 | Typecasting acting: Encyclopedia - Typecasting acting
Typecasting (acting)
For other meanings, see typecasting.
Typecasting is the process by which an actor is strongly identified with a role or genre. Central casting often exhibits a pattern of placing the actor in subsequent similar character roles after his or her first success. An actor may become typecast either because of a strong identification with a particular role or because he or she doesn't have the versatility or talent to move on to other roles.
There have been instances in which an actor has been so strongly identified with a role, particularly title roles, as to make it impossible for him or her to find work portraying other characters. This is particularly problematic for leading actors in popular TV series, such as William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy of Star Trek fame and Burt Ward and Adam West who were made popular on Batman. It is also a particular problem for character actors, especially those with a distinctive voice or ethnic look (e.i. Pam Grier, Gedde Watanabe).
Often an actor may attempt to escape typecasting by choosing unexpected roles. This is called "playing against type." For example Tom Hanks eschewed his "nice guy" image by playing a gangster in Road to Perdition. Dustin Hoffman's choice to play the disreputable Ratso in Midnight Cowboy after playing the naive Benjamin in The Graduate is a famous instance of an actor avoiding typecasting. Also, Jim Carrey was made famous by slapstick comedy films, such as Ace Ventura: Pet Detective and Dumb and Dumber but has starred in high-profile drama films, such as The Truman Show, Man on the Moon and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is escape typecasting.
Similairly, some actors may turn down roles for fear of typecasting. Denzel Washington declined to portray Martin Luther King after playing two civil rights leaders, Malcolm X in and Steve Biko.
Some actors embrace typecasting, however. Actor/martial artist Chuck Norris usually portrays heroic characters (although his first two roles were as a hitman in Way of the Dragon and a crime boss in the Hong Kong-produced Slaughter in San Francisco). Norris turned down the role of Sensei Kreese in The Karate Kid because, as a martial arts champion, he felt he should not be connected to an evil character.
Typecasting also occurs in other performing arts. An opera singer may be limited because of voice range or prior success in one role, such as Denyce Graves as Carmen.
Typecasting acting - Actors frequently typecast
- Jack Black as a good-natured but bumbling slob, usually with a surplus of pop culture knowledge (Shallow Hal, High Fidelity, School of Rock)
- Steve Buscemi as a debauched killer (Reservoir Dogs, Fargo, Con Air)
- Tom Cruise as a suave, good-natured leading man (Risky Business, Top Gun, A Few Good Men)
- John Cusack as an emotionally confused, but bright-eyed and honest leading man (Say Anything, Being John Malkovich, High Fidelity)
- Robert De Niro as a quiet but emotionally complex man (Taxi Driver, The Deer Hunter, Raging Bull)
- Harrison Ford as a composed and mentally astute action hero (the first Star Wars trilogy, the Indiana Jones series, Air Force One)
- Hugh Grant as a charming, but befuddled romantic lead (Four Weddings and a Funeral, Nine Months, the Bridget Jones films)
- Joe Pesci as a short-tempered, Italian American, often a mobster (Goodfellas, My Cousin Vinny, Casino
- Adam Sandler as an immature but likable buffoon (Billy Madison, Happy Gilmore, The Waterboy)
- Arnold Schwarzenegger as a wooden, militaristic action hero (Conan the Barbarian, Predator Terminator 2: Judgment Day)
- Patrick Stewart as a cultured, emotionally calm commander (Star Trek: The Next Generation, the X-Men film series)
- Sharon Stone as an emotionally cold Jezebel (Basic Instinct, Total Recall, The Specialist)
- John Travolta as an offhand rebel (Welcome Back, Kotter, Grease, Urban Cowboy), he sometimes extends this persona to outright criminals (Pulp Fiction, Swordfish)
- David Spade as a sarcastic, self-absorbed underling (Tommy Boy, Just Shoot Me, several Saturday Night Live characters)
- Christopher Walken as a slow-speaking, mentally disturbed man (The Deer Hunter, The Dead Zone, King of New York)
- Bruce Willis as a tough-as-nails, streetwise hero (the Die Hard series, The Last Boy Scout, Sin City)
It should be noted that many of these actors are widely respected and have, with varying degrees of critical success, played many roles dissimilar to those described above. Still, they are best known for several comparable roles.
Category: Film
Other related archivesA Few Good Men, Ace Ventura: Pet Detective, Adam Sandler, Adam West, Air Force One, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Basic Instinct, Batman, Being John Malkovich, Billy Madison, Bridget Jones, Bruce Willis, Burt Ward, Carmen, Casino, Central casting, Christopher Walken, Chuck Norris, Con Air, Conan the Barbarian, David Spade, Denyce Graves, Denzel Washington, Die Hard, Dumb and Dumber, Dustin Hoffman, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Fargo, Film, Four Weddings and a Funeral, Gedde Watanabe, Goodfellas, Grease, Happy Gilmore, Harrison Ford, High Fidelity, Hong Kong, Hugh Grant, Indiana Jones, Italian American, Jack Black, Jim Carrey, Joe Pesci, John Cusack, John Travolta, Just Shoot Me, King of New York, Leonard Nimoy, Malcolm X, Man on the Moon, Martin Luther King, Midnight Cowboy, My Cousin Vinny, Nine Months, Pam Grier, Patrick Stewart, Predator, Pulp Fiction, Raging Bull, Reservoir Dogs, Risky Business, Road to Perdition, Robert De Niro, Saturday Night Live, Say Anything, School of Rock, Shallow Hal, Sharon Stone, Sin City, Star Trek, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Wars, Steve Biko, Steve Buscemi, Swordfish, TV series, Taxi Driver, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, The Dead Zone, The Deer Hunter, The Graduate, The Karate Kid, The Last Boy Scout, The Specialist, The Truman Show, The Waterboy, Tom Cruise, Tom Hanks, Tommy Boy, Top Gun, Total Recall, Urban Cowboy, Way of the Dragon, Welcome Back, Kotter, William Shatner, X-Men, actor, character actors, characters, civil rights, ethnic look, genre, leading actors, martial artist, opera, performing arts, pop culture, role, title roles, typecasting
 Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Typecasting acting", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki |
