Board 8 > Who is our greatest living actor?

(+) Yeah! (+)

A bustling holiday movie season is just around the corner, which also means it's almost time to talk Awards. Which got me thinking... the Academy seems to have decided who humanity's most award-worthy actor and actress are, but do we agree they're actually the Greatest?

Let's see what the people think.

I've attached a list of each candidate's Oscar-nominated roles below, if you would like to consider that aspect of their career before voting.



Previous Results
YES, Smash Ultimate is the biggest threat to BotW for Game of the Decade (55%)
YES, Western Civilization peaked in 1999, as The Matrix told us (39%)
YES, B8 still wants a lady on the street and a freak in the bed (59%)
NO, China is not allowed to have their human-chimp hybrid man compete in the Olympics (54%)
YES, Ngamer is allowed to wear his controversial NGS sandals (56%)
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Al Pacino
The Godfather, 1972
Serpico, 1973
The Godfather: Part II, 1974
Dog Day Afternoon, 1975
...and justice for all, 1979
Dick Tracy, 1990
Glengarry Glen Ross, 1992
Scent of a Woman, 1992

Anthony Hopkins
The Silence of the Lambs, 1991
The Remains of the Day, 1993
Nixon, 1995
Amistad, 1997

Cate Blanchett
Elizabeth, 1998
The Aviator, 2004
Notes on a Scandal, 2006
I'm Not There, 2007
Elizabeth: The Golden Age, 2007
Blue Jasmine, 2013
Carol, 2015

Daniel Day-Lewis
My Left Foot, 1989
In the Name of the Father, 1993
Gangs of New York, 2002
There Will Be Blood, 2007
Lincoln, 2012
Phantom Thread, 2017

Denzel Washington
Cry Freedom, 1987
Glory, 1989
Malcolm X, 1992
The Hurricane, 1999
Training Day, 2001
Flight, 2012
Fences, 2016
Roman J. Israel, Esq, 2017

Jack Nicholson
Easy Rider, 1969
Five Easy Pieces, 1970
The Last Detail, 1973
Chinatown, 1974
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, 1975
Reds, 1981
Terms of Endearment, 1983
Prizzi's Honor, 1985
Ironweed, 1987
A Few Good Men, 1992
As Good As It Gets, 1997
About Schmidt, 2002

Meryl Streep
The Deer Hunter, 1978
Kramer vs Kramer, 1979
The French Lieutenant's Woman, 1981
Sophie's Choice, 1982
Silkwood, 1983
Out of Africa, 1985
Ironweed, 1987
Evil Angels, 1988
Postcards from the Edge, 1990
The Bridges of Madison County, 1995
One True Thing, 1998
Music of the Heart, 1999
Adaptation, 2002
The Devil Wears Prada, 2006
Doubt, 2008
Julie & Julia, 2009
The Iron Lady, 2011
August: Osage County, 2013
Into the Woods, 2014
Florence Foster Jenkins, 2016
The Post, 2017

Leonardo DiCaprio
What's Eating Gilbert Grape, 1993
The Aviator, 2004
Blood Diamond, 2006
The Wolf of Wall Street, 2013
The Revenant, 2015

Robert De Niro
The Godfather: Part II, 1974
Taxi Driver, 1976
The Deer Hunter, 1978
Raging Bull, 1980
Awakenings, 1990
Cape Fear, 1991
Silver Linings Playbook, 2012

Tom Hanks
Big, 1988
Philadelphia, 1993
Forrest Gump, 1994
Saving Private Ryan, 1998
Cast Away, 2000
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ok but what is that picture from because I totally want to watch that play
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You're in luck! If you're from Austin, that is.

https://freefuninaustin.com/review-and-giveaway-winnie-the-pooh-at-zach-theatre/


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All 10 in the poll are amazing actors, but you only included one 'chameleon' actor, and I think those are the best kinds of actors, as they can blend into roles seamlessly. 9 of these 10 (while fantastic), always feel like the actor. So for that reason, I voted Daniel Day-Lewis, as he always takes on a drastically different persona, and it can be tough to distinguish what kind of a person he truly is.
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Did Nic Cage die recently or...?
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I can't vote. This is an impossible poll.

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lmao @ people voting for Leo

even after he finally gave a good performance in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood there's still 9 way more solid options than him
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My first thought was Leo
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Where's Tilda?
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Hanx
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Tom Hanks, hands down for me.

Meryl Streep second. Anthony Hopkins then Daniel Day.
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ZenOfThunder posted...

lmao @ people voting for Leo

Agreed.
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junk_funk posted...

ZenOfThunder posted...

lmao @ people voting for Leo

Agreed.

He's not a great actor. Leo was fine in Gilbert Grape, Django and ...... and ........
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Could have replaced one of these options with Gary Oldman too.
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Clooney
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I know you don't have space in the poll, but these guys are legit too:

Dustin Hoffman
Sean Penn
Michael Caine
Gene Hackman
Johnny Depp
Sean Connery
Clint Eastwood
Harrison Ford
Edward Norton
Kevin Spacey (yes, he's still a great actor)
Bill Murray
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Dwayne The Rock Johnson
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Keanu Reeves
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Day Lewis I feel like takes it, followed by Streep and Denzel out of these

for ones not listed I genuinely like Christian Bale and Joaquin Phoenix.

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Leo is absolutely one of the best. Christian Bale is way up there too.
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Pacino hasn't been a great actor in forever, as his list of nominations can attest.
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Steve Buscemi
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Jim Carrey honestly came to mind

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fortybelowsummer posted...

Jim Carrey honestly came to mind

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TomNook posted...

Could have replaced one of these options with Gary Oldman too.

Method actor - DDL easily.

Favorite: Leo, Keanu, The Rock, and Pitt.
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HOW DID WE GET THIS FAR WITH NO MORGAN FREEMAN!?

People
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lmao @ list with no will smith
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Whiskey_Nick posted...

HOW DID WE GET THIS FAR WITH NO MORGAN FREEMAN!?

People

guess i just hallucinated the Shining
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Daniel Day-Lewis > Leonardo DiCaprio > Anthony Hopkins > Jack Nicholson > Denzel Washington > Tom Hanks > Robert De Niro > Meryl Streep > Cate Blanchett > Al Pacino

Everyone from DiCaprio to De Niro is great, but Day-Lewis fully transforms into other people. His performance in There Will Be Blood is possibly the best of all-time.

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NFUN posted...

guess i just hallucinated the Shining

If you had read the OP, that big list Ngamer posted is only of performances for which each actor was nominated for an Oscar.

Anyways, I'm inclined to say either George Clooney or Jack Nicholson, though I haven't watched nearly enough movies to have a properly informed opinion about this.
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MetalmindStats posted...

NFUN posted...

guess i just hallucinated the Shining

If you had read the OP, that big list Ngamer posted is only of performances for which each actor was nominated for an Oscar.

Anyways, I'm inclined to say either George Clooney or Jack Nicholson, though I haven't watched nearly enough movies to have a properly informed opinion about this.

so because I didn't read the OP that list isn't just of Oscar-nominated performances?
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NFUN posted...

so because I didn't read the OP that list isn't just of Oscar-nominated performances?

What no, how did you interpret my post that way?

I responded the way I did because you seemed to be implying that The Shining is missing from that list. While I agree on the merit of the performance alone, Ngamer clearly said that that list is only of the performances each actor was nominated for an Oscar for.
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"If you had read the OP, [then] that big list..."

This doesn't state what the situation would be had I not read the OP, it only implies that the list is of Oscar-nominated performances in the case that I read the OP
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Your objection here strikes me as rather pedantic when it was clearly obvious what I meant.

Just for you, though, here's the sentence as I had very clearly intended it as, rather than what you read it as:

If you had read the OP, then you would know that big list Ngamer posted is only of performances for which each actor was nominated for an Oscar.

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TomNook posted...

All 10 in the poll are amazing actors, but you only included one 'chameleon' actor, and I think those are the best kinds of actors, as they can blend into roles seamlessly. 9 of these 10 (while fantastic), always feel like the actor. So for that reason, I voted Daniel Day-Lewis, as he always takes on a drastically different persona, and it can be tough to distinguish what kind of a person he truly is.

Very true, he's the ultimate method actor and I think it's fair to count that as a major point in his favor. He's even said he struggles to return his voice to his normal accent for months after finishing his roles, because he can't get out of the head space of his most recent character.


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foolm0r0n posted...

Did Nic Cage die recently or...?

What? No. He was murdered by his agent in 2010.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eExfV_xKaiM" data-time="


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Whiskey_Nick posted...

HOW DID WE GET THIS FAR WITH NO MORGAN FREEMAN!?

People

This. Maybe Samuel L, too.
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MetalmindStats posted...

Your objection here strikes me as rather pedantic when it was clearly obvious what I meant.

Just for you, though, here's the sentence as I had very clearly intended it as, rather than what you read it as:

If you had read the OP, then you would know that big list Ngamer posted is only of performances for which each actor was nominated for an Oscar.

If you're going to use an obnoxious construction, at least do it properly
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It's gotta be Clooney
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McMoogle posted...

Where's Tilda?

She's amazing, have loved many of her roles, but overall I think Cate's a better fit for this question.

(Technically Tilda's only nomination is for Michael Clayton, but it's criminal how she was overlooked for We Need to Talk About Kevin.)


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The great Anthony Hopkins clearly.
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NFUN posted...

If you're going to use an obnoxious construction, at least do it properly

:)
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TomNook posted...

Could have replaced one of these options with Gary Oldman too.

I gave him serious consideration but decided to pick some other options that have been in the game a little longer. I do think he'll be considered one of the true greats by the time his career is over. (But looks like that's not going to be for a long time yet- IMDB has him active/just completed for seven projects right now!)


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Joaquin Phoenix
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junk_funk posted...

I know you don't have space in the poll, but these guys are legit too:

Dustin Hoffman
Sean Penn
Michael Caine
Gene Hackman
Johnny Depp
Sean Connery
Clint Eastwood
Harrison Ford
Edward Norton
Kevin Spacey (yes, he's still a great actor)
Bill Murray

I love Murray but didn't think he had a large enough body of work to be in the running. I'd list him in a Funniest Living Person poll though.

Depp and Norton have been great but they've hopefully got another 20+ years of excellent roles, I'll put them in the poll then. (And I'd be saying the same for Spacey if not for, you know.)

Eastwood and Ford are iconic, and great Movie Stars, but they played different flavors of themselves for their whole careers and rarely moved me.

Connery was great but I felt he's been out of the game too long (without as strong a body of work as someone like Jack to make up for it).

Hoffman, Penn, Caine, Hackman - all incredible and they were very much considered, would have been some of the first to go on an extended list.


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LiquidOshawott posted...

Day Lewis I feel like takes it, followed by Streep and Denzel out of these

for ones not listed I genuinely like Christian Bale and Joaquin Phoenix.

Yes they'll both be on the next edition of this poll for sure.


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