Every actor’s career in the entertainment industry can evolve in a thousand different ways depending on the paths they take and the projects they undertake. Some stars are particularly notable for their impeccable comedic roles, and then there are those who really embrace drama and manage to captivate audiences with each and every one of their performances. In terms of the kind of roles they choose to play, it can also vary quite a bit: many actors stand out for their versatility and range of characters they play, while others base their careers on playing the same roles over and over again.
Over time, artists also stick to a certain way of performing that allows them to shine throughout their careers. However, there is one particular acting style in which very few actors stand out for all the right reasons: overacting. While these kinds of performances are often underappreciated, when done well, they can lead a character or a movie to stardom. Delivering a convincing over-the-top performance isn’t easy, but some actors have successfully managed it over the years, earning critical acclaim and public acclaim for their roles. Generally, it’s these over-the-top characters that steal the audience’s attention, keeping them on the edge of their seats as they tense up with every step the characters take. Here are 10 of the most critically acclaimed over-the-top movie performances in movie history.
10 Peter Finch – Network
In the 1976 feature film Network, Peter Finch plays Howard Beale, the UBS Evening News host who, after working for the show for many years, discovers that he is about to be fired due to a drop in ratings. Faced with this situation, the man, who has been struggling for years, takes to the air and threatens to kill himself live, which ultimately leads to an improvement in the network’s numbers, saving his job and creating a different kind of content , but not for long. Joining Finch in this Sidney Lumet movie are Faye Dunaway, William Holden, Robert Duvall, and Wesley Addy. Howard Beale’s role was Finch’s final as he died in 1977. That same year, he became the first actor to receive an Oscar for Best Actor after his death.
9 Helena Bonham Carter – Harry Potter series
The Harry Potter saga has shown a wide selection of villains and evil characters in eight episodes, but there is one particular witch who, despite her villainy, managed to win the audience’s heart: Bellatrix Lestrange. Immaculately played by Helena Bonham Carter, this character first appeared in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, originally as a supporting character. However, as the films progressed, she gained more and more momentum thanks to her deranged personality and evil nature. Bellatrix is capable of extreme cruelty from her love for Voldemort, prompting her to become the first female Death Eater and commit atrocities in his name. At the same time, she is the only one who stands by him, even if all his other followers turn their backs on him.
8 James McAvoy — Split
In 2016 the release of Dividea thriller by M. Night Shyamalan that served as the second part of the Unbreakable trilogy. In this production, James McAvoy plays the role of Kevin, a man who suffers from dissociative identity disorder and has 23 different identities. One day, one of his alters takes over and kidnaps three terrified teenage girls, who must figure out a way to escape him. This film proved to be challenging for McAvoy, as he had to embody many contrasting personas, steadily moving from mildness to madness. For this role, which he reprized in the 2019 film GlassMcAvoy received the San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor.
7 Gary Oldman – Leon The Professional
Gary Oldman’s versatility when it comes to his roles is beyond doubt by now. One of his most memorable over-the-top performances is definitely Norman Stansfield, the film’s antagonist Leon: The professional. Featuring Oldman alongside Jean Reno and Natalie Portman, this Luc Besson movie is about Léon and Mathilda, a hitman and a girl who lost her entire family and wants to avenge her brother’s death by killing his killer, Stansfield. All the lead actors in this production were critically acclaimed for their performances. However, Oldman not only enjoyed critical acclaim and popular acclaim, but also managed to make the unhinged and violent DEA agent Norman one of the most popular villains in movie history.
6 Glenn Close – 101 Dalmatians
There’s something quirky that happens in a lot of Disney movies, and it’s that audiences generally seem to like their villains a lot more than their heroes. One of the company’s all-time favorite villains is Cruella de Vil, who has been played by a number of actresses in several productions, with Glenn Close’s being one of the most treasured performances. Close played this villain in the 1966 live action 101 dalmatiers, a production also starring Jeff Daniels, Joely Richardson and Joan Plowright. This outstanding actress was able to convey this fashion designer’s glamorous and utterly unhinged persona, as well as her obsession with animal fur that led her to commit great atrocities in the name of fashion. Close reprized this emblematic role in the continuation of this production, 102 Dalmatians.
5 Willem Dafoe – The lighthouse
The Robert Eggers movie The lighthouse was released in 2019 and quickly became a hit with critics, mainly thanks to the performances of two of the biggest actors in the industry: Willem Dafoe and Robert Pattinson. The lighthouse follows Ephraim Winslow and Thomas Wake, two wickies from the 1890s who endure a very long and confusing shift together after being stranded in the aftermath of a bad storm. Dafoe plays Wake, a very experienced, misaligned and aggressive lighthouse keeper who keeps breaking down and seems to have a very complex connection to the light at the top of the lighthouse. Willem won a Satellite Award and an Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Actor for this role.
4 Kathy Bates – Misery
The role of Annie Wilkes in the psychological thriller Trouble earned Kathy Bates worldwide acclaim, as well as an Oscar and a Golden Globe Award among many other accolades. A film adaptation of Stephen King’s novel of the same name, this Rob Reiner production features a hardcore fan who kidnaps her favorite author and tortures him to change the fate of one of the characters in his novels. Bates impeccably plays this nurse, who at first appears to be a sweet and harmless lady, but as the film progresses she reveals her true nature, proving that she is capable of anything to ensure that Misery, the fictional character she is obsessed with, , gets the ending she thinks she deserves, even if it means ending her creator’s life.
3 Al Pacino – Scarface
In the 1983 feature film ScarfaceAl Pacino plays Tony Montana, one of the most iconic roles of his entire career. A remake of the 1932 film of the same name, this film by Brian De Palma follows Cuban refugee Tony’s journey to become a wealthy drug lord who, obsessed with power and violence, destroys everything he cares about along the way. This character is wild, smart and extremely violent, with a terrifying and disturbing attitude that captivated audiences and made him one of the most memorable characters in the industry. Pacino earned a Golden Globe Award nomination for this role.
2 Jack Nicholson – The radiant one
Jack Nicholson’s performance as Jack Torrance in The shining is one of the most acclaimed over-the-top movie roles of all time. Written and produced by Stanley Kubrick, this 1980 production is another adaptation of a Stephen King novel and features Shelley Duvall, Scatman Crothers and Danny Lloyd alongside Nicholson. The shining follows Jack, a writer suffering from a creative block who takes a job as an off-season janitor at the lonely Overlook Hotel, a place that will eventually damage his sanity and make him a threat to his own family. Nicholson was able to add his personal touch to the character of Jack Torrance, delivering a disturbing and aggressive performance that grew increasingly awkward throughout the film, making Torrance one of cinema’s most memorable characters.
1 Nicolas Cage – The Wicker Man
Rounding out this list is an actor who has made a career of over-the-top performances: Nicolas Cage. While Cage a number of exaggerated performances in his portfolio, perhaps one of the most memorable is his role as Edward Malus in The Wicker Man, a film that is both loved and hated by many. A remake of the 1973 film of the same name, directed by Neil LaBute, this 2006 film follows a cop who goes on a mission to find his ex-fiancé’s daughter on a distant island inhabited by a group of neo- heathen. The Wicker Man failed at the box office and was heavily panned by critics. However, it’s still worth watching this unique actor’s performance, and also because it spawned some pretty popular internet memes.