The genre Sandra Bullock wants nothing to do with: “I’m going back to comedy”
The 1990s saw many iconic stars rise to prominence, and Sandra Bullock was no exception, truly breaking through with 1994’s Speed. The action thriller allowed the actor to prove her chops as someone able to deliver performances in high-pressure situations, with her character having to take over the driving of a bus that is rigged to explode. The movie was a hit, and Bullock went on to appear in many more hIgh-profile films.
Finding a place in action and thriller movies, she soon starred in titles like The Net and the sequel Speed 2: Cruise Control. Bullock also proved her brilliance as a romantic comedy lead, frequently appearing in popular tales of meet-cutes and idyllic romance, from While You Were Sleeping and Two If By Sea to Two Weeks Notice and The Proposal.
The actor has even blended her penchant for action with comedy and romance, finding significant popularity with Miss Congeniality in 2000, and its sequel, Armed and Fabulous, in 2005. While the actor has certainly explored a range of genres over the years, like horror with Bird Box and sci-fi with Gravity, she can safely say that comedy is her preferred style of film to star in.
In 2021, following the success of Bird Box – proving that she was more than capable of straying from her comedic roots – the actor decided to branch out and do a gritty drama, The Unforgivable. Inspired by Sally Wainwright’s British drama series Unforgiven, the movie saw Bullock take on the role of Ruth, previously played by Suranne Jones. The character is a woman who has just spent 20 years in prison after murdering the man who came to evict her from her home, yet upon her release, she is determined to forge a strong relationship with her sister.
Directed by Nora Fingscheidt, who went on to direct Saoirse Ronan in The Outrun in 2024, the movie earned Bullock significant acclaim. With audiences typically used to seeing Bullock playing likeable and heroic characters, her choice to play a murderer made for quite the change, and while she did a good job, the actor found herself itching to get back to comedy afterwards.
Appearing on Q, she told Tom Power, “I just want to do my comedy. I’m going back to comedy. And I’m going to fight for it and I’m going to enjoy it.” While Bullock appreciates drama – and has given many great performances in dramas over the years – she simply feels more at home when she is working with humour. In fact, the actor doesn’t understand why comedy is often valued less than dramatic roles, which is reflected in the fact that none of her comedic performances have earned Oscar nominations, while she won ‘Best Actress’ for the sports drama The Blind Side and gained a nod for the science-fiction film Gravity.
The actor has given many great performances in comedy films, and she thinks it’s about time that they’re taken as seriously as grittier and more intense movies. She believes that both can exist, and for Bullock, it’s the comedy genre that she finds more enjoyable.
