Five actors who set completely useless world records
Being an actor comes with the chance to win many prestigious awards, like a coveted Oscar statuette or a Golden Globe. In some circumstances, an actor will make history with various nominations or wins, like Meryl Streep, who holds the record for the actor with the most Academy Award nominations (21) or Katharine Hepburn, who has won the most acting Oscars (four).
But then there are those actors who hold much stranger records that have very little to do with their acting. They might not have won Oscars (or maybe they have), but they’ve earned the title of being a world record holder, and really, what’s more impressive? You might say the Oscar, but loads of actors have them – how many also have Guinness World Records?
The secret to winning a world record seems to be picking out a very unusual one that hasn’t been attempted many times, like the highest number of red carpet events in a day, or those that are earned purely through star status, like having the most TikTok followers.
So, from selfies to birthday cards, here are five actors who have set completely useless world records.
Five actors who set completely useless world records:
Robert Downey Jr – most contributions to a birthday card
On April 4th, 2014, Robert Downey Jr was given a birthday card featuring signatures from 5,339 fans for his 48th birthday. This allowed him to earn the Guinness World Record for ‘the most contributions to a birthday card’, which is a very strange record to set. When you think about it, Downey Jr’s mere existence as one of Hollywood’s biggest stars earned him the Guinness World Record – he didn’t have to do anything to achieve it.
Downey Jr won the hearts of many superhero fans when he took on the role of Iron Man in the film of the same name in 2008, a role he has since reprised in various MCU sequels and spin-offs. It’s this popularity that led him to be greeted with such an impressive birthday card, although it hardly feels fair to give Downey Jr the title of a Guinness World Record holder when it was merely placed upon him without him having to put in any hard work.
Akshay Kumar – selfies
In our selfie-obsessed world, where entire books (we’re looking at you, Kim Kardashian) and songs have been dedicated to the modern art form, it seems like there’s no limit to the number of selfies that can be taken. Except there is. Sort of. In 2023, the Indian actor Akshay Kumar attempted to break a world record for the most number of selfies taken in three minutes to promote his aptly titled new film, Selfiee. He succeeded, taking 184 pictures of himself with fans.
Kumar beat previous record holders Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson and James Smith, although I can’t help but feel as though this is a bit of a rookie number. I know many people who could easily beat the record in their quest to get the perfect image of themselves for Instagram.
Will Smith – Most Public Appearances in 12 Hours
Will Smith is many things – an actor who has appeared in hits like Men in Black and Legend, a rapper, an Oscars controversy maker, an Oscar winner, and a Guinness World Record holder. Smith made history when he set the record for the most movie premieres attended in 24 hours after hitting three different red carpets in that time, all the way back in 2005.
The premieres were all for the same film, Hitch, with the actor taking a private jet over to Manchester from London for his first event of the day. Then he travelled to Birmingham, which must have been a bit of a culture shock, before flying back to London for the third and final premiere of the evening. I bet he was knackered after that.
The Rock – TikTok followers
Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson is one of those people who was always going to be famous. When you look at him, you see a star (even if his acting choices typically leave a lot to be desired). Starting his career as a wrestler, Johnson has become incredibly successful in his time, but even if he hadn’t become famous for acting or wrestling, we might have still seen his face in the Guinness World Records.
Although he was beaten by Kumar when it came to the most amount of selfies taken in three minutes, he reigns supreme as the ‘Most Followed Actor on TikTok’ and ‘Most Followed American Man in the World’. You might have also seen people claim that he was responsible for the ‘largest seven layer dip’ world record, but sadly that was another man with the same name. The Rock hasn’t made any record-breaking snacks in his time, as far as we’re aware.
Rashida Jones and Nicole Richie – hip-hop moves
Nicole Richie decided to set a rather unusual world record with her actor friend Rashida Jones for her show Candidly Nicole back in 2014. They successfully earned themselves a Record Setter World Record for fitting into just one tracksuit between them, somehow squeezing into both arm and leg holes, before completing 12 different hip-hop dance moves in one minute.
I’m not sure how the pair decided this was going to be the record to break, but they did it. Some of their moves included the ‘The Running Man’, ‘Wipe The Windows; Wash the Floors’, ‘The Bankhead Bounce’, and the ‘The Humpty Dance’. It might not be the most impressive world record out there, but the fact that they were able to fit into the tracksuit is worth giving them credit for.
