Before writing this, I laid on my couch scrolling through mine and my friends Letterboxd reviews and ratings. I found myself trying to find a film I’ve seen recently that I felt strong enough (positively or negatively) about to review. Instead, I realized I felt stronger about certain actors than the films they have starred in. While there really isn’t a rating system devised to rate actors themselves, I’m going to attempt to break down my thoughts on them based on my perception of the quality of their acting as well as the hype they receive in pop culture/mainstream media.

Ryan Reynolds, overrated. 

I want to start out with a hot take. Ryan Reynolds is quite overrated. Three movies of his that have released in the last year: Free Guy, Red Notice, and The Adam Project. I watched all of these for the first time over the last month, and while they are entertaining, I just find myself growing bored of Reynolds. Don’t get me wrong he is hilarious, but an actor can only play the same character so many times before it just becomes tired. His “loud and kind of annoying man-child who finds himself becoming the reluctant hero due to seeking out personal gain” characters just aren’t that great. 

These three films have him playing characters with nearly identical personalities but placed in different settings. Reynolds gains most of his clout from his naturally large personality in interviews and on social media, but an actor gets to a place where he needs to show some range before fans begin to get bored of him. This is where I am with Ryan Reynolds. Some actors can pull off playing themselves in nearly everything they’re in but there still comes a point where some variety is sorely needed.

Robert Pattinson, underrated. 

Now he is the epidemy of range. Since the release of The Batman many have begun to rightfully appreciate Pattinson as an actor. Before its debut, many worried about how Pattinson would bring Bruce Wayne to life since the last time he notably brought a written character to the silver screen was as Edward Cullen in the Twilight franchise. Two more of his films I’ve seen recently are The Lighthouse and Good Time. His characters in these two films are a bit more chaotic than his portrayal of Batman. The lighthouse attendant he plays opposite of Willem DaFoe slowly goes insane throughout the duration of the film. Pattinson plays the exploration of the human psyche and sexuality exhibited in this film beautifully. He plays a character in Good Time with less than perfect ideals who is driven by wanting to care for his brother even if he must take advantage of his brother’s mental disability to meet his ends. Pattinson puts his entire being into every role he plays, and I have an immense amount of respect for it.

Zendaya, overrated.

 Okay okay I know I’m going to catch a lot of flak for this one, but I stand by it. Don’t get me wrong Zendaya is a good actor, but she is just good. She’s received an enormous uptick in popularity in the last few years with her performances in the MCU Spider- Man movies as a fresh take on Peter’s love interest, MJ, as well as her leading role as Rue in HBO’s Euphoria. Much of Zendaya’s clout has been gained from how she carries herself in interviews and on social media. She is certainly a good example of a Disney child star gone right, but many of her roles as an adult have just been moody, snarky characters who don’t have a ton of depth outside of her negative attitude being used as a sort of comedic relief. A film or show is almost guaranteed a large viewership if she is even minorly featured in the advertisement of it in some way. This was shown primarily with the newest adaptation of Dune. Spoiler alert;

Zendaya was in the film for maybe 10 minutes at the end but was featured on nearly every poster and in every trailer released for it. She is an extreme example of an actor whose image is stronger than her actual acting ability. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t not enjoy when Zendaya is in something, but just think the level at which she is worshipped for her personality and looks off the big screen shouldn’t overshadow the quality of her work on screen.

Jason Bateman, underrated. 

Now I’m biased about this one because Jason Bateman is one of my favorite actors in general, but I genuinely feel like he is under-appreciated. Ozark has become one of my favorite Netflix original series, largely because of Bateman’s fantastic acting (the episodes he directs are also phenomenal but I’m only discussing acting now). He has displayed a lot of range from starring in comedies like Arrested Development and Game Night to his grittier role in Ozark. Arrested Development is also one of my favorite shows. His character in Ozark is like a much darker version of his in Arrested Development. Bateman is one actor who plays similar feeling roles in different films really well (unlike a couple others on this list). I’m glad he’s finally getting some more time in the mainstream spotlight I just wish it didn’t take so long.

Keanu Reeves, overrated. 

Keanu Reeves is another actor who receives most of his hype from how he acts off-camera and from memes made from his films instead of his actual acting ability. Don’t get me wrong, Reeves seems like a great guy and has a reputation for being kind and respectful towards fans and other actors, but from what I’ve seen him in he just isn’t that great of an actor. He’s been in some iconic film franchises like the Matrix and John Wick, but I just don’t really think these movies are that good. Most of the iconic parts of his films are done by stunt doubles and CGI. When he’s not stabbing people with pencils, he’s just boring to watch. The most recent John Wick installment is one of the few films I’ve seen in theaters that I’ve had no remorse for falling asleep during.

Toni Collette, underrated. 

My final entry is another biased choice because she stars in my all- time favorite movie, Knives Out. Recently, I have seen her in Hereditary and I’m Thinking of Ending Things. She plays three vastly different roles in these films. In Knives Out, she plays a Gwyneth Paltrow-esque wannabe health guru that is stealing money from her father-in-law after her husband dies. She is the mother of the kids who get possessed in Hereditary and plays the creepy mother of the main character’s boyfriend in I’m Thinking of Ending Things. Collette exhibits an insane kind of range across films by playing a mother torn apart by grief when her daughter is brutally killed in Hereditary to her more selfish, airheaded and overtly politically correct character in Knives Out. She becomes every role she plays, in often a chilling and entertaining way.