10 Actors Who Dramatically Rebranded Themselves In The Last Decade

10. Bradley Cooper

Once upon a time, Bradley Cooper was known as "America's Favorite Jerk," appearing in film after film as the quintessential douchebag. He kicked off his douche-a-thon with adversarial roles in Sex And The City and Wedding Crashers, and seemed primed to continue that trend even as he made the move toward leading man in The Hangover trilogy.

A string of terrible romantic comedies ensued, positioning Cooper as a low-tier Matthew McConaughey clone - beginning, coincidentally, as McConaughey's sidekick in Failure To Launch - and it started to look like Cooper only had two modes: Jerk and Eye Candy.

But the fresh-faced actor slowly spread his wings and showed the world his legit acting chops, hinting at a dangerous side of his personality in Limitless before diving into a string of highly diverse, high-profile roles.

Suddenly, Cooper was a perpetual Oscar contender, making critics go gaga in Silver Linings Playbook, The Place Beyond The Pines, American Hustle, and American Sniper. Not only was he in high demand from director David O. Russell, but audiences couldn't get enough of the guy who, at one time in his career, seemed like a natural successor to other renowned, cinematic jerks like Billy Zabka and Biff from Back To The Future.