Not All Heroes Wear Capes

September 11, 202613 items69 views

There often tends to be a stigma with actors who play in super hero roles, to the point that some of the "elite" actors even stay away from them. However; I have found some actors who have genuinely showcased some fantastic acting performances despite the stigma. Here are some films that really highlight the fallacy of these misconceptions. Let me know if you can think of more! I heard RDJ was fantastic in Oppenheimer but I never watched it.

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We Live in Time

John Crowley · 2024

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Hey a two for one. Andrew Garfield and Florence Pugh really got away from their roles of Spider-Man and Yelena in this film. Both getting away from their usually quippy counterpart for a grounded compelling story.

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Marriage Story

Noah Baumbach · 2019

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I have not seen Scarlet in many movies other than her performances as Black Widow. This is a huge divergence from the cool bad ass spy that we most know her for.

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Sinners

Ryan Coogler · 2025

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I mean who doesn't love Michael B. Jordan? He shook up the MCU with his introduction as Killmonger in Black Panther, and he shook up the horror scene with one of the best horror flicks of all time.

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Lessons in Chemistry

Lee Eisenberg · 2023

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Brie Larson stood out a lot for me in this role, Lewis Pullman was fantastic as well but this is easily my favorite performance in Brie's career. This show made me forgive how bad Captain Marvel was.

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No Country for Old Men

Joel Coen · 2007

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Josh Brolin consistently puts out stellar performance, to me this one made me no longer see him just as Cable or Thanos (I saw this movie after both).

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Prisoners

Denis Villeneuve · 2013

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Growing up with Hugh as Wolverine as a kid, I had no idea this man has so much range.

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The Machinist

Brad Anderson · 2004

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Bale has so many to choose from, you could change this out with a few of his movies. Although he is most know for Batman at this point, he still is considered one of the best actors of all time.

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tick, tick... BOOM!

Lin-Manuel Miranda · 2021

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Another Andrew performance that I think was amazing. I tried to not repeat actors on this list but between this and We Live in Time I felt both deserved the spotlight.

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The Lighthouse

Robert Eggers · 2019

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Robert Pattinson is one of my favorite actors of all time, if not, THE number one. His range goes beyond almost any I have seen and like Bale, this Batman has a handful of movies that could be swapped out here. Green Goblin also killed it.

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The Whale

Darren Aronofsky · 2022

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Fraser put on the best performance of his career here. Rather you know him from Doom Patrol or The Mummy, this is leagues above anything he's done before. I hope to see more of this moving forward.

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Fight Club

David Fincher · 1999

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Although his hero role was short lived as Hulk, Norton put on a classic for this one.

Love & Death

David E. Kelley · 2023

Elizabeth Olsen stepped away from Marvel for a bit to pursue projects like this, and I see why.

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Black Swan

Darren Aronofsky · 2010

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Natalie Portman has always been wonderful, she is both worthy of the mantle of Thor and the Oscar she won for her role in this movie.

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kenzo

I would add in The Greatest Showman more for Zendaya representation- I think hugh jackman was indeed wearing a cape though. Honorable mention for Zodiac though. It's what made Ruffalo take on the role of the Hulk in the first place

Adam Milton

"There often tends to be a stigma with actors who play in super hero roles..." I can see why their peers *may* feel this way but I never understood why fans held a role choice against an actor. Acting is gig work and most will take work where they can get it. With that said I do think some actors are better at picking roles/situations that work for them.

Caleb

Tropic Thunder

MonkeyDPoopy