The allure of a young and talented actor is an effective combination Hollywood can’t resist. At least that’s what most rising stars in the industry have been led to believe. But while that may be true for some, others have proven that talent, persistence, and the right opportunity can be just as powerful. Instead of becoming industry big shots in their 20s and 30s, these performers had to wait until their 40s or even later before becoming the stars their hard work deserved.
What’s even more remarkable is that they didn’t just finally get a taste of the spotlight; a couple of them, despite seemingly insurmountable challenges, have gone on to outshine several of their colleagues who got their big breaks earlier. From Oscar winners to blockbuster icons, these five actors turned what many would consider late starts into extraordinary careers. Here’s how they pulled it off.
1. Samuel L. Jackson
Ask fans of Samuel L. Jackson to do their best impression of the star, and listen as most of them rattle off that iconic Pulp Fiction monologue, the one where he goes on about shepherds and men of ill will. That scene turned him into a living legend overnight, but even more significant is that he was 45 when that movie dropped. Before that, he was a struggling actor and a struggling addict. He got sober in 1991, and he tells anyone who cares to listen that decision was the real turning point of his career. Then Quentin Tarantino handed him that Jules Winnfield role, and his career took off in a way even he didn’t see coming. These days he’s one of the highest-grossing actors in box-office history, and that’s because directors know he will deliver, whether he’s on set for five minutes or for two hours.
2. Morgan Freeman
Morgan Freeman spent years slugging it out behind the scenes. He started off his entertainment career as a professional dancer, did some off-Broadway plays, then spent years in kids’ TV with a recurring spot on The Electric Company. That’s not exactly the kind of resumé many film lovers would guess belongs to a guy who has made reading a grocery list sound like poetry. He got his first real recognition as an actor when he starred in Street Smart in 1987, at the age of 49.
Freeman’s performance in that movie earned him an Oscar nod, but Driving Miss Daisy in 1989 turned him into a proper leading man, at 52. After that, it was hit after hit: Shawshank Redemption (1994), Se7en (1995), Million Dollar Baby (2004), plus an Oscar win to go with it. He’d spent so many years being the best part of other people’s movies that when the leading roles eventually started coming his way, he made every one of them look effortless.
3. Melissa McCarthy
Anyone who watched TV shows in the early 2000s definitely knew Melissa McCarthy’s face, just maybe not the name yet. She was on pretty much every show: Gilmore Girls, Mike & Molly, and several other guest spots. She has this amazing gift of walking into a scene and becoming the funniest person in it. Then Bridesmaids hit theaters, and it became clear to everyone watching that she could carry a movie, not just liven one up.
That food-poisoning fitting-room scene alone was worth the price of admission. She was 40 when the movie came out, and got an Oscar nomination for her incredible performance. Since then, she’s bounced between slapstick comedies and darker, twistier roles like Lee Israel in Can You Ever Forgive Me?, and on each occasion, her performance has delivered.
4. Hannah Waddingham
For over two decades, British theaters kept Hannah Waddingham all to themselves. She was stacking up Olivier nominations and owning West End stages while most of the US had no clue who she was, outside of her relatively small role as Septa Unella on Game of Thrones. All that changed with her appearance in Ted Lasso. She was 46 years old when she played Rebecca Welton, the cold ex-wife of billionaire Rupert Mannion (Anthony Head), who initially took over running her ex-husband’s football team out of spite.
Rebecca had to be funny, mean, and vulnerable, sometimes all in the same scene, and Waddingham nailed it every time, thanks to all those years of stage training. Not surprisingly, Waddingham won an Emmy (her first), for this role. She’s also become the kind of famous where random people stop her on the street for autographs, and directors are lining up to give her gigs.
5. Pedro Pascal
Like pretty much everyone on this list, Pedro Pascal spent the early years of his acting career scraping by on small roles on shows like The Good Wife and Graceland. It was the kind of job that paid the bills but didn’t get him spotted at a grocery store. His star started rising with that short but unforgettable run as Prince Oberyn Martell aka The Red Viper, on Game of Thrones in 2014. But Narcos in 2015 is where things really kicked off for him, and he turned 40 that year, playing DEA agent Javier Peña. He hasn’t looked back since, becoming a Star Wars icon with The Mandalorian, despite spending most of season 1 behind a helmet. And The Last of Us proved he could anchor a heavy, prestige drama without breaking a sweat.
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