Hey....where do I know that guy from? Well, for some of you it may be Landry's dad on Friday Night Lights. Others know him as President Palmer's right hand man on 24, Aaron. Or how about that military man on Transformers that calls down the helicopter at the beginning? This guy is on The Island, X-Men First Class, and even an episode of Full House! Oh Aaron from 24, will I ever be able to just call you Glenn? Probably not.
Pearl Harbor, Black Hawk Down, The Dark Knight, The Longest Yard, The Perfect Storm, The Lone Ranger? Hey wait! Isn't he Mahone from Prison Break too? And guess what, he will also be the new Shredder on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle movie that's coming out. He has been in more blockbusters than most people in Hollywood (and a few flops). So why don't we know his name? No clue, but he will always be "Hey look, Mahone from Prison Break is the banker in The Dark Knight" to me.
You may know him from Cinderella Man, Elizabethtown, Collateral, Runaway Jury, The Sum of All Fears, Shallow Hal, The Cliffhanger, or maybe even Lincoln. To me, he may be the biggest, "Hey, I think I have seen that guy" on this list. But if you are making a movie, and you need a random government official to storm in and impede the goal of the protagonist for a scene, Bruce McGill is the man for you!
Hey, it's the guy from The Truman Show! Where else have you seen him? He is the scientist on The Walking Dead, the friend on Frequency, the banker on Warrior, the soldier on Super 8, and the assistant coach on Miracle. Recognize him? To me, he will always be that punk on the Truman Show who left Jim Carrey in a lurch when he said, "And the last thing I would ever do is lie to you." Thanks a lot Noah Emmerich. He betrayed them in the Walking Dead, refused the loan in Warrior, treated the kid like junk in Super 8...maybe there is a reason we don't want to remember this guy's name. He needs a role where we don't hate him.
He has been in some major movies. The Bourne series, X-men 2, Braveheart, Troy, and probably a bunch of other big ones before I was born. But whether he is Stryker, Agamemnon, or that guy from the Bourne Identity to you, he probably isn't Brian Cox. He sure is great in everything he's in though isn't he?
Two Bourne series actors on one list? Maybe I don't know his name very well because I can't pronounce it...is it "straw-thairn" or "stray-thairn" or "strat-hairn"...I don't know! He is just Meryl Streep's husband on The River Wild to me. Oh, and you might know him from Godzilla (2014), The Bourne Ultimatum, Lincoln, Simon Birch, Sneakers, A League of Their Own, and We Are Marshall. Whatever he is in, he is usually serious, stoic, and means business. Whether he is your dad, preacher, or CIA director, he is rarely all fun and games.
So while this guy has probably been in a lot of things before I was born, I know him as that jerk on Independence Day, or the mean guy on Meet the Parents, or the legal council on the Seinfeld Finale. He was on a childhood favorite, Blank Check. He was also on Real Steel, Baby Mama, Cold Mountain, and some may know him from Homeland. He is the very essence of a "That Guy."
Come on, fess up. Who recognizes this guy from Mighty Joe Young? Well, either he or Charlize Theron were going to get big from that movie, and I think we know who did. But, uh, he's been in other things. In Good Company? Quiz Show? Ocean's Thirteen? And even the recent Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit. Honestly how do we know this guy? But we do. Am I right?
#9 Bruce Greenwood
Another Super 8 character? You may know him from the new Star Trek movies, I Robot, DejaVu, Eight Below, Thirteen Days, Double Jeopardy, Flight, and the new movie Endless Love. I actually like this guy. I wish he were in more things. That doesn't mean I remember his name though...to me he is the guy on Star Trek...you know, the guy who trades off being captain ten times with Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto?
I saved the best for last. You wouldn't believe what this guy has been in! The Dark Knight Rises, Live Free or Die Hard, Transformers, The Island, Catch Me If You Can, Planet of the Apes (the dumb one), October Sky, Armageddon, Godzilla (the first dumb one), Con Air, That Thing You Do, Apollo 13, Days of Thunder, and even random episodes of The Office, The West Wing, Las Vegas, Veronica Mars, Burn Notice, Cold Case, CSI, & Law & Order. Holy cow! He has been in more big movies than big stars like Christian Bale, Hugh Jackman, and even Jennifer Lawrence! (she is so down to earth). How come we can't remember this guy? From now on when you see him in stuff, just remember him as the guy on everything. If in the movie theater your friend leans over and whispers, "What else is that guy on" just say, "anything and everything."
A few honorable mentions: James Cromwell, Bob Gunton, Stephen Tobolowsky, and Jeffrey DeMunn. Look them up!
What others have I missed? Leave your comments below!