Photo: Universal Pictures
It’s no secret that Hollywood hides its best actors. We can only assume, like the idiot tossing a winning lottery ticket in the trash, they don’t know what they have. While people gush over the Ryan Goslings and George Clooneys of the TV and movie industry, there’s a whole world of under-appreciated actors right under your nose, some more obscure than others. But if you pay close attention, you’ll recognize most of these faces and wonder why you haven’t gone deeper into their catalog.
Although we’re glad to see talented actors the likes of Chris Pratt, Emily Blunt and Casey Affleck finally getting their due respect, the latter getting his despite being a gross tool, there are still plenty of great actors who pop in and out of TV and movies who deserve a firm standing ovation, or at the very least, a few clicks of the mouse.
If you’re smart, you’ll join us in celebrating these underrated actors of Hollywood by binging hard on Netflix, even if that means rolling up your sleeves and canceling all those plans you never wanted in the first place.
The Most Under-Appreciated TV And Film Actors In Hollywood
Now check out this: The Most Overrated Celebrities in Hollywood Right Now
Under-Appreciated
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Ben Mendelsohn
Photo: Netflix
If you never caught his small, noteworthy roles in Killing Them Softly and the original Animal Kingdom, you'll, at the very least, fall in love with his slow-rolling evil character in Bloodline. While the Netflix original wraps its final season, we're seeing Ben get the recognition he deserves with Rogue One and the upcoming Robin Hood as Sheriff of Nottingham.
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Annabelle Wallis
Photo: Netflix
Unless you watched The Tudors or the first class of "X-Men," you probably didn't know Annabelle Wallis until you heard everyone asking who the hell was "that smoking' blonde on Peaky Blinders," opposite Cillian Murphy. Fast forward four years and she's our favorite new actress, Chris Martin's new girlfriend and way too hot of an actress to take off her clothes in a Sacha Baron Cohen comedy.
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Cillian Murphy
Photo: Netflix
He was small timer for awhile until Christopher Nolan made him the first big bad in Batman Begins as the scarecrow, joining one of the best Hollywood crews out there. Now his talents are being properly honed (finally) on Peaky Blinders as the head of the Shelby family business, bootlegging and bartering a bloodbath that makes us wish we'd known him sooner.
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Sam Rockwell
The guy has been cracking us up for years, but sadly it took a fucking superhero movie like Ironman 2 to get people to take notice. Any quiet classic with Sam is killer, including The Way Way Back and Moon, in which we get more than enough Sam Rockwell yet still ask for more.
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Lizzy Caplan
Photo: Columbia Pictures
I don't know many (or any) who watch Masters of Sex for anything other than Lizzy Caplan, but she's been quietly buzzing the big screen with movies like Seth Rogen's The Interview. Most people will ask, "Is she the hottie from Cloverfield?" Yes, yes she is.
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Giovanni Ribisi
Kip Raines is all grown up, and man does this guy crack us up. Most people recognize Ribisi's face as the idiot brother of Phoebe from Friends, but this guy has been a steady actor since the mid '80s, yet most people couldn't tell you his name. He has some of the best range, going from the unforgettable, Nazi-loving rum drunk, Moberg, in Depp's Rum Diary to the creepy furry-loving villain in Seth MacFarlane's Ted comedy.
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Naomi Watts
She's been around the party for awhile with the best girl-on-girl kisses (Mulholland Road) and the best British adaptations (Funny Games), yet Naomi Watts never been fully appreciated. Hell, when I saw St. Vincent, I didn't even realize she was the prostitute. That's just how good (and hot) Naomi is.
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Ben Foster
Photo: Lionsgate
He reeled this guy in with his hard ass role on Alpha Dog, then followed with another great supporting role in 3:10 to Yuma. Now he can be seen in one of the most under-appreciated movies of 2016 with Hell or High Water.
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Rose Byrne
If you didn't catch Damages, you are sorely missing out. But Rose Byrne has put herself on the map as the cute girl with hot girlfriend tendencies with comedies like Neighbors, Bridesmaids and Spy.
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Billy Crudup
He's a golden god, for crying out loud! You may assume from his role in Almost Famous that he might be a one-hit wonder, but (like Jason Lee), Billy doesn't get just credit for his work in movies like William H. Macy's directorial debut, Rudderless, and the recent award-winner, Spotlight.
