25 films where actors brilliantly played against type

There are plenty of actors who get routinely typecast as the comic relief, a romantic love interest, an action hero, or a villain. And once they get locked into a certain kind of role, it becomes harder to break out with each new project. Eventually, some actors choose to shed their stereotypes, while directors choose to take a chance on letting the thespians reinvent themselves. This is what is commonly referred to as casting/playing “against the type” or “against type.” It has happened numerous times in every genre, however, unless it had a profound impact on the actor’s career, we tried to avoid using comedies, as funny films often attempt to place notoriously serious actors in comedic roles just for laughs. Here are 25 brilliant times actors played against the type.