From Keanu Reeves to Leonardo DiCaprio: 10 actors pick their favourite roles
Some actors are just forever tied to specific roles or the works of certain directors. When we think of Robert De Niro, we immediately associate him with the films of his frequent collaborator Martin Scorsese and his performances as Jake LaMotta in 1980’s Raging Bull or Rupert Pupkin in The King of Comedy.
For others, it’s hard to picture Keanu Reeves without thinking of Neo in The Matrix, and it is equally difficult to imagine Kurt Russell without him being adorned in the leather and the eyepatch of Snake Plissken from John Carpenter’s Escape From New York. Actors such as these will simply be tied to specific roles for the remainder of their careers; such is their iconic status.
However, it’s not always the audience’s favourite or most memorable roles of a given actor that is actually the actor’s own favourite. Several factors may play into this; perhaps set conditions weren’t quite right despite the overall excellence of the film, or personal issues may have been plaguing the actor’s overall enjoyment of a given job.
We’re going to take a look at ten actors who have gone on record to name their favourite roles. However, there are more than a few eyebrow-raisers, with many stars eschewing their best-known performances in favour of films that perhaps went under the radar somewhat.
The favourite roles of 10 famous actors:
Keanu Reeves – Constantine (2005)
Keanu Reeves will forever be associated with his most iconic role as Thomas Anderson/Neo in the Wachowskis’ The Matrix franchise. However, his favourite role and the only one he really wants to return to is as John Constantine, the demon-slaying badass from the 2005 horror-action film Constantine.
“I’ve always wanted to play John Constantine again,” Reeves once said. “I just love that world, too, and I love that character. I just had a blast playing a character and [playing] in that world.” Hopefully, Reeves will one day get his wish, as there has been talk of a Constantine sequel arriving at some point in the near future.
Kate Winslet – Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)
It’s hard to remove Kate Winslet from her role in the truly iconic Titanic, but the actor herself is keen to stress that her favourite role actually came years later in Charlie Kaufman’s 2004 indie-drama Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, in which she played the ex-girlfriend of Jim Carrey, who has him erased from her memories.
“I think a favourite for me is Clementine from Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind,” she said of her role. “It’s really fun to take risks, and it’s really fun to play lots of different characters. Clementine was the most eccentric part that I’ve ever played. I just had so much fun doing her. So I think Clementine is probably one of my favourites, yeah.”
Robert De Niro – Everybody’s Fine (2009)
Robert De Niro has a wide range of films to choose his favourite role from, and the initial expectation might be for him to pick one of his classic collaborations with Martin Scorsese. Well, we couldn’t be more wrong because De Niro’s favourite, although he is reluctant to pick just one, is Kirk Jones’ 2009 film Everybody’s Fine, not because “it’s the best movie, but it was a movie that meant a lot to [him].”
“Directed by Kirk Jones. It’s about a father who is estranged from his children who takes a road trip to try to reconnect with them,” De Niro said. However, the acting icon was less than impressed by the marketing efforts, adding, “They did a lousy job promoting and distributing it. Miramax was being sold by Disney around this time. It died in America.”
Morgan Freeman – Street Smart (1987)
Morgan Freeman has some of the greatest films ever made to select his favourite role from – The Shawshank Redemption, Unforgiven and Se7en, just for starters. However, his true favourite surprisingly came in the 1987 film Street Smart opposite Christopher Reeves. It was Freeman’s performance in the film that gave him his breakout role and a first Academy Award nomination.
Freeman played a pimp in the film but wanted to avoid being typecast, so he avoided playing a similar role like the plague. “As soon as you come out with something like that, you get a lot of offers to play that same role again in other films,” he said in reflection. “I didn’t wanna be [typecast]. If I’m good at something, I don’t want to do that again, I want to do something else.”
Scarlett Johansson – Black Widow (2021)
When one thinks of Scarlett Johansson’s best efforts, one is immediately drawn to her heroic performance in Sofia Coppola’s moving 2003 drama Lost in Translation. However, her favourite role is a more recent effort, coming in the 2021 Marvel film Black Widow, in which she played the titular Russian superhero.
“I really like playing Natasha, playing the Black Widow,” Johansson once said. “It’s been an interesting journey, to take a character and grow it over these years, and peel the layers back and be able to, as you do in life, grow with this person. It’s a character that’s really enigmatic and has an amazing origins story, so there’s a lot for me to play off of.”
Samuel L. Jackson – The Long Kiss Goodnight (1996)
When it comes to the performances of Samuel L. Jackson, one can’t help but think of all the times he has put his talents to the test in the films of Quentin Tarantino. However, his favourite role might come as a surprise. Jackson once stated that the role he is most proud of came in Renny Harlin’s 1996 film The Long Kiss Goodnight.
Jackson plays a lowlife called Mitch Henessey, who is hired as a private investigator to find out more about an amnesiac woman. Jackson felt that the film wasn’t marketed properly, though, saying, “The studio didn’t know how to market that film because they didn’t know that women like seeing themselves as badasses. I kept saying, ‘You need to advertise this thing during the day when women are watching soaps.’ Whatever.”
Angelina Jolie – A Mighty Heart (2007)
Angelina Jolie might be best known for her humanitarian work these days up against her film career. But it was always the cinema that first brought attention to the daughter of actor Jon Voight. She broke through in Girl, Interrupted and went on to play in several acclaimed roles throughout her acting career before moving on to directing and charitable efforts.
As for her favourite role, though, Jolie once stated that her top pick is the 2007 film A Mighty Heart, which is an adaptation of the true story of the kidnapping of writer Daniel Pearl by Omar Sheik’s supporters. Jolie played Pearl’s wife, Marianne, and she once noted her love for the film “because I loved Marianne, and Brad [Pitt] produced it, and I think it was a well-done film about something that matters.”
Robin Williams – Awakenings (1990)
With Robin Williams, we might think of Mrs. Doubtfire, Good Will Hunting or Dead Poet’s Society. But, no, the favourite film role that the comic legend ever played was actually in the 1990 film Awakenings, directed by Penny Marshall, in which Williams plays Dr. Malcolm Sayers, based on British neurologist Oliver Sacks.
Williams explained that he loved the role because he got to meet Sacks and “explore the human brain from the inside out”. Sacks was a bit freaked out by William’s acting ability, though, with Marshall once saying, “I think when Oliver first met Robin, he was amazed at Robin’s ability to imitate. Robin could do all of Oliver’s moves, and I think it made Oliver a little nervous”.
Leonardo DiCaprio – The Aviator (2004)
Leonardo DiCaprio is arguably just as linked with the work of Martin Scorsese as Robert De Niro is, having played in The Wolf of Wall Street, The Departed and many others, and it’s a Scorsese film featuring Leo’s favourite role. He played the record-setting pilot Howard Hughes in the 2004 biopic The Aviator.
Discussing the role, DiCaprio once stated, “It’s a different set of circumstances when you’re able to say to yourself, ‘you know, someday I’m going to play this character,’ and then you get to develop it. And I got to develop it for over eight years, and then the great Martin Scorsese got to direct me in it. So that’s the one I’m probably most proud of”.
