The greatest actor of the 20th century, according to Orson Welles: “No contest”
When cinema first emerged as a genuine art form, not a mere gimmick but a device that could carry stories, it wasn’t long before certain actors came to stand as figureheads of their craft, impressing audiences with performances that would endure across generations, with some names being Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton.
Their slapstick styles drew from vaudeville and comedy, but with the power of cinema, they could perform in ways rendered impossible by the stage alone. Using clever practical effects, these actors immortalised themselves in performances that were unlike anything anyone had ever seen before.
As Hollywood grew into an empire, actors emerged with varying skill sets, some more equipped for silent cinema, their facial expressions doing all of the work, while others developed unusual techniques to bolster their talents, and by the 1950s, method acting was gaining popularity; although some actors staunchly stood in opposition to it, seeing nothing but madness in this method.
Regardless of technique, as the decades progressed, unforgettable stars have graced our screens and wound up being crowned some of the best, from Marlon Brando and Laurence Olivier to Gena Rowlands and Daniel Day-Lewis. Orson Welles, who lent himself to the lead role of director in his magnum opus Citizen Kane, gets his proper dues as an actor as well as a filmmaker, his name towering up there with some of the greatest, but who was his pick for the greatest actor of the 20th century?
Welles was adamant that a certain Russian star, who hardly appeared in any films but was better known as an opera singer, was one of the “biggest” and most “genius” actors of the century, managing to “fill” up every role without leaving anything to spare, and that was Feodor Chaliapin.
Born in 1873, Chaliapin appeared in a 1933 film adaptation of Don Quixiote, but really, his core passion was performing on stage, being close with Sergei Rachmaninoff, who taught him a lot about music and imparted him with skills, which he used to bring operas to life, touring across the world and cementing his legacy as an indomitable talent.
He was known for various roles, like playing the lead in Boris Godunov, and Welles thought he was spectacular, such that, when talking to Peter Bogdanovich for the book This Is Orson Welles, the filmmaker remarked, “Chaliapin, an actor whose genius was equal to his enormous stature as a personality. And believe me, Peter, that’s really saying something. He was by far the biggest actor of our century.”
“No contest; nobody could make his weight. And what was he onscreen? Just marginally impressive,” he added, “Yeah, I’ve been lucky—Lear, Richard III, Falstaff. It doesn’t prove anything. Those parts are too big for any actor—the very biggest never manage to completely fill them. The nearest I’ve ever seen was Chaliapin; nobody came near to him for size, for sheer density.”
Impressed by Chaliapin’s ability to completely embody a role, no matter how intimidating it might’ve been, Welles crowned him one of the greatest. It’s hardly surprising he didn’t go with a more well-known choice, considering that he hated many of his Hollywood contemporaries. I mean, he even hated Brando, once revealing his dislike for him by criticising his neck, “which is like a huge sausage, a shoe made of flesh”.
