10 Actors Most Comfortable Playing The Grotesque

Beloved and deeply missed comedy veteran, Robin Williams, had taken some strange roles throughout his career. While bringing joy to so many as the Geni in Disney’s Aladdin, and illustrating his dramatic chops in the poignant classic, Good Will Hunting, Williams was never one to shy away from macabre roles.

Sporting bleach blonde hair in the 2002 psychological thriller, One Hour Photo, Williams’ character is a stark contrast those for which he gained fame. Playing the lead character, Seymour ‘Sy’ Parrish, Williams excelled as an awkward loner with a penchant for stalking, and ultimately abusing a family of which he desperately wanted to be a part.

Calm, calculated, and unable to be remotely humorous, it is hard to imagine that Williams was so uplifting in other roles when watching One Hour Photo. The transition from light to dark by Robin Williams is seemingly down with great ease.

In the tail end of his career, Robin Williams starred in World’s Greatest Dad, a box-office flop which explores such themes as single-parenting, auto-erotic asphyxiation, and dead celebrity. While it is nowhere near as dark as One Hour Photo, Word’s Greatest Dad is still hard to watch at times, and it is a role where Williams excels once again.

While nothing will replace Williams’ legacy as an all-time great comedy actor, his ability to portray the darker characters in these cult classics shouldn’t be overlooked.