Steven Spielberg is one of, if not the greatest, directors of all time.
As such, if the big man says that an actor is great – you have to sit up and listen to him.
That’s exactly what Spielberg did when he once named what he believes are the five greatest actors to ever grace the screen.
Advert
Surprisingly, the director did not name any of the actors that have appeared in his most famous work.
No Liam Neeson for Schindler’s List, no Sam Neill or Laura Dern for Jurassic Park, not even an iconic film like Indiana Jones earned any of the director’s actors a spot in his top five.
The revelation came in an interview after Spielberg voiced a deeply controversial opinion about an iconic film.
Advert
Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining is widely considered to be one of the greatest horrors of all time, with an iconic performance from Jack Nicholson as Jack Torrance.
Recounting a conversation with Kubrick after his first watch though, Spielberg actually said he was not a fan of Nicholson’s portrayal of the role.
He claimed he felt it was ‘over the top’, and even went as far as to compare it to Japanese Kabukmi theatre.
Advert
When Kubrick pushed back on this summation, he asked Spielberg to name his five favourite actors of all time without thinking.
Watch the clip here:
Spielberg recounts telling Kubrick the five names, saying: “So, I quickly went ‘Spencer Tracey, Henry Fonda, Jimmy Stewart, Cary Grant, Clark Gable’.
Advert
“He stopped me and said, ‘Stop, okay, where was James Cagney on that list?’
“And I thought, he’s up there high, and he said, ‘Ah, but he’s not in [your] top five. You don’t consider James Cagney one of the five best actors around, but I do.
“And this is why Jack Nicholson’s performance is a great one'."
In the interview, it seems as if Kubrick has almost Mr-Miyagied Spielberg into seeing things from his point of view – that just because he doesn’t appreciate Nicholson’s performance, doesn’t necessarily make it bad.
Advert
His five actors, however, speak to Spielberg’s love of classic cinema, as he portrayed in his recent semi-autobiographical film The Fabelmans.
Of the five, none were alive in the 21st century, yet are still considered five of the greatest actors to have ever lived.
Jimmy Stewart, the actor who died most recently in 1997, is the one most likely to be known by modern audiences for his role in It’s a Wonderful Life, but is also beloved for classics like Vertigo and Rear Window.
Topics: Film and TV, Jack Nicholson, Steven Spielberg, Celebrity, Entertainment
Michael Slavin