History Main / FunnyCharacterBoringActor

* '''Creator/ChloeGraceMoretz's''' StarMakingRole was playing the [[FromTheMouthsOfBabes foul-mouthed]] [[TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior tween girl assassin]] Hit-Girl in ''Film/KickAss'' at the age of twelve. Her EstablishingCharacterMoment, in which she [[CountryMatters drops the C-bomb]] before slaughtering a horde of mooks, sparked outrage from MoralGuardians when it was used in a preview clip. Offstage, Moretz was so straitlaced that she couldn't even bring herself to ''say the film's title out loud'', instead referring to it as "the film" in interviews and [[{{Badbutt}} "Kick-Butt"]] in private. This is probably why, even though her films haven't gotten any less graphic now that she's an adult, she's still [[ContractualPurity seen as a role model for teenage girls]].

* '''Creator/BennyHill''' was synonymous with zany, madcap comedy. In RealLife, he was reportedly a private, quiet, reserved man who kept to himself. Creator/MichaelCaine recalled that while making ''Film/TheItalianJob1969'', Hill was got on well with everyone, but didn't socialise.

* '''Creator/ChristopherLloyd''' made a career of playing loopy, over-the-top characters like [[Series/{{Taxi}} Reverend Jim Ignatowski]] and [[Franchise/BackToTheFuture Doc Brown]], but in real life is very shy and laconic. According to Bob Gale's commentary on the ''Film/BackToTheFuturePartIII'' DVD, when he tried to do promotional interviews on talk shows, he froze up and had to be gently coached by the interviewer; and in a New York Times interview, he just sat there silently, leaving the interviewer resorting to piecing together statements by Lloyd's costars. Creator/RobertZemeckis says it took the entirety of shooting the first ''Film/BackToTheFuture'' movie just for Lloyd to strike up a conversation with him (and note that it took twice as long to film that movie as originally scheduled, because they had to re-shoot almost the whole thing due to [[TheOtherMarty the replacement of Eric Stoltz with]] Creator/MichaelJFox).

* Much like Peter Sellers, '''Zero Mostel''' was said by his family to usually be very quiet and shy, only to explode into the life of the party when given a character to play.

* '''Jason Mewes''' is best known as the wildly animated and [[ClusterFBomb swear happy]] first half of Jay and Silent Bob. In interviews, however, he is incredibly shy and mostly monosyllabic. Creator/KevinSmith, on the other hand, is anything but silent when not playing Silent Bob.

* '''Creator/DouglasAdams''', author of ''Franchise/TheHitchhikersGuideToTheGalaxy''. Known to be a very shy, sensitive man, prone to episodes of depression. Said in interview: "I'm not a wit. I'm a comedy writer. A wit says something funny on the spot. A comedy writer says something ''very'' funny two minutes later. Or in my case, two ''[[RidiculousProcrastinator weeks]]'' later." However, he wasn't completely averse to joking in conversation and was known to laugh at his own jokes in a way that was endearing rather than annoying.

* '''Tony Hancock''' could be hilarious on stage, TV, and radio, but was notoriously shy and introspective in real life, as witness his rather nervous replies to his ''Face to Face'' interview. This introspection was a major factor in his eventual suicide.

* '''Danny John-Jules''' is best known as the sharp-dressed, loud and [[CloudCuckoolander borderline insane]] Cat from ''Series/RedDwarf'', but in interviews, is notably calm and barely raises his voice.

* '''Creator/PedroPascal''' has sternly dedicated starring roles on ''Series/{{Narcos}}'' and ''Series/TheMandalorian'', with a usually deadpan or macabre sense of humor. Outside of his performances, he enthusiastically gravitates his humor towards non sequiturs and self-deprecation.

Some people have a great talent for comedy, and are absolutely hilarious onscreen. Thanks to this effect, it's understandable if everyone expected them to be hilarious all the time. Not the case. Comedy is difficult to do well, and often takes a lot of planning and writing. These comedians are some of the greatest in the field, but they were/are very serious or dry in real life.

Note that a true inversion would not simply be a funny actor who plays serious roles, but a ''comedian'' who plays deadpan and is actually hilarious off screen. See Zeppo Marx below.

* '''Creator/DouglasAdams''', author of ''Franchise/TheHitchhikersGuideToTheGalaxy''. Known to be a very shy, sensitive man, prone to episodes of depression. Said in interview: "I'm not a wit. I'm a comedy writer. A wit says something funny on the spot. A comedy writer says something ''very'' funny two minutes later. Or in my case, two ''[[RidiculousProcrastinator weeks]]'' later." However, he wasn't completely averse to joking in conversation, and was known to laugh at his own jokes in a way that was endearing rather than annoying.

* '''Wrestling/DeanAmbrose''' has fallen into a quippy, comic relief role on WWE programming ever since Wrestling/TheShield broke up, but in interviews he's flat and reserved, since he doesn't like to talk about his DarkAndTroubledPast. Wrestling/SteveAustin found this out the hard during their WWE Network interview

* '''Creator/DanAykroyd''', the wild-and-crazy [[Film/TheBluesBrothers Blues Brother]] among many other outrageously funny characters, in real-life claims to have mild Asperger's Syndrome. When he's not playing a role he's introverted, quiet and thoughtful, and when asked to talk about himself can have trouble meeting the interviewer's eye.

* '''Creator/EionBailey''' usually plays suave DeadpanSnarker characters. In interviews he's far less of a wisecracker than the characters he plays.
* '''Creator/LucilleBall''', perhaps one of the greatest screwball comediennes of all time, was this behind the scenes. She didn't believe in her ability to improvise, so every gag and physical comedy that she did on ''Series/ILoveLucy'' was rehearsed to death till she believed she had it perfected, including ''practicing blowing up and popping a balloon'' until "it looked funny". (Dousing her burning fake nose in her glass while it was still attached was one of the very few times she improvised ''and'' kept it on film.) Desi Arnaz, on the other hand, was quite funny in real life. In fact Creator/BetteDavis went to the same drama school as Lucille, and recalled her being sent home for being too shy and quiet.

* Onstage, the late '''Creator/GeorgeCarlin''' was animated, boisterous, hilarious, and [[HumansAreBastards relentlessly misanthropic]]. In his interviews however, he was fairly quiet, and while he retained his [[SirSwearsalot famously filthy mouth]], cracked relatively few jokes. He also claimed that he actually hated people a lot less than his stand-up would have you believe.
* '''{{Wrestling/Carmella}}''' in the ring is either a hammy AlphaBitch or a fiery PluckyGirl. Leah Van Dale the person is incredibly quiet and reserved. She recalls this counting against her in her initial WWE tryout; she was so focused on getting the moves right, they asked her to show more personality. She then compensated by hamming it up, and found her niche playing over-the-top characters.
* '''Creator/JimCarrey''' is very well known for his over-the-top roles as Film/AceVentura, Film/TheMask, [[Film/DumbAndDumber Lloyd Christmas]], [[Film/HowTheGrinchStoleChristmas The Grinch]] and, in a bit of HamAndCheese, [[Film/BatmanForever the Riddler]]. In reality, he has battled depression, and has stated that his character in ''[[Film/EternalSunshineOfTheSpotlessMind Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind]]'' is closer to the real him than any of his other roles.

* '''Wrestling/JohnCena''' - is clownish and animated in the ring, whether he's PrettyFlyForAWhiteGuy or an AllAmericanFace. In interviews he's very soft spoken and ''Series/TotalDivas'' shows he's usually TheQuietOne. It's doubly ironic since he claims his in-ring persona is just him being himself. His girlfriend Nikki Bella is the opposite - she plays an AlphaBitch in the ring and in real life is far goofier and more playful.

* '''Creator/StephenChow''' Sing-Chi is an influential Hong Kong comedian, actor and film director, best known in the west for his slapstick martial arts movies ''Film/ShaolinSoccer'' and ''Film/KungFuHustle''. When not making a film, though, he is reported to be a taciturn and serious individual who rarely if ever smiles.

* '''Creator/RobertDeNiro''' is an incredibly talented and charismatic actor and can have some of the most devastating comic timing in the room, but in interviews he reverts way back into his shell, and is a quiet mumbler in real life. Creator/RogerEbert said that the most interesting thing De Niro's ever told him in an interview was "Yeah? yeah."

* '''Creator/ChristopherEccleston''' can definitely be silly and eccentric when he's acting, but he's rather calm and flat while being interviewed. And that's on his good days, when he doesn't seem to be suppressing his urge to flip a table and leave. Creator/JohnBarrowman says he takes acting ''very'' seriously - even when playing [[Series/DoctorWho a flippant time traveler.]] Justified as Christopher Eccleston is mostly known for dramatic roles but took on a role where some comic timing is part of the character. He's also quite introverted and private - it can be difficult to draw him out, but when he met a young autistic filmmaker who was inspired by Eccleston's role in ''Series/DoctorWho'', he was [[FriendToAllChildren moved]] [[ManlyTears to tears]].

* '''Tony Hancock''' could be hilarious on stage, TV and radio, but was notoriously shy and introspective in real life, as witness his rather nervous replies to his ''Face to Face'' interview. This introspection was a major factor in his eventual suicide.

* '''Creator/HughLaurie''', who suffers from depression, comes across as extremely quiet and insecure when not given a script. This was most notable during the first episode of ''Series/{{QI}}'', when Creator/StephenFry thought it would be very nice to have his best friend on the panel for the show's introduction... whereupon Laurie said about ten words total. Interestingly Fry has said that, in private, Hugh is actually the funnier, smarter one of the two; Hugh denies this.
* '''Jordan Lennon''' of ''WebVideo/TheNutters'' fame plays the fiery DublinSkanger in most of his roles - and even Jake is quite over-the-top when SurroundedByIdiots. Out of character, although [[ClusterFBomb prone to cursing a lot]], he's much softer spoken and exagerrates his accent and voice for roles.

* Creator/TheMarxBrothers played merry hell with this one. Groucho and Harpo were straight examples. Off-screen, they were both introverted and and shunned raucous nightlife. Harpo was especially noted as being soft-spoken and shy; Groucho preferred to spend most of his leisure time reading to make up for his limited formal education. Zeppo is discussed below as an inversion - in real life, he was the funniest Marx brother.
* '''Jason Mewes''' is best known as the wildly animated and [[ClusterFBomb swear happy]] first half of Jay and Silent Bob. In interviews, however, he is incredibly shy, and mostly monosyllabic. Creator/KevinSmith, on the other hand, is anything but silent when not playing Silent Bob.

* '''Creator/ChloeGraceMoretz's''' StarMakingRole was playing the [[FromTheMouthsOfBabes foul-mouthed]] [[TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior tween girl assassin]] Hit-Girl in ''Film/KickAss'' at the age of twelve. Her EstablishingCharacterMoment, in which she [[CountryMatters drops the C-bomb]] before slaughtering a horde of mooks, sparked outrage from MoralGuardians when it was used in a preview clip. Off stage, Moretz was so straitlaced that she couldn't even bring herself to ''say the film's title out loud'', instead referring to it as "the film" in interviews and [[{{Badbutt}} "Kick-Butt"]] in private. This is probably why, even though her films haven't gotten any less graphic now that she's an adult, she's still [[ContractualPurity seen as a role model for teenage girls]].

* '''Jimmie Walker''' aka J.J. "Dy'no' mite" Evans from ''Series/GoodTimes''. He has been a successful stand up comic throughout the decades but he prefers to take his image in a totally different direction from the buffoonish character that made him famous. He is very calm, introspective and candid in interviews. Much of this might be attributed to [[BreakoutCharacter the popularity of the J.J. character]] causing a rift between fellow cast member Esther Rolle who felt that the J.J. character was sending the wrong message.
* '''Music/WeirdAlYankovic''' is one of the most lasting comedians in entertainment, but has noted in interviews that because of his [[StageNames stage name]] people expect him to be crazy at all times. He is generally a friendly guy and cracks jokes at times like anyone else, but besides his music he is never outlandish or "weird." He has also stated that it takes him a while to come up with the really funny stuff, citing that as the reason why there's generally a four year gap between his albums.

* '''Creator/JonLovitz''' has played some of the most absurd characters on television, but in interviews he is extremely quiet, even to the point of mumbling, and hardly ever makes any jokes. An interview on MTV Live at the height of his popularity shows how seriously boring he can be to talk to without a character to play.
* '''George Miller''' is known for ''WebVideo/FilthyFrank'', in which he plays the eponymous character in a GrossOutShow that aims to offend basically every demographic under the sun and has surprisingly deep but surreal lore. However, George is a lot more soft-spoken in real life as examplified in the now-deleted video "FILTHY FRANK EXPOSES HIMSELF", in which [[AsHimself George plays himself]] and talks about himself at-length, and does not like to talk about the show on his personal social media accounts (partly because he fears that his association with the show could negatively impact future job prospects). In fact, his next project, his music persona Music/{{Joji}}, is a lot more serious and somber in tone.

* '''Wrestling/SashaBanks''' plays a ruthless humourless AlphaBitch in the ring. Outside it she's very goofy and geeky. The skits she did with Team BAD and the New Day are far closer to her real life persona.

* '''Creator/GeorgeClooney''' is well known for playing the charming, sophisticated leading man and is one of Hollywood's biggest stars. He's also infamously Hollywood's biggest prankster routinely playing (often immature) jokes on his fellow cast members in stark contrast to his more suave on screen characters.
* '''Creator/MishaCollins''' plays the humorless angel Castiel on ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'' but on Twitter, Facebook and at conventions, he's always joking and trolling the fans. He mentioned once that the alt-version of Castiel from the Apocalypse World universe, a hippie stoner who has orgies, is disturbingly similar to his actual personality.
* '''Adam Douglas''', to contrast ''WebVideo/TheNutters'' (mentioned above), plays the OnlySaneMan and self described himself as the boring character. In real life however, he's known for being funny and goofy - and considered one of the funniest members of the cast. Contrast his and Jordan Lennon's separate interviews on the ''Podcast/ActorsLifePodcast''; Jordan remains serious and stoic throughout most of his, while Adam is energetic and constantly cracking jokes.

* '''Creator/MichaelFassbender''' is known for gritty and intense characters. In interviews he's a GenkiGuy and has no shortage of jokes.
* WWE ring announcer '''Lilian Garcia''' was very serious on-screen and usually portrayed as a timid and quiet person. Off-screen however, as a glance at the numerous talk shows she's hosted on ''After-Buzz'' will demonstrate, she's a very bubbly and animated person. Far more energetic than how she was portrayed on-screen.

* '''Creator/VanessaHudgens''' finds herself playing BrainyBrunette, GirlNextDoor or moody teen roles. In interviews she's a bubbly GenkiGirl who can barely sit still.
* '''Creator/ChristopherJudge''' as [[ProudWarriorRaceGuy Teal'c]] in ''Series/StargateSG1''. He's extremely stoic on screen and his character laughed out loud exactly once during the show's ten-year run, but in the blooper reels he's the one making immature jokes off the lines and giggling.

* '''Wrestling/BeckyLynch''' was mostly portrayed on [[Wrestling/{{WWE NXT}} NXT]] as a serious ambitious competitor to the point of being the [[OnlySaneMan only sane woman]] surrounded by more exaggerated characters around her. With her retool into a steampunk babyface and move to Wrestling/{{WWE}}'s main roster, the fact that she's actually a total goofball and PungeonMaster finally became part of her character and it was well received.

* '''Zeppo Marx''''s movie persona was always a bland StraightMan and romantic hero, but off-screen he was said to be the funniest of Creator/TheMarxBrothers. Being the youngest of the Marx Brothers, he also grew up watching his brothers perform and could impersonate them perfectly to the point that if he was ever called on to fill in for one of his brothers during a show, the audience wouldn't be able to tell the difference (it helped that the brothers looked damn near identical out of makeup and costume; in one group photo taken in 1915 the only real indicator of which is which is their height).

* '''Creator/BrentSpiner''' as [[Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration Data]] -- a completely emotionless character played by an utter goofball of an actor. On the same series, the uptight, honour-obsessed Klingon warrior Worf was played by easygoing and laid-back '''Creator/MichaelDorn''', who has also described himself as a bit of a giggler. On ''Series/StarTrekVoyager'', Tim Russ played Tuvok who was even more of a [[TheSpock Spock]] than Spock, while the cameras were rolling. The rest of the time, he was playing childish, ridiculous and hilarious practical jokes on the rest of the cast from Day 1. Check out [[https://youtu.be/Y6blwzfcdKk?t=1m40s this video]] of him comically overselling getting stunned by a phaser.
* '''Creator/GreyDeLisle''' tends to get typecasted as the bad girl who is usually hyper sadistic. The real Grey is a delightfully silly person to talk to and surprisingly dorky at times.

* '''Creator/KateWinslet''' in movies is usually serious (aside from ''Film/EternalSunshineOfTheSpotlessMind''). In real life she's a funny hilarious lady, who apparently keeps her Oscar in the bathroom to allow any visitors to play with it.

* '''Music/VanessaHudgens''' finds herself playing BrainyBrunette, GirlNextDoor or moody teen roles. In interviews she's a bubbly GenkiGirl who can barely sit still.

* '''George Miller''' is known for ''WebVideo/FilthyFrank'', in which he plays the eponymous character in a GrossOutShow that aims to offend basically every demographic under the sun and has surprisingly deep but surreal lore. However, George is a lot more soft-spoken in real life and does not like to talk about the show on his personal social media accounts (partly because he fears that his association with the show could negatively impact future job prospects). In fact, his next project, his music persona Music/{{Joji}}, is a lot more serious and somber in tone.

* '''Creator/ChloeGraceMoretz ''' StarMakingRole was playing the [[FromTheMouthsOfBabes foul-mouthed]] [[TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior tween girl assassin]] Hit-Girl in ''Film/KickAss'' at the age of twelve. Her EstablishingCharacterMoment, in which she [[CountryMatters drops the C-bomb]] before slaughtering a horde of mooks, sparked outrage from MoralGuardians when it was used in a preview clip. Off stage, Moretz was so straitlaced that she couldn't even bring herself to ''say the film's title out loud'', instead referring to it as "the film" in interviews and [[{{Badbutt}} "Kick-Butt"]] in private. This is probably why, even though her films haven't gotten any less graphic now that she's an adult, she's still [[ContractualPurity seen as a role model for teenage girls]].

* '''Creator/RowanAtkinson''', famous for his role as Series/MrBean, among [[Series/{{Blackadder}} other]] [[Film/JohnnyEnglish things]], is a maddening perfectionist who finds it extremely difficult to be witty spontaneously; as a result, interviews are kind of dull.

* Speaking of the Marx Brothers, '''Margaret Dumont''', who was frequently cast as snobby widows that acted as the (very) straight woman to the brothers' zaniness. Despite urban legend, she got the joke just fine, and during a live television recreation of a scene from ''Theatre/AnimalCrackers'', broke up entirely after Groucho told her not to step on the few laughs he had.

* '''Creator/KateWinslet''' in movies is usually serious (aside from ''Film/EternalSunshineOfTheSpotlessMind''). In real life she's a funny hilarious lady, who apparently keeps her Oscar in the bathroom to allow any visitors to play with it.[[/folder]]

* '''[[Creator/ChloeMoretz Chloë Grace Moretz's]]''' StarMakingRole was playing the [[FromTheMouthsOfBabes foul-mouthed]] [[TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior tween girl assassin]] Hit-Girl in ''Film/KickAss'' at the age of twelve. Her EstablishingCharacterMoment, in which she [[CountryMatters drops the C-bomb]] before slaughtering a horde of mooks, sparked outrage from MoralGuardians when it was used in a preview clip. Off stage, Moretz was so straitlaced that she couldn't even bring herself to ''say the film's title out loud'', instead referring to it as "the film" in interviews and [[{{Badbutt}} "Kick-Butt"]] in private. This is probably why, even though her films haven't gotten any less graphic now that she's an adult, she's still [[ContractualPurity seen as a role model for teenage girls]].

* [[VideoGame/DevilMayCry Vergil]] is famously the BlueOni with his more [[RedOni flamboyant]] and [[TechnicianVsPerformer showy]] [[CainAndAbel twin]] Dante; stoic, icy and a master of control and precision. His [=VA=] '''Daniel Southworth''', on the other hand, is an irrepressible joker who can more than keep up with Creator/ReubenLangdon and invariably brings the house down at fan conventions with his anecdotes.

* '''Creator/DavidBoreanaz'''' most famous role was the brooding vampire Angel on ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' and ''Series/{{Angel}}''. Onset, he was notorious for doing anything to get his castmates to laugh, up to and including exposing himself. There were even times when he and Creator/SarahMichelleGellar pranked each other by eating garlic and other bad-smelling things before kissing scenes.

* '''Creator/BrentSpiner''' as [[Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration Data]] -- a completely emotionless character played by an utter goofball of an actor. On the same series, the uptight, honour-obsessed Klingon warrior Worf was played by easygoing and laid-back '''Creator/MichaelDorn''', who has also described himself as a bit of a giggler. On ''Series/StarTrekVoyager'', Tim Russ played Tuvok who was even more of a [[TheSpock Spock]] than Spock, while the cameras were rolling. The rest of the time, he was playing childish, ridiculous and hilarious practical jokes on the rest of the cast from Day 1. Check out this video of him comically overselling getting stunned by a phaser - [[https://youtu.be/Y6blwzfcdKk?t=1m40s]]

* '''Creator/MingNaWen''' plays Melinda May, the frosty, no-nonsense secret agent with a dark past on Series/AgentsOfSHIELD, when in reality Wen is a DirtyOldWoman and the goofiest member of the cast.

* '''[[Creator/ChloeMoretz Chloë Grace Moretz's''' StarMakingRole was playing the [[FromTheMouthsOfBabes foul-mouthed]] [[TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior tween girl assassin]] Hit-Girl in ''Film/KickAss'' at the age of twelve. Her EstablishingCharacterMoment, in which she [[CountryMatters drops the C-bomb]] before slaughtering a horde of mooks, sparked outrage from MoralGuardians when it was used in a preview clip. Off stage, Moretz was so straitlaced that she couldn't even bring herself to ''say the film's title out loud'', instead referring to it as "the film" in interviews and [[{{Badbutt}} "Kick-Butt"]] in private. This is probably why, even though her films haven't gotten any less graphic now that she's an adult, she's still [[ContractualPurity seen as a role model for teenage girls]].

* '''Creator/JaredPadalecki''' is best known for playing the quiet, broody Sam Winchester in ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'', but like his costars Jensen Ackles and Misha Collins above, he couldn't be more different from his character in real life. He is ''the'' single biggest prankster on set, he's chatty and outgoing, and is generally likened to a giant hyperactive puppy. Sharp-eyed viewers have noted that Padalecki and Ackles act more like the other one's character, down to Padalecki knowing more about cars than Ackles.