The 20 Best Serious Movie Performances By Comedians

It's always jarring to see your favorite funnyman in a role that is decidedly anything but side-splitting, but we personally love it when actors switch up their flow once in awhile. Brad Pitt can do Burn After Reading, so why can't Will Ferrell in turn play an alcoholic divorcee in Everything Must Go, right?

With Chris Rock shifting gears to more dramatic fare in the upcoming Julie Delpy flick 2 Days in New York, we thought we'd celebrate his career experimentation by highlighting the other definitive moments in Hollywood history when a comedian decided to button it up. Click through for The 20 Best Serious Performances By Comedians.

Written by Frazier Tharpe (@The_SummerMan)

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Kevin Costner's serial killer thriller, Mr. Brooks, is a criminally underrated, highly enjoyable B-movie, and while Costner and William Hurt unsurprisingly steal the show, it's Dane Cook of all people who surprises with a complete left-field portrayal as a truly sick deviant eager for Costner's Brooks to school him in homicide.

There is truly no trace of the wise-cracking foul mouth from Retaliation, and Cook's shitty film selection since then has been a real letdown. Chill with the rom-coms and get another script like this, bro.

Since Old School, Vaughn has embraced comedy full-on and never strayed, but the late '90s/early aughts saw the laid-back cool guy take on a few less showy straight-man roles. In addition to holding Jeff Goldblum down in The Lost World, he starred alongside J. Lo in The Cell, a polarizing high-concept thriller. The movie has its problems but Vince is solid, hinting at what could've been if he tried his hand at being a leading man in drama instead.

Before he was Agent "CAR-TAH" and had a $25 million quote, Chris Tucker took much edgier roles and career risks. We'd definitely be hard pressed to see him take on something similar to his turn as a homicidal, bank robbing, bitter veteran and heroin addict here in Dead Presidents but it might be more interesting than a Rush Hour 4.

Despite earning the world's respect tenfold with the Lord of the Rings trilogy, Peter Jackson's update of King Kong was met with rampant skepticism during the development phase, including but not limited to his left-field decision to cast Jack Black as single-minded director Carl Denham.

Well, Black didn't warrant any award season sweeps, but he definitely stepped up to the plate in a way no one expected him to. It takes real acting chops to pull off original dialog like "It was beauty killed the beast" in the present day and make it work.

Robin Williams has played creepy before, most notably in One Hour Photo. That was nothing compared to his entertainingly unsettling performance in pre-Batman Christopher Nolan's terrific psychological thriller Insomnia. Photo was a definite departure from his normal role selection, but as one-time killer Walter Finch, Williams effectively erased any fond memories of his warmer roles during the two-hour running time. Quite a far cry from Mrs. Doubtfire.

Seth Rogen is no stranger to dramedies but his role as supportive friend Kyle to a cancer stricken Joseph Gordon-Levitt in 50/50 called on his dramatic chops more than anything character he had previously played. As Seth moves into the next phase of his career, this is definitely a facet of his skill set that we'd like to see more of, with him possibly experimenting with even more dramatic parts.

Chris Rock in a Julie Delpy rom-com? At this point he's conquered everything else though, so trying his hand at something different is exactly what he should be doing. In 2 Days In New York he's solid as Delpy's boyfriend, a family man much more reserved and low-key than we're used to seeing him, almost a further depiction of the mature cameo he gave last year on Louie.

Peter Brand was Jonah Hill's first major dramatic performace. The result was another first: an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor. Meanwhile, he has continued to kill it in comedy, as evidenced with this year's hilarious 21 Jump Street. We predict young Hill is at the beginning of a long and storied career of effortlessly toggling both genres, and which one the next nomination will fall in is anyone's guess.

The Scrubs star made it known that cartoonish comedy wasn't his only gift in 2004 with Garden State, which he also wrote and directed, while contributing to the score as well. The result is a largely affecting film that showcases Braff's many talents, but acting-wise, he handles the transition from the bubbly JD to the emotionally muted, psychologically scarred Andrew effortlessly. Plus, you'd be hard pressed to meet a girl from the tri-state area that doesn't consider it a classic.

Steve Martin buttons it up for his big-screen adaptation of the novella by the same name, both written by the man himself. As Ray Porter, Martin is much more suave and sophisticated than we're used to seeing him, vying for the affections of the younger Claire Danes against the more age-appropriate Jason Schwartzman. He aces the part, almost as if it were written for him....

You've never seen Ben Stiller as dark as this. In this late '90s, oft-forgotten dark biopic comedy, Stiller plays Jerry, a recovering addict struggling to make his name as a comedy writer. Of course, moving to LA to pursue the dream only perpetuates the drug use (shocker) and in no time Jerry loses everything he gained as he hits rock bottom. We've seen Ben do a lot of crazy shit on screen over the years, but shooting up after his chick tells him she's pregnant? Wowzers.

Steve Carell likes to counter his big-budget comedy vehicles with smaller, more dramatic indie movies every now and then, a trend that started with Little Miss Sunshine. At that point he was most famously known as Brick, Ron Burgundy's dim-witted sidekick and for his classic "Kelly Clarkson!" screech in The 40 Year-Old Virgin (both great performances, but very big and showy).

His supporting role in the already buzz-worthy Little Miss Sunshine is positively shocking in how much of a departure it is from his usual performances. His character Frank, a gay scholar, suffers from depression and recently tried to commit suicide. As Frank, Carell is small, silent, and cynical but manages to chew the scenery all the same.

The acclaim for Sofia Coppola's early aughts hit film was thunderous, and Bill Murray's magnetic performance as the mentally adrift celebrity Bob Harris was just one of the many award-worthy aspects. Harris' intriguing battle with ennui earned Murray a ton of accolades to add to a long career full of them, proving that actors can still surprise and delight even past their prime.

We all know Will Ferrell is the reigning comedy king of the moment, but who knew he could handle himself in the drama department as well as he did here? With Biggie's son riding shotgun, the Anchorman does indisputable justice to this big-screen adaptation of the Raymond Carver short story, which sees Ferrell's alcoholic character Nick's life turned completely upside down in every aspect. The proof is in the performance: Ferrell does not skate to one song, and one song only.

Adam Sandler is currently trapped in comedian purgatory, the real-life embodiment of his Funny People alter-ego George Simmons, releasing one frustratingly unfunny silly concept comedy after another. He's stuck in a rut and he needs to do something drastic if he ever wants out. A suggestion? Try dipping into drama again like he did with Reign Over Me.

The film itself received mixed reviews, but most were in agreement that Sandler's turn as a man whose life is turned upside down by the September 11 attacks was a success, a performance no doubt informed by previous dramedies Spanglish and Punch-Drunk Love. If you need a reminder that Sandler can do much more than the one-note (not-so-) funnyman, here it is. Now someone remind him.

Ray is the showier role, but the Foxxman teed up his 2004 Hollywood ascension with this equally acclaimed performance as Max, the nebbish, self-doubting cabbie that gets stuck with Tom Cruise's (also delivering a career-high performance) indomitable hitman in Michael Mann's classic Collateral.

The muted, low-key performance was a huge shift from the roles audiences were then accustomed to Foxx taking and he earned a second Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor for more than holding his own against a show-stopping Cruise.

Eddie Murphy has been in seven films since he crushed it as fallen music idol Jimmy Early in Dreamgirls, but sadly they don't come anywhere close to that level of quality. We're talking miles apart. Given all the praise and nominations (and the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor) he garnered from playing the drug-addled musician, maybe another dramatic role is the key to a potential career resurrection.

Of all the classic Jim Carrey performances across all genres, his contribution to the universally acclaimed Eternal Sunshine will stack up against his many, more popular comedic characters. Like many others on this list, Carrey is another example of a comedian known for his scenery-chewing opting to make his major dramatic turn small and nuanced in comparison. The result is a jarring, "Is this the same guy?" experience—and a resounding success.

Sean Maguire is not Robin Williams' first critically acclaimed dramatic role; that honor goes to Dead Poets Society, which even Jay-Z agrees was a Golden Globe-worthy performance. However, his work as the sympathetic mentor in the Gus Van Sant-directed Academy Awards darling penned by Matt Damon and Ben Affleck is his definitive dramatic turn, and is arguably the definitive dramatic turn for a comedian. He didn't get the Globe but we're sure his Best Supporting Actor Oscar (his only Academy Award thus far) helped him get over it.

These days Jamie Foxx wears several different hats in the industry—actor, radio host, singer, comedian—but there was a time when it seemed like the farthest he'd take it in Hollywood was playing lead in B-level comedies. Then came his 2004 knockout performance in Ray, which netted him the ultimate victory: the Academy Award for Best Actor.

Foxx brought nuance and honesty to his portrayal of the flawed but legendary musician that, to put it plainly, no one thought he was capable of. Now his career is the inverse, with occasional comedy roles tempering daring dramatic performances.