Actors You'd Watch in Anything

Entertainment Weekly Magazine had an piece on-line recently listing the 50 actors they'd watch in any film or other project. In browsing through the slideshow, I found myself nodding enthusiastically about many of the choices. A majority of the names on the list I agree are fine actors that can always be counted on to pull out an exceptional performance regardless of the overall quality of the project. A few people tend to annoy me so I usually avoid watching their movies (Will Ferrell, too silly, and Daniel Day-Lewis, too intense, for example) but I can recognize their talent- in fact I loved Will Ferrell in Stranger than Fiction which isn't his normal type of vehicle.

What follows is a list of my top 10 actors I'd watch in anything, drawn from the EW list with a few exceptions that I believe were notable oversights. My list is alphabetical. I'll follow each name with a film or two that makes me love to watch that actor. Feel free to comment on my choices or list your own. Also, check out the links to the original EW list.
*denotes my choice not on EW list.

1. Amy Adams -Sunshine Cleaning, Doubt, Catch Me If You Can

2. Steve Carell - Little Miss Sunshine, 40 Year Old Virgin, The Office, Bruce Almighty

3. Laura Linney - You Can Count On Me, The Savages, Love Actually

4. James McAvoy - Last King of Scotland, Starter for Ten, Becoming Jane, Macbeth (in Shakespeare Re-told) *

5. Bill Nighy - Love Actually, State Of Play, Blow Dry, Gideon's Daughter

6. Simon Pegg - Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, How to Lose Friends and Alienate People

7. Alan Rickman - Sense and Sensibility, Die Hard, Snowcake, Bottle Shock

8. Emma Thompson - Sense and Sensibility, Love Actually, The Remains of the Day, Dead Again

9. Julie Walters - Educating Rita, Driving Lessons, Billy Elliot, Harry Potter films *

10. Kate Winslet - Iris, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Sense and Sensibility

http://www.ew.com/ew/gallery/0,,20315966,00.html

http://www.ew.com/ew/gallery/0,,20316004,00.html