10 More Actors Who Gave Their Best Performances In Movies Nobody Saw

5. Hayden Christensen - Shattered Glass

Aubrey Plaza Black Bear
Lionsgate

Poor Hayden Christensen. Appearing in the latter two Star Wars prequels might be both the best and worst thing that's ever happened to him, convincing an entire generation of fans that, to be blunt, he can't act.

Though Christensen doesn't exactly have a bevy of quality roles to his name, there is one which confirms him to be a shockingly underappreciated performer when cast in the right role.

In-between the two Star Wars prequels, Christensen starred in Shattered Glass, a low-budget drama where he played disgraced journalist Stephen Glass, who while writing for The New Republic falsified the majority of his news stories.

Christensen's performance as the elusive, cagey journalist whose life and career slowly unravel is nothing short of terrific, and yet is largely unknown among those who freely dismiss him as a "terrible" actor.

Ultimately Shattered Glass couldn't gross even half its $6 million budget worldwide, though, and while Christensen's performance was widely acclaimed, co-star Peter Sarsgaard hoovered up the majority of the awards buzz (including a Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actor).

Contributor
Contributor

Stay at home dad who spends as much time teaching his kids the merits of Martin Scorsese as possible (against the missus' wishes). General video game, TV and film nut. Occasional sports fan. Full time loon.