Underrated Performances Where An Action Star Gets Serious

Whether playing a cyborg from the future, a barbarian in the past, or an assortment of soldiers and law enforcement agents in modern times, Arnold Schwarzenegger has long been associated with action films. Set during a zombie pandemic, Maggie is a rare apocalyptic horror drama with an even rarer performance from Schwarzenegger. 

The action star plays father Wade Vogel, who brings his daughter Maggie (Abigail Breslin) home to care for after discovering she has become infected with the zombie virus. Despite the film containing monsters, the emphasis is on the psychological effects of the outbreak rather than the typical horror elements. This also provides Schwarzenegger the opportunity to give a thoughtfully internal performance.

Sylvester Stallone earned his celebrity status as an action star playing several iconic and larger-than-life title roles in successful franchises like Rocky and Rambo, which is what makes his understated performance in Cop Land even more impactful by comparison.

Stallone plays Sheriff Freddy Heflin, a man who was unable to fulfill a lifelong dream of joining the NYPD after losing hearing in one ear. Disappointed by this, Heflin helps cover up the misdeeds of a group of corrupt cops living in his city, until he begins to question the morality of his life choices. Stallone has played many law enforcement agents in past films, but in Cop Land, there is an emphasis on dramatic character development rather than action sequences. 

After decades playing the role of wisecracking cop in a number of iconic action films, most notably in Die Hard, Bruce Willis surprised audiences with a completely dramatic performance in The Sixth Sense. Despite the supernatural elements within the narrative, the material is handled with the utmost seriousness, giving Willis the opportunity to show his range as an actor.

Willis stars as child psychologist Malcolm Crowe, who is attempting to treat a young boy named Cole Sear (Haley Joel Osment) who believes he can communicate with the dead. In the process, Crowe is forced to come to terms with heartbreakingly tragic events from his own past, revealed by the film’s twist ending. 

Chinese actor Jet Li was a martial artist who used these skills to become an action star, first in his home country with the highly popular Once Upon a Time in China film series, and later in Hollywood after being cast as a villain in Lethal Weapon 4. Li’s action movie star status was solidified by his involvement in The Expendables franchise, but he surprised audiences with his first completely dramatic performance in Ocean Heaven.

The 2010 Chinese-Hong Kong drama follows a terminally ill father and aquarium employee named Sam Wong (Li) as he attempts to teach his adult autistic son the life skills needed to survive before he passes away. The story and role were unlike anything Li had made in the past, requiring a heartbreakingly vulnerable performance from the martial arts movie star. 

After rising to fame as a professional wrestler in the WWE, Dave Bautista shifted to film with memorable roles in action films, memorably playing Drax the Destroyer in the MCU and a James Bond villain in Spectre. In the long-awaited Blade Runner sequel, Bautista showed his range playing Sapper Morton, a Nexus-8 Replicant and combat medic hunted down by the film’s protagonist early in the film.

Although Bautista’s role as the reclusive rogue Replicant was brief and contained one of the film’s best action sequences, it was also an emotionally affecting performance. The nuance of Bautista’s dramatic acting in this supporting role proved his abilities as an actor extend beyond the physicality of stunt work and fight choreography. 

Michelle Yeoh was first discovered by Jackie Chan and quickly built a name for herself as an action star, performing her own stunts along with demonstrating impressive skills in martial arts. After building a filmography full of action films, Yeoh went on to star in the epic period drama, Memoirs of a Geisha. The film follows rising geisha Chiyo Sakamoto (Zhang Ziyi), who is forced to adjust to the changes brought by World War II and modern society.

Yeoh plays Mameha, an established geisha who takes Sakamoto under her wing and teaches her how to advance her status. The role didn’t call for any of the physical feats Yeoh was best known for, but instead gave her the chance to showcase dramatic acting abilities.