Actors who have been in over 100 films

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March 31, 2022
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Actors who have been in over 100 films

Being a movie star may seem like a glamorous life: being rich, famous, and in the spotlight everywhere you go. But the reality of being a working actor is much, much different.

For every star who can essentially cherry-pick their roles鈥擝rad Pitt, Leonardo DiCaprio, Nicole Kidman鈥攖here are hundreds more who take jobs as they come. They consistently audition for new roles even when their resume is strong and focus on showing their best performances on the screen, not just on red carpets or splashy magazine covers.

It is not uncommon for an actor to work on multiple films in any given year. With production schedules ranging from a few weeks for most independent films to several months or even a year for tentpole productions, many actors chase a variety of roles. Some actors even break the 100 mark, which is an impressive milestone and no easy achievement even for our most popular character actors.

looked into actors who have been in more than 100 feature films and chose 10 of the best performers to highlight. These actors have varied careers that when looked at as a whole dispel any assumptions made about their talent or range when simply thinking about their reputations.

As the film industry has evolved over the decades, actors' resumes, by and large, have grown smaller and more focused, but this is not strictly the case. Certainly, a resume like John Wayne鈥檚鈥攚ho appeared in more than 175 films during his career鈥攊s unlikely to ever again be the norm, though it was not uncommon in cinema鈥檚 early days, even now there are working actors whose oeuvre has crested the century mark鈥攊n some cases by quite a lot.

All of the actors in the forthcoming list have appeared in several genres, playing a wide variety of characters, sometimes offering starkly different performances in films within the same year. Many of the names are recognizable, as these actors have become movie stars in their own right. There are a few, however, who have made a huge mark upon the movie industry without becoming international celebrities鈥攄espite perhaps deserving to be. This list is the perfect opportunity to appreciate their impact and talent, whether they鈥檙e no longer with us or still out there working.

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Jackie Chan

After Bruce Lee鈥檚 sudden death in 1973, Jackie Chan assumed the mantle as the next big star in Hong Kong martial arts films.

From his low-budget martial arts movies from the late 70s and early 80s to the comedic American action films of the 90s and aughts, Chan successfully blended humor and serious stunt work with a skill unlike any actor before him.

Among his most notable films are 鈥淧olice Story,鈥 鈥淒runken Master,鈥 the 鈥淩ush Hour鈥 series, and 鈥淩umble in the Bronx,鈥 which was the film that first brought Chan renown with American audiences. Chan received an in 2016 for his contributions to film. Chan has expanded his reach in Hollywood, becoming a successful producer, but he still manages to appear in multiple films each year.

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Danny Glover

From his first breakout role in 鈥淧laces in the Heart,鈥 Danny Glover has created one of the most variegated careers in movie history.

He鈥檚 worked with some of the most prestigious directors on critically acclaimed films, including Steven Spielberg鈥檚 鈥淭he Color Purple,鈥 Wes Anderson鈥檚 鈥淭he Royal Tenenbaums,鈥 and Jonathan Demme鈥檚 鈥淏eloved.鈥 But Glover has also had his hand in almost every genre, from a role in the horror film 鈥淪aw鈥 to his starring role in the 鈥淟ethal Weapon鈥 franchise, where his aging police detective character Roger Murtaugh gave us one of contemporary culture鈥檚 .

While Glover has never won an Oscar for his work, he has won an Independent Spirit Award for his performance in 鈥淭o Sleep With Anger,鈥 which was also one of many projects where he鈥檚 produced as well as acted. Glover has remained the kind of movie star whose presence onscreen amplifies the quality no matter the film.

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Whoopi Goldberg

Before she became one of the hosts of the hit daytime talk show 鈥淭he View,鈥 Whoopi Goldberg was a bonafide movie star. From dramas like 鈥淭he Color Purple鈥 and 鈥淕host,鈥 for which she won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress, to box-office smash comedies 鈥淪ister Act鈥 and 鈥淗ow Stella Got Her Groove Back,鈥 Goldberg was a big draw throughout the 1990s.

Since then, Goldberg has come to be one of Hollywood鈥檚 most versatile character actors, appearing in films such as 鈥淕irl, Interrupted,鈥 鈥淪tar Trek: Nemesis,鈥 and 鈥淏ig Stone Gap.鈥 She has also developed a successful voice acting resume, with roles in animated films such as 鈥淭oy Story 3鈥 and the popular Disney TV series 鈥淓lena of Avalor.鈥

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James Hong

If his name doesn鈥檛 ring a bell, certainly his face or his legendary voice will.

James Hong has been acting in films since the 1950s, in a wide range of roles, and what has been consistent is his scene-stealing star power. Hong has appeared in classic movies such as 鈥淐hinatown,鈥 鈥淏lade Runner,鈥 鈥淎irplane!,鈥 and cult classic 鈥淏ig Trouble in Little China,鈥 where he took on the role of an aged malevolent spirit deadset on resurrecting himself from the purgatory of a half-life. He has also lent his voice to hit animated movies like 鈥淢ulan,鈥 鈥淜ung Fu Panda,鈥 and recent Disney+ hit 鈥淭urning Red.鈥

credits the 92-year-old Hong with a stunning 450 films and TV appearances.

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Samuel L. Jackson

Directors like Spike Lee and Quentin Tarantino have Samuel L. Jackson to thank for some of the most iconic moments in their films, including 鈥淧ulp Fiction鈥 and 鈥淒o the Right Thing.鈥

Cool, tough, and powerful, Jackson is impossible not to love in whatever role he plays and he鈥檚 had a wide range of roles. From his intense dramatic performances in films like 鈥淓ve鈥檚 Bayou鈥 and 鈥淭ime to Kill,鈥 to his recent success as Nick Fury in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Jackson has never gotten comfortable with just one kind of character.

There is, however, one turn of phrase he is quite well known for that has become such a staple of films that the final cut of one of his movies (鈥淪nakes on a Plane鈥) was altered to .

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Cloris Leachman

After competing in the 1946 Miss America pageant, Cloris Leachman bounced from theater to film to television throughout her long and diverse career.

In addition to starring in such classic films as 鈥淏utch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid鈥 and 鈥淵oung Frankenstein,鈥 Leachman also became a familiar face in American homes each week on 鈥淭he Mary Tyler Moore Show.鈥 Leachman won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in 1971 for 鈥淭he Last Picture Show.鈥 Playing the neglected wife of a school gym teacher, Leachman bested her co-star Ellen Burstyn for the award.

At 82 years old, Leachman reinvigorated the public鈥檚 interest by appearing on 鈥淒ancing with the Stars.鈥 She died in January 2021.

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Eric Roberts

Eric Roberts is part of a successful Hollywood pedigree: His sister is Oscar-winner Julia Roberts and his daughter Emma has appeared in a slew of recent films, including the 鈥淪cream鈥 series. Roberts began his career in 1978 with a role in 鈥淭he King of the Gypsies,鈥 for which he earned his first Golden Globe nomination; he received further nominations for Bob Fosse鈥檚 鈥淪tar 80鈥 and 鈥淩unaway Train,鈥 the latter of which also earned him an Oscar nod.

Roberts is the very epitome of the working movie actor, credited with more than 600 screen appearances. In recent years, he played a mobster in Christopher Nolan鈥檚 鈥淭he Dark Knight鈥 and had a recurring role on the TV hit 鈥淕rey鈥檚 Anatomy.鈥

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Susan Sarandon

Susan Sarandon first graced movie screens with her role as Janet Weiss in the cult classic 鈥淭he Rocky Horror Picture Show,鈥 and it鈥檚 been an upward trajectory for the actress ever since.

Sarandon has been a five-time Academy Award nominee, winning in 1995 for her starring role as real-life anti-death penalty advocate Sister Helen Prejean in 鈥淒ead Man Walking.鈥 She has also taken numerous roles that have caught the cultural zeitgeist, among them her turn as a waitress-turned-fugitive in Ridley Scott鈥檚 鈥淭helma & Louise.鈥

Off-screen, Sarandon is an active for hunger relief and social and political justice.

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Donald Sutherland

Truly talented actors have the ability to play evil villains and silly likable characters with an equal measure of authority. Donald Sutherland is just such an actor.

From incredibly emotional performances in films like Robert Redford鈥檚 鈥淥rdinary People,鈥 where he plays a grieving father, to his madcap rendering of Captain Hawkeye Pierce in Robert Altman鈥檚 military sendup 鈥淢ASH,鈥 to the devious, murderous President Snow in 鈥淭he Hunger Games鈥 series, Sutherland鈥檚 career has included many remarkable performances, that in 2017 earned him an for 鈥渁 lifetime of indelible characters, rendered with unwavering truthfulness.鈥

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Danny Trejo

No one on this list is as tough and intimidating on-screen as Danny Trejo.

After spending his adolescence battling drug addiction and spending years in and out of prison, Trejo used the film business to help turn his life around.

In 1985, while training Eric Roberts in boxing on the set of 鈥淩unaway Train,鈥 Trejo caught the attention of the film鈥檚 director, Andrey Konchalovskiy, and was hired to play the role of a convict. From then on, Trejo has practically cornered the market on slightly scary but very cool criminals in a range of movies, including 鈥淒esperado,鈥 鈥淢achete,鈥 and 鈥淗eat.鈥

As Trejo has become synonymous with the criminal character, he鈥檚 found a way to poke fun at how people perceive him, by also appearing in comedies like 鈥淎nchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy鈥 and 鈥淕rand Daddy Day Care.鈥 In 2021, Trejo where he opened up about his past struggles and the value of being a working actor.

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