| 1 | * ''Series/StrangersFromHell'' stars Lee Dong-wook, best known for his roles in light-hearted romantic comedies, as a serial killer. |
| 2 | * Creator/BobHope (whose primary style was comedy) guest-stars in a dramatic role (albeit not too heavy in this case) on ''Series/HighwayToHeaven''. |
| 3 | * Creator/RowanAtkinson is primarily known for his rubber-faced comic roles in ''Series/{{Blackadder}}'' and ''Series/MrBean''. In [[Series/Maigret2016 2016]], he took on the role of [[Literature/{{Maigret}} Jules Maigret]], a serious and soft-spoken French detective who hunts down murderers in 1950's Paris. |
| 4 | * Creator/AndyGriffith, best known as either kindly small-town sheriff [[Series/TheAndyGriffithShow Andy Taylor]] or folksy defense attorney [[Series/{{Matlock}} Ben Matlock]], went years without playing villainous characters after he rose to fame on television, but broke the streak in 1974's ''Pray for the Wildcats'' where he'a a psychopathic ad executive who takes several employees (played by Creator/WilliamShatner, [[Series/TheBradyBunch Robert Reed]], and [[Film/{{Starcrash}} Marjoe Gortner]]) out dirtbiking in the Baja California Desert. He's full-on {{Jerkass}} in here [[spoiler: and he tries to run down and kill Shatner's character]]. In the early 1980s, meanwhile he was cast as John Wallace in ''Murder in Coweta County''; the movie was the true story of John Wallace, a wealthy but sadistic landowner who kills one of his sharecroppers for stealing his cattle (by he and his goons beating up the hapless farmer, then {{pistol whipping}} him so hard he caused his gun to discharge), and it took a hard-nosed sheriff (Music/JohnnyCash) to bring him to justice. |
| 5 | ** A year before ''Matlock'' debuted, Griffith starred in the TV movie ''Crime of Innocence'' as Judge Julius Sullivan, a callously cruel judge who sentences two teenage girls to prison for a minor crime. |
| 6 | ** After ''Matlock'', Griffith returned to roles against type, playing the sociopathic Jack [=MacGruder=] in the made-for-TV film ''Gramps''; [=MacGruder=] turns even more sinister in his attempts to sexually molest his grandson, Matthew, and physically makes his true character known to anyone who stands in his way. In each of his three "bad guy" roles, Griffith retained his "small-town character" traits, making each of these roles even more memorable.) |
| 7 | * Peter Marshall, the genial game show host, as a corrupt, money-hungry record producer and agent in the Season 6 ''{{Series/CHiPs}}'' episode "Rock Devil Rock" ... but more so because Marshall's character was associated with goth rock, when in contrast the real-life Marshall was (and still is) associated with adult standards and middle-of-the-road music. (Although he did have a few goth rock stars, including Music/AliceCooper and various members of Music/{{KISS}}, as guests on ''Series/TheHollywoodSquares'' and his late 1970s talk show.) |
| 8 | * ''Series/SesameStreet'' has featured several of its main (human) cast in very different roles from their genial ''Street'' roles: |
| 9 | ** Allison Bartlett (Gina) has played several mentally and emotionally disturbed characters in episodes of the ''Franchise/LawAndOrder'' franchise. She also played one of the mobster's mistresses on ''Series/TheSopranos''. |
| 10 | ** Roscoe Orman (Gordon) is a no-nonsense judge in several ''Series/LawAndOrder'' episodes. |
| 11 | ** Sonia Manzano (Maria) has also appeared on ''Series/LawAndOrder'', both as a judge and as various criminals or witnesses trying to protect the main antagonist. |
| 12 | ** Emilio Delgado (Luis) -- yep, also on the ''Franchise/LawAndOrder'' franchise honor roll -- averts most of the grit as he played the usually genial (albeit focused) international editor on the 1977-1982 newspaper drama ''Series/LouGrant''. |
| 13 | ** This even extends to the Muppets themselves- as Ernie and Bert, Jim Henson and Frank Oz pretty much ended up in a role reversal of their [[Series/TheMuppetShow Kermit the Frog and Fozzie Bear]] characters. |
| 14 | * Creator/JossWhedon: |
| 15 | ** Creator/NathanFillion turned up as the villainous Caleb in ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' after playing roguish hero Captain Malcom Reynolds on ''Series/{{Firefly}}''. Not to mention the JerkJock Captain Hammer in ''WebVideo/DoctorHorriblesSingAlongBlog''. |
| 16 | *** More accurately, after playing the badass role consistently, playing Rick {{Series/Castle|2009}} is a much different role, playing a mystery writer and police consultant, leaving the badassery to Beckett. |
| 17 | ** Oz from ''Buffy'' was played by Creator/SethGreen, and wasn't the PluckyComicRelief? |
| 18 | *** The comic relief is his unruffled reaction to pretty much everything. |
| 19 | ** Creator/GinaTorres went from playing heroic, [[DeadpanSnarker deadpan-snarking]] [[TheLancer Zoe]] on ''Series/{{Firefly}}'' to playing villainous DarkMessiah Jasmine on ''Series/{{Angel}}''. Creator/AdamBaldwin went from playing dim-bulb mercenary Jayne on ''Series/{{Firefly}}'' to playing BigBad ManipulativeBastard Marcus Hamilton on ''Series/{{Angel}}''. And Creator/AlanTudyk goes from the sweet, [[BunnyEarsLawyer Bunny Ears Pilot]] Wash in ''Series/{{Firefly}}'' to [[spoiler: the remorseless {{serial-killer}} Alpha]] in ''Series/{{Dollhouse}}''. |
| 20 | * When the Creator/StephenKing miniseries ''Literature/TheLangoliers'' was made, most people thought that the AxCrazy Craig Toomey would be played by [[Series/QuantumLeap Dean Stockwell]]. Instead, it was played by [[Series/PerfectStrangers Balki]]! |
| 21 | ** Speaking of Creator/StephenKing miniseries', his own take on ''Series/TheShining'' contains ''two'' examples of PlayingAgainstType; Creator/StevenWeber (famous at the time for playing goofball Brian Hackett from ''Series/{{Wings}}'') played the slowly losing his mind Jack Torrence, and Rebecca De Mornay (famous for being typecast as psychotically dangerous women) played the very meek and demure wife Wendy. |
| 22 | * Creator/NickOfferman has made a career of this since playing Ron Swanson in ''Series/ParksAndRecreation'', either subverting or playing with his manly heterosexual image. Among other notable roles he has played a bisexual baker on ''Series/WillAndGrace'', a gay obstetrician on ''Series/BrooklynNineNine'' and a CrazySurvivalist who is essentially "Ron Swanson but gay" in ''Series/TheLastOfUs''. |
| 23 | * ''Series/{{Battlestar Galactica|2003}}'' did this wonderfully with Creator/DeanStockwell as Brother Cavil. |
| 24 | --> ''Let's get this genocide on the road.'' |
| 25 | ** Perhaps not so surprising to see him in a sinister role if you've seen him in ''Film/BlueVelvet''. |
| 26 | * Creator/BenBrowder of ''Series/{{Farscape}}'' fame played an AxCrazy man on ''Series/CSIMiami'' who set a fire that he intended to put out to prove he was good enough to join the fire department after their psychological screenings declared him unfit. The fire gets out of control and people died. His declarations that he's "A hero" are particularly disturbing as he ''did'' put out the fire, but seems unaware that people frown on that whole ''murder'' thing. |
| 27 | ** Ditto his role in ''Series/{{Arrow}}'', where we're inclined to believe he's not involved in the scheme the heroes are investigating just because it's him, then it turns out he's the mastermind. |
| 28 | * The show ''Series/TheSecretCircle'' has Chris Zylka, who usually plays BrainlessBeauty types. Not so much here. |
| 29 | * ''Series/UpstairsDownstairs'' was loaded with actors playing against type, including Angela Baddeley, Jean Marsh, Rachel Gurney, Gordon Jackson, and Meg Wynn Owen. Angela Baddeley was so aristocratic in RealLife that her name appeared in Burke's Peerage, yet she played a servant convincingly. |
| 30 | * Marc Warren, best known for playing a LoveableRogue [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold With a Heart of Gold]] on ''Series/{{Hustle}}'', stars in the TV adaptation of ''[[Literature/{{Discworld}} Hogfather]]'' as nightmarish Willy Wonka-like hitman Jonathan Teatime. And he's also played Count Dracula. Shiver. What's particularly interesting about the ''Hogfather'' role was that Warren himself thought up that presentation of Teatime and was actually hired with the expectation that he would play the character as something like [[AffablyEvil a psychopathic Danny Blue]]. He's kept up the villainous work by playing the gentleman with the thistle-down hair in the BBC adaptation of ''Literature/JonathanStrangeAndMrNorrell''. |
| 31 | ** Speaking of ''Hogfather'', Creator/IanRichardson is best know for playing amoral bastard politician Francis Urquhart on ''Series/HouseOfCardsUK''. For ''Hogfather'' he voiced the role of Death, who while certainly sounding and looking scary is possibly the kindest and most moral person in the series and the TropeCodifier for DontFearTheReaper. |
| 32 | * Creator/FredSavage (yes, the Fred Savage of ''Series/TheWonderYears'', ''Film/ThePrincessBride'', and ''Film/TheWizard'') once played a charismatic rapist on an episode of ''Series/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit''. |
| 33 | ** He and his TV brother Jason Hervey also switched characterizations on an episode of ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague'', with Savage playing the angry Hawk and Hervey playing the gentler Dove. |
| 34 | ** Creator/FredSavage also played an abusive boyfriend (stereotypically a wrestler) opposite ''Series/FullHouse'''s Candice Cameron in a LifetimeMovieOfTheWeek. |
| 35 | ** He also played a lecherous professor on ''Series/BoyMeetsWorld'' who harasses Topanga and tries to get Corey kicked out of college for defending her (that of course would be Corey played by Fred's real-life younger brother Ben Savage). |
| 36 | ** Not to mention a clarinet-playing heroin addict in ''[[TheFilmOfTheBook The Rules of Attraction]].'' |
| 37 | ** Then factor in he's directed several episodes of ''Series/ItsAlwaysSunnyInPhiladelphia''... |
| 38 | * The ''Franchise/LawAndOrder'' franchise is arguably the best place for established "good guy" actors to show that they can play villains. Fred Savage isn't the only one doing that trick: |
| 39 | ** Creator/ChevyChase played an anti-Semitic ManipulativeBastard who made his son kill a Jewish woman he had a grudge against. |
| 40 | ** Even America's Sweetheart Creator/JuliaRoberts got to play a killer once (she took the part because she was dating Creator/BenjaminBratt at the time). |
| 41 | ** The original Playing Against Type actor that ''Series/LawAndOrder'' exhibited: The late, great Creator/JerryOrbach. Originally a Musical Theatre star, he was then-best known for playing sleazy {{Amoral Attorney}}s (so like [[Theatre/{{Chicago}} Billy Flynn]], a role he originated); in fact, he even played a defense lawyer on ''L&O'' before they recast him. Turning him into a jaded, [[DeadpanSnarker snarky]] LawfulNeutral detective was an unexpected masterstroke, and he stayed attached to the show until his untimely death. |
| 42 | *** Orbach had played a very similar character to Briscoe in the 1981 film ''Film/PrinceOfTheCity''. Right before ''L&O'', he played a sinister Mob type in ''Crimes And Misdemeanors''. |
| 43 | ** The most recent one: Creator/AnthonyAnderson's Kevin Bernard. Last longest role was as Antwon Mitchell on ''Series/TheShield''. |
| 44 | *** Mitchell was also very much against type for Anderson, prior to that, he was known as the go-to TokenBlackFriend or PluckyComicRelief. |
| 45 | * ''Series/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit'': |
| 46 | ** Creator/MelissaJoanHart played a teacher raped by her student. |
| 47 | ** Creator/JerryLewis played [[JustForFun/JohnMunch Detective John Munch]]'s mentally impaired uncle Andy. |
| 48 | ** Creator/DeanCain. To see Superman playing a serial rapist...Brrrr. Speaking of whom, there's his role as wife-killer Scott Peterson. |
| 49 | ** The ''Series/FamilyTies'' dad himself, Creator/MichaelGross, playing a man who murdered his wife and another random woman. The former because she discovered his infidelities, the latter because he wanted the detectives to think a SerialKiller was at work. |
| 50 | ** Try and unhear Creator/HenryWinkler sneering "shut up, you stupid bitch" after being revealed to have plotted his wife's assault. |
| 51 | ** Adorable child actor Creator/ElleFanning also played the part of an abused child [[spoiler: who turned out to be a sociopathic liar and wound up setting one of the detectives' apartments on fire so they could stay together forever. It was very creepy.]] |
| 52 | ** In the same vein, notoriously sweet, good-girl actress Music/HilaryDuff (best known as Series/LizzieMcGuire, and for being as nice IRL as she is in most of her roles) played a neglectful, hard-partying teen mother in one episode. |
| 53 | ** Creator/MartinShort, known for his goofy comic roles, plays a psychic trying to help the police solve a serial rape and murder case. [[spoiler: Turns out he was the serial rapist and murderer all along, who targeted virgin women. "Best sex I ever had..."]] |
| 54 | ** Creator/LyndaCarter as murderous grifter Lorraine Dillon, almost impossible to perceive the arguably definitive Wonder Woman as anything but heroic (unless you've seen 'Bobbi Jo and the Outlaw'). |
| 55 | ** Creator/ChristopherMeloni went in the other direction, playing the coach in ''Film/GymTeacherTheMovie'' on Creator/{{Nickelodeon}}. |
| 56 | *** And a cynical pediatrician on ''Series/{{Scrubs}}'', as well as an oddball mutant Freakshow in ''Harold and Kumar Go To White Castle'' and another oddball KKK leader in the sequel. |
| 57 | *** Plus the oddball camp cook in ''Film/WetHotAmericanSummer''. |
| 58 | *** And the FlamboyantGay hotel clerk in ''Literature/FearAndLoathingInLasVegas'', which is particularly funny in contrast to his previous appearance in a Creator/TerryGilliam film, ''Twelve Monkeys'' - as a cop. |
| 59 | *** Let us not forget the role he was best known for before he played Stabler: DepravedBisexual Chris Keller on ''Series/{{Oz}}''. He treats MurderTheHypotenuse as a commandment regarding his lover, Beecher. Plus, at first he worked for Beecher's enemy (Vern Schillinger) and only pretended to be in love with Beecher on Schillinger's orders, part of a BatmanGambit to earn Beecher's trust and love and set him up for a heartbreaking rejection which drove TheAlcoholic Beecher to fall off the wagon and hit the prison moonshine hard. And then when Beecher was at his absolute lowest, Schillinger revealed Keller's true loyalties to a drunken Beecher right before having Keller ''break Beecher's arms and legs''. There was a HeelFaceTurn later that ''eventually'' led to Beecher forgiving him, but still. |
| 60 | *** Arguably, his dramatic roles are the initial Playing Against Type for him, as through his initial stages of acting, his background was actually in comedy. |
| 61 | *** It turns out that the oddball weirdos he's played over the years is closer to Meloni's actual personality than the tough-as-nails Stabler ever was. The man has an absolutely macabre sense of humor, enjoys the surreal and the bizarre, and can make a joke out of anything. |
| 62 | ** And then, of course, there's Richard Belzer, who before becoming Detective John Munch (on ''Series/HomicideLifeOnTheStreet'') was most widely known for his stand-up comedy. |
| 63 | * ''Series/LawAndOrderCriminalIntent'': |
| 64 | ** Creator/StephenColbert as the killer in one episode. |
| 65 | ** Creator/WhoopiGoldberg as a "Ma Barker" type gangleader in another. |
| 66 | ** Creator/MichaelYork as a metrosexual UsefulNotes/CharlesManson! |
| 67 | ** Creator/NeilPatrickHarris played a Jeffrey Dahmer {{Expy}} who ''ate'' part of his victims. |
| 68 | ** The ''Series/FamilyTies'' dad himself, Michael Gross, playing a man so desperate for a woman's love that he murdered her brother-in-law (she had confided to him that she was afraid he was molesting her niece). |
| 69 | ** Creator/{{Dakota|Fanning}} (Elle's older sister) played an abused child with an entirely different twist in ''{{Series/CSI}}'': [[spoiler: she was the product of [[ParentalIncest incestuous rape]], and her mother/"sister" had the rest of the family killed when her father in both senses of the word turned his attention to her.]] |
| 70 | * ''Series/LawAndOrderUK'': |
| 71 | ** Across the pond, comedic actor and game show host Bradley Walsh was thoroughly impressive as Briscoe's {{Expy}} Ronnie Brooks. |
| 72 | ** Inverted with Creator/JamieBamber, who played a NiceGuy rather than a villain--DS Matt Devlin. In fact, most of his roles have been varying versions of [[NiceGuy Nice Guys]], but roughly 1/3 of them have been the opposite, and all very effective: |
| 73 | *** Between ''BSG'' and ''Series/LawAndOrderUK'' he was Martin Klar, a [[EvilBrit corrupt arms dealer]] who briefly became Echo's abusive husband on ''{{Series/Dollhouse}}''. |
| 74 | *** His first role after leaving ''LOUK'' was the criminal of the week (or rather one of them) on an episode of Series/CSIMiami. Although he was far less monstrous than most of the bad guys this show has dealt with, it was still unnerving to see him pick up a golf club and bash some poor girl's head in, then try to blame it on his partner, smugly declaring that reasonable doubt as to who was guilty would easily get him acquitted. |
| 75 | *** He played an [[EvilBrit uber-sleazy]] photographer on ''Series/MajorCrimes'' who was such a {{Jerkass}} (among other things, he actually witnessed the murder that was being investigated but didn't call the cops as it would have revealed that he'd been [[ThePeepingTom spying on the victim)]] that the team was downright disappointed that he was innocent of the primary crime--and equally pleased and smug when they managed to nail him for manslaughter (for basically setting in motion the events that led to the incident). |
| 76 | *** He's AmoralAttorney James Craddock in the movie ''Film/TheCarRoadToRevenge.'' |
| 77 | *** His role as the titular ''Film/JohnDoeVigilante'' actually subverts this, as while the man is a SerialKiller, his victims are AssholeVictims--child abusers/molesters, rapists, abusive husbands/boyfriends. |
| 78 | *** He also subverts this in his role as ''Series/StrikeBack'''s Colonel Alexander Coltrane, who borders on AntiHero--while technically a good guy, he's downright ruthless at times, inflicting WaterTorture on a DoubleAgent, refusing to aid an injured henchman and allowing him to bleed to death, and coldly shooting the two people who murdered two of his subordinates at a time when technically, neither of them posed any danger to him. |
| 79 | *** The murderous DepravedHomosexual Sam in Series 2 of ''Series/InnocentUK''. |
| 80 | *** The BitchInSheepsClothing DCI Martyn Hunter in ''Series/DIRay'', who starts out as a generic NiceGuy, utterly in love with and devoted to the title character, before turning out to be a DirtyCop in league with the human traffickers she's been investigating, had sex with an underage trafficking victim (though he swears she thought she was of legal age), and is ultimately found to be indirectly involved in the VictimOfTheWeek murder. |
| 81 | * One of the most famous examples of this trope might have come about when Creator/NichelleNichols, an African-American woman, played against ''her entire race and gender.'' Specifically, Nichols was cast as Lt. Uhura on ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries''. Uhura was the fourth-most powerful person on the ''Enterprise,'' a valued member of the ship's command team, and even kissed the (white) William Shatner--TV's first kiss between a white and black couple--in a landmark episode. At the time (the mid-to-late 1960's), black women played one type of role on television--servants, often [[SassyBlackWoman sassy.]] By playing Uhura, Nichols shattered every perception of what African-American women could be. Her influence even spilled over into the real world--Mae Jemison, the first African-American female astronaut, named Nichols as one of the reasons she entered the space program, and none other that ''Martin Luther King Jr.'' personally praised Nichols for her work and urged her to stay on the show when she considered leaving, saying "You are playing a role that is not about your color! This role could be played by anyone--this is not a black role. This is not a female role! A blue eyed blonde or a pointed ear green person could take this role!" |
| 82 | ** Whoopi Goldberg (mentioned above) specifically cites seeing Nichols playing Uhura as one of the landmark moments of her childhood; after watching an episode, she ran to her mother and cried "Momma! There's a black lady on TV and she ain't no maid!" Decades later, Goldberg, by then known for her comic talents, requested that the creators of ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'' find a role for her, even offering to play a janitor if it meant honoring Nichols. The producers instead came up with Guinan, the wise and mysterious bartender on the ''Enterprise'' who was even able to stand up to Q, a nigh-omnipotent RealityWarper. |
| 83 | ** Speaking of TNG, you owe it to yourself to watch the episode of ''Series/{{Extras}}'' with Creator/PatrickStewart. He's got some wonderful ideas for a screenplay. |
| 84 | ** The ''Star Trek'' universe ([[{{Pun}} tee hee]]) also has Creator/DwightSchultz as the timid engineer Barclay, a few years after playing the clinically insane "Howling Mad" Murdock on ''Series/TheATeam''. |
| 85 | * Andrew Sachs, known to most as the clumsy waiter Manuel of ''Series/FawltyTowers'', played as a twitchy crafty paedophile in ''Series/TheBill''. Years later he also showed up in ''Series/CoronationStreet'' as a ShrinkingViolet [[spoiler: dying of a brain tumour]]. |
| 86 | * Creator/PaulineQuirke, known for her comedic fat lady role in ''Series/BirdsOfAFeather'', literally turned heads in her role as a serial killer in a crime drama called ''Film/TheSculptress''. |
| 87 | * Creator/ChristopherMcDonald who always plays smarmy, Jerkass characters showed up in ''Series/StargateUniverse'', in a row everyone expected to be a smarmy, Jerkass self interested Senator as quite a few politicians have been before him in the franchise. Then he turns out to be smart and noble and ends up performing a HeroicSacrifice to save the crew. |
| 88 | ** On ''Series/HarrysLaw'', he played a smarmy {{Jerkass}}, but for once he was a ''heroic'' smarmy {{Jerkass}}. |
| 89 | ** And his role as Castillo of the ''Enterprise C'' in the Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration episode "Yesterday's Enterprise" was a noble, self-sacrificing Federation officer. |
| 90 | * Creator/BobSaget, best known as playing Danny Tanner on ''Series/FullHouse'' and serving as the original host of ''Series/AmericasFunniestHomeVideos'', was also an incredibly vulgar stand-up comedian. He once stated in an interview he took the "clean" jobs because he [[MoneyDearBoy needed the money for his family]]. He pretty much blew his wholesome reputation out of the water when he cameoed in ''Film/HalfBaked'' as a guy at a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_dzDb5v744 Narcotics Anonymous meeting]] (NSFW!), though that scene was more on-brand for him than ''Full House'' ever was. |
| 91 | * Creator/MatthewMorrison a year before he started playing teacher Will Schuester on ''Series/{{Glee}}'' played a rapist cop on an episode of ''Series/Numb3rs''. |
| 92 | * ''Series/{{Lost}}'' has Creator/DominicMonaghan of ''Film/TheLordOfTheRings'' fame playing Mancunian failed rock-star heroin addict Charlie Pace. Though as the show progressed and he kicked the junk, he seemed to revert to a lovable (albeit taller) hobbit. |
| 93 | ** Another example from ''Series/{{Lost}}'' is Yunjin Kim, who gained fame in Korea playing {{Action Girl}}s, but her character in ''Lost'', Sun, is pretty much TheWoobie, [[TookALevelInBadass at least at first]]. |
| 94 | ** Creator/DougHutchison made his name playing psychopathic villains: [[ImAHumanitarian Tooms]] on ''Series/TheXFiles'', Catherine's DarkMessiah kidnapper on ''Series/Millennium1996'', and sadistic guard Percy Wetmore in ''Film/TheGreenMile''. So it comes as a surprise that Horace Goodspeed is a well-meaning hippy ("Namaste!") whose greatest flaw is his failure to stand up to the more evil DHARMA members (i.e. most of them). |
| 95 | * Prior to ''Series/TheGoldenGirls'', Creator/BettyWhite had played raunchy Sue Ann on ''Series/TheMaryTylerMooreShow'', while Rue [=McClanahan=] had played TheDitz on ''Maude''. Thus Betty was originally considered for Blanche and Rue was considered for Rose. Neither actress wanted to play such a similar role, so they suggested the switch. As a result, younger viewers are astonished to see their prior series. |
| 96 | ** Betty White probably shocks a lot of people with her dirty mouth when she appears in skits on ''Series/TheLateLateShow with Craig Ferguson''. |
| 97 | *** ...as her former one-time MTM "rival" Creator/ClorisLeachman did on ''Series/DancingWithTheStars'' and the roast of Bob Saget. |
| 98 | *** White's career has cycled through types a few times. The role of Sue Ann itself was playing against the type she'd established in various programs in the 1950s and 1960s. Then, having reestablished herself as the super-nice one on ''Golden Girls'', she's spent the 1990s and 00s playing against it: for example, in her guest appearance in ''Series/{{Everwood}}'', where her character was slightly racist; or on ''Series/BostonLegal'', where she killed a man; or on ''Series/UglyBetty'', where she played herself as a manipulative gambling addict ("All that ''Golden Girls'' money went right down the nickel slots!"), or Kitty's {{Jerkass}} mother in ''Series/That70sShow''. |
| 99 | *** One of the drawing points of the film ''Lake Placid'' was the chance to see Betty White play a foul-mouthed role. |
| 100 | * ''Series/CriminalMinds'' enjoys casting former child and teen stars as crazed killers. Creator/JamesVanDerBeek (as a multiple personality stricken home invasion murderer) and Frankie Muniz (as an insane comic book artist turned gang member butcher) appeared in the second and third seasons, respectively. In the fourth season, Creator/LukePerry and Creator/WilWheaton appeared as unsubs. As one cast member joked: |
| 101 | -->'''Matthew Gray Gubler''' ''(Spencer Reid)'': I'm always getting held hostage by teen idols - first James Van Der Beek was a guest star and held Reid hostage, and this time it's Luke Perry. I actually saw Scott Baio out front, and I swear he looked at me. |
| 102 | ** Comedic actors are not immune, either: Creator/JamieKennedy played a cannibalistic serial killer in the third season episode "Lucky", and [[Series/{{Seinfeld}} George Costanza]] (Creator/JasonAlexander) played a mastermind manipulator in the fourth season episode, "Masterpiece". |
| 103 | *** Alexander also played against type with a surprisingly low-key turn as an [[StrawVulcan ice-cold]], utterly amoral supergenius on ''Series/StarTrekVoyager''. |
| 104 | *** At the height of ''Seinfeld'', Alexander went way against type as a charming, charismatic mentalist on ''Remember WENN'', written by his longtime friend Rupert Holmes. |
| 105 | ** The pilot episode features Creator/DJQualls as one half of a serial killing partnership. Qualls had, to that point, mostly been known for playing awkward comic relief characters. |
| 106 | ** Jackson Rathbone played a janitor suspected of murdering a number of young men [[spoiler: and the janitor's ''female'' split personality who was the actual killer]]. He was [[GoMadFromTheRevelation absolutely brilliant]]. It almost makes you cry when you see what he was reduced to in ''Film/{{Twilight}}''. |
| 107 | ** Try picturing Gideon delivering that immortal line: "[[Film/ThePrincessBride Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die]]." |
| 108 | *** Or the fact that when he left, he was replaced by mobster [[WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons Fat Tony]]. |
| 109 | ** Once again, Creator/DeanCain makes the list by playing a murderer addicted to gambling in 'Snake Eyes'. Though portrayed as a sympathetic person, he is still is quite a ruthless killer. |
| 110 | ** Creator/FrenchStewart appeared as a serial killer. Bad [[Film/InspectorGadget1999 Gadget]]! Bad, ''bad'' Gadget! |
| 111 | *** Stewart also played a pretty skeevy informant in an episode of ''Series/{{Castle|2009}}'', and ''another'' serial killer (who dismembered his victims with an electric turkey carver) in several episodes of ''Series/{{NCIS}}''. |
| 112 | ** Bug Hall, best known for his portrayal of Alfalfa in the 1994 [[Film/TheLittleRascals Little Rascals]] movie, played a schizophrenic serial killer who is haunted by the images of his friends who perished in a fire he accidentally started. |
| 113 | ** Creator/MitchPileggi as the shotgun-wielding remorse killer in "Normal". [[Series/TheXFiles No, not Skinner!]] |
| 114 | ** Ben Savage of ''Series/BoyMeetsWorld'' fame is normally known being in sitcoms. While not as extreme as other examples, his role in the episode "Nelson's Sparrow" was as a younger version of Creator/MandyPatinkin's Jason Gideon. |
| 115 | * Prior to ''Series/ThirdRockFromTheSun'', Creator/JohnLithgow mostly played serious villains. |
| 116 | ** Except for the occasional transsexual ex-NFL player in the ''The World According to Garp'') or excitable airplane passenger (as originally played by Creator/WilliamShatner) in ''Film/TwilightZoneTheMovie'', and a comedic role in ''Harry and the Hendersons''. |
| 117 | ** And a DeadpanSnarker engineer in ''2010''. |
| 118 | ** And then a serious [[SerialKiller psychopathic]] villain in ''Dexter''. |
| 119 | ** [[Film/TheAdventuresOfBuckarooBanzaiAcrossTheEighthDimension Lord John Whorfin]] was ''anything'' but a "serious villain." |
| 120 | ** Also Barney's estranged father living a wholesome suburban life in ''Series/HowIMetYourMother''. |
| 121 | * After playing a sugary-sweet, innocent maternal character in ''La Ninera'', Florencia Pena played the greedy, dysfunctional, politically incorrect mother in ''Casados Con Hijos''. Guillermo Francella, whose roles as fathers are always of the Greg Brady type, was cast as the drunken, idiotic and also greedy and dysfunctional father. |
| 122 | ** The same happened in the Chilean version of ''Casado con Hijos''. Javiera Contador plays the mother, and she actually was known as TheIngenue heroine in several telenovelas... |
| 123 | * Another Chilean case in the 80's. Deceased lead actor Tennyson Ferrada was typecast as sweet and gentle grandpa-type mentors, but then ''La Última Cruz'' (''The Last Cross'') came... and he played the MagnificentBastard BigBad patriarch. |
| 124 | * Dianne Wiest, more usually known as the sweet, motherly type (for just a few among many examples, consider: the preacher John Lithgow's wife in ''Theatre/{{Footloose}}'', the mother in ''Film/TheLostBoys'', and conservative senator Gene Hackman's wife in ''Film/TheBirdcage''), instead gets to appear as the wonderfully menacing, insane, and monstrous Evil Queen in ''Series/The10thKingdom''. As she put it herself in the behind-the-scenes featurette, "It's quite delicious really. I get to kill anybody who gets in my way, so you'd better stay away from me. Otherwise you might end up dead." |
| 125 | ** She also then appeared as the hard-bitten D.A. in charge of Sam Waterson's prosecutor's office on ''Series/LawAndOrder''. |
| 126 | * Creator/JohnGlover is usually the actor of villains in movies and TV shows. The personality he exhibits seldom, if ever, changes. |
| 127 | ** He acts out a scientist Dr. Jason Woodrue in ''Film/BatmanAndRobin''. Dr. Woodrue had no regard for ethics in his experiments, especially his super-serum. |
| 128 | ** All throughout the TV series ''Series/{{Brimstone}}'' he acted out the Devil. Yet he also acted out an angel once in a while, as all the angels and demons were brothers who looked alike. |
| 129 | ** He famously acted out Lex Luthor's father Lionel on ''Series/{{Smallville}}''. Again, a villain just like the preceding. A twist of fate: Lionel meets with a [[HeelFaceTurn change of heart]] in Season 4 and becomes a ally to Clark Kent[[spoiler:, but not without having moments that make you seriously doubt his alignment. ''Promise'' and ''Traveler'' comes to mind. But after his death, the Lionel Luthor who escaped from the parallel universe is the Lionel who never changed, thus a revert to his former evil character]]. |
| 130 | * Michael Kostroff built his career with film after film where he played a heroic crusading lawyer. Then comes ''Series/TheWire'' where he played Maurice Levy, Baltimore's go-to attorney for drug dealers and one of the most vile and unlikable characters in a show that deals almost exclusively with BlackAndGrayMorality. |
| 131 | * Michael Shanks' main role for the past decade or so has been the nerdy, courageous archaeologist Daniel Jackson, in ''Series/StargateSG1''. Then you've got ''Series/BurnNotice'', where he's cast as Victor, a psychotic, amoral super-scary spy, who has it in for the protagonist. It's great to watch. |
| 132 | ** Before that, he played the part of a psychopathic date rapist stalker in ''Judicial Indiscretions'', in which he is definitely ''not'' redeemed at the end, though he is (sort of) in ''Series/BurnNotice''. |
| 133 | ** He was also a spy in ''Series/TwentyFour'', and a criminal in ''Series/{{Eureka}}'' who nearly destroyed the entire town through his arrogance. And let's not forget his role as the sociopathic Balance of Judgement and his insane avatars in ''Andromeda''. |
| 134 | ** While still a heroic character, his role as [[ComicBook/{{Hawkman}} Carter Hall/Hawkman]] on ''Series/{{Smallville}}'' is nearly the complete opposite of Daniel Jackson in terms of personality. |
| 135 | * Done to a large extent in ''Series/Roots1977'', which largely cast actors known for positive, wholesome roles as its nastier characters, including Robert Reed, Ralph Waite, Creator/LorneGreene, Burl Ives, Sandy Duncan, and Chuck Conners. It also went the other way by casting Creator/EdAsner, best known as the gruff, surly Lou Grant on ''Series/TheMaryTylerMooreShow'', as a slave ship captain who is conflicted and tortured about his trade. |
| 136 | * Creator/WilWheaton did this on not one but two CBS shows in the 2007/08 season, guest starring as a selfish comic book creator (who shoulders a cosplaying Klingon out of his way) in an episode of ''{{Series/Numb3rs}}'' and as the aforementioned baddie of the week in ''Series/CriminalMinds''. A few years earlier, he played a crazy homeless guy on ''Series/{{CSI}}''. |
| 137 | ** Not to mention a (more comedic) douchebag version of himself on ''Series/TheBigBangTheory'' to the point where he is now Sheldon's arch nemesis. |
| 138 | --->"''[[SkywardScream WHEATON!!!]]''" |
| 139 | * Creator/EricPeterson, famous for the series ''Series/StreetLegal'', spent most of his career playing wise, smarter characters. Contrast his role as the cranky, short tempered, yelling at butterflies Oscar Leroy on ''Series/{{Corner Gas}}''. |
| 140 | * Similar to the Fred Savage example above, Creator/AlanTudyk (who is probably best remembered as the adorable pilot Wash, from ''Series/{{Firefly}}''), played a child molester on ''Series/{{CSI}}''. |
| 141 | ** Contrast his role as Doc in ''Film/ThreeTenToYuma2007'' with his appearance on ''Dollhouse''. Dude's got ''range.'' |
| 142 | *** As mentioned above, ''Series/{{Dollhouse}}'' averted this trope with Alan Tudyk. Tudyk's first appearance on ''Dollhouse'' was as a stoner architect not unlike Wash. [[spoiler: It turned out to be Playing Against Type after all, though, because he was actually the Joker-esque psycho Alpha.]] |
| 143 | ** Also playing against type was Creator/SummerGlau, playing Bennett. While she had previous roles that solidified her as the TropeCodifier for [[WaifFu small, badass women]], Bennett was distinctly meek and un-badass. Of course, she still played up [[AxCrazy other]] [[TheWoobie aspects]] [[{{Moe}} of]] Summer's previous characters. |
| 144 | * Creator/HughLaurie was known in England for his comedy, particularly his cheerfully stupid roles in ''Series/{{Blackadder}}'' and ''Series/JeevesAndWooster''. Then he adopted an American accent to play a cynical, near-SociopathicHero genius in the American drama ''Series/{{House}}''. Thanks to the different accents, some people still can't quite accept Bertie Wooster and House as the same actor. It was also lampshaded in some of the FOX promos for the series, when the announcer announces Hugh Laurie's name, he then says derisively "You idiot!" before announcing that he's the star lead of House. |
| 145 | ** He played a cynic in ''Film/SenseAndSensibility''. The character is very similar to his ''Series/{{House}}'' character, but is actually a decent person. And he doesn't have an American accent, obviously. |
| 146 | ** Don't forget that he also played an extremely loud-mouthed and scary {{I|nternalAffairs}}AD officer in dirty cop drama ''Film/StreetKings''. |
| 147 | * ''Series/TheShield'' is famous for its resurrection of Creator/MichaelChiklis' career, let alone allowing him to pretty much escape being typecast as the "stern, but lovable father figure" after his previous long-running series ''Series/TheCommish''. It also re-energized the career of comedic actor Creator/AnthonyAnderson, whose tenure on the show as ruthless Machiavellian drug kingpin helped open up new acting opportunities for him, ultimately culminating in him landing a main character role on ''Law and Order''. |
| 148 | ** Michael Chiklis later was in ''Series/NoOrdinaryFamily'' where he plays a nice guy once again. However, instead of a tough cop he now plays an insecure part time police sketch artist and it is the wife who is the successful scientist and breadwinner. |
| 149 | ** ''Series/TheCommish'' also to a point, as before that he was best known for his portrayal of Creator/JohnBelushi in ''Wired'', the ill-conceived bio of his life. In fact, many industry insiders considered his career over before it really started because of that movie. |
| 150 | * An in-show example of this occurs in the Christmas Special of ''Series/TheWorstWitch'' where nasty, scary and mean Miss Hardbroom is cast as the kind and benevolent Fairy Godmother in the pantomime of "Literature/{{Cinderella}}". |
| 151 | * ''Series/DoctorWho'': |
| 152 | ** When Creator/WilliamHartnell took on the role of the Doctor in 1963, it was after decades of playing "Hard Men" and Barking Sergeant Majors. Creator/VerityLambert, looking for someone who could play a harsh and antiheroic character while still making him loveable, was impressed by Hartnell's 'warmth', and he took the role in part to move against his existing typecasting. |
| 153 | ** After leaving the series, Creator/CaroleAnnFord tried to ensure that she wouldn't be typecast as innocent girls (being [[DawsonCasting much older than Susan]] in real life) by immediately playing a (very unglamourised) hooker in the downbeat Creator/{{ITV}} crime series ''Public Eye''. |
| 154 | ** Creator/JonPertwee was mostly known for ''[[Radio/TheGoonShow Goons]]''-esque comedy roles and voice acting before being cast as the suave GentlemanAdventurer-style Third Doctor. He had in fact been cast for his comic abilities as the producer who cast him wanted to go in a more comedy-based direction, but ended up playing the role straight in an action show (although his comic talents were well-used). |
| 155 | ** Creator/TomBaker, who played the [[InvincibleHero unshakable]], joyful and [[CreepyCute adorable]] Fourth Doctor, had been mainly playing tormented, cold and darkly charismatic villains, and relished the opportunity to play such a heroic role ("I seem to have played so many psychotics, it will be a pleasant change"). Finally in a role that fit his natural personality, he heavily identified with the character, and [[LostInCharacter became quite addicted]]. |
| 156 | ** Creator/PeterDavison was better known at the time as an actor in drama. This was something of StuntCasting but served to indicate that the Doctor was going to become a more human and emotional character after Tom Baker's AngstWhatAngst. |
| 157 | ** Creator/ChristopherEccleston, better known at the time for his roles in serious dramas. This served to indicate that the revival was going to be taken very seriously indeed and was ''not'' going to be a pile of [[SpecialEffectFailure wobbly sets]] and [[DependingOnTheWriter inconsistent character writing]] like ''Who'' was popularly remembered as. |
| 158 | *** Creator/CatherineTate was well known for being a catchphrase driven comic (which is played pretty straight in her previous appearance in the Christmas special)- she [[SugarWiki/HeReallyCanAct surprised everyone]] by pulling off a serious role in the fourth series. |
| 159 | ** Creator/MarkSheppard is generally known for the following types of roles: either [[Series/TwentyFour outright]] [[Series/{{Chuck}} villains]], characters who aren't villainous but still [[Series/{{Firefly}} pretty]] [[Series/BattlestarGalactica2003 shady]] or something [[Series/{{Supernatural}} completely in between]]. So when he showed up in a [[Recap/DoctorWhoS32E1TheImpossibleAstronaut two episode]] [[Recap/DoctorWhoS32E2DayOfTheMoon stint]] at the start of series six, it's outright shocking to learn he plays one of the definite good guys this time around. |
| 160 | * Creator/AshleyJohnson. [[Series/{{CSI}} Southern prostitute.]] That is all. |
| 161 | * Creator/RikMayall, known in the UK for his insane and violent roles in ''Series/TheYoungOnes'' and ''Series/{{Bottom}}'', as well as ''Series/TheComicStripPresents'' and other similar shows, did a non-comedic and largely straight performance as a police detective in an episode of ''Series/JonathanCreek'', the first acting role he took after a serious head injury. He was also the narrator of a children's show called ''WesternAnimation/{{Jellabies}}[=/=]Jellikins'', which is a show aimed at '''2-6 year olds'''. |
| 162 | * Creator/BrendaSong's breakout role was on Nick's ''Series/OneHundredDeedsForEddieMcdowd'' where she played an AsianAndNerdy character. Now she pretty much always plays {{Asian Airhead}}s. ''Way'' more bizarrely, she's a bitchy, sociopathic girlfriend of the lead of ''Film/TheSocialNetwork'', who goes to such extremes as ''lighting a bed on fire.'' And makes it believable. Whoa, ''[[SugarWiki/HeReallyCanAct She Really Can Act]]''. |
| 163 | * Creator/JennaLeighGreen is best remembered for playing Libby, a certain cheerleader who used to be the {{Trope Namer|s}} for AlphaBitch, on ''Series/SabrinaTheTeenageWitch''. However, in the ''Series/ColdCase'' episode "Wednesday's Women", Green plays the younger version of an [[spoiler:undercover schoolteacher who taught African-Americans kids in the Jim Crow-era South]] who [[spoiler:[[ItsAllMyFault feels guilty]] in recruiting her [[WideEyedIdealist best friend]] who ends getting murdered after they're found out]]. |
| 164 | * Creator/ClancyBrown is very often a villain, with roles including a sadistic guard in ''Film/TheShawshankRedemption'', TheAntichrist in ''Series/{{Carnivale}}'' and Lex Luthor in ''WesternAnimation/SupermanTheAnimatedSeries'' and ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague'' - even his role as Mr. Krabs in ''WesternAnimation/SpongebobSquarepants'' is a pretty big {{Jerkass}}. So, it's kind of surprising that in the legal drama ''The Deep End'', his firm partner character is the nice one who is benevolent to the associates, and it's the other partner who is the unpleasant AmoralAttorney. |
| 165 | ** Don't forget ''Film/{{Highlander}}''. The Kurgan is the strongest - and nastiest - of all the immortals. |
| 166 | ** He originally auditioned for the role of Superman himself in ''WesternAnimation/SupermanTheAnimatedSeries''. |
| 167 | ** In Earth Two he played one of the main protagonists... but found himself in frequent conflict with the other major protagonist. |
| 168 | ** Brown was cast as ReasonableAuthorityFigure George Stacey in ''WesternAnimation/TheSpectacularSpiderMan''. In the same series he also played the part of the dim-witted Rhino. |
| 169 | ** Plus, many were surprised to see him play the fatherly Sheriff Corbin in Series/SleepyHollow. |
| 170 | * ''Series/BreakingBad'': |
| 171 | ** Creator/BryanCranston was known for playing a BumblingDad on ''Series/MalcolmInTheMiddle''. He then won the Emmy for Best Drama Actor four times (three in a row) playing Walter White, high-school chemistry teacher turned ruthless meth cook and drug lord. |
| 172 | ** ''Series/BreakingBad'' creator Creator/VinceGilligan cast Cranston against type several years earlier in ''Series/TheXFiles'' episode "[[Recap/TheXFilesS06E02Drive Drive]]" as a racist jerk. It's also an example of Gilligan playing against type; see [[PlayingAgainstType/FilmWriting the Film Writing]] entry for this trope. |
| 173 | ** Jesse Plemon, before ''Series/BreakingBad'', was known for his role on ''Series/FridayNightLights'' as the Adorkable NiceGuy Landry. In ''Breaking Bad'' he plays Todd, who is quite affable, but is also a complete {{Sociopath}} who is able to execute a child without hesitation. |
| 174 | ** DJ Qualls makes a guest appearance in the second season episode "[[Recap/BreakingBadS2E8BetterCallSaul Better Call Saul]]", with his character initially appearing to be one of the nerdy losers who he'd made a career out of playing. It then turned out that he was actually an undercover DEA agent, with a much tougher personality than you'd expect to see from the guy. |
| 175 | * A memorable episode of ''Series/{{ER}}'' had comedian Creator/BobNewhart in a very unfunny role as an architect who is losing his sight and contemplating suicide. [[spoiler: He didn't just contemplate it.]] |
| 176 | * Creator/AtsukoTanaka is mostly a seiyuu known for her deep voice, which goes along great with professional badass ladies with no-nonsense personality (eg: [[Franchise/GhostInTheShell Major Motoko Kusanagi]]). Her deep alluring voice is also sometimes used for villainess roles. But, in ''Series/JukenSentaiGekiranger'', she voiced the penguin-sensei Michelle Peng, who, while a professional in her own way, is very peppy and has a very high-pitched voice, you REALLY won't recognize her right off bat. |
| 177 | ** This is not the only time that has happen in the toku genre. Creator/MachikoSoga is known as the "Queen of Tokusatsu Villainy". What was her final role before her untimely death? Heavenly Saint Magiel in ''Series/MahouSentaiMagiranger'' who is a benevolent, if initially suspicious of the main characters, leader of the forces of good magic. |
| 178 | * What do Creator/AmyAdams, Dan Lauria, Jonathan Taylor Thomas, Creator/BrianAustinGreen, Creator/DeanCain, Tori Spelling, Shawn Ashmore, and Creator/MaggieLawson have in common? They're all ''Series/{{Smallville}}'' villains, of course. |
| 179 | * Allison Mack goes from the soft-spoken {{Nice G|uy}}irl to a wild, drunk and very ClusterFBomb happy ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marilyn_(2011_film) Marilyn]]''. |
| 180 | * Character actor Kenneth [=MacDonald=], best known for playing smooth villains in Film/TheThreeStooges shorts and B westerns, had a recurring role as a judge on ''Franchise/PerryMason''. |
| 181 | ** [=MacDonald's=] PlayingAgainstType goes as far back as 1947; in ''Film/{{Crossfire}}'', he has a brief sympathetic role as an Army officer who assists in the capture of an anti-Semitic killer. |
| 182 | * After decades of being mostly known for his role as the Enterprise's resident ButtMonkey on ''Series/{{Star Trek|The Original Series}}'', it surely was a relief for Creator/WalterKoenig to portray MagnificentBastard Al Bester on ''Series/BabylonFive''. He eventually stated that while he is very happy he played Chekov, for this reason his favorite role in his career was Bester. It also made him the envy of other ''Trek'' alum. |
| 183 | ** Played with in the case of Creator/BradDourif's character Brother Edward, a former serial killer before he was [[LaserGuidedAmnesia mindwiped]] and given a new personality. His former personality never emerges, and throughout the episode he is a kind, forgiving monk dedicated to doing the right thing. |
| 184 | ** Creator/JeffreyCombs, known for his SmugSnake roles in ''Trek'' (particularly Weyoun), played a telepath assistant to an episode's villain in a first-season episode of ''B5''. The reason it falls under this trope is that he's ultimately responsible for bringing the villain down; his ''own'' character was explicitly ''not'' a bad guy. |
| 185 | * Creator/DickVanDyke, who usually plays the comic relief in musicals like ''Film/MaryPoppins'' or ''Film/ChittyChittyBangBang'', as well as ad exec Dick Burgess on ''The Van Dyke Show'', played the Murderer of the Week (a henpecked photographer who shoots his wife and the man he hired to make it look like a murder/suicide) on an episode of ''Series/{{Columbo}}''. |
| 186 | * ''Series/CallMeFitz'' is pretty much a perfect example of this. |
| 187 | * For five years, Creator/MichaelCHall played the timid but well-meaning and likable David Fisher on ''Series/SixFeetUnder''. After it ended in 2005, he returned a year later as the cunning, monstrous, and sociopathic title character on ''Series/{{Dexter}}''. Further examples from ''Dexter'' include John Lithgow, at the time best known for ''Series/ThirdRockFromTheSun'', as the ultra-disturbing Trinity Killer in Season Four (although as mentioned earlier, he had frequently played villains prior to ''3rd Rock''), and Jimmy Smits, known for playing noble heroes on ''Series/NYPDBlue'' and ''Series/TheWestWing'', as the increasingly unstable murderer-wannabe Miguel Prado in Season Three. |
| 188 | * The short lived 1991 series, ''Good and Evil'', had this trope as its selling point. Created by Susan Harris, the woman behind ''Soap'', ''Benson'', ''Series/TheGoldenGirls'' and others, it was a soap opera spoof telling the story of two sisters, one good and one evil, and their families. The sisters were played by Teri Garr, known for her ditzy girl-next door roles, and Margaret Whitten, best known for her bitchy roles. Naturally, Garr played the bad girl, and Whitten the good girl. |
| 189 | * Creator/SharonSmall in the TV movie ''No Child of Mine''. She is most famous for sympathetic, genuinely good-hearted characters like Barbara Havers on ''Series/TheInspectorLynleyMysteries'' and Trudi Malloy on ''Mistresses'', and is absolutely ''[[{{Moe}} adorable]]''. In ''No Child Of Mine'', however, she plays a pathologically, violently abusive mother, and does it so convincingly that the result can be ''nauseating''. |
| 190 | * Perhaps an even more famous example in a made-for-TV movie: Creator/FarrahFawcett, previously best known for the role in ''Series/CharliesAngels'' that established her as a sex symbol, was first recognized by the general public as a serious actress when she played a woman who killed her physically abusive husband in ''Film/TheBurningBed''. |
| 191 | * Katie Couric did something between this and AdamWesting in ''Series/WillAndGrace''. She played herself, but poked holes in her reputation as a chipper, energetic GenkiGirl and turned it into a BitchInSheepsClothing facade. |
| 192 | * Before playing ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'s'' Castiel, Creator/MishaCollins mostly played creepy guys (the serial rapist/murderer in ''Film/{{Karla}}'') or Russians ("Vlad" in ''Series/{{CSI}}'') or creepy Russians (Alexis Drazen in ''Series/TwentyFour''). He probably only auditioned for Castiel because the part was advertised as a demon, rather than an angel. |
| 193 | ** The humorless, uptight, conservative, virginal Cas is basically the opposite of Misha himself in every way. He has confirmed that the wildly altered future version of Castiel seen in the fifth-season episode "The End" is disturbingly similar to his real-life personality, noting that he [[SarcasmMode enjoyed preparing for the orgy scenes]]. |
| 194 | * Creator/BillEngvall is mostly known for comedy (he's the "Here's Your Sign" guy). He plays Det. Jimmy Dupree in ''[=HawthoRNe=]'' [[KnightTemplar pretty damn vicious]], using tactics that would probably get an actual detective reprimanded at least. |
| 195 | * Creator/JohnRitter is best known for portraying the happy-go-lucky [[Series/ThreesCompany Jack Tripper]] and various comedic characters (plus, he had a RealLife reputation as a NiceGuy), so it was quite a shock to see him in LifetimeMovieOfTheWeek ''Lethal Vows''. [[https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-x_eIVUiLjfo/TWytlFLv5sI/AAAAAAAAAoY/sUlPXTkio7U/lethalvowstruestory.jpg Just look at the poster]]. |
| 196 | ** He plays a similarly evil role in a the ''Series/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit'' episode "Monogamy." |
| 197 | ** He also plays a crooked cop in ''[[Franchise/ChildsPlay Bride of Chucky]]''. |
| 198 | ** And the titular villain in the [[Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer Buffy]] episode "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS2E11Ted Ted]]". |
| 199 | * Creator/BillPullman normally plays good guys or at least aloof heroes. So seeing him as a pedophilic child murderer on ''Series/TorchwoodMiracleDay'' is very disturbing and surprising. |
| 200 | ** ''Series/{{Torchwood}}'' is good at this. Creator/PeterCapaldi is best known for playing MagnificentBastard AntiHero Malcolm Tucker in ''Series/TheThickOfIt'' — a man with no scruples or shame over the corrupt government he works for. In ''[[Series/TorchwoodChildrenOfEarth Children of Earth]]'', he plays John Frobisher, a ButtMonkey AntiVillain who is so ashamed of his governments' acts [[PaterFamilicide he commits suicide after murdering his family]] to spare them from being turned over to the 456. |
| 201 | * Most of Creator/ChevyChase's most well-known and beloved roles -- such as Film/{{Fletch}}, [[Film/NationalLampoonsVacation Clark Griswold]], etc -- tend to be smooth, intelligent and swift-witted {{Deadpan Snarker}}s who, even if they're not always on top of the situation, are usually the cleverest and funniest person in the room. Then there's Pierce Hawthorne in ''Series/{{Community}}'' who can be most easily summed up as [[SmallNameBigEgo basically the exact opposite of almost every single one of these traits]]. |
| 202 | ** This is a debatable example since people familiar with Chase's off-screen antics (especially the ones that led to his permanent ban from ''Series/SaturdayNightLive'') can reasonably argue that he's actually [[AdamWesting playing himself]]. |
| 203 | ** From the same show, [[Series/TheSoup Joel McHale]] typically plays shallow jerks. Though Jeff may start as one, over time he is portrayed as a begrudgingly selfless and deeply insecure and damaged man, far from his typical role. |
| 204 | * Whatever you might think about Creator/HaydenPanettiere playing Amanda Knox in ''Film/AmandaKnoxMurderOnTrialInItaly'' - and there were [[UsefulNotes/BritishNewspapers some who definitely disapproved]] not only of her casting but of the film being made in the first place - you can't deny that it's a change of pace, to put it mildly. Then there's her playing a damaged AlphaBitch of a country singer on ''{{Series/Nashville}}'', resulting in plenty of [[SugarWiki/HeReallyCanAct She Really Can Act]] reactions. |
| 205 | * In ''Series/ShiningTimeStation'', the second Mr. Conductor is played by Creator/GeorgeCarlin. Mr. Conductor is a genuinely kind, supportive, and upbeat character, very different from Carlin's famous stage personality. In this case, George wanted to play against type very much, and this show gave him the opportunity. |
| 206 | * Creator/WillArnett playing a loving, caring husband and father on ''Series/UpAllNight'' is far removed from the [[Series/ArrestedDevelopment selfish]] [[Series/ThirtyRock jerks]] he normally is known to play. |
| 207 | * Creator/CharlieHunnam was known for playing PrettyBoy roles in shows like ''Series/{{Undeclared}}'' and films like ''Film/NicholasNickleby''. That is, until he played the lead BadassBiker on ''Series/SonsOfAnarchy''. |
| 208 | * Creator/ReneAuberjonois got a rep for playing an effeminate wimp during his stint on ''Series/{{Benson}}'', but ended up played tough guy Odo on ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'', even making his voice more gravelly. |
| 209 | ** And then there was his playing [[spoiler: a child-molesting priest]] on ''Series/SavingGrace''. |
| 210 | * Faran Tahir initially plays to type when he appears as an Al Qaida-aligned terrorist in the ''Series/{{NCIS}}'' pilot episodes on ''Series/{{JAG}}'', but makes a second appearance on ''JAG'' as a different character, a CIA operative who Harm manages to smuggle out of Libya. |
| 211 | * One episode of ''Series/TheGoodWife'' starred Creator/MirandaCosgrove as a washed-up teen singer on trial for a DUI and attempted murder. |
| 212 | * Creator/BuddyHackett, foul-mouthed and notoriously undisciplined comedian, once appeared on ''Make Room for Daddy'' as “Buddy Bruno,” taking over for two weeks at the Copa while Danny went on vacation. The episode had him as the (presumably) single father of a small girl whom he is raising rather irregularly, if lovingly. In the second half of the episode he has to tearfully plead with the child welfare people to let him keep the girl. Definitely against type! |
| 213 | ** To say nothing of his starring roles later on in family-friendly films like ''Theatre/TheMusicMan'', ''Film/TheLoveBug'' and ''WesternAnimation/TheLittleMermaid1989''. |
| 214 | * Can you say "Samantha Stephens took an axe and gave her mother 40 whacks?" ''Series/{{Bewitched}}'' star Creator/ElizabethMontgomery played the title character of an Creator/{{ABC}} MadeForTVMovie titled ''Film/TheLegendOfLizzieBorden''. |
| 215 | * You remember Creator/KateCapshaw? That annoying DamselInDistress from ''Film/IndianaJonesAndTheTempleOfDoom'' who was always screaming and getting into trouble and needed Indy to get her out. Among her lesser known roles is a 1987 made-for-tv film called ''The Quick and the Dead'' (nothing to do with the [[Film/TheQuickAndTheDead Sam Raimi film]]) where she actually plays a strong-willed, independent woman who becomes an ActionGirl by the end. |
| 216 | * Creator/RobbieColtrane was (and arguably still is) known primarily as a comedy actor, or else [[Film/HarryPotter Rubeus Hagrid]]. First-time viewers of ''{{Series/Cracker}}'' may be shocked to see Coltrane playing a character who, while allowing for flourishes of wit and ribald humor, is [[MrViceGuy extremely flawed]] and [[AntiHero borderline unlikable]]. Coltrane won three UsefulNotes/{{BAFTA}}s for the role, proving himself a remarkably versatile talent. |
| 217 | * Creator/AmberBenson is best known as the wallflower LipstickLesbian Tara on ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer''. Needless to say ''Buffy'' fans got a bit of a surprise when Amber played a vampire in an episode of ''Series/{{Supernatural}}''. |
| 218 | * Creator/EmiliaFox was either known as Dr Nikki Alexander on ''Series/SilentWitness'' or else DelicateAndSickly yet kindly adoptive mother Sylvia in ''Literature/BalletShoes''. Then came her memorable role as BigBad LadyOfBlackMagic Morgause in ''Series/{{Merlin|2008}}''. |
| 219 | * Creator/HannahSpearritt was previously in Music/SClub7 and the various TV series had her playing a quirky DumbBlonde version of herself. Then came ''Series/{{Primeval}}'' where she played an ActionGirl. |
| 220 | * The Olsen twins frequently had the TomboyAndGirlyGirl dynamic in all their projects. Ashley was always the GirlyGirl while Mary-Kate was the {{Tomboy}}. ''Winning London'' swapped their roles around as this time Mary-Kate played an uptight ChildProdigy Chloe while Ashley played the easy-going [[TheLadette Lad-ette]] Riley. |
| 221 | * Christopher B. Duncan: BlackAndNerdy UpperClassTwit on the ''Series/TheJamieFoxxShow'', [[ConsummateProfessional Comsumate]] ProfessionalKiller of Series/VeronicaMars [[spoiler:who calmly disposes the BigBad]]. |
| 222 | * Nicholas Brendon in mostly known for playing the {{adorkable}} [[PluckyComicRelief funny guy]] (''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'', ''Series/CriminalMinds''), so when he appears ''Series/PrivatePractice'' as the rapist of one of the main characters, it's quite shocking. |
| 223 | * Subverted in ''Series/{{Elementary}}'' with the casting of Creator/VinnieJones. The more we learn about his character, the more the choice makes sense. |
| 224 | * Say what you want about ''Film/{{Swindle}}'', but it's fun to see Creator/JennetteMcCurdy playing a girl as far from [[Series/{{iCarly}} Sam]] [[Series/SamAndCat Puckett]] as you can get without a sex change; ditto Music/ArianaGrande cast as someone who unlike [[Series/{{Victorious}} Cat]] [[Series/SamAndCat Valentine]] isn't a {{Cloudcuckoolander}}. |
| 225 | * Creator/KaleyCuoco frequently plays quirky sitcom characters - [[DumbBlonde Bridget]] in ''Series/EightSimpleRules'', [[OnlySaneMan Penny]] in ''Series/TheBigBangTheory'', [[LovableAlphaBitch Brandy]] in ''WesternAnimation/BrandyAndMrWhiskers''. In the eighth season of ''Series/{{Charmed|1998}}'' her character Billie starts out seeming like her typical type - then [[DarkAndTroubledPast we learn the truth]] and [[CerebusSyndrome things really change]]. |
| 226 | * In a case of a ''production company'' PlayingAgainstType, Creator/QuinnMartin Productions (which specialised in {{Crime Drama}}s throughout its 27-year existence) made science fiction series ''Series/TheInvaders1967'', the UsefulNotes/WorldWarII series ''Twelve O'Clock High'' (based on the movie of the same name) and the horror anthology ''Tales Of The Unexpected'' ([[Series/TalesOfTheUnexpected not that one]]). The company's only theatrical feature (1971's ''The Mephisto Waltz'') was more going against type, since it was a horror movie. |
| 227 | * Jason Biggs is best known for his work on the ''Film/AmericanPie'' films, with the majority of his other roles basically being derivative of that performance, typecasting him as a nebbish loser with difficulty standing up for himself. His character in ''Series/OrangeIsTheNewBlack'' is a welcome change of pace, allowing to utilize a much wider range of emotions, be a bit more proactive as a character, and deliver a few WhatTheHellHero speeches whenever he feels wronged. |
| 228 | * The legendary Creator/NedBeatty has made his entire career playing nice guys, loveable goofballs, and forgetful nudniks who wouldn't hurt a fly. Yet in the ''Series/{{CSI}}'' episode "Sweet Jane", he turns in an [[AffablyEvil absolutely chilling, completely charming]] performance as Doctor Dave, a gentle pediatric dentist who not only was a kind and considerate dentist who made sure his patients first visit wasn't pain-filled and traumatic, but was also a vicious SerialKiller responsible for the deaths of at least five victims. (Like Buddy Hackett above, this also extends to animation - Beatty voices the avuncular and ''completely'' evil Lotso in ''Toy Story 3''.) |
| 229 | * Many guest stars on ''Series/TheMuppetShow'' were given the opportunity to show off talents they were not known for, in addition to their well-known talents. |
| 230 | * Kevin Tighe has been doing this for a few decades now, because he is so connected with his ''Series/{{Emergency}}'' character Roy Desoto. With Roy being a big hero type, he has often played villains since then. |
| 231 | ** Robert Fuller was a case in the series itself. He was and still is a cowboy actor to the core. He initially turned down the Dr. Brackett role because he still hoped cowboy shows would come back. |
| 232 | * Creator/RaphaelSbarge is an odd case. In a video game? He's usually playing the [[NiceGuy nicest guy on your team]]; [[VideoGame/StarWarsRepublicCommando Scorch]], [[VideoGame/KnightsOfTheOldRepublic Carth Onasi]] (albeit, that one has a ProperlyParanoid streak), [[Franchise/MassEffect Kaiden Alenko]]. In Live Action TV? He makes appearances as a [[Series/ColdCase child-killing nut]], [[Series/LawAndOrderSVU a deranged serial rapist]], [[Series/StarTrekVoyager a terrorist and spy]], [[{{Series/Journeyman}} another mentally-unhinged mass killer]], and [[Series/BurnNotice another spy and terrorist]]. What is he playing in ''Series/OnceUponATime''? [[WesternAnimation/{{Pinocchio}} Jiminy]] [[TheConscience Cricket]], arguably the most moral guy on the show. So, it's playing ''against'' type as far as his live action roles, but playing very close ''to'' it for his video game ones. |
| 233 | * Actor Creator/BrianThompson has spent most of his career playing villains. You need a huge, muscled barbarian? Check. How about any number of menacing aliens? He's your man. Crazed killers? You bet. Mafia thugs? Oh yes. How about a vampire who's also a crazed killer mafia thug. Sure, why not? How about a conscientious white knight law enforcement officer who is so cool he doesn't have to carry a gun and convinces most criminals to surrender just by talking to them and never has an unkind word for anyone? Yeah, well, he did that too, in ''Series/KeyWest'', just about the only heroic character he's ever played in his entire career. He also played Hercules of all people in the ''Series/JasonAndTheArgonauts'' miniseries. |
| 234 | * ''Series/MelissaAndJoey'' provides two type-breakings for the price of one - Creator/MelissaJoanHart's best-known for the pretty sensible [[Series/ClarissaExplainsItAll Clarissa Darling]] and [[Series/SabrinaTheTeenageWitch Sabrina Spellman]], while Joey Lawrence isn't renowned [[Series/{{Blossom}} for playing grounded characters]]. On this show she's the flighty one and he's the down-to-earth one. |
| 235 | * Creator/BillyDeeWilliams in ''Film/BriansSong''; where he portrays the shy, soft spoken, Gale Sayers. Quite a change from his usual portrayal of the suave, smooth, ladies man. |
| 236 | * In the short-lived series ''Johnny Staccato'', the role of kindly jazz club owner Waldo is played by Eduardo Ciannelli, an actor who made a career of playing menacing villains (especially mobsters). |
| 237 | * ''Series/RedDwarf'' has a very interesting example. Creator/ChrisBarrie had become best known for playing, in his own words, [[{{Jerkass}} "gits"]], especially Rimmer and had wanted to play something else. Rob Grant and Doug Naylor's solution was to create an alternate universe counterpart called [[TheAce Ace]] [[MemeticBadass Rimmer]], a dimension-hopping AcePilot who was essentially Rimmer's [[EvenTheGuysWantHim polar opposite]]. [[EnsembleDarkhorse Even now, the character is much beloved by the fandom]]. |
| 238 | * Garret Dillahunt, a man who tends to play unsavory characters from psychotic killers to pedophiles, playing the dumb and loving yet harmless family man Burt Chance on Series/RaisingHope. His role as the slightly old fashioned but still redeemable Jody Kimball-Kinney on Series/TheMindyProject also fits |
| 239 | * Creator/MikeOMalley, best known for being either the zany and hammy host of ''Series/NickelodeonGUTS'', dopey husband and dad Jimmy Warner of ''Series/YesDear'' or open-minded dad Burt Hummel in ''Series/{{Glee}}'' plays an douchebag van renter in the ''Series/ParksandRecreation'' epsiode "Bus Tour". |
| 240 | * Kevin Whately, better known as Sergeant (later [[Series/{{Lewis}} Inspector]]) Lewis on ''Series/InspectorMorse'', took a break from the role in 2013. A year later, he played a [[DirtyCop joyfully corrupt]] ex-copper [=McGhee=] on ''Series/InspectorGeorgeGently''. In fact, he plugged both of the male leads with a rifle --in a John Woo church shootout-- before he finally bit the dust. This occurs in the finale episode "Gently Into the Cathedral". |
| 241 | * The 1986 MadeForTVMovie ''Act of Vengeance'' stars Creator/CharlesBronson not as a tough guy but as a dedicated union man ([[BasedOnATrueStory real-life labor leader Joseph Yablonksi]]) wanting better conditions for miners. [[spoiler: It's also one of the few movies where his character gets KilledOffForReal.]] |
| 242 | * In an interesting variant in ''Series/TeenWolf'', it's the fact that Creator/DougJones ''never'' dons any prosthetics during his appearance as Barrow. Which is pretty shocking considering not only his penchant for doing so in other works and the prevalence of such effects on this show. |
| 243 | * Filipino noontime "variety show" ''Series/EatBulaga''. Every Lenten season, the show's "Dabarkads" (mainstays, mostly comedians) appear in heavy, tear-jerking dramas instead of their usual menu of knock-knock jokes and ribald humor. Not surprisingly, veteran funnymen like Vic Sotto, Joey De Leon, and Michael V often end up doing a much better job with drama than those who actually specialize in drama. |
| 244 | * ''Series/OnceUponATime'': |
| 245 | ** Creator/JamieChung typically plays an AsianAirhead. Her version of WesternAnimation/{{Mulan}} is TheStoic and a [[ProudWarriorRaceGuy Proud Warrior Race Girl]]. |
| 246 | ** Creator/RobertCarlyle's characters tend to be the ButtMonkey of the story, rather than the ruthless Chessmaster Rumpelstiltskin is. |
| 247 | ** Retroactively for Creator/JamieDornan. He's usually a VillainProtagonist or an extremely dark AntiHero. His turn as Graham is probably the most heroic role he's ever had. |
| 248 | ** See above for Raphael Sbarge, who is playing pinball as far as typecasting; Jiminy is very much against his live- action typecasting, but very much in line with his video game roles. |
| 249 | * Eion Bailey is usually a JerkWithAHeartOfGold or DeadpanSnarker (often both at once). He plays a {{Yandere}} in an episode of ''Series/Stalker2014''. His role in ''Series/BandOfBrothers'' is a bit against type as well - Webster being a CulturedWarrior who doesn't do much snarking. |
| 250 | * In Creator/WorkingDogProductions' ''Series/{{Frontline}}'', Rob Sitch played the dimwitted host of the titular ShowWithinAShow. In ''Series/TheHollowmen'', he played an ObstructiveBureaucrat who was no genius either. He breaks the pattern in ''[[Series/Utopia2014 Utopia]]'', in which he is the OnlySaneMan while ''everyone else'' (besides Only Sane Woman Nat) is either an ObstructiveBureaucrat or an idiot - or both. |
| 251 | * Creator/RobertEnglund, although a mainstay of horror films, first hit the big time in ''Series/{{V 1983}}'' as the lovable [[TheWoobie woobie]] Visitor, Willie. This created a TV image strong enough that when ''Series/FreddysNightmares'' had an OriginStory story for Krueger, Englund's face was largely obscured to avoid associations with Willie. |
| 252 | * Tony Robinson cast ''himself'' against type when he wrote ''Series/MaidMarianAndHerMerryMen''. A historic comedy featuring a scheming villain and his {{Bumbling Sidekick}}s, and Robinson's the schemer, not [[Series/BlackAdder the bumbler]]. |
| 253 | * ''Series/{{Hannibal}}'' loved this trope. It was an infamously dark mashup of GothicHorror and PoliceProcedural that was best known for artful and visually striking arrangements of mutilated human corpses, for managing to make FoodPorn out of [[ImAHumanitarian a cannibal's dinner]] in almost every episode...and for managing to snag several well-known comedians as {{guest star}}s. Creator/EddieIzzard, Molly Shannon and Dan Fogler all appear in the first season, playing one-off or recurring roles as demented {{serial killer}}s and/or unlucky victims. [[note]] Creator/PattonOswalt was also offered a role, but he declined.[[/note]] As dark as the show may be, one gets the sense that those actors are all [[AwesomeDearBoy having the time of their lives]] getting to be scary for once. |
| 254 | * In the mid-90's, Creator/PeterBoyle was best known as the gruff, crass JerkWithAHeartOfGold Frank Barone on ''Series/EverybodyLovesRaymond.'' Audiences were shocked, then, when he was chosen to play the title character in "Clyde Bruckman's Final Repose," an episode of ''Series/TheXFiles.'' While there's definitely a bit of Frank (specifically the jerkiness) in the part, Clyde is also far more multilayered and complex--he's a genuinely psychic individual [[BlessedWithSuck cursed with the power]] to [[ISeeDeadPeople foretell how people will die]]. Boyle plays the role with a surprising mix of humor, pain, and vulnerability (he even kills himself at the end of the episode), and his turn as Clyde is often praised as the best guest star in one of the best episodes of the series. |
| 255 | * At the height of his ''Series/StElsewhere'' fame, Creator/MarkHarmon gave such a terrifying performance as SerialKiller Ted Bundy in the 1986 miniseries ''The Deliberate Stranger'' that he freaked ''himself'' out. It earned him a Golden Globe nomination. |
| 256 | ---> "The Bundy role .... was a stretch. I was glad when I could put that one away when it was done." |
| 257 | ** 15 years later, he gave an equally scary performance as another infamous murderer--[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Capano Thomas Capano]] in the 2001 miniseries ''And Never Let Her Go''. A review flat-out described him as "all evil". |
| 258 | ** In fact, many critics have lauded one or the other or both performances as his finest work, with one citing the irony that "someone who's built his career on playing honorable men such as [[Series/ChicagoHope doctors]] and [[Series/{{NCIS}} law enforcement officers]] is apparently most at home playing amoral sociopaths." |
| 259 | * Calum Worthy played the [[TheDitz Ditzy]] Dez on ''Series/AustinAndAlly'', then the cunning and antagonistic Victor on ''Series/{{Bizaardvark}}''. |
| 260 | * In ''Series/JessicaJones2015'' Creator/DavidTennant plays the psychotic stalker, [[MindRape Mind Rapist]] and ''actual'' rapist Kilgrave. However, before taking the role of Kilgrave, Tennant rose to popularity by his role as the {{Adorkable}} MotorMouth Tenth Doctor on ''Series/DoctorWho''. |
| 261 | ** The contrast is especially striking, since Tennant plays both Kilgrave and the Doctor very similarly. They both speak with the same Estuary accent[[note]] Tennant's natural accent is Scottish [[/note]] and Kilgrave uses the same drawn-out "Well..." as the Doctor does. The scene where Kilgrave first meets Jessica is 99% the Doctor. The only part which isn't is how he dismisses the girls he's with. |
| 262 | * ''Series/TheIndianDetective'': Creator/WilliamShatner, best known as playing heroic characters like [[Franchise/StarTrek James T. Kirk]] or lately [[AdamWesting campy self-parodies]], plays David Marlowe, the sleazy, corrupt real estate mogul who's secretly working with much worse men such as Gopal Chandakar. Comedian Creator/RussellPeters similarly has the title role in a semi-dramatic show. |
| 263 | * Creator/ChinaAnneMcClain usually plays bubbly, sweet, generally kind characters. But in ''Series/KCUndercover'', she plays Sheena, a deadly, outright murderous assassin, possibly the only actually villainous role she's ever played, seeing as Uma from ''Descendants 2'' is more of an AntiHero. |
| 264 | * Voice actress Creator/JuneForay is most well known for lightweight roles throughout her lengthy 70-year career in entertainment. However, she undergoes one ''[[{{Pun}} hell]]'' of an unexpected turn in the original ''[[Series/TheTwilightZone1959 Twilight Zone]]'' episode "[[Recap/TheTwilightZone1959S5E6LivingDoll Living Doll]]" as the frightening Talky Tina, a parody of the cheery Chatty Cathy doll (whom she also originally voiced). This marks what is far and away the darkest role June has ever portrayed. |
| 265 | ** Creator/SterlingHolloway follows [[StealthPun June's foray]] into ''The Twilight Zone'' with a similar result. Known for his kid-friendly roles in many Creator/{{Disney}} films -- most notably as [[WesternAnimation/TheManyAdventuresOfWinnieThePooh Winnie the Pooh]] -- Sterling plays a twisted TV repairman in the episode "What's in the Box?" The fact his natural voice ''is'' that of Winnie the Pooh's only makes this performance [[NightmareFuel all the more creepy]]. |
| 266 | * Creator/EdwardAsner usually plays curmudgeonly older guy roles and his guest role as a Nazi hiding as a Holocaust survivor on ''{{Series/CSINY}}'' was rather surprising to many, at least when the character dropped the act near the end. |
| 267 | * Creator/PatrickWarburton is best known for playing DumbMuscle characters who tend to be quite comical and [[LargeHam hammy]]. In ''Series/ASeriesOfUnfortunateEvents2017'', he plays [[LemonyNarrator Lemony Snicket]], a very intelligent, serious, and deadpan character. |
| 268 | * Creator/EugeneLevy is best known for playing nebbishy dads and other nerds, but on ''Series/SchittsCreek'' he plays SharpDressedMan and former business mogul Johnny Rose, who is a devoted and romantic husband. He still does have plenty of awkwardly supportive moments with his adult children, however. |
| 269 | * In ''Series/TheOuterLimits1995'' episode "The Grell", Creator/MarinaSirtis played the callous, cruel slave owner Olivia "Liv" Kohler. |
| 270 | * Eternal RomanticFalseLead Creator/JamesMarsden has a long history of getting dumped by female main characters, despite being an unfailingly nice and kind guy who looks like a blue-eyed Ken doll. Then ''Series/DeadToMe'' cast him as an emotionally abusive psychopath who feels no guilt about causing a man's death, and dumped his girlfriend for being unhappy. [[spoiler:Then in the second season he also played that character's twin, an unfailingly nice and kind guy who looks like a blue-eyed Ken doll.]] |
| 271 | * ''Series/KolchakTheNightStalker'' had so many examples, it’s easier to list the actors that played to their usual type. |
| 272 | ** Creator/PhilSilvers, famous for playing fast-talking swindlers, appears in "Horror in the Heights" as a Jewish retiree scraping by on his pension in a decaying neighborhood. He's a thousand miles away from Sergeant Bilko and also completely convincing. |
| 273 | ** John Fiedler, the original voice of [[Franchise/WinnieThePooh Piglet]], played fast talking morgue attendant and informant Gordon "Gordy the Ghoul" Spangler. |
| 274 | ** Jim Backus, who was the original voice of WesternAnimation/MrMagoo and played Mr. Howell on ''Series/GilligansIsland'', played a motorcycle dealer and war veteran in "Chopper". |
| 275 | ** Jamie Farr, best known for playing the wacky Colonel Klinger on ''Series/{{Mash}}'', played a bitter high school science teacher in "Primal Scream". |
| 276 | ** Michael Strong, who usually played tough guys, played the cowardly head of a construction company in "The Energy Eater". |
| 277 | ** Comedic actor Jan Murray had a serious role as a pimp in "The Vampire". |
| 278 | ** Murray Matheson, who usually played {{Reasonable Authority Figure}}s and AffablyEvil and FauxAffablyEvil villains, played a stuffy antique dealer in "Horror in the Heights". |
| 279 | * ''Series/PersonsUnknown'': Creator/KandyseMcClure has usually played heroic or at least neutral characters, who are generally quite mild-mannered. Her role as {{ax crazy}} {{psycho lesbian}} {{tattooed crook}} Erika on the show was thus very different from her roles before or since. |
| 280 | * {{KidCom}} regular Keely Marshall can be a desperate StalkerWithACrush on ''Series/TheThundermans'' or a cruel AlphaBitch on ''Series/KirbyBuckets''. If you watch one of those shows regularly (but not both), seeing her on the other could be jarring. |
| 281 | * ''Series/PamAndTommy'': Creator/LilyJames made a career out of playing ingenues, {{English Rose}}s, and {{Spirited Young Lad|y}}ies -- basically, the sweet, young heroines of period dramas. She's cast way against type here as sultry ''[[Magazine/{{Playboy}} Playboy Magazine]]'' bombshell Creator/PamelaAnderson, who has to deal with the fallout of a [[HomePornMovie sex tape]]. |
| 282 | * Creator/EdWynn had only ever done comedic roles prior to his appearance in the ''Series/Playhouse90'' production of ''Requiem for a Heavyweight''. Despite being uncertain of his own ability, he took the role at the urging of his son, Creator/KeenanWynn, and he impressed absolutely ''no one'' with his constant flubbing of lines and fallbacks to old catchphrases during rehersals with only Creator/JackPalance's threat to walk should he be fired keeping him in the production at all. His actual live performance, however, was so well-received that it inspired a television movie dramatizing the production and Ed went on to successfully star in several other dramatic roles. |
| 283 | * In most of her sitcom roles, Creator/CharlotteRitchie tends to play the "normal" one, and generally projects an air of such wholesomeness that on ''Series/{{Taskmaster}}'' there was a running gag about her auditioning as a [[ExcitedKidsShowHost children's TV host]]. And then there's [[Series/FeelGood George]], who is actually a schoolteacher, but also loves weird fetish pornography and kinky rough sex (sometimes involving fake moustaches). |
| 284 | * ''Series/{{Columbo}}'' had a fun habit of casting recognizable television faces as the episode's murderer. |
| 285 | * Creator/SylvesterMcCoy is best known for family-friendly worksn including his best known role as [[Series/DoctorWho The Doctor]]n making his appearance on the decidedly adult ''Series/Sense8'' a surprise, especially with his first line being [[PrecisionFStrike "HOLY SHIT!"]] |
| 286 | * On ''Series/{{Haven}},'' the show's ultimate BigBad is a quiet, soft-spoken, AffablyEvil sociopath...played by Creator/WilliamShatner, who is not at all known for giving [[LargeHam subtle]] performances. It led to a SugarWiki/HeReallyCanAct response from viewers, because he nails the part and is genuinely ''terrifying.'' |
| 287 | * ''Series/CobraKai'': Creator/{{Peyton List|1998}} is a Disney Channel alumna, and mostly played nice girls from fairly well-off socio-economic backgrounds. In ''Cobra Kai'', her character (Tory) is a jealous, aggressive, vindictive, violent bitch from the WrongSideOfTheTracks. |
| 288 | * The documentary ''Superheroes: A Never-Ending Battle'' managed to do this with an actor in his iconic role -- namely, Creator/AdamWest, best known as the 60s TV Series/{{Batman|1966}}, reading lines from ''ComicBook/TheDarkKnightReturns'', which is about as far as you can get from the 60s series and still be Batman. |
| 289 | * Music/RickSpringfield played a shock rocker possessed by Satan in ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'', whereas musically in real life he's best known for his pop-rock hit "Jesse's Girl". |
| 290 | * ''Series/InterviewWithTheVampire2022'': Creator/JohnDiMaggio, best known for playing loveable LargeHam characters, appears as racist antagonist Alderman Fenwick, one of Louis de Pointe du Lac's business partners in the 1910s. |
| 291 | * Otto Hightower of ''Series/HouseOfTheDragon'' appears as a significant departure from the roles which made Creator/RhysIfans famous--especially as the role sees him as a straight-laced ManipulativeBastard (even more than Rasputin from ''Film/TheKingsMan'', as he is still mostly a LargeHam in that). |
| 292 | * ''Series/{{Homeland}}'': Creator/MelissaBenoist, an actress associated with goody two shoes roles on ''Series/{{Glee}}'' and ''Series/{{Supergirl|2015}}'' makes an early career appearance as a wanton party girl having a naked audition to be part of a sheikh's harem. |
| 293 | * ''Series/MayansMC'' casts the famously straight edge Wrestling/CMPunk as a ShellShockedVeteran with a serious alcohol problem. |
| 294 | * Creator/KieferSutherland is best known for playing the international law-breaking, human rights-abusing black ops agent and [[UsefulNotes/GeorgeWBush Bush-era]] conservative power fantasy [[JackBauerInterrogationTechnique Jack Bauer]] on ''Series/TwentyFour''. In ''Series/DesignatedSurvivor'', he plays officially Independent but clearly progressive HUD secretary turned emergency President Tom Kirkman, a BadassPacifist and left-wing populist dream president. |
| 295 | * Creator/ZooeyDeschanel as Kelly Kilmartin on ''Series/{{Physical}}'', playing both TheRival to Sheila in the real world and the voice in Sheila's head as her mental state declines. Notably, the part had her [[DyeingForYourArt go blonde and ditch her signature bangs]] in favor of EightiesHair. Deschanel [[https://www.rollingstone.com/tv-movies/tv-movie-features/zooey-deschanel-tired-likable-physical-new-girl-jonathan-scott-1234795927/ said]] that she deliberately sought out the part because she felt that her {{typecasting}} in [[ManicPixieDreamGirl quirky romantic heroine]] roles had reached IAmNotSpock levels, especially given that she was now a 43-year-old mother of two, and wanted to play a character who wasn't as likable or heroic. |
| 296 | * ''Series/ThePatient'' casts comic actor Creator/SteveCarell, best known for playing Michael Scott in ''Series/TheOfficeUS'' and the title character in ''Film/TheFortyYearOldVirgin'', as an understated and professional psychiatrist forced to counsel a SerialKiller in a serious drama. |
| 297 | * ''Series/HomicideLifeOnTheStreet'': |
| 298 | ** The murderer in the episode "Full Court Press" is played by Steve Burns. Yes, ''[[WesternAnimation/BluesClues that one]]''. |
| 299 | ** Legendary comedian Creator/RobinWilliams gives a serious (and Emmy-nominated!) performance in "Bop Gun" as a grieving father whose wife was killed during a mugging. |
| 300 | ** Creator/ChrisRock guest-starred as a pedophile and murderer in "Requiem for Adena". |
| 301 | ** Creator/LilyTomlin played an AffablyEvil fugitive and murderer in "The Hat". |
| 302 | ** Creator/NeilPatrickHarris as a sleazy drug dealer in "Valentine's Day". |
| 303 | * ''Series/{{Oz}}'': |
| 304 | ** Creator/LeeTergesen was best known for his role in the comedy series ''Series/WeirdScience'', making his turn as the mentally unstable convict and rape victim Tobias Beecher a notable and much darker contrast. |
| 305 | ** Similarly, Creator/JonSeda, generally known for playing heroic and sympathetic characters, played a homophobic and short-tempered convict in the pilot. He wasn't without redeeming or sympathetic traits, but was generally more unsympathetic than his prior and future roles. |
| 306 | ** Creator/ZeljkoIvanek was best known for playing nice guys and {{Reasonable Authority Figure}}s. His role as the cruel and spiteful SmugSnake Governor James Devlin was markedly different, and he quickly wound up type-cast as villains instead. |
| 307 | ** Creator/LuisGuzman, generally cast as the comic relief or generally nice characters, had a recurring role as the hardened and vicious gang leader El Cid. |
| 308 | ** Creator/KathrynErbe played a deranged and racist woman who murdered her own children. |
| 309 | ** Creator/LukePerry as a repentant former scam televangelist actively trying to become the man he pretended to be. |
| 310 | * ''Series/{{Longmire}}'': Creator/GrahamGreeneActor is known for playing noble and heroic Native American or First Nations characters, but played a recurring part in ''Series/{{Longmire}}'' as the utterly ruthless and depraved DirtyCop turned open gangster Malachi Strand. |
| 311 | * Shortly before the premiere of ''Series/Roots1977''; Robert Reed and Chuck Connors appeared in another example in the 1976 Creator/AmericanBroadcastingCompany made-for-TV movie''Nightmare in Badham County''; with Connors as [[DirtyCop a corrupt sheriff]] and Reed as a lecherous women's prison warden. |
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