Sugar Wiki / Rule of Sean Connery

"Sean Connery elevates everything he's in... Except like, you know, that one movie we don't talk about. And Zardoz, I guess."

— The Spoony One, The Spoony Experiment

A subtrope of the "Rule of Cool". This is about actors who make movies cooler or better just by their mere presence in them.

Sean Connery:
A = Movie's Awesomeness Factor without Sean Connery
B = Awesomeness Multiplier of Sean Connery = 100
C = Movie's Actual Awesomeness Factor
If Sean Connery is in the movie then C = BA = 100A, otherwise A=C.

Nicolas Cage aka The Great Variable:
A = Movie's Awesomeness Factor without Nicolas Cage
B = Awesomeness Multiplier of Nicolas Cage = ±5
C = Movie's Actual Awesomeness Factor
If Nicolas Cage is in the movie then C = BA = ±5A, otherwise A=C

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Examples

Connery Factors (Your mileage WILL vary with all of these)

• The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen... It may be In Name Only, but Sean Connery single-handedly raises it from an F to a C+.
• Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Sean Connery as Indiana Jones' dad? AWESOME! And despite he's clumsier and an Absent-Minded Professor, it doesn't mean he gets a few levels in badass.
• The Hunt for Red October.
  Captain Ramius: We will pass through the American patrols, past their sonar nets, and lay off their largest city, and listen to their rock and roll... while we conduct missile drills.
  Captain Ramius: You're afraid of our fleet. Well, you should be. Personally, I'd give us one chance in three. More tea anyone?
• James Bond: More than 50 years later, every actor who followed him as 007 continues to be measured by the standard Connery set.
• Finding Forrester: "You're the man now, dog!"
• Dragonheart: It's Mr. Connery voicing a huge fire breathing dragon. YESH!
• The Untouchables. Let's face it, not even terrible or nonexistent accents can diminish his awesomeness multiplier. Oscar voters agreed. (See also The Hunt for Red October and Highlander.)
  Mobster: You got a warrant?
  Jim Malone: Sure, here's my warrant. [punches him in the stomach]
• Highlander... and Highlander II: The Quickening. If it existed.
• Time Bandits: Agamemnon was never so freakin' awesome. Word of God states that the script notes for Agamemnon called for a Sean Connery-looking actor the production could afford. After reading the script Connery was so amused by the comment he agreed to do the role at a reduced rate.
• Marnie: Good evening. I'm Sean Connery.
• Hell, even Zardoz.
• A Bridge Too Far shows you what happens when you multiply Connery by Hopkins and raise it to the Hackman.
• "Welcome to The Rock!" One of only two Michael Bay movies people and critics admit to liking, (the other is mentioned in the folders below) and also notable as having wildcard Nicolas Cage come out as a positive factor.
• Sir Billi... is an exception.
• First Knight: Sean Connery as King Arthur? Forgettable movie, but still awesome.
• The Thief and the Cobbler: The original director's workprint portrays the titular cobbler Tack as a Heroic Mime until the end of the movie. Connery is credited as having provided vocals for that line.
• For an example of how the absence of Connery can negatively impact a film, see Star Trek V: The Final Frontier. Spock's brother, Sybok, was originally to have been played by Connery. When he declined, they made do by casting a near-lookalike and naming a planet "Sha-Ka-Ree" as an in-joke. Today reviled by Trekkies as one of the worst Trek films, one wonders what impact Connery's presence would have had.
• The Avengers (1998) is terrible, but a positive can be found in Sean "original Bond" Connery as an absolutely over the top Bond villain.
• One wonders about the impact on Darby O'Gill and the Little People of Sean Connery and his singing, given that Connery's type hadn't yet been established in film. Ever since the 2004 DVD, home video artwork shows him and his character's love interest above the title, rather than Darby.

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Other Actors Full of Awesome

A-D

• Julie Andrews
• Sean Astin, best exemplified by his role as Samwise Gamgee.
• Tom Baker. Not just as the Fourth Doctor and the Curator, but also as Captain Redbeard Rum.
• Christian Bale, no one could have been a better Bateman or a better Batman.
  • Many otherwise admirers of The Dark Knight think little of his acting as Batman, particularly voice-wise.
• Sean Bean: To truly get an idea of his greatness, see this article.
• The Beatles, either solo or as individuals. Often an appearance or starring role by Ringo Starr or John Lennon is the best part of many films.
  • Not to mention music-wise, of course. Featuring Paul McCartney and George Harrison in your song is always an advantage!
  • In the film world, a producing credit from George Harrison's production company HandMade Films, which financed such movies as Monty Python's Life of Brian, Time Bandits, Mona Lisa, Withnail and I, and Lock, Stock & Two Smoking Barrels, also foreshadows quality. (The lone exception is Shanghai Surprise.)
• Maria Bello will drastically improve anything you put her in. Anything. The rest of the movie might be a complete garbage fire, but Maria will be awesome in it.
• Cate Blanchett: The ultimate Woman of a Thousand Faces. Especially if she's playing a beautiful, powerful and occasionally terrifying queen, whether that be the Queen of the Elves, the Queen of England, or even the freaking Queen of the Underworld.
• BRIAN BLESSED is just SO hammy that any movie he is in is automatically awesome. Even in Kenneth Branagh's Hamlet, in which he only ever whispers, he helps it.
• Clancy Brown — no matter what he is in, it is automatically rendered awesome by his mere presence.
• Humphrey Bogart actually rivals Connery for dominion over this trope if you go back and watch his less famous roles. Tokyo Joe, for example, is an absolutely horrible Casablanca retread with awful casting and a terrible script, yet Bogart somehow elevates it from "garbage" to "wow, that was pretty decent." The Two Mrs. Carrolls is another example, although even Bogie can only drag that wreck so far (though you still won't regret watching it). On a more positive note, he took The Caine Mutiny from a good-but-forgettable war movie to an Oscar nominated masterpiece, and he did it with what, twenty minutes of screen time? If that?
  • He got the part in The Petrified Forest because he'd played the role on Broadway, and was so good that leading man Leslie Howard wouldn't make the movie unless they cast Bogie. He of course nailed it so well that he immediately became the go-to guy to play tough villains in Hollywood until The Maltese Falcon bailed him out of his Typecasting.
  • Bogart wasn't named the Greatest Movie Star of All Time by the AFI for nothing. Even when he played supporting roles, he elevated mostly forgettable films into must see viewing.
• Helena Bonham Carter, who occasionally has her awesomeness multiplied by working with Tim Burton. Also see her awesomeness as she plays an insane witch.
• David Bowie, even if it's just for one scene.
  • In one Pontius scene.
  • He played Nikola Tesla. For 16 minutes. And it was awesome.
  • His portrayal of the Goblin King is forever burned into the world's collective memories.
• Marlon Brando: Even when he was behaving like a dick, demanding exorbitant salaries, or eulogizing about his own awesomeness, he delivered a whole new level of oomph to just about every film he was in.
  • Brando's standout example was his ten-minute scene in Apocalypse Now - for which he demanded $3.5 million dollars! He showed up to play the Rank Scales with Asskicking warlord at the last minute at least a dozen pounds overweight and drunk as a fish - They had to have another actor play him for far-off shots. His scene was one long Close Up On Head, Face Framed in Shadow. And he owns the movie!
    • So much that most of the added scenes in the Redux version feature him, including well-lit full body appearances!
• Ewen Bremner: Anytime he shows up in a film, you KNOW he's going to do something interesting (and probably hilarious).
  • On the other hand, however, AVP: Alien vs. Predator exists.
• Jeff Bridges:
  • "Yeah, well, you know, that's just, like, uh, your opinion, man."
  • JEFF BRIDGES!
• Charles Bronson: Many of his films are just him staring people coldly before shooting them, but that's all that is needed.
• Pierce Brosnan: widely considered the definitive James Bond after the Trope Namer. Even if the Bond movies he did after GoldenEye weren't that well written, Brosnan in the very least made them watchable, if not more so. And then there's his other work.
• Steve Buscemi:
  • Multiply by 10 if he's working with The Coen Brothers.
    • Or Quentin Tarantino.
• Michael Caine:
  • Multiply him by the trope namer and you get a golden crown
• Bruce Campbell:
  • "Hail to the king, baby."
  • Assault on Dome 4 is a forgettable low-budget 'Die Hard on a scientific facility on another planet' TV movie with your average hero. Bruce playing the villain makes you simply wanna root for him.
• Peter Capaldi, as of summer 2014, shows every sign of this. Even before his first full episode as the The Doctor in Doctor Who aired, he was already being acclaimed as Best Doctor Ever.
  • Even before he became the eponymous Time Lord, he was elevating works he was in. Whether it's playing the villainous Cardinal Richelieu in The Musketeers, dropping cluster f-bombs in Whitehall and abroad or even just trying to help Brad Pitt survive the Zombie Apocalypse, Mr. Capaldi makes anything he's a part of that much better by his presence.
• Jessica Chastain: She can be a dumb blonde with a heart of gold, throw papers out of a glorious eureka; and tell in front of James "Tony Soprano" Gandolfini, Jack Harness and Mark Strong that she was the motherfucker who found this place.
• John Candy, the man who reeks of comic gold and silvery awesomeness.
  • Volunteers, especially his interrogation by the Thailand Commies before he's brainwashed. ("That will be a challenge.")
  • Splash.
  • Spaceballs.
  • Summer Rental. ("I'd take those over a power tool any day.")
  • Uncle Buck. Oh god, Uncle Buck.
    • "Nyi-hi-hi-hi-hi-hi ... ever heard of a ritual killing" (beat) "nyi-hi-hi-hi-hi-hi."
    • The cordless drill break-in, with the most epic lighting and camera angles ever seen in a John Hughes movie. Then Buck realizes his mistake. But he keeps going. And all without dialogue, carried by John Candy's impeccably-timed facial expressions.
  • JFK, even though he's a bad guy. ("I was on drugs at the hospital.")
  • Those aren't PILLOWS!!!!!!!!!!11111111oneoneoneone
• James Cagney
• David Carradine
• Jim Carrey, whether it be comedies, dramas, or action movies, Carrey always brings enjoyment.
• Patricia Clarkson cannot be even remotely bad in anything she does. Whatever she's in might be bad, but she won't be bad in it. In fact, she'll be excellent.
• George Clooney: He even makes it through Batman & Robin somewhat dignified, in contrast to the villains overacting down in every scene of theirs.
• James Coburn: He made High Risk, a subpar action/drug comedy, decent for the twenty minutes or so he's in it. Not to mention his roles in good movies like A Fistful of Dynamite and Cross of Iron.
• Jeffrey Combs
• Jennifer Coolidge: A Large Ham with a hefty dose of Narm Charm, she tends to steal every scene she's in.
• Kevin Costner. He makes great westerns, and helps films such as JFK and he shared protagonism with the very Connery in The Untouchables, who served him as a mentor figure.
• Bryan Cranston
  • He appears as (initially) the Only Sane Man in Godzilla (2014). Convinced that the earthquake in 1999 that resulted in a near-meltdown at the power plant he was in (which also caused the death of his wife) was caused by a creature, Cranston's characterization of Joe Brody runs rings around the rest of the cast, so much so that he's a featured part of the advertising (however, that's to cover up his death 40 minutes into the film). In fact, a common criticism of the film is that the rest of the cast just can't measure up to him when he leaves, and the rest of the film suffers as a result.
• Russell Crowe
• Billy Crystal
• Benedict Cumberbatch
• Alan Cumming. Bonus points if he's blue. Even more points if he is singing.
• Tim Curry. He can sing! He can terrify! He can do THIS with his hands!
• Jamie Lee Curtis
• Peter Cushing
• Willem Dafoe
  • Even in that ridiculous outfit.
  • And especially in that other ridiculous outfit.
  • And doubly so in that other ridiculous outfit.
  • Or even as a fish.
  • Or as an assassin who follows Adrien Brody's orders.
  • Or as an assassin who used to hang out with Keanu Reeves.
• Timothy Dalton. He happens to be a triple threat, in film, television and theatre.
• Matt Damon
• Charles Dance: Whatever your opinion of Last Action Hero may be, there's no denying that he stole the show right out from under the nose of Arnold himself. No small feat.
• Keith David: And his voice even more.
• Benicio del Toro. He always gives a solid, dedicated performance and oftentimes is the most talented or interesting actor/character featured.
• Robert De Niro
• Brian Dennehy. He can play someone who is either a Jerkass or a laid-back or reasonable or jovial Nice Guy (who can also dive in Beware of the Nice Ones when he goes into an aggressive mode that he usually uses in his Jerkass roles). His down-to-earth acting performances in any picture can qualify as stand-outs, it helps that he came from a theatre background.
• Johnny Depp. Whether he's a pirate, a a lizard, a drug-addicted journalist, or a vengeful barber, he rarely disappoints with his performances.
• Laura Dern: She didn't win many well-deserved awards for her role in Marriage Story for nothing.
• Peter Dinklage, provided he's not talking about wizards from the moon.
• Vin Diesel
• Vincent D'Onofrio: Name just one bad performance he ever gave in any movie. Just. One.
• Robert Downey Jr.. He IS Iron Man.
• Michael Clarke Duncan

E-L

• Clint Eastwood, be it acting or directing.
• Idris Elba, who from a guest shot on the American version of The Office to Luther to Heimdall, and everything in between, will always raise the quality of anything he is in.
  • Though he will always be Stringer Bell to us.
  • If there really ever was a dark-skinned Asgardian^note There wasn't, but then again Sif was not a brunette (one of the few actual descriptions in the Edda, she had hair of gold), so we'll just go with the flow, that deity must have reincarnated as this guy.
• Robert Englund. A classically-trained actor best known for playing one of the most fearsome horror movie killers ever, he gives his all to any of his performances while still being a genuinely Nice Guy (who fans, cast and crew can attest by).
• R. Lee Ermey didn't create the Drill Sergeant Nasty trope, but he certainly codified it to the extent that any DI or "tough coach" in an animated work since Full Metal Jacket has been voiced by Ermey himself or someone doing their level best to sound like him.
• The English quartet of awesome:
  • Judi Dench
  • Helen Mirren
    • Regarding Red (2010), Warren Ellis, author of the original comic, said any and all changes were okay by him, simply because the movie had Helen Mirren with a sniper rifle.
  • Iron Lady Dame Maggie Smith
  • Emma Thompson
    • You can raise it to the English quintet to include Vanessa Redgrave. A well-known film, television and stage actress, she's been active for over 60 years, has won an Oscar for her efforts, and is joined in her talent for acting by her daughters, Joely and the late Natasha, her son-in-law Liam, her late brother and sister, Corin and Lynn, her niece Jemma, her granddaughter, her parents, and her grandparents. Seriously, they all qualify as one Badass Family.
• Vera Farmiga elevates everything she is in. Everything. She brings absolute sincerity and commitment to everything she does — and is widely noted to be an absolutely lovely human being to boot.
• Michael Fassbender
• Tina Fey: Even when its just her voice...
• William Fichtner
• Nathan Fillion
• Colin Firth
• Laurence Fishburne
• Harrison Ford, who is still singled out as a highlight even above the age of 60.
• Martin Freeman
• Morgan Freeman, particularly his voice.
• 'Cos he's Stephen...Stephen Fry-yyyyyyyy. Yes he's Stephen...super-flyyyy-hiiii...
• Paul Giamatti
• As pointed by her page, Summer Glau.
• Jeff Goldblum. A man so charming and odd that he can make anything better just by showing up in it. And if the movie is already good...
• John Goodman: The same rule under Steve Buscemi also applies to Mr. Goodman.
• Cary Grant
• Bruce Greenwood
• Charles Grodin, one of the most redoubtable straight men in movie history.
• Alec Guinness:
  • In the case of Guinness (or Peter Sellers), the true Awesomeness number of the film can only be arrived at by multiplying the normal total by the number of roles in the film played by Guinness/Sellers.
• Jake Gyllenhaal, who like the Trope Namer managed to make a Michael Bay movie critically well-received.
• Gene Hackman, who used to work a lot and always make his appearance memorable.
• Jackie Earle Haley: In everything he's made since his 2006 comeback.
• Tom Hanks. Used in-universe in The Simpsons Movie, during a tourist attraction ad: "Hi, I'm Tom Hanks. The American Government has used up all its credibility so it's borrowing some of mine."
• Marcia Gay Harden makes everything she is in significantly better simply by showing up. Even if it's otherwise a complete turkey.
• Woody Harrelson
• Ed Harris
• Neil Patrick Harris
• Anne Hathaway
• Rutger Hauer
• Audrey Hepburn
• Katharine Hepburn: Was awesome both in movies and in real life.
• Jeff Hephner will hit a home run with anything you give him, even if the rest of it is terrible. He's that good.
• Werner Herzog: Whenever he acts.
• Tom Hiddleston
• Dustin Hoffman
• Philip Seymour Hoffman
• Anthony Hopkins, especially when playing a certain cannibal.
• Bob Hoskins: His appearances in any movie, no matter how good or bad said movies may have been, were often seen as bright spots. Case in point, his lead role in the mediocre live-action Mario movie.
• John Hurt, a classically-trained Shakespearean actor with an incredible voice, lends dignity and panache to every film he's in, no matter how bad.
• Holly Hunter
• Jason Isaacs
• Jeremy Irons: Even in the godawful Dungeons & Dragons (2000), he was the one redeeming factor.
• Michael Ironside
• Oscar Isaac
• Željko Ivanek: He's a supporting actor at heart, but always gives good performances.
• Eddie Izzard's been in some objectively bad movies, but you'd be hard pressed to find even one of them that wasn't better for her presence.
• Hugh Jackman. Snikt.
• Samuel L. Jackson is synonymous with awesomeness. Except in Jungle Fever.
• It doesn't seem to matter what Allison Janney is in: she sells it.
  • Except for Date Movie. But then, no one could have sold Date Movie.
• Richard Jenkins
• "The Rock" falls in this list as well, athough being billed as "Dwayne Johnson" is not as lucky. Until Fast Five and G.I. Joe: Retaliation, that is. There's a reason why some movie analysts have coined the term "Franchise Viagra" regarding him.
• Angelina Jolie: Her bad movies would be much worse without her.
• James Earl Jones: The voice.
• Tommy Lee Jones
• Raúl Juliá, whose performance in the notoriously awful Street Fighter movie is widely regarded as the only part of the movie which is truly good (as opposed to merely So Bad, It's Good).
  • His virtuoso turn as Gomez Addams is beyond reproach; he didn't make a bad film good, he took what could have been a rough film and polished it to a high sheen.
    • To give an idea of just how iconic his performance as Gomez was, not even Tim Curry (also appearing on this page) could fill Julia's shoes in the role.
• Boris Karloff and/or Bela Lugosi.
• Udo Kier, who build a career on Ham and Cheese.
• Nicole Kidman
• Nathan Lane. Being an already-talented Broadway actor certainly helps in this regard.
• Frank Langella. The man loves to remember his Ham and Cheese roles in Masters of the Universe and Cutthroat Island, and his presence in those clunkers is certainly a plus.
• John Larroquette. His talent and towering presence ups anything project he's involved in and he's such a classy guy, that after winning several Emmy Awards for his role on Night Court, he asked to be withdrawn from contention.
• Hugh Laurie
• Jennifer Lawrence
• Bruce Lee
• Christopher Lee: Look no further than The Man with the Golden Gun and Howling II: Stirba: Werewolf Bitch for evidence of how even total crap can be made awesome by his being there (to say nothing of his good movies, and disputed stuff such as the Star Wars prequels). Even those who hate the prequels admit that Sir Christopher Lee was awesome.
  • Also that he continued soldiering on through the Hammer Dracula films as they got worse and worse solely because of how many crew jobs the studio reminded him would be lost if they stopped making the films says something for this man's character. Not to mention that he tries his hardest to make each one of them worthwhile.
• John Leguizamo...with one glaring exception.
• Christopher Lloyd: The best character actor in Hollywood in whatever role he may fall into, whether it's a mad genius going through time or allowing someone else to do so or as a videogame devil or else as a mad man in a madhouse or a crazy bald uncle coming back from the Bermuda triangle or an eccentric librarian; whatever his role is, it's awesome thanks to him.
  • And particularly anything in which he was frozen today.
• Peter Lorre was the master of wit, style, and vaguely sinister Eastern European accents. Inspired a song by Tom Smith.

M-P

• John Malkovich
• James Marsden
• Lee Marvin: To quote Homer Simpson: "He's ALWAYS drunk and violent!"
• Matthew McConaughey: Alright, alright, alriiight!
• Ian McDiarmid
• Malcolm McDowell
• Patrick McGoohan's intense presence (in whatever amount) would considerably lift the awesomeness of whatever production he was in and make you take even the most rubbish lines seriously.
• Ian McKellen
• Steve McQueen (actor)
• Alfred Molina
• Ricardo Montalbán
• Monty Python members, collectively, individually or in sections, whether a Python has any input into the writing/directing/producing or not, can certainly be a highlight of many movies. In really dire productions, they tend to be the only light!
• Jeffrey Dean Morgan
• Viggo Mortensen. One need only look at his brief appearance as Satan in The Prophecy, where he may very well have stolen the film from Christopher Walken!
• Joseph Mawle is the saving grace of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, his scenes are universally agreed to be the best part.
• Bill Murray
• Liam Neeson
• Sam Neill
• Jack Nicholson: Even when he's essentially playing himself, he makes everything better.
• Bill Nighy: The best part of many bad films.
• Leonard Nimoy: Even Civilization IV improves from his presence!
• Nick Nolte
• Maureen O'Hara: Her synergy with John Wayne as noted down there.
• Peter O'Toole
• Gary Oldman
• Laurence Olivier: Considered to be one of the greatest actors of all time. Despite all the professional success and having the official knight title of Sir Laurence Olivier, he always insisted on being called "Larry".
• Al Pacino
• Elliot Page. Not a lot of people liked X-Men: The Last Stand, but they did like Kitty Pryde taking down the Juggernaut. This included Bryan Singer, who had to bring Page back as Kitty in X-Men: Days of Future Past.
• Pedro Pascal: Because he's the freaking Mandalorian!
• Bill Paxton
• Guy Pearce
• Ron Perlman: Because he's willing to be in anything, it's even easier to get him to elevate your work. Additionally, he's willing to do roles most bigger names wouldn't, like narrating a little post-apocalyptic RPG. One could make a drinking game out of unexpected Ron Perlman.
• Joe Pesci: Friend George Carlin claimed that he prayed to Joe because he looked like a man that 'could get things done'. If that doesn't say anything about how convincing he is, nothing will.
• Christopher Plummer
• Pete Postlethwaite: Steven Spielberg once called him "the greatest actor in the world" because of his ability to be the absolute best part of even the absolute worst films.
• Chris Pratt, who has become known for starring in insanely awesome films as of late.
• Vincent Price: Mix carefully with Michael Jackson, and you get Thriller!

Q-U

• Dennis Quaid. There's the obvious ones like Enemy Mine, Dragonheart, The Rookie (2002) and The Special Relationship. But he delivers even in less universally-praised films like The Day After Tomorrow, The Flight of the Phoenix (2004), G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra or the otherwise so-so Wyatt Earp where he rivals Val Kilmer with his rendition of Doc Holliday.
• Jemma Redgrave will give a flawless performance in anything, every time.
• Oliver Reed. The fact that he is in certain movies is often the most — or even only — notable thing about them.
• Jean Reno: He even made parts of Godzilla (1998) bearable.
• Jeremy Renner is becoming this ever since The Hurt Locker.
• Alan Rickman: Really, the only reason to see Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves is him Chewing the Scenery as the Sheriff Of Nottingham. It's also another example for Sean Connery, who makes an uncredited cameo right at the end and steals the scene completely.
• Anything can be improved with the addition of Mark Ruffalo. Anything.
  Susan Wloszczyna: Basically, a movie can’t help but be bettered by the presence of this gloriously hirsute actor with the killer smile, unruly curls and bedroom eyes.
• Geoffrey Rush: Case in point, The Warrior's Way.
• Kurt Russell
• Susan Sarandon
• Arnold Schwarzenegger. Especially if you like a lot of Narm Charm in your films.
  • It's been said that only the Ham and Cheese performances by him and Uma Thurman put Batman & Robin into So Bad, It's Good territory (plus Uma's Fanservice, of course).
    • He does seem to really be enjoying himself with it. Possibly making him the only one who realized how awful that movie was going to be. His performance of Mr. Freeze was on par with the villains of Adam West's Batman. Probably BETTER than the actual Mr. Freeze actor from the 60s (of which there were three: George Sanders, Otto Preminger^note whom Adam West loathed and Eli Wallach).
    • He's also been delivering absurd zingers for years, so he knew how to pull it off.
    • Especially when he subverts his tough guy roles, like in Predator, he gets to flex more than just arm muscles.
• Jason Segel, especially if he is singing or playing music.
• Andy Serkis. Usually in motion capture roles, but even when his face is on the screen he's entertaining, such as 13 Going on 30 and Black Panther.
• Michael Shannon, who is right up there with Christopher Walken and Orson Welles with his ability to steal a movie simply by showing up.
• Charlie Sheen, although sometimes he can go a little over the top.
• Martin Sheen, if his very first scene in The West Wing is anything to go by.
• J. K. Simmons, even if it's just his voice, but especially if he's playing a certain comic book newspaper boss whom Spider-Man isn't quite his tempo.
• Will Smith, to many people. After Earth was specially despised for being a movie that wasted whatever improvement Smith could give.
• Song Kangho, whose quietly commanding screen presence is worth any movie he so much has a cameo in.
• Kevin Spacey: Recent controversies aside, some of the most notable films he's appeared in maintain the praise directed towards his roles.
• Terence Stamp commands you to "KNEEEEEEL!" before his awesomeness.
  • Except for that one time he was utterly wasted by George Lucas.
• Jason Statham
• Patrick Stewart
• Roger Ebert has what's called the "Stanton/Walsh Rule" which states that nothing featuring Harry Dean Stanton (Alien, Paris, Texas, Repo Man and TV's Big Love) or M. Emmet Walsh (Blood Simple, The Jerk, Blade Runner) in a supporting role can be altogether bad. However when Wild Wild West (Walsh) and Dream a Little Dream (Stanton) each came out, Ebert had to recant.
  • Similarly, Jeremy Jahns has what he calls the "Strong/Tucci Rule". Named after actors Mark Strong and Stanley Tucci, the rule reads that any movie featuring either Strong or Tucci is instantly better than they would be were it not for their participation, and their the two actors are likely going to be the best things about the movie, regardless.
• Dean Stockwell
• Emma Stone. "Yes"
• Meryl Streep is singlehandedly capable of making any movie she is ever in awesome, by virtue of the fact that she is Meryl Frakking Streep.
  • AMPAS (Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences) should just rename the Best Actress award into the Meryl Streep Award and call it a day. She won only 3 of 17 (!) nominations because it would be boring if she just took it every time.
• Tilda Swinton who is a goddess that can do no wrong. It's the exact reason she's become obligated to appear in every one of the Narnia movies despite her character only being present in two of the books!
• Mr. T pities the foo' who doesn't include him on this list!
• Amanda Tapping
  • Or, for that matter, her Stargate SG-1 co-star Richard Dean Anderson. Stargate series aside, there's also a voice-acting turn as himself on The Simpsons, a stint in soap operas, and of course his other most famous role, MacGyver.
• David Thewlis
• Danny Trejo: In some of the worst movies he's appeared in, he's generally seen as a saving grace.
• Connor Trinneer: Even some of the worst episodes of Star Trek: Enterprise are elevated by virtue his presence. That he managed to be the subject of an M-preg episode and still retain some dignity and even bring some genuine pathos to it is a testament to his skill.
  • Scott Bakula, Dominic Keating, and Jolene Blalock as well, all of whom managed to sell some truly atrocious writing during their tenure on Enterprise. It's safe to say that those four carried the show on their exceptionally talented shoulders, and did such a good job of it that they managed to win over a considerable number of fans despite the extremely shaky storytelling. If any one department on Enterprise hit their job out of the park, it was the casting department.
• Alan Tudyk, partly getting his boost from Firefly and ResidentAlien fans and some overlap with the voice work category due to all the voice acting he's done in animated films.
• Karl Urban, particularly if he's a doctor or the law.

V-Z

• Jean-Claude Van Damme, who gives some entertainment to even the worst movies. However, many consider his performance as Guile to be a massive exception to this rule, indeed — many think that it's one of the (many, many, many) things wrong with the film.
• Dick Van Dyke
• Vladimir Vysotsky was this for the Soviet Sinema.
• Christopher Walken, full stop.
  • Single-handedly manages to prevent A View to a Kill from being one of the worst James Bond films.
  • On the same vein of overworked\well-paid, Lance Henriksen and Eric Roberts.
• Eli Wallach just seemed to make every film better with his mere presence, whether it was because of his distinctive voice, his unconventionally handsome looks or, most of all, the fact that his acting style was more natural than that of his wooden co-stars. He had a weight to him that made him stand out from everyone else around him. He managed to save even his worst films, such as The Hunter and The White, The Yellow, The Black.
• Christoph Waltz
• Patrick Warburton, even if it's just his voice.
• David Warner: He was in both the fifth Star Trek film, second Ninja Turtles film, the third Beastmaster film, and he is arguably the best thing in those films.
  • End of line.
  • The smug valet Lovejoy in Titanic (1997)
  • David Warner + Sean Connery + Monty Python equals Time Bandits, and Warner pulls a deliciously hammy job as Evil.
  • David Warner showed up as Abraham van Helsing in Penny Dreadful for two episodes and gave a near-definitive portrayal of the character.
• Denzel Washington, who audiences trust so much most of his work since Malcolm X has $50+ million grosses.
• John Wayne. Notice that his movie awesomeness multiplier increases by a factor of 10 when it's also a Western, or if Maureen O'Hara is playing opposite him.
• Hugo Weaving, even when he doesn't give a shit about the role he's playing.
  • Even die-hard Alan Moore fans who disliked V for Vendetta praised Weaving's performance as V. Plus, he did that with a mask the entire time, never getting to use facial language.
• Peter Weller: The man was cool before it was cool. He worked with some rough material; some more easier to get away with, some harder.
• Orson Welles: Enough said.
• Ming-Na Wen makes everything better. Everything.
• Forest Whitaker
• Betty White
• Gene Wilder: He appeared in a lot of stinkers, but there isn't one that he didn't make better just by being involved. A good example is the film Start the Revolution Without Me. It could've been horrible, but thanks to his Chewing the Scenery it's something of a cult classic.
• Bruce Willis. Makes generic action movies more memorable, and contributes hilarious cameos to movies such Loaded Weapon 1, Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle and Ocean's Twelve (the last one, As Himself!). Certainly exploited by all those direct-to-video movies that cashed in a small Willis appearance to bring in viewers.
• Tom Wilkinson
• Michael Wincott. He ad-libbed a lot of his famous speech in The Crow (1994), and even when the films aren't great, like The Three Musketeers, he's captivating. The baritone voice helps.
• Reese Witherspoon: She was in Freeway and Election. She will forever be awesome!
• B.D. Wong
• Any movie featuring Shailene Woodley is instantly guaranteed to be infinitely superior to that same film without Shailene Woodley. Even those who trashed everything else about the Divergent film praised her performance.
• Michelle Yeoh

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Voice Acting

• Laura Bailey is not only One of Us, she is clearly having a ball with most any work she does and immediately elevates any character she voices instantly memorable.
• Claudia Black: Even if it is just her voice.
• Steve Blum: From his first line as Logan to his last sign-off as TOM and beyond, he's been entertaining children and adults (and oftentimes, the children of adults who watched him as children) for decades. He's not the Guinness World Record Holder for Most Prolific Video Game Voice Actor for nothing, after all.
• Kevin Conroy, so good that at the time of his passing, he played Batman more times than any other actor, living or otherwise.
  • Speaking of Batman, Mark Hamill is, in the eyes of many, the definitive and most awesome version of Batman's greatest foe. And that's not getting into his other roles, live-action or otherwise.
• Peter Cullen, anyone? He consistently brings awesomeness to everything he is involved in from the Transformers Film Series as Optimus Prime to Winnie the Pooh as Eeyore. There's a reason the And the Fandom Rejoiced trope used to be called "Cue Cullen".
• Voice actor Logan Cunningham.
• Keith David. While a decent actor in his own right, it's his voice acting work where he established himself as a fan favorite. From his voice work in animations like Gargoyles, to many popular video games like Halo. Once you hear that unique deep voice, you know you're in for a treat.
• John DiMaggio: Because bite his shiny, metal ass. That's why.
• And let's not forget the inimitable Dan Green.
• Jennifer Hale: Full stop. Has been called the Meryl Streep of video games if that's any indication.
• Tara Strong: As her Twitter bio once said, "Hey, you don't know me, but I've babysat your kids for 15 years." She's performed so many memorable roles (such as Bubbles, Batgirl, Raven, Twilight Sparkle, or Harley Quinn) that not only has she gained Retroactive Recognition for some of her earlier roles, films/games/shows that feature her as a prominent VA are getting labeled as good before the show even premieres.
• Norio Wakamoto: If any anime has this guy playing a part, be him doing villains (mostly, it's what he's known for best), heroes, recurring or just one shot character, played for dead seriousness or Played for Laughs, it can be a saving grace of even the worst, and makes an already good anime even more awesome.

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Cage Factors

• Nicolas Cage can elevate films like Wild at Heart, Leaving Las Vegas, Adaptation., and Kick-Ass.
  • Nicolas Cage is best described as good in good movies, and hilarious in bad movies.
    • So much that The Wicker Man (2006) can be a GREAT movie as long as you view it as a comedy. I mean, how else are you supposed to view him punching a woman out while dressed in a bear costume, or the infamous "Not the bees"?
    • Cage is the only reason anyone should EVER willingly watch the movie Deadfall. But good god he makes every second of his screen time a joy to watch.
  • See also The Nic Cage Song, for a loving musical tribute to his best AND worst moments.
• Jennifer Aniston has an acting range that stretches all the way from A to B, but sometimes (Friends, The Good Girl) is helpful to what she's working on.
  • Horrible Bosses where she plays against type. It works.
• Jack Black. His Large Ham can be positive (Kung Fu Panda), and he can even be subdued and rather sweet (The Holiday, Shallow Hal).
• Matthew Broderick, depending on whether he's in Simba mode or "That's a lot of fish" mode.
• Sandra Bullock is the only actress to win an Oscar for Best Actress (for The Blind Side) and a Razzie for Worst Actress (for All About Steve) in the same year. She even attended the 2010 Razzie ceremony to collect her "award".
• Michael Cera, to the point he earned a Hatedom - but still works in places such as Arrested Development.
  • When it comes to Cera there are two types of viewers: Those who like Michael Cera Hipster flicks (who still hate Year One), and those who hate Michael Cera Hipster flicks (who will still enjoy Scott Pilgrim vs. The World).
• Jackie Chan may have some amazing fight scenes, but his acting ability and insistence on being family friendly trumps any badass factor he may have had.
  • Jackie is aware of this and actually tried to remedy it with Shinjuku Incident and The Foreigner (2017).
• Tom Cruise has played a number of roles that were seemingly made for him. He's not always good, but when he is, he is exceptional.
  • Definitely a +5 (at the very least) for playing a certain role in a certain movie.
• Eugene Levy. He’s not the guy to save a film if it’s otherwise bad, but if you’re already suffering through it, he’ll brighten up your experience for however long he’s onscreen. And when he’s in a genuinely good movie, all the better.
• Keanu Reeves is hardly expressive and has a very spotty track record. But he certainly elevates things such as Bill & Ted and John Wick.
  • Him appearing in Cyberpunk 2077 turned that already highly-anticipated game from a day-one purchase to an instant pre-order. No, better, him showing up on stage at E3 turned the entire Xbox briefing from "meh" to (as a heckler rightfully described him) breathtaking.
• Adam Sandler. Mostly during his Saturday Night Live tenure, but occasionally makes movies that work in his favor (such as Anger Management and Mr. Deeds).
  • Worth noting that many people agree that despite his comedy... being incredibly variable, he is a solid-to-incredible dramatic actor, and when people cite their favorite movies of his, his more serious works like Punch-Drunk Love and Uncut Gems are almost always amongst them, with a consistency beyond his comedic fare.
• Sylvester Stallone, who despite Rocky and Rambo under his belt, has taken home more Razzie Awards than anyone due to many unsalvageable films.
• Ben Stiller has certainly become this if he wasn't this already. He helps many of his mainstream comedies, such as Night at the Museum and Tower Heist, and is more successful when he's directing himself in a film like Tropic Thunder or is starring in an art house film like The Royal Tenenbaums.
• Robin Williams. Whenever he was funny, he was REALLY funny, and elevates such films as Aladdin, Good Morning, Vietnam and Mrs. Doubtfire. However, when he’s obnoxious (see Jack (1996), Flubber and Patch Adams), he’s REALLY obnoxious. And when he's creepy...
  • And the there's those rare times when he's doing a dramatic role, which he can be surprisingly good at. It mainly depends on the writing.
• Owen Wilson, like Ben Stiller, can help a mainstream comedy or improve some unusual fare (including the movies he co-wrote with Wes Anderson).
• The variability of whether or not Ryan Reynolds is a positive or a negative is based on only two critical factors; whether scathingly self-aware and -depricating, fast-talking comedy works for the viewer, and whether or not the movie he's in calls for that kind of comedy/performance (as noted is generally the case for this trope). ^note With a few exceptions, like Buried, where he plays mostly against type to great effect
• With the possible exception of Cage, the thing these actors have in common is playing every role the same way. When it works, it really works. When it doesn't, it can ruin the picture.
  • Another thing these actors have in common is that their hits are usually films where their abilities are put to best use, for example if one considers Tom Cruise 'good' in Rain Man, it's because his acting style is minimalistic and doesn't clash with Dustin Hoffman's more extravagant performance.

... and let's not forget he who works in any work he's in, namely Chuck Norris.