Though the 2010s aren’t far away, looking back on the most recent decade in movie history reveals interesting trends in cinema. The actors who defined the 2010s due to their impact at the box office, the critical acclaim their performances and projects received, and their popularity with audiences will not be forgotten. Some of the best movies of the 21st century were released in the 2010s, as there are 2010s box office flops that audiences now love. While time might highlight hidden gem performances of the decade in years to come, some actors will remain associated with the 2010s.
It was in this decade that they distinguished themselves as performers who could embody roles across a variety of genres and connect with audiences.
There are movies from the 2010s that should already be treated as classics, and many of them feature iconic performances from great actors. Most actors who had a spike in popularity in the 2010s had been working in the industry for years and establishing themselves as people to be relied upon. However, it was in this decade that they distinguished themselves as performers who could embody roles across a variety of genres and connect with audiences. More often than not, these performances earned them accolades and great critical acclaim.
10 Scarlett Johansson
The Avengers Franchise, Under The Skin (2013), Marriage Story (2019)
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Every Avengers movie in the MCU from the 2010s was an enormous part of the decade, as the Marvel Cinematic Universe was one of the biggest box office draws of the period. The actors who were lucky enough to be part of the first wave of these unforgettable films have been cemented as some of the most famous performers of the 2010s. Scarlett Johansson demonstrated her talents in many other exciting projects and expanded upon her previous typecasting.
Though her turn in
Ghost in the Shell
was a misstep, Johansson recovered and earned back the public’s respect with
Marriage Story.
From reprising her role as Black Widow several times to voicing Samantha in Her, Johansson pushed herself as a dramatic actress in the 2010s. In 2013, Johansson’s performance in Under the Skin was one of the best of her career but also the most risky, as Jonathan Glazer’s experimental sci-fi horror movie didn’t do well at the box office but blew critics away. Though her turn in Ghost in the Shell was a misstep, Johansson recovered and earned back the public’s respect with Marriage Story. She partnered with Adam Driver on the quiet and moving portrait of love and family.
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9 Ryan Gosling
Drive (2011), The Big Short (2015), La La Land (2016)
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Ryan Gosling might have the looks of a leading man, but the actor has always had the comedic timing of a character actor and used these skills to his advantage. After starring in rom-coms and indie dramas in the early 2000s, Gosling transitioned into bigger studio films in the 2010s, adding Blade Runner 2049, La La Land, and The Big Short to his resumé. Though he still took on romantic roles in La La Land and the tragic drama Blue Valentine, these characters were richer and more complex than those he portrayed in the past.
He’s still found plenty of success in the 2020s, playing Ken in the blockbuster Barbie and winning over audiences with the comedic action film The Fall Guy. However, the reputation that Gosling has come to enjoy was created in the 2010s thanks to the number and diversity of projects he put out. During the 2010s, it seemed that Gosling was the actor on everybody’s mind for movies that were a little off-beat and required someone who could play comedy and tragedy with ease.
8 Matthew McConaughey
Dallas Buyers Club (2013), The Wolf of Wall Street (2013), Interstellar (2014)
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Despite being pigeonholed in the rom-com genre for the majority of his early career, Matthew McConaughey soon pivoted to some of the greatest work of the 2010s in an amazing second act. This period, dubbed the McConaissance by audiences and critics alike, saw McConaughey’s fame and popularity reignited seemingly overnight (via The New Yorker). Thanks to this resurgence, viewers got to see iconic movies like Interstellar and even his campy and gritty role in the cult classic Magic Mike.
For his performance in
Dallas Buyers Club
, McConaughey won the Academy Award for Best Actor, which propelled him to new heights throughout the decade.
Many of McConaughey’s most unforgettable movie moments were in the 2010s during his second wind of fame, and a few of them earned him accolades. For his performance in Dallas Buyers Club, McConaughey won the Academy Award for Best Actor, which propelled him to new heights throughout the decade. Towards the end of the 2010s, McConaughey teamed up with the director Guy Ritchie on the action film The Gentlemen, and this bodes well for future work that sees him maintain his ties to the action genre.
7 Jennifer Lawrence
The Hunger Games Franchise, Silver Linings Playbook (2012), Mother! (2017)
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At just 22, Jennifer Lawrence won her first Oscar for her performance in Silver Linings Playbook, which came out the same year as the first movie in The Hunger Games franchise. Simultaneously balancing her skyrocketing fame in the YA dystopian genre as well as the critical acclaim she was receiving for her prestige dramas, Lawrence was one of the highest-paid film actresses of the 2010s (via The Guardian). However, Academy Awards and big paychecks weren’t the only reason that Lawrence was getting noticed.
After taking a brief break from the spotlight, Lawrence has come back with great comedies like Don’t Look Up and No Hard Feelings, which both prove that her popularity was no flash in the pan. After saying goodbye to The Hunger Games after Mockingjay – Part 2, the world opened up for Lawrence, and audiences were ready to see her as more than the star of a fantasy franchise. However, the sustained interest and success of her movies from this time ensure that no one will forget her impact during the 2010s.
6 Benedict Cumberbatch
Star Trek: Into Darkness (2013), The Imitation Game (2014), Doctor Strange (2016)
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Benedict Cumberbatch’s recent initiation into the MCU has made him even more of a star than ever before, thanks to his being cast in Doctor Strange in 2016. Since he wasn’t part of the initial wave of The Avengers and early Marvel movies, his role as Strange was protected after Avengers: Endgame and has seen him grow in importance in the franchise. However, before this, he could be seen in many period pieces, sci-fi films, and all other types of projects that have shaped him into the actor he is today.
Though he’s fully established himself as a film actor, the impact that starring in the BBC’s
Sherlock
had on Cumberbatch’s career can’t be overstated.
Though he’s fully established himself as a film actor, the impact that starring in the BBC’s Sherlock had on Cumberbatch’s career can’t be overstated. Additionally, his background in theater acting has come in handy many times as Cumberbatch has taken on a diverse array of characters, especially in the 2010s. Embodying the real historical figure Alan Turing in The Imitation Game earned him a nomination for Best Actor at the Oscars, and he made a terrifying villain in Star Trek: Into Darkness, expanding upon the beloved universe.
5 Samuel L. Jackson
The Avengers Franchise, Kingsman: The Secret Service (2014), The Hateful Eight (2015)
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Despite the fact that Nick Fury doesn’t have the same oversized superpowers as the team he assembled, Fury is a vital part of the Avengers franchise, and no one could play him but Samuel L. Jackson. The leader of S.H.I.E.L.D. and a brilliant strategist, it was Fury who brought together all the members of the Avengers and ensured that the team worked cohesively to save the world. Though he didn’t get his own movie like the other characters, Jackson starred in Secret Invasion a few years later, which explored Fury further.
Jackson excels at taking on morally ambiguous characters or plain villains like the mysterious Major Marquis Warren in The Hateful Eight and the terrifying Richmond Valentine in Kingsman: The Secret Service. The Hateful Eight wasn’t the first time Jackson collaborated with Quentin Tarantino, as their movie, Pulp Fiction, remains one of the most iconic movies of the 1990s. It speaks to Jackson’s talents and abilities that his star didn’t fade after the high of Pulp Fiction and only grew as the 2010s progressed.
4 Robert Downey Jr.
The Avengers Franchise, Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (2011), The Judge (2014)
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Though he took on plenty of roles in the 2010s, Robert Downey Jr.’s most significant part was that of Tony Stark AKA Iron Man in the Iron Man and Avengers films. There were few films produced by Marvel between when Iron Man was released and 2019 when Avengers: Endgame hit theaters that Downey Jr. wasn’t featured in. At the very least, Tony Stark was mentioned by the other characters, as he was the ultimate avenger in the eyes of the audience and the other characters in the films.
His other projects, like the sequel,
Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows
, and the dark family drama
The Judge
, are just as important in his filmography.
However, his other projects, like the sequel, Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, and the dark family drama The Judge, are just as important in his filmography. These helped him flex his dramatic muscles, which were necessary for his recent project, Oppenheimer, but Downey Jr. hasn’t been able to stay away from Marvel for long. After wrapping up his time as Tony in Avengers: Endgame, Downey Jr. was cast as Doctor Doom for his biggest Avengers MCU return.
3 Emma Stone
Birdman (2014), La La Land (2016), The Favourite (2018)
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Collaborating with some of the best directors and actors of the 2010s, Emma Stone will likely be remembered as one of the greatest actresses of her generation. Her first Oscar for Best Actress was for her performance as Mia in La La Land, alongside Gosling, and both actors stood apart in the film and its love letter to cinema. Early in her career, Stone played many comedic roles in teen comedies like Superbad and Easy A, but in the 2010s, she pivoted to more serious and critically acclaimed work.
The Favourite marked her first time working with Yorgos Lanthimos, who she’s gone on to partner with several times, even becoming a producer on their films. Though she’d always sought out interesting projects, The Favourite pushed Stone to lean into her unusual and arthouse sensibilities, which have only increased as she’s continued making a name for herself in Hollywood. Additionally, Stone was part of The Amazing Spider-Man trilogy, which exposed her work to viewers who might not have seen her before.
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2 Lupita Nyong’o
12 Years a Slave (2013), Black Panther (2018), Us (2019)
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Lupita Nyong’o was part of the two biggest franchises in Hollywood during the 2010s, Marvel and Star Wars. Though her role in the Star Wars trilogy was mainly voice acting, she was at her best in the Black Panther movies as Nakia. Additionally, her performance in 2019 in Jordan Peele’s horror film Us was an influential piece of acting. She embodied two characters in multiple scenes and differentiated between them with ease. However, one of her earliest films of the 2010s is what first set her apart.
Her recent film,
A Quiet Place: Day One
, cemented her importance in the horror genre that
Us
initiated several years ago.
12 Years a Slave swept every category during award season, but the reason Nyong’o won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for playing Patsey was because of her skill. Nyong’o wasn’t in the highest volume of films in the 2010s, but her projects were some of the most impactful of the decade and set her up for further success in the 2020s. Her recent film, A Quiet Place: Day One, cemented her importance in the horror genre that Us initiated several years ago.
1 Oscar Isaac
Inside Llewyn Davis (2013), Ex Machina (2014), The Star Wars Franchise
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Star Wars: The Force Awakens might have been the first introduction some audience members had to Oscar Isaac’s work, but the actor had been making his name in the 2010s for a few years before this. Isaac’s breakout role could arguably be considered his groundbreaking performance in the Coen Brothers’ movie Inside Llewyn Davis. It’s a moody and darkly comic portrait of the folk music scene in the early 1960s. Inside Llewyn Davis is unofficially considered a musical biopic about the early life of the legendary songwriter Bob Dylan.
After Inside Llewyn Davis, Isaac got the chance to play the villain in Alex Garland’s Ex Machina, which was an interesting case study of the development of AI and what it means to be human. While both of these projects were critically acclaimed, it was Isaac’s turn in the most recent Star Wars trilogy that launched him into stardom. His character, Poe, quickly became a fan favorite, and the role got him other franchise work with Marvel in Moon Knight several years later.