Some actors get better with age. Welcome to MsMojo, and today we’ll be looking at performers who proved that good things come to those who wait.
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00:00 It's what I do and I'm very good at it.
00:02 Welcome to Miss Mojo and today we'll be looking at performers who proved that good
00:07 things come to those who wait.
00:09 I am God.
00:11 Number 10.
00:12 Lucille Ball For this comedy icon, the ball didn't get
00:16 rolling until she was almost middle-aged.
00:27 Despite having appeared in films and on Broadway, Lucille Ball's success was a long time
00:32 coming.
00:33 She was once referred to as the "Queen of the Bees" due to her many appearances in
00:37 low-budget flicks.
00:39 But in 1951, at the age of 40, she got her big break thanks to a little television sitcom
00:45 called I Love Lucy.
00:54 Starring alongside her real-life husband Desi Arnaz, Ball cemented her status as a true
00:59 comedian and actress turning the black and white series into a television classic.
01:14 Number 9.
01:15 Alan Rickman Before Alan Rickman became an actor, he followed
01:19 another artistic pursuit, graphic design.
01:23 After attending the Royal College of Art, Rickman and some of his pals established their
01:27 own studio.
01:32 Eventually, his passion for acting inspired him to kiss graphic design goodbye and he
01:45 enrolled in Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.
01:54 Afterward, he appeared in several theatrical productions in the UK and eventually New York,
02:03 where he earned a Tony nomination for his role in Les Laisons de Jérus.
02:08 Despite his success, he didn't earn a feature film credit until he appeared as the villainous
02:13 Hans Gruber in 1988's Die Hard.
02:23 At the time, he was 42 years old and finally Hollywood noticed what they had been missing.
02:29 Number 8.
02:30 Bryan Cranston Years before he was Walter White on Breaking
02:33 Bad, Bryan Cranston was playing a very different role on Malcolm in the Middle.
02:38 From 2000 to 2006, Cranston played the role of Hal Wilkerson, the dad to five boys, one
02:45 of who happens to be a genius.
02:57 The future Academy Award nominee was about 44 years old when the show first aired.
03:02 Despite appearing on shows like Seinfeld, Middle was the project that made him a recognizable
03:07 face.
03:08 However, his role on Breaking Bad made him a household name, which began airing when
03:15 Cranston was almost 52 years old.
03:27 Number 7.
03:28 Kathy Bates If you find yourself scrolling through Kathy
03:31 Bates' filmography, you might be scrolling for a while.
03:35 The Tennessee-born actress has a long list of credits, appearing in everything from movies
03:40 to television to theater.
03:51 In fact, it's hard to even imagine a time when she wasn't a staple of the screen.
03:55 However, her big breakthrough didn't come until she was 42.
04:07 Already a Tony nominee, Bates had the acting chops to terrify audiences when she was cast
04:12 as the deranged Annie Wilkes in the screen adaptation of Stephen King's horror novel
04:17 Misery.
04:30 She made such an impact that she earned herself an Oscar for Best Actress.
04:34 We guess you could say her win was a smashing success.
04:38 Number 6.
04:39 Steve Carell Steve Carell has been making audiences laugh
04:43 for nearly 20 years, but his road to fame was a long one.
04:47 After starting off his career with Second City and The Daily Show, Carell was hit with
04:52 not one, but two major career successes in 2005.
05:10 When he was cast in the American adaptation of The Office as Michael Scott, he was still
05:15 relatively unknown.
05:16 That being said, that summer, he also appeared in The 40-Year-Old Virgin, which catapulted
05:22 into stardom and helped bring an audience to The Office, and turned it into one of the
05:26 most acclaimed network comedies of all time.
05:31 Oh, and this all happened for him at the ripe old age of 43.
05:51 Number 5.
05:52 Patrick Stewart You may not know it, but Patrick Stewart had
05:56 quite a career before he joined the intergalactic world of Star Trek.
06:07 The British actor dazzled audiences in the UK for years, appearing in classic theatre,
06:12 making Shakespeare proud in plays like A Midsummer Night's Dream.
06:16 In the late 80s, the world of television came calling and casted him as Star Trek's next
06:22 generation's leading man, Jean-Luc Picard.
06:36 The role made him a well-known face across the world, and opened new frontiers for Stewart
06:41 to explore the on-screen world.
06:43 Live long and prosper, Patrick!
06:55 Number 4.
06:56 Bea Arthur In 1950s New York City, the late and great
07:00 Bea Arthur was making waves all over the theatre scene, appearing in both on and off Broadway
07:06 productions.
07:13 At 48 years old, she made an appearance on the television comedy All in the Family, which
07:18 impressed both viewers and the powers that be at CBS.
07:22 A short time later, at age 50, Arthur was the star of her own hit TV series, Maud.
07:33 In 1985, she continued to find success in the sitcom genre, with the ensemble comedy
07:39 The Golden Girls, which she booked at age 63.
07:51 Number 3.
07:52 Samuel L. Jackson It's hard to believe there was ever a time
07:56 when Samuel L. Jackson was not keeping snakes off the planes, or just lighting up the big
08:01 screen.
08:07 The prolific actor appeared in films like Do the Right Thing and Coming to America in
08:12 the 1980s, but it wasn't until the 90s that Jackson's career really took off.
08:17 Director-writer Quentin Tarantino offered the actor the role of Jules Winfield in his
08:21 new crime flick, Pulp Fiction, which premiered in 1994.
08:35 At this time, Jackson was only five years away from turning the big 5-0.
08:40 The role cast a spotlight on him, and earned him an Oscar nomination to top it all off.
08:51 Number 2.
08:56 Viola Davis Today, Viola Davis is a celebrated actress,
09:00 producer, and EGOT winner.
09:02 But there was a time before she was the star we know and love.
09:17 After graduating from Juilliard, Davis worked primarily in the theater, appearing in bit
09:21 parts in film and television on the side.
09:24 Eventually, she became a familiar on-screen face thanks to movies like Doubt, which she
09:29 was Oscar nominated for.
09:38 A year after winning her second Tony Award, she appeared in 2011's The Help, which earned
09:43 her another Oscar nomination, and was her breakout role at age 46.
09:55 Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.
09:59 Jane Lynch This actress was full of glee when her big
10:02 break came around.
10:09 Ken Jeong This Hangover star went to the red carpet
10:17 in his 40s.
10:24 Ricky Gervais This comedian became a household name at age
10:27 40.
10:39 Katherine Joosten At almost 60 years old, Joosten went from
10:43 aspiring actress to a TV star.
10:55 Estelle Getty This golden girl didn't get her big break
11:11 before her big break.
11:28 Morgan Freeman Born in Memphis, Tennessee, Morgan Freeman
11:43 pursued a career in the United States Air Force before he decided to commit to acting
12:00 full-time.
12:01 Through the 1970s, Freeman built up his resume, appearing in theatrical productions and the
12:04 acclaimed children's series The Electric Company.
12:07 Despite his budding career, he did not strike showbiz gold until he was cast as Leo Smalls
12:12 or Fast Black in the thriller Street Smart, garnering an Oscar nomination.
12:17 In the past, Freeman has credited the villainous role as his big break, which happened when
12:22 he was just about 50 years young.
12:32 Which one of these actors' big break surprised you the most?
12:35 Let us know in the comments.
12:50 [music]