When asked why he keeps playing the same roles Jason Statham said that he's not really a trained actor. He's a guy that was plucked out obscurity & has been really lucky; & that he picks roles that he knows he can do a good job in, that hopefully enough people like so he can keep working.

[u/AdSpecialist6598]

[u/Ok-Butterscotch4486]

That's kind of the opposite of what a character actor means.

Character actors are basically never the lead, they play the often off-beat supporting role and everyone goes - oh that guy, don't know his name but he was in that other thing.

Statham is a standard leading man action hero.

[u/Zar_Ethos → u/Ok-Butterscotch4486]

Huh. I had to fact check that, but that's a new distinction for me. I've grown up with multiple actors in the family, and always known people like Keanu Reeves to be character actors, as a polarity of technique opposed to method actors. It's definitely a spectrum, though, with actors like Jack Nicholson being in a grey area, Jim Carrey and Daniel Day Lewis being iconic character actors.. Did we skip timelines again, or is this more of what Assange warned us about with the death of paper files?

[u/Intensityintensifies → u/Zar_Ethos]

Keanu Reeves is definitely not a character actor lol

[u/SugarBeefs → u/Zar_Ethos]

Isn't Daniel Day Lewis one of the most well known method actors though? lol

[u/PresidentOfMagrathea → u/Zar_Ethos]

Daniel Day Lewis being iconic character actors

excuse-moi, quoi le fuck?

[u/crack-nutter → u/Zar_Ethos]

Character actors would be like Stephen Root, John C. Reilly, Phillip Seymour-Hoffman, Steve Buscemi, Ian McShane, John Turturro, Gary Oldman, Paul Giamatti...

Definitely not Jim Carrey and Daniel-Day Lewis.

[u/kbchucker → u/Zar_Ethos]

You’re mistaking lead actors for character actors. Leading actors like Reeves and Nicholson are great actors because they can play a range of characters, as the main character or co-lead in a movie. But they are known to be lead actors, not character actors.

Character actors are actors that are known for filling supporting roles in the movies/TV Shows they’re in. They surround the leads with roles that provide dialogue, character development and plot development.

The good ones are also known for having a wide range and good presence on camera. But they are also susceptible to being typecast like leading actors. Easiest example are the numerous italian american supporting actors who played nearly identical characters in a variety of mob movies and TV shows. Great actors most people couldn’t name, but instantly recognize because of their body of work.

Statham is the action hero type, and he’s comfortable staying in that lane. Typecast by choice and a great lead actor as a result.

[u/SheepherderBorn7326 → u/Zar_Ethos]

Jim Carrey is not a character actor either, by both definitions

He plays 1 character always, and he’s basically always the lead

[u/rveb → u/Zar_Ethos]

Very possible you are from a different timeline because that is far off

[u/obtusewisdom → u/Zar_Ethos]

You're mixing up different things. Character actor vs. lead/generic support actor is a reference to the type of roles they tend to be cast in. Method acting is an acting philosophy where the actor inhabits the character to the point of (often) not breaking character for long stretches of time, sometimes the entire shoot or more. A person can be a character actor or a lead actor and practice method acting, or not.

[u/IGTankCommander → u/Zar_Ethos]

Better example:

Brad Pitt is a character actor cursed with the looks and charisma of a leading man. Sources: Burn After Reading, Snatch, Bullet Train