodman. I wasn't huge into this film, but I had forgotten Matthew McConaughey played Rick Peck on the second watch. His scenes with Cruise and Bill Hader's character are hilarious, and he even has my favorite line in the whole film:
Grossman: "What do you need, Peck?"
Peck: "More like, what do you need, Les...glasses?"
Grossman (wearing glasses): "...what?"
16.Vince Vaughn in Rudy
Rudy. Rudy. Rudy.
He's hard to miss, but a baby Vince Vaughn in this film. His role is stereotypical "non-believer" in the main character, but when it is underdog-focused, it's easy to forget Vaughn is in this film.
If you're caught up in the football drama, he's easy to miss if you're not expecting a wild Vince to appear.
17.Anthony Head in Sweeney Todd
I don't even know what to make of this one, but hang with me:
Buffy the Vampire Slayer fans will recognize Rupert actor Anthony Head, who briefly appears in the musical Sweeney Todd. He has a speaking line with Sweeney Todd but is never seen again.
It's even stranger because Head is known for his singing ability, but he had no musical lines in a film that featured a lot of singing. Again, he does not have a huge role or name in Hollywood, but his appearance is easily forgotten until he arrives on screen.
18.Anthony Anderson in The Departed
Anthony Anderson became one of the most recognizable faces on TV with his leading role in the hit show Black-ish.
Before that, for those with high-quality movie taste, he had many minor roles in movies, including Scary Movie 3 and Scary Movie 4. The most random role from him has to be the gangster award-winner The Departed. Compared to the supporting cast around him, he is easy to forget but blends in perfectly (the gift of good character acting) with the story...and is vital to the film's conclusion.
19.Nick Offerman in Sin City
Sin City is a movie where you see countless actors in roles you wouldn't anticipate. Babyface Elijah Wood as a demented killer is probably the best example, but there might be some that you completely forgot about if you only saw the movie once.
The film is littered with cameos, but Nick Offerman's performance as a grungy-looking criminal-for-hire character, Schlubb, might be the most random. He's more known for comedic roles such as Parks & Rec, so the physical appearance of him is more jarring than anything else.
20.Dave Chapelle in A Star is Born
Comedian Dave Chapelle has wedged himself as an elite member of the film game "Six Degrees" with his role in A Star is Born. His acting ability has always been there (Robin Hood: Men in Tights), but it is still very random. With the weight of everything in this film, it's easy to forget his presence on a second watch. He gets about three minutes of screen time and some substantial lines.
I guess when the most memorable part of the film is "Shallow" and the ending, it's easy to forget some of the appearances in this movie, including names like Anthony Ramos (Hamilton) and Alec Baldwin (The Boss Baby).
21.Oscar Issac in Robin Hood
Although not well-received, Ridley Scott's take on the classic "taker from the rich, giver to the poor" tale still grossed $322M worldwide. It had quite the cast, and Oscar Isaac was most notably flying under the radar.
He played Prince John, and although he had limited screen time, he acted out his whole (lion)heart.
Since then, he has become more of a Hollywood staple, appearing in films like Star Wars, Dune: Part I, and Ex Machina.
To me, this list screamed, "I'm a '90s boy," so I'd love to hear from all the people in the BuzzFeed Community. Is there an actor you forgot was in a movie up until recently? Comment below!
