Scenes you'll never forget! Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the best moments in an actor’s breakout movie that proved to the world they were truly A-list material.
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00:00Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the best moments in an
00:10actor's breakout movie that proved to the world they were truly A-list material.
00:15Oh, and warning, major spoilers will ensue.
00:22As an up-and-coming actress at the time, Julia Roberts had already delivered winning performances
00:37in Steel Magnolias and Mystic Pizza, but it wasn't until this now-classic rom-com that
00:42Roberts truly shined.
00:44As struggling sex worker Vivian Ward, she garnered praise for her charming, down-to-earth
00:48performance, chemistry with Richard Gere and killer line delivery.
00:52This is shown in the iconic scene where Vivian is rejected by snobbish saleswomen.
01:02They get the comeuppance when Vivian returns to the shop in an elegant dress and flush
01:06with cash.
01:08Ironically, Roberts was far from the first choice for the role, with many other actresses
01:12considered.
01:13It would have been a big mistake, alright, huge.
01:32This feminist classic is known for the spectacular performances of Susan Sarandon and Geena Davis,
01:37as two friends on the run for shooting a man who attempted to assault one of them.
01:41But the great performances don't stop there.
01:42A young Brad Pitt shows up here as the charming J.D., with whom Thelma has a much-needed fling.
01:49J.D.'s charm has a dark side, which the two friends discover when he steals Louise's
02:00savings.
02:01His complete seduction of Thelma shows Pitt's on-screen charisma, defining him as a sex
02:05symbol for a generation.
02:20Before Harley Quinn and the cultural juggernaut of Barbie, Margot Robbie was a young, up-and-coming
02:24actress starring in Martin Scorsese's crime drama.
02:27Playing the second wife of the criminally-debauched Jordan Belfort may have been a thankless,
02:32throwaway role for any other actress, but Robbie imbues Naomi with warmth, elegance
02:36and shrewdness, as she shows in her response to Belfort's advances.
02:47Amid a sausage convention of Wall Street bankers, Robbie never gets lost in the film, leading
02:52Belfort into an arrangement on her terms.
02:55It's a brief but eye-catching performance that foreshadows Robbie's future triumphs
02:59as more than a blonde bombshell.
03:18This critically acclaimed biopic contains a slew of excellent performances.
03:22One newbie character, at the time, delivers a great performance playing Mark Zuckerberg's
03:26early Facebook investor, Eduardo Saverin.
03:29Despite Saverin's early involvement, however, he sees his percentage of shares in the company
03:33shrink due to a new investment deal, with Zuckerberg and the other owners' shares left
03:38intact.
03:46Garfield deftly portrays Saverin's shock, hurt, grief and rage at the betrayal.
03:51This film-stealing scene put Garfield on the map as a promising young actor.
03:56His later turn as Spider-Man made him skyrocket into fame, but this early role in the David
04:00Fincher film truly shows his talents.
04:16Although Curtis had starred in TV before, this award-winning actress' film debut was
04:20in John Carpenter's slasher classic, Halloween.
04:23As Laurie, one of Michael Myers' stalking victims, Curtis stands out in her terror and
04:27her quick thinking, even stabbing Myers in the neck with a needle.
04:37When Myers continues the chase, Laurie turns a wire hanger into a weapon, stabbing Myers
04:42with his own knife.
04:43Smart writing and directing, sure, but Curtis' acting is what really gives the scenes their
04:48memorable feel.
04:50Curtis will go on as a major star in various roles, from Freaky Friday to Everything Everywhere
04:54All at Once.
05:11This Academy Award-winning film by director Barry Jenkins also showcased the talents of
05:16Mahershala Ali.
05:17Before Moonlight, Ali had starred in supporting roles in film and TV, notably The Curious
05:22Case of Benjamin Button, The Hunger Games franchise and even House of Cards.
05:26His turn as a drug dealer in this 2016 coming-of-age drama really brought him worldwide acclaim.
05:38Ali Kwan proves a father figure to her lost and mistreated Chiron.
05:42One of the most artistic scenes in the movie is Kwan teaching Chiron how to swim, cradling
05:48his head above water.
05:49It's a powerful scene rife with symbolism, showcasing Ali's naturalistic acting.
06:11It's hard to recall a time when Alan Rickman wasn't the legendary actor.
06:15Before his iconic roles in Harry Potter, Love Actually and countless other films,
06:18he was the villainous Hans Gruber.
06:20Rickman's sophisticated, classically educated Hans is as chilling as he is charismatic.
06:25In this scene, he elegantly explains Mr Takagi's shuffling off the mortal coil.
06:35Rickman is not the only breakout actor with a fantastic performance.
06:38Bruce Willis' John McClane was also praised for balancing aggression with vulnerability,
06:42a breakout role that revitalised his career.
06:45Still, critics at the time were immediately taken with Rickman's Shakespearean gravitas,
06:50and the rest is cinema history.
07:06This now-acclaimed actress' first role was a big one.
07:09In this 2013 memoir-turned-biopic, she plays Patsy, a slave who suffers at the sadist hands
07:15of plantation owner Edwin Epps.
07:18When she tries to escape the plantation to get soap to clean herself with, Epps forces
07:21Northup to whip Patsy.
07:23Nyong'o's pleas, despair and defiance of her masters, as well as her beating, is
07:28nothing less than heart-wrenching.
07:30Her performance in this minor role proved so searing that it made Nyong'o a star virtually
07:35overnight.
07:36Nyong'o has since gone on to Broadway and other film projects, most notably the blockbuster
07:40Black Panther.
07:41From a slave wanting soap, to Wakanda, he's a great climb.
08:03Musical films are always hard to pull off successfully.
08:05Hollywood's tendency to cast actors with less-than-stellar voices doesn't help matters
08:08either.
08:09Jennifer Hudson's powerhouse vocals in this film adaptation of the 1981 Broadway musical
08:13secured her fame for good.
08:24This American Idol contestant plays Effie White, lead singer of the Dreamettes, and
08:28her defiance as her manager tries to replace her with a slimmer, more conventionally voiced
08:33lead is iconic.
08:35Her song, and I Am Telling You I'm Not Going, is a show-stopping number in both the Broadway
08:38musical and the film.
08:40Hudson later made her Broadway debut in the colour purple, among other successes.
09:04Before Leonardo DiCaprio stole our hearts away in Titanic and Romeo and Juliet, he began
09:08as young Arnie from What's Eating Gilbert Grape.
09:11In this 1993 drama, DiCaprio stars as the autistic younger brother of Gilbert, played
09:16by Johnny Depp.
09:20In the most gut-wrenching scene, Arnie finds his mother and slowly realises she isn't
09:25asleep.
09:26To prepare for the role, DiCaprio studied the movements of other youths with similar
09:35conditions.
09:36His realistic acting earned the 19-year-old an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting
09:40Actor, an obvious prelude to his later successes.
09:55American treasure Tom Hanks wasn't always as well-known.
09:58His breakout role in the Penny Marshall film, Big, gave him wide and early acclaim and set
10:02him up for even more spectacular roles in the future.
10:05Hanks' down-to-earth charm and charisma as Josh, a teen magically stuck in an adult's
10:10body, is best shown in this musical scene.
10:12Hanks plays heart and soul and chopsticks on the walking piano alongside Mr. McMillan.
10:25Hanks' portrayal of childlike innocence is utterly convincing.
10:29Hanks later became a powerhouse of an actor, starring in diverse roles throughout the years,
10:33including award-winning films such as Forrest Gump and Saving Private Ryan.
10:37He is, indeed, the heart and soul of American cinema.
10:58This one film was the breeding ground for many great talents, including Ben Affleck
11:02and Robin Williams.
11:03It served as a breakout film for one actor in particular, in more ways than one.
11:13Matt Damon not only starred as young and troubled Will Hunting, but he wrote the script himself.
11:17Later, he teamed up with Ben Affleck to refashion the script into the movie it is today.
11:22Damon's acting and writing chops are on display here, as Will tells off a pretentious
11:26huckster for his weather-vain, unoriginal opinions on economics.
11:37Damon's line delivery is both naturalistic and razor-sharp, talents he would put to great
11:44use in later projects.
12:00Many actors gave terrific performances in this critically acclaimed 2008 drama, with
12:05Philip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Adams and Meryl Streep as highlights.
12:09Even among these heavyweight performers, relative newcomer Viola Davis holds her own as the
12:13pragmatic mother, Mrs Miller.
12:16Sister Aloysius speaks with Mrs Miller about the relationship between Father Flynn and
12:19her son, Donald.
12:21Davis' acting, as Mrs Miller tries to dismiss the accusation before tearfully making a confession,
12:26is heart-wrenching.
12:37Davis expresses the complexity of Mrs Miller's attitude towards her son's sexuality.
12:41Her real-life pragmatism contrasts sharply with Streep's rule-abiding none.
12:46Davis' acting in this scene no doubt launched her career, and earned her her first Academy
12:51Award.
12:56Han shoots Greedo, Harrison Ford, Star Wars Episode IV and New Hope.
13:02Okay, Han shot first.
13:04We all know that.
13:05Or at least, we should.
13:06But before he was everyone's favourite smuggler, Harrison Ford had starred in supporting roles
13:10before George Lucas tapped him to assist in auditions by reading Han's lines.
13:15George Lucas was in fact reluctant to cast Ford in the role, but was eventually won over
13:19when none of the other contenders proved convincing.
13:23Ford's rightness for the part is exemplified in this famous scene when Jabba the Hutt's
13:28henchman Greedo confronts Han over a debt.
13:37Ford's rakish charisma and quick draw made him millions of fans.
13:43Harrison Ford would go on to play other iconic roles, including Indiana Jones, but Han Solo
13:48is definitely a role for a lifetime.
14:01The world definitely owes much to Queen Elizabeth I of England, whose reign has had a tremendous
14:05impact on the modern world.
14:07Among Elizabeth's achievements, though, is Cate Blanchett's career.
14:10Blanchett rose to fame in this 90s biopic, based on the early years of the Virgin Queen's
14:15reign.
14:16Blanchett embodies the real-life Elizabeth's determination to retain her power in a man's
14:19world eager to rid her of it.
14:26As her favourite Robert Dudley defends his marriage and professes his love for her, Elizabeth
14:30is quick to remind him of the pecking order.
14:39Blanchett's aristocratic command and strength of spirit established her as a formidable
14:43actor, and her later roles in Lord of the Rings, Blue Jasmine and countless other roles.
14:56This film was risky business for Tom Cruise, but it would prove to be a sure bet for an
15:07action-packed acting career.
15:09In this scene, Cruise plays high school student Joel Goodson, who decides to have some old-time
15:13rock and roll fun when his parents leave on a trip.
15:23Apart from being super relatable, Cruise's convincingly ordinary and uninhabited dance
15:27moves sell the scene completely.
15:29His overall performance as a privileged suburban kid in over his head was praised by critics
15:34and audiences alike, and to think, Cruise beat out Tom Hanks, Sean Penn and Kevin Bacon
15:39for the role.
15:52You would think playing a sociopath would be the stuff of dreams for heavyweight actors
15:55with tons of experience under their belts, and while Christian Bale has been acting since
16:0013, he wasn't initially interested in this film adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis' satirical
16:04novel, which he never read.
16:07Favourites like Leonardo DiCaprio and Oliver Stone didn't pan out, so the role went to
16:11Bale, who imbues investment banker-slash-serial-killer Patrick Bateman with giddy, energetic evil.
16:25In this scene, he cheerfully explains the history of the song, Hip To Be Square, by
16:28Huey Lewis and the News, to his hapless victim played by Jared Leto.
16:33This dark comic role would foreshadow his Batman, as well as similarly black comedies
16:37like American Hustle.
16:52Streisand had already had a couple of hits under her belt before she proved her stage
16:56talents in the Broadway musical, Funny Girl.
16:58Her stage performance was so lauded that she reprised her role in this film, to undoubtedly
17:03star-turning success.
17:04One of her iconic songs, the big band Don't Rain On My Parade, shows her stunning range,
17:09as Fanny Bryce is determined to marry Nick Arnstein.
17:21Streisand handles Bob Merrill's witty, sophisticated lyrics and Julie Stein's demanding score
17:26with ease.
17:27Streisand would go on to star in other musicals, both on stage and in film, but this debut
17:31proved so iconic, it won her an Academy Award for Best Actress.
17:54Summing up Meryl Streep's varied filmography and her versatile greatness is an impossible
17:59task.
18:00If Kramer vs Kramer didn't bring her Oscar nomination, that would be 1978's The Deer
18:04Hunter, it would mark a significant turning point.
18:07Here, Streep plays the second Kramer opposite Dustin Hoffman as her husband, both of them
18:12struggling to keep things civil in an increasingly acrimonious custody battle.
18:23Streep plays a tearing, red-faced Joanna, being verbally beaten by the prosecutor into
18:28admitting she was a failure as a parent.
18:38Streep's anger and vulnerability shine through, and when Hoffman himself shakes his head,
18:43her answering nod is devastating.
18:46Streep's ability to imbue her role with humanity and sympathy justifies her status
18:50as an A-list artist.
19:18A performance so iconic it has been the subject of countless parodies, Marlon Brando's turn
19:23as Stanley Kowalski made him a major Hollywood star overnight.
19:27Brando originated the role on Broadway, and was called to reprise his role for the film
19:31adaptation, along with Kim Hunter as his wife Stella.
19:34Brando's physical portrayal of the boorish Stanley is exemplified in this scene, where
19:38he drunkenly calls out his wife's name.
19:48When Stella descends and embraces him, he exudes passion and vulnerability.
19:52Brando's dramatic chops would serve him well in embodying other iconic characters,
19:57such as the titular Godfather and Colonel Kurtz in Apocalypse Now.
20:00From crying over Stella, to making offers no one can refuse, wow, that's a leap.
20:10So what other indelible moments from an actor's breakout role do you feel prove their star
20:14status?
20:15Let us know in the comments down below.