These 13 Comedians Took A Major Risk To Play Dramatic Characters, And They All Absolutely Paid Off
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Sofía Vergara is set to star in one of her most dramatic roles to date. The actor, who is best known for her work in the long-running hit comedy series, Modern Family, will star in an upcoming Netflix miniseries inspired by the life of Griselda Blanco.
Griselda was a Colombian woman who became known as "the Godmother" for leading a Miami-based cartel in the '70s and '80s, and Sofía will play her in the series titled Griselda. Much more is still to come about the project, which drops on Jan. 25.
What's clear right now, though, is that Sofía transformed her appearance for this dramatic role, as evidenced by the teaser trailer below.
Check out the side-by-side of the Sofía in-and-out of character as Griselda:
Of course, Sofía is not nearly the first comedian to become pretty unrecognizable while throwing themselves into a serious project. So here are 13 other funny actors who went for broke physically (and often emotionally) to play a character in a dramatic TV show or movie:
1.Niecy Nash-Betts in 2022:
Niecy Nash-Betts in Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story:
Last year, Niecy Nash-Betts won a Critics' Choice award, and, received an Emmy nom (among other honors) for her portrayal of Jeffery Dhamer's neighbor in the biographic series, Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story. "I was seen as a one-trick pony for a long time, and I just kept saying, ‘There is more.’ I think that maybe some of the views of me were just a bit narrow," Niecy told Variety earlier this year about taking on the dramatic role. "I don’t want to put words in people’s mouths, but it was just a bit narrow and I was happy to invite the industry and my peers to see me differently.”
Here's a side-by-side:
2.Adam Sandler in 2019:
Adam Sandler in Uncut Gems:
In 2019, Adam Sandler generated major critical acclaim for his turn as an opportunistic jeweler in the Safdie brothers' film, Uncut Gems. He told NPR in 2019 that he was initially "nervous" to play such an unlikeable character. "...I do have a wife. I do have kids. I get nervous about even pretending to be a bad guy. I get nervous about that and what — how it could affect my household and stuff like that. So I'm a little bit nuts like that. I don't think that's the way you should think in life. But this is kind of what I do think," he said.
Here's a side-by-side:
3.Melissa McCarthy in 2018:
Melissa McCarthy in Can You Ever Forgive Me?:
In 2018, Melissa McCarthy took on the role of Lee Israel, a real-life author who got involved in literary forgeries in the 1990s. "To me, the key is it’s not any different," Melissa told Deadline in 2018 about playing both comedic and dramatic characters. "I’ve done so much stage work that was dramatic. It’s still the same process. I’m a character actress. I connect to the character, and when you do that, all you can do is serve the character. It dictates everything; how they look, how they laugh, who they love."
Here's a side-by-side:
4.Aubrey Plaza in 2017:
Aubrey Plaza in Legion:
Aubrey Plaza may have burst into mainstream notoriety in 2009 thanks to her deadpan humor in the series Parks and Recreation, but it wasn't long before she began showing off her serious acting abilities. In 2017, Aubrey told Collider she loved following up Parks and Rec with the more serious show, Legion, a trippy superhero Marvel series. "I don't really think about it in terms of comedy or drama so much, but I can say that I am really loving being in a show that's more of a drama. Really, just because I was on a comedy for so long. It's nice to switch it up," she said.
Here's a side-by-side:
5.Jennifer Aniston in 2014:
Jennifer Aniston in Cake:
Jennifer Aniston is best known for her work in comedy, including the seminal TV series Friends. However, in 2015, she received Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild nominations for her portrayal of a woman with chronic pain in the film Cake. "You have to do something really dark to be taken seriously, I guess," she told the New York Times in 2015 of her career post-Friends. “If you’re in someone’s living room every week for 10 years and every day on God knows what network, people are going to have a hard time saying, ‘O.K., we’re going to see you do what now?’ without making associations. It’s a Catch-22. It’s like: ‘I know I can play this part, you just have to let me.’ And then it’s ‘I can’t let you play that part, because I’ve never seen you do it.’ There were jobs that I really wanted and would fight and fight for and then the obvious previous Oscar winners would get them.”
Here's a side-by-side:
6.Seth Rogen in 2015:
Seth Rogen in Steve Jobs:
In 2015, Seth Rogen played Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak in Danny Boyle's Steve Jobs biopic. How much did he know about the co-founder, who also dated Kathy Griffin in the 2000s? "Almost nothing," Seth told GQ in 2015. "I’d seen him on that Kathy Griffin reality show. I can’t honestly tell you that I knew there was a co-founder of Apple. I think I thought it was just Steve Jobs."
Here's a side-by-side:
7.Steve Carell in 2014:
Steve Carell in Foxcatcher:
In 2014, Steve Carell took on the role of John du Pont in the biopic and thriller Foxcatcher. The film chronicled Olympic wrestlers Mark (Channing Tatum) and Dave Schultz (Mark Ruffalo) as they began to work with wealthy benefactor and wrestling fan John du Pont in the 1980s. Their relationship ended in tragedy as John was convicted in 1997 of murdering Dave the year prior. As for his approach to a dramatic role after years in comedy, it seems Steve didn't overthink it. "I’ve never cared about being taken seriously – I just see myself as an actor," he told the Guardian in 2015. "Most of my career, I’ve just taken what I’ve been offered. I always feel most comfortable as part of a ensemble. Whether it’s a comedy or a drama, I like to fit in. It’s best not to stick out.”
Here's a side-by-side:
8.Jack Black in 2012:
Jack Black in Bernie:
In 2012, Jack Black starred in Bernie, Richard Linklater's biopic about Bernie Tiede, a mortician who was convicted of murdering a widow in 1996 with whom he'd been a companion. In 2012, Jack opened up to the AV Club about starring in a dramatic role based on a real person. "I played characters that are loosely based on someone, sure, but this one was just straight up, this is the guy and this is his actual name and this could actually conceivably have some ramifications. That’s a different kind of pressure than I felt before," he said. You can stream Bernie on Peacock.
Here's a side-by-side:
9.Mo'Nique in 2009:
Mo'Nique in Precious:
Prior to her role in Precious, Mo'Nique was perhaps best known as a stand-up comic and actor in comedy projects like the series The Parks and the film Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins. In 2009, though, she received rave reviews for her role opposite Gabourey Sidibe in the drama film Precious, winning the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress. In 2009, Mo'Nique told the Associated Press taking on the role was "rewarding." "It was excited [sic]. It was challenging because I love to laugh, baby, I love to laugh. But it was appreciated because I don't know of any other director that would have given two fat, black women the opportunity to do what we did...," she said of working with Lee Daniels.
Here's a side-by-side:
10.Drew Barrymore in 2009:
Drew Barrymore in Grey Gardens:
While Drew Barrymore has always dabbled in dramatic roles, she's largely praised for her successful line of comedies and rom-coms in the late 1990s and early 2000s, like Never Been Kissed, Charlie's Angles, and 50 First Dates. However, she saw her career as a dramatic actor reach new heights in 2009 with the TV film biopic, Grey Gardens, based on the life of East Coast mother-and-daughter socialites Big Edie Beale and Little Edie Beale. As Little Edie, Drew won a Golden Globe and SAG award and was nominated for an Emmy. In 2009, Drew told Reuters that she became a bit reclusive while filming, which required 13 prosthetic devices and up to six hours in the makeup chair. “I was so fraught with fear,” she said. “I couldn’t eat or function and felt I was totally losing my mind."
Here's a side-by-side:
11.Sacha Baron Cohen in 2007:
Sacha Baron Cohen in Sweeney Todd:
In 2007, Sacha Baron Cohen received a Best Adapted Screenplay nomination for co-writing the mockumentary film Borat. Though he's continued his run of eccentric original characters in films like Brüno and The Dictator, Sacha followed Borat with a more serious supporting role in Tim Burton's adaption of the musical Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. Sacha played a rival barber, Adolfo Pirelli, in the movie and looked nearly unrecognizable in the role. Sacha opened up in 2020 about his occasional dramatic acting while promoting the drama series The Spy in which he plays real-life spy Eli Cohen. "For me to make the transition from comedy to drama was something that I’ve been reluctant to do. I’ve dabbled in it in Hugo and Les Misérables and a little bit in Sweeney Todd, but to actually take a lead role where the character was essentially relatable was something that I was not used to doing," he told the Hollywood Reporter.
Here's a side-by-side:
12.Eddie Murphy in 2006:
Eddie Murphy in Dreamgirls:
Eddie Murphy scored some of his career-best reviews for his portrayal of a slick R&B performer in Dreamgirls. Eddie, who at the time was coming off comedy roles in franchises like Shrek and Dr. Dolittle, garnered an Oscar nomination for his work in the film adaption of the hit Broadway musical. In 2007, Dreamgirls director Bill Condon told Variety about a conversation he once had with Eddie regarding the role, saying the actor "didn’t want people to be watching Eddie. He wanted to disappear into someone completely different from any character he’d ever done before.”
Here's a side-by-side:
13.Jamie Foxx in 2004:
Jamie Foxx in Ray:
While Jamie Foxx may be well-known for his ability to bounce between dramatic and comedy roles, that wasn't always a given. Having come up as an actor in the comedy series In Living Color and The Jamie Foxx Show, Jamie dabbled in serious acting with films like Ali and Redemption. However, it was in 2004 that he proved himself to be a true serious actor with the films Collateral and, more notably, the Ray Charles biopic Ray. Jamie was Oscar-nominated for both films, winning for his portrayal of Ray Charles. Ray director Taylor Hackford told the New York Times in 2004, "I would not be telling the truth if I said I knew he could do it, but I had to roll the dice and, fortunately, Jamie reached down in himself and pulled out an incredible performance."
Here's a side-by-side:
