Top 40 Most Popular Method Actors Of All Time

 

Method acting is one such discipline of acting that requires not only unquestionable performing skills but also an unmatched level of commitment and endurance.

 

Therefore, those who we refer to as method actors are artists who have allowed themselves to get consumed by their roles; roles that require an unprecedented amount of competency, research, and audacity to be brought to life while facing the camera.

 

While attempting to study the characters that they portray, method actors go a level beyond acting and aim to become the characters themselves; at least for a precise time period.

 

Needless to say, these actors spend a lot of time trying to explore the peculiarities of the roles that they are designated to play.

 

Since not every entertainer believes in this exclusive school of acting, there are only a few privileged stalwarts who have managed to embrace method acting in some of their finest screen projects.

 

Today, we are going to pay tribute to the best method actors in the world. While some of these performers are credited with making the technique mainstream, others have applied it in at least a few of their most refined performances.

 

 

40. Dennis Lee Hopper

 

 

 

The talented and unconventional Dennis Hopper took a rather different approach to method acting. To guarantee that his portrayal of a photojournalist trapped in a jungle cult in Apocalypse Now came across as genuine, the actor resorted to doing drugs to be able to deliver one of the most talked-about monologues in cinematic history.

 

While some considered it an unconventional method of acting, plenty of others called it an addiction to drugs.

 

 

39. Philip Andre "Mickey" Rourke Jr.

 

 

 

Philip Andre Rourke Jr., who is best known as Mickey Rourke, made his acting debut in a feature film, titled 1941, in 1979.

 

Even though the actor may not have been considered to be a method actor during the 1980s and 1990s, his performance in the critically acclaimed feature The Wrestler demonstrated that he could resort to method acting if he truly intended to.

 

Rourke insisted on performing his own stunts in the wrestling-themed movie and ended up injuring himself quite often.

 

 

 

38. Val Edward Kilmer

 

 

 

Val Kilmer is a seasoned performer who has been making his presence felt in popular Hollywood productions since the mid-1980s.

 

The actor apparently spent thousands of dollars to produce an eight-minute-long music video of himself. It showed him singing the songs of Jim Morrison.

 

Kilmer did this to ascertain that he got to play the musician in Oliver Stone's The Doors. After grabbing the role, he was seen wearing the musician's costumes and frequenting places visited by Morrison himself.

 

 

 

37. James Eugene Carrey

 

 

 

James Eugene Carrey, who is famously known as Jim Carrey, has to be one of the biggest stars in the history of the comedy genre.

 

Even though most of his remarkable character projections came in movies that were true-blue comedies, the actor also proved his versatility in classics such as Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and The Truman Show.

 

Carrey, who resorted to method acting for his role as Andy Kaufman in Man On The Moon, was avoided by his pals and family as he continued to spend his time off set in character.

 

 

 

36. Jared Joseph Leto

 

 

 

Jared Leto, who was born Jared Joseph Bryant, is one of the most underrated performers among popular mainstream stars today.

 

Even though his method acting quirks are not appreciated as much, the actor is known to have delivered memorable performances in features such as Dallas Buyers Club, Suicide Squad, Blade Runner 2049, House of Gucci, and Morbius.

 

To do justice to his character in Requiem for a Dream, Leto refused to have intercourse for over two months.

 

Not only that but he even went on to live on the streets of Brooklyn to get a gist of how the homeless drug addicts lived.

 

 

 

35. Shia LaBeouf

 

 

 

Even though this very commercial actor is popular among the teens for playing a significant character in the Transformer movie franchise, he has gone on to showcase his acting abilities on more occasions than one.

 

He took to method acting to deliver astonishing performances in feature films such as Disturbia, Nymphomaniac, and Charlie Countryman, to name a few.

 

It has been reported that the actor has not only taken drugs to make a scene look authentic (Charlie Countryman) but he has also allegedly had intercourse for real on-screen (Nymphomaniac) because the script required him to do so.

 

In addition, one can catch LaBeouf portraying an unpredictably layered character in the acknowledged 2019 comedy-drama, titled The Peanut Butter Falcon.

 

 

 

34. John Christopher Depp II

 

 

 

One of the best-known versatile actors in Hollywood, Johnny Depp is yet another superstar who has resorted to the discipline of method acting to perform some of his roles.

 

Aside from staying in the character of Jack Sparrow off-set while filming Pirates of the Caribbean, the actor also studied author Hunter S. Thompson for years to do justice to the character of the gonzo author that he was supposed to enact in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.

 

Not only that but Depp even shifted to the author's basement to spend as much time with him as possible.

 

 

 

33. James Byron Dean

 

 

 

James Dean may not have worked in a lot many feature films, but he was able to successfully establish himself as a cultural icon of teenage disillusionment and alienation with his adroit character play in Rebel Without a Cause.

 

The star is credited with making the 'method' more instinctive. He managed to play his roles by merging his personal experiences with that of the characters he was supposed to be enacting.

 

Dean used his own quirks and banked on his personal life and instincts to nurture his performances.

 

 

 

32. Nawazuddin Siddiqui

 

 

 

Nawazuddin Siddiqui is yet another noted Indian actor whose several performances have made room for him to be associated with method acting.

 

The Sacred Games star revealed that he had to undergo both physical and emotional transformation while shooting for his critically acclaimed project Manto.

 

Siddiqui, who believes in getting deeply and emotionally involved with his characters, has also been a part of commercial Bollywood entertainers.

 

Some of his best motion pictures are Gangs of Wasseypur, Bajrangi Bhaijaan, Psycho Raman, Thackeray, and Manjhi – The Mountain Man.

 

 

 

31. Jamie Foxx

 

 

 

Eric Marlon Bishop, who is known by his stage name Jamie Foxx, has been a recipient of numerous awards throughout his career so far.

 

For his performance in Ray, the actor is said to have glued his eyes shut on set for close to 14 hours to portray the blind musician Ray Charles.

 

He also lost over 30 pounds during the filming to express the musician's battle with heroin addiction.

 

 

 

30. Manoj Bajpayee

 

 

 

Awarded India's fourth-highest civilian honor, the Padma Shri, for his contributions to cinema, Manoj Bajpayee has delivered some of the finest performances by an Indian actor in the 21st century.

 

The actor once stated that after having shot for the cult film Shool, he was in a state of psychological turmoil and found it difficult to sleep at night.

 

In fact, his psychologist friend had to alert him to not get too deeply involved with the characters that he was playing.

 

Bajpayee has been a part of acclaimed projects such as Aligarh, Bhonsle, Gangs of Wasseypur, and Satya, to mention a few.

 

 

 

29. Sir Michael Caine CBE

 

 

 

This British film icon is one of the only few performers to have been nominated for an Academy Award for acting in five different decades.

 

The actor, who has admitted to rehearsing his lines as many as 1,000 times before turning up on sets sometimes, has also been recorded as saying that he uses a secret painful memory to bring out the best in characters that require him to put his best foot forward.

 

 

28. Billy Bob Thornton

 

 

 

Billy Bob Thornton has had the experience of participating in over 100 productions. In several of them, the actor has resorted to method acting to get things right.

 

The Monster's Ball actor apparently put crushed glass in his shoes to ensure that his limping for the character that he played in Sling Blade looked authentic.

 

He received critical acclaim for writing, directing, and starring in the aforementioned independent drama feature film.

 

 

27. Edward Harrison Norton

 

 

 

Edward Norton's debut performance in Primal Fear was a major announcement of a splendid actor making it to the mainstream.

 

During the shoot of Fight Club, the actor is known to have truly punched his co-star Brad Pitt directly into his ear.

 

Pitt was supposed to take a meek punch on his shoulder but Norton had other ideas to generate a more authentic response.

 

Also, Norton is said to have gained 30 pounds and hit the gym rigorously while preparing for his character of a neo-Nazi in American History X.

 

 

26. Choi Min-Sik

 

 

 

Choi Min-Sik, who is one of South Korea's finest screen performers, is said to have resorted to true-blue method acting for quite a few of his roles.

 

However, the one that stands out is his character play in the blockbuster film Oldboy. Not only did the actor walk around in real life with the bizarre haircut that was featured in the movie but he also ate a living octopus as per the requirement of the script.

 

His performance in I Saw the Devil is also worth checking out.

 

 

25. Denzel Hayes Washington Jr.

 

 

 

Widely regarded as a movie star who redefined "the concept of classic movie stardom", Denzel Washington is one actor who has impressed everyone with his inimitable cinematic techniques.

 

Washington, who was named by The New York Times as the greatest actor of the 21st century, is known to live, eat, breathe, and sleep that character that he is portraying.

 

An A-lister like Ryan Reynolds has publicly spoken about finding his method approach to acting both inspiring and endearing.

 

 

24. Leonardo Wilhelm DiCaprio

 

 

 

Not a lot of actors have had a career as diverse and successful as that of Leonardo DiCaprio. The superstar, who won an Oscar for his portrayal of Hugh Glass in The Revenant, prepared for the role diligently.

 

The actor may be an avowed vegetarian but he consumed raw bison and slept in an animal carcass to ace his character projection.

 

In addition, DiCaprio also endured cold temperatures to portray the frigid frontiersman on celluloid.

 

 

23. Nicolas Cage

 

 

 

Nicolas Cage has delivered some of his finest performances in motion pictures such as Pig, Moonstruck, Adaptation, Leaving Las Vegas, and Joe.

 

Cage was playing the role of a Vietnam War vet in Birdy. To feel the pain that his character might have during the war, he got a few of his teeth pulled out without using anesthesia to numb the pain.

 

He had to survive weeks with his face wrapped in bandages.

 

 

22. Adrien Nicholas Brody

 

 

 

Adrien Brody, who has been performing in the movies since the late 1980s, also took to method acting to deliver an impressive performance in his most ambitious project.

 

Not only did he lose more than 30 pounds to do full justice to the character sketch of Holocaust survivor Wladyslaw Szpilman in The Pianist but he also learned to play the piano for real.

 

To feel the survivor's sense of loss, Brody gave up his apartment, sold his car, disconnected his phone, and moved to Europe.

 

 

21. Sean Justin Penn

 

 

 

Sean Penn is one of those actors who has developed a reputation for being difficult on the set courtesy of his dedication to keeping it real.

 

Writer Cameron Crowe once mentioned that the young upstart actor wished to be called by the name of the character that he was playing on the sets of Fast Times at Ridgemont High so that he could continue to stay in character even when he was not facing the camera.

 

For better or for worse, actor John Leguizamo said that Penn slapped him for real while working on Causalities of War because he was too deeply involved in his character sketch.

 

 

20. Philip Seymour Hoffman

 

 

 

Philip Seymour Hoffman was a great screen performer who gathered his memories and life experiences to ensure that his roles came across as both authentic and challenging on-screen.

 

The actor, who played several real-life characters on the big screen, banked on his technical expertise and nuances to transform into the characters that he was playing.

 

Some of his best performances came in motion pictures such as The Talented Mr. Ripley, Capote, Synecdoche, New York, and The Master.

 

 

19. Heath Andrew Ledger

 

 

 

This Australian superstar will always be remembered for the sensational performances that he gave in motion pictures such as Brokeback Mountain and The Patriot.

 

However, Ledger became immortal in the true sense of the word after having played the complex character of Joker in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight.

 

Not only did he ensure that Joker became arguably the most popular on-screen villain of the 21st century but he did it with a performance that many call one of the finest by any actor on the big screen.

 

 

18. Irrfan Khan

 

 

 

Recipient of a National Film Award, an Asian Film Award, and the Padma Shri (India's fourth-highest civilian honor), Irrfan Khan was a fabulous method actor.

 

The actor, whose identity is pretty much the characters that he had played on the big screen, entertained the viewers with his powerful acting in several powerful movies.

 

Also seen in Hollywood flicks such as Jurassic World, The Amazing Spider-Man, and Inferno, the late actor won the National Award for his mind-blowing performance in Paan Singh Tomar.

 

 

17. Forest Steven Whitaker

 

 

 

Forest Whitaker, who is often seen playing military/political/law enforcement roles on the big screen, made his acting debut both on television and in the movies in 1982.

 

The splendid performer was seen portraying Ugandan dictator Idi Amin in 2006's The Last King of Scotland. It is said that in order to get into the skin of his character, Whitaker learned Swahili, ate nothing but bananas and beans, and remained in character even when he was off-camera.

 

He has been a recipient of an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, a British Academy Film Award, and two Screen Actors Guild Awards, respectively.

 

Some of Whitaker's best movies are The Last King of Scotland, The Butler, Platoon, Black Panther, Panic Room, and Good Morning, Vietnam.

 

 

16. Naseeruddin Shah

 

 

 

The extraordinary Naseeruddin Shah is a film and stage actor who is best known for his work in Indian parallel cinema.

 

He has been a recipient of three National Film Awards and the Volpi Cup for Best Actor at the Venice Film Festival.

 

What is special about Shah is the fact that he does not care about socio-economic or political boundaries while playing a character.

 

In his mind, there is only one religion and that is good cinema. His best performances came in features such as Paar, Pestonjee, Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro, Masoom, and Sparsh.

 

 

15. Joaquin Rafael Phoenix

 

 

 

Joaquin Phoenix, who was born Joaquin Rafael Bottom, is one of the most distinguished screen performers to have graced the silver screen in the past four decades.

 

The actor can be seen giving it all to the characters that he plays. It is not surprising then that he has mastered the craft of method acting so well.

 

While Phoenix learned to play guitar and how to sing for his portrayal of Johnny Cash in Walk the Line, he is also known for delivering an outstanding performance in The Master.

 

If the aforementioned roles were not enough, the Quills actor went a notch higher and bagged the Academy Award for Best Actor for his remarkable character projection in the 2019 classic Joker.

 

 

14. Toshiro Mifune

 

 

 

Arguably the most popular actor in the history of Japanese cinema, Toshiro Mifune was an expressive, intelligent, and creative actor who could get into the skin of any character and make you forget the last one that he played.

 

The actor, who performed best while working with genius director Akira Kurosawa, shocked the global audience with his amazing range, versatility, and charisma.

 

Some of his best performances came in features such as Red Blood, Drunken Angel, Stray Dog, Rashomon, High and Low, and Record of a Living Being.

 

 

13. Dilip Kumar

 

 

 

Described by master director Satyajit Ray as "the ultimate method actor", the 'Tragedy King' of Indian cinema, Dilip Kumar, was famous for living his roles to the absolute fullest.

 

While not a lot has been revealed about how he prepared for his roles, the fact that he mastered every character that he played made him a perfectionist.

 

For his performance in the classic film Ganga Jamuna, Dilip traveled the state of Uttar Pradesh for months. He not only got familiar with the lifestyle of the people there but he also managed to learn the Purabia and Awadhi dialects.

 

 

12. Om Prakash Puri

 

 

 

One of the greatest Indian actors of all time, Om Puri aced roles both in commercial potboilers and arthouse cinema.

 

It is said that during the shoot of Bhavni Bhavai, the actor used to keep sheets of Devanagari scripts under his pillow to access them whenever he could and to, of course, remember and comprehend the dialogues better.

 

One of the most prominent faces of the parallel cinema movement, Puri had the ability to set the screen on fire without uttering a single word.

 

The actor, who had also participated in British productions, seemed to capture the soul of the characters that he used to play on celluloid.

 

 

11. Gary Leonard Oldman

 

 

 

Gary Oldman is one of those performers who can easily get into the skin of any character that he is portraying.

 

The prosthetics and a knack for different accents help him in his daring cinematic endeavors. Also, it has been noted that the actor keeps a "pain bag" to ace the emotionally vulnerable characters.

 

The bag supposedly has photos of his first marriage and son and that of his absent father. Oldman also smoked a lot of cigars and developed stomach issues while playing Winston Churchill in Darkest Hour.

 

 

10. Thomas Jeffrey Hanks

 

 

 

Tom Hanks is one of the most loved screen performers in the history of mainstream feature films. To ensure that his character in Cast Away looked credible, the actor gained and lost 50 pounds as the film progressed.

 

Not only that but he also refused to cut his hair and bathe; something that led to him developing a staph infection.

 

Furthermore, Hanks stayed in character as prison guard Paul Edgecomb off-screen while shooting for The Green Mile.

 

 

9. John Joseph Nicholson

 

 

 

Given the fact that Jack Nicholson has been among the greatest Hollywood actors of all time, it is not tough to believe that the man is a hardcore fan of the technique of method acting.

 

Even though he had the gift of being instinctive, Nicholson spent a lot of time studying his roles in terms of Strasbergian "polarities".

 

It is said that the actor was so involved with the script during the shoot of The Shining that he could only sleep when driven to and from the set.

 

Nicholson is also said to have spent a lot of time in the hospital while filming One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.

 

 

8. Dustin Lee Hoffman

 

 

 

Dustin Hoffman is an acting genius who shot to fame after portraying a confused college graduate in The Graduate.

 

To ascertain that he looked every bit of the part in Marathon Man, the actor tried not to sleep at night for days and ran before shooting certain sequences to come across as disheveled and anxious, as per the script's demand.

 

It is also said that Hoffman tried to insult Meryl Streep on the sets of Kramer vs Kramer. This was to ensure that their on-screen turmoil looked real.

 

 

7. Kamal Haasan

 

 

 

A true pioneer in introducing many new technologies and cosmetics to the Indian film industry, Kamal Haasan is a performer unlike any other.

 

To prepare for his role in Apoorva Sagodharargal, the actor tied his legs and walked on his knees; all while keeping his arms in a manner that matched the tiny legs to come across as a dwarf on the big screen.

 

Similarly, the superstar actor has played several challenging roles throughout his career, many of which no other actor can possibly think to duplicate.

 

His unbelievable performances in feature films such as Chachi 420, Pushpak Vimana, Sadma, Nayagan, and Dashavataram cemented his position as one of the greatest performers in the history of Indian cinema.

 

 

6. Edward Montgomery Clift

 

 

 

One of the first actors to be invited to train with Lee Strasberg, Montgomery Clift is considered to be among the original method actors of Hollywood.

 

Best remembered for his roles in features such as From Here to Eternity, A Place in the Sun, and Red River, Clift was a natural actor who happened to be quite subtle in his approach.

 

He could feign vulnerability so well that the viewers were compelled to empathize with his rogue characters. Not only did he learn about the cowboy life before starring in Red River but he also spent a night locked in the San Quentin Pen death house before shooting for his execution sequence in A Place in the Sun.

 

Furthermore, the icon learned to box and drill military-style for his Oscar-nominated performance in From Here to Eternity.

 

 

5. Christian Charles Philip Bale

 

 

 

Christian Charles Philip Bale, who is best known as Christian Bale, made his acting debut on the television show, titled Anastasia: The Mystery of Anna, in 1986.

 

Those who have followed the actor's filmography closely would be aware of the fact that he often conducts interviews when one of his motion pictures is ready to hit the cinemas.

 

However, what's interesting is the fact that he uses the accent of the film’s character while doing those interviews.

 

A fine actor by all means, Bale put his personal health at risk by only consuming an apple and a can of tuna a day to lose as much weight as he could for his character projection in The Machinist.

 

Soon after, he was seen bulking up again to be able to portray Batman in 2005's Batman Begins. A recipient of an Academy Award and two Golden Globe Awards, Bale can be seen in acclaimed feature films such as American Hustle, The Machinist, American Psycho, The Prestige, Ford v Ferrari, Thor: Love and Thunder, and The Dark Knight trilogy.

 

 

4. Alfredo James Pacino

 

 

 

Alfredo James Pacino, who is popularly known as Al Pacino, is one of the most impactful mainstream screen performers of the 20th century.

 

He is yet another actor whose name has become synonymous with method acting over the years. It is believed that Pacino chanced to perform a citizen's arrest on a lorry driver with a damaged exhaust to prepare for his role as a conscientious undercover cop in Serpico.

 

Furthermore, he was often seen closing his eyes or using other strategies to keep them closed to ready himself for Scent of a Woman - a film in which he plays a blind and retired Army lieutenant colonel.

 

One of the few performers to have achieved the Triple Crown of Acting, Pacino can be seen in cult classics such as Serpico, Scarface, Heat, The Insider, Danny Collins, Scent of a Woman, The Irishman, and The Godfather trilogy.

 

 

3. Sir Daniel Michael Blake Day-Lewis

 

 

 

Sir Daniel Michael Blake Day-Lewis, who is known to the cinematic universe as Daniel Day-Lewis, started his acting career by playing the uncredited role of a child vandal in 1971's Sunday Bloody Sunday.

 

When he was only a child, he shifted to Greenwich from Kensington. There, a young and naive Daniel was taunted by other kids for being too posh.

 

Therefore, in order to fit in with their group, he started emulating their accents and mannerisms. Years later, the acting legend was heard calling it his maiden acting experience.

 

Day-Lewis and method acting have to be talked about in the same breath. One will have to agree with the statement once they come to realize the fact that he stayed away from his wife for days in order to feel a sense of isolation to portray his character in the 2006 film The Ballad of Jack and Rose Furthermore, he insisted on being carried around and spoon-fed by the crew members on the sets of My Left Foot - a film in which he played a young man with cerebral palsy.

 

Some of his finest motion pictures are There Will Be Blood, Gangs of New York, My Left Foot, In the Name of the Father, and Phantom Thread.

 

Day-Lewis is the only actor to have won the Academy Award for Best Actor thrice.

 

 

2. Robert Anthony De Niro Jr.

 

 

 

Robert De Niro may have started his acting career by playing an uncredited role in the 1965 feature film Three Rooms in Manhattan, but he soon went on to be recognized as one of the greatest movie stars of all time.

 

It is said that to prepare for his role in the critically acclaimed Taxi Driver, De Niro drove a taxi for hours at a stretch in New York.

 

Not only that but to get an idea of what it feels like to be inside a boxing ring, the actor ended up fighting in three authentic boxing matches to buckle up for another classic, titled Raging Bull.

 

Even though he conducts a decent amount of research before playing his "serious" roles, he also allows his instincts to come into play on the day of the shoot.

 

De Niro has been a part of cult classic movies such as The Godfather Part II, Goodfellas, The King of Comedy, Casino, A Bronx Tale, The Irishman, Mean Streets, and Heat, to mention a few.

 

He has been a recipient of two Academy Awards, a Golden Globe Award, the Cecil B. DeMille Award, and a Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award.

 

 

1. Marlon Brando Jr.

 

 

 

Considered to be one of the most influential screen actors in the history of motion pictures, Marlon Brando was known for immersing himself in the roles that he portrayed on the big screen.

 

How he managed to do that is what inspired both his colleagues and several performers of the future who aimed to take this discipline forward.

 

The legend played the character of a murderous psychopath on his Broadway debut in Truckline Cafe in 1946. A scene showed his character emerging from a cold lake.

 

In order to do justice to his sketch, Brando would run up and down behind the scenes and allow a bucket of ice water to be thrown on his head.

 

It is not surprising then that this dedication made him a recipient of two Academy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, one Cannes Film Festival Award, and three British Academy Film Awards later in the near future.

 

Also an activist for civil rights and various Native American movements, Brando was arguably the first mainstream actor to have familiarized the audience with the Stanislavski system of acting.

 

Some of his finest motion pictures are The Godfather, On the Waterfront, A Streetcar Named Desire, The Wild One, and Julius Caesar.