Bruce Campbell - Television Tropes & Idioms

...is so cool that every time someone mentions his name a man gets cured of impotence.

—The Nostalgia Critic on Bruce Campbell

First of all, it's Bruce freaking Campbell (not a Hugo).

Shooting to popculture infamy with his role as the chainsaw-handed, shotgun-wielding Ash Williams in the Sam Raimi-directed Evil Dead film series, Bruce Campbell is one of the most sought-after B-movie/character actors in Hollywood. His roles tend to aim towards the comedically awesome badass, and his very manly chin only makes him more famous.

Bruce Campbell's other roles were often found in television work, where he held the lead role in the steampunk-inspired action-comedies The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. and Jack of All Trades, and a many-times recurring role as Autolycus, the King of Thieves in Raimi's Xena: Warrior Princess and Hercules television series. In fact, his most high-profile work usually comes from bit parts in Raimi's various productions, but even outside of that Production Posse he is almost constantly involved with one project or another.

His brief appearances in the various Spider-Man movies are considered some of the funniest moments of those films: as the wrestling ring announcer (and giving the superhero his official name) in the first film, as the obnoxious usher who stops Peter from getting to Mary Jane's play in the second (thereby making him the first character to defeat Spider-Man), and as the French maitre d' who helps Peter propose in the third. Campbell also does voice work for that franchise, providing the voice of the Narrator in all three Spider-Man video games; his role in those games appears to be only partly scripted, as Campbell shows his trademark dry delivery and a distinct flair for ad-libbed and off-the-cuff humor. An excellent right-this-moment example would be the advertisement he did for Old Spice.

His autobiography, If Chins Could Kill: Confessions of a B-Movie Actor, was published some time ago and despite the name, it is actually a discussion of the low-key character actors that take on the less-glamorous roles. Another book is currently in hardcover.

He's currently costarring in Burn Notice.

Works Include:

Film - Animation

Rod "Torque" Redline in Cars 2.
The mayor in Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs

Film - Live-Action

Bubba Ho Tep
Short appearance in Congo.
One of the many disguises of Darkman.
He dubbed the voice for the characters Raimi and Comdr. Carpenter in The Dead Next Door.
Escape from L.A., as the Surgeon General of Beverly Hills.
The Evil Dead series.
Smitty in The Hudsucker Proxy (a joint effort by Sam Raimi and The Coen Brothers).
Short appearance as a cop in Intruder.
Mechanic Hank Cooper in the 1997 remake of The Love Bug.
Man With the Screaming Brain, which he co-wrote, directed, and starred in
First two Maniac Cop films
He co-starred in the 1992 film Mindwarp, produced by Fangoria magazine.
Moontrap
My Name is Bruce, As Himself.
Coach Boomer in Sky High
A cameo appearance in all three of Raimi's Spider-Man films, and sometime Lemony Narrator in the accompanying videogames

Live-Action Television

The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr.
Burn Notice, where it is worth noting his character's name is Sam Axe, and often goes by the cover identity of Chuck Finley.
- Sam Axe? Sounds like a trick.
- Burn Notice: The Fall of Sam Axe- A prequel movie about his character
Jack of All Trades
The recurring role of Autolycus in Xena: Warrior Princess and Hercules: The Legendary Journeys.

Video Games

Pitfall 3 D Beyond The Jungle, as Harry Pitfall jr.
Voices the Player Character Jake Logan in Tachyon: The Fringe; listening to him calling you a little bitch when you cheat is one of the funniest parts of the game.

Western Animation

A parody of himself in the form of Magnanimus in Megas XLR
Coop: He's just a big head... with tiny arms!
Voiced Villain of the Week Himcules in My Life As A Teenage Robot.
Uncle Phil in The Replacements