12 Times Actors Bared Their Souls And Became One With Their Characters
Acting is absolutely a difficult job. Sometimes, an actor can’t just remember lines but possibly give audiences great performances. Gifted actors become one with their characters, baring their souls and showing genuine emotions with the need to act. It is time that the line between the performer and the role blurs, creating an authentic and captivating performance that resonates deeply with audiences.
The ability of an actor to authentically express their emotions may be attributed to the similarities between the character they portray and their real-life experiences. No matter what the reason, their performances leave audiences spellbound, sparking discussions and admiration for their remarkable talent and ability to touch our hearts in the most sincere and profound ways.
#1. Kill Your Darlings
Daniel Radcliffe, who portrayed Allen, confessed during filming the movie, he improvised a lot. He even cried sincerely in the scene where Lucien (Dane DeHaan) says goodbye to Allen.
Before shooting the scene, Radcliffe and DeHaan met separately to explain how they were going to act and Radcliffe was asked to keep Lucien at all cost.
We all remember the scene. Allen held on to Lucien but nothing could be changed. Radcliffe burst into tears and these tears were sincere.
#2. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay — Part 1
We can see the sincerity of Jennifer Lawrence in the scene where her character, Katniss almost cries when seeing Peeta who was played by Josh Hutcherson. It is a fact that the two actors became good friends during filming the franchise. They didn’t have many scenes together and that made her miss him so much. That’s why she couldn’t hide her true emotion.
#3. Jaws
Source: Jaws / Universal Pictures
The surprise and fear we see in Susan Backlinie’s face were genuine. The actress didn’t get any warning that the line she was attached to would pull her underwater. Thanks to this, we can see the true emotions of a person grabbed by a shark and pulled underwater.
#4. The Devil Wears Prada
For the role of Miranda Priestly, Meryl Streep went to lengths. She even remained distant from her colleagues to keep her with cold as Miranda. As a result, the actress became one with her character, expressing inner emotions. After the film wrapped, Streep struggled with her mental health and that was why she gave up this extreme method for other film roles.
#5. Joker
Source: Joker / Warner Bros.
Despite his dislike of rehearsing or doing table reads, Joaquin Phoenix tried to act naturally, taking advantage of his anxiety and excitement. For the role of Joker, he researched deeply different personality disorders so that even psychiatrists would not be able to identify what his character would play. He also practiced different kinds of laughter to show his character’s nature. Thanks to this, he could explore many new aspects of the character’s personality til the last day of shooting.
#6. The Pursuit of Happyness
Will Smith became Chris Gardner of the movie. His tears were sincere in the scene where his character was finally hired for a long-awaited position in the company. One of the reasons helping him express his true emotions was that he acted alongside his 8-year-old son, Jaden and their characters had to live in poverty.
#7. Edward Scissorhands
To get out of his teen status, Johnny Depp cast the role in Edward Scissorhands. He watched Charlie Chaplin movies to find out the way to express emotion without dialogue. At that time, he was afraid that his performance was good enough to get the role and it would go to Tom Hanks. Luckily, he got it. The director even joked that some of Depp’s scars were real as the actor spent his time getting used to wearing scissors on his hands.
#8. Bohemian Rhapsod
Bohemian Rhapsody portrayed the life of Freddie Mercury. Rami Malek and Lucy Boynton took over the role of the singer and his girlfriend respectively. During filming, they were dating and this helped a lot to express their passion and tenderness.
#9. Men in Black
Source: Men in Black / Columbia Pictures
Tommy Lee portrayed Agent K in the movie Men in Black and he really impressed one scene. The actor had to shake a pug and take to it to get information. He found it so funny that he tried his best not to laugh.
#10. The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part 1
Robert Pattinson revealed that his co-star, Kristen Stewart, was extremely excited to film some honeymoon scenes. It proved that the actress really fell in love with him.
#11. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1
Remember the scene where Harry and Hermione dance when they had to continue to look for Horcruxes after Ron had left them? In fact, the director wanted to emphasize the deep friendship in it.
In the Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts, Emma Watson admitted that she would feel awkward if she didn’t act alongside Radcliffe because there were so many hidden feelings expressed in it. However, the 9-year friendship helped her overcome the fear and completed this scene.
#12. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest
In the scene, Elizabeth kissed Jack Sparrow with the aim of handcuffing him to the ship. Keira Knightley, who played Elizabeth, admitted that she really liked the kiss, “I think my 14-year-old self was yelping with pleasure. It was fantastic! What more can a girl ask for?”. She unhesitatingly named Jonny Depp when being asked whom she like to kiss most of among the actors she acted with.
Whose performance do you like the most? Do you believe that these actors really expressed their true emotions? Tell us in the comments.