10 More Huge Actors You Didn’t Notice As Extras In Movies

For every hopeful star in the making that actually breaks into Hollywood, there are countless others that don't make it. Success in the business doesn't come easy, and generally doesn't come quickly.

Of course, there are exceptions, like Sinners' Miles Caton, who has jumped into one of the biggest movies of all time at the first try, but that is most certainly against the grain. There aren't too many others who can claim to have risen so high so quickly.

Most every actor has to pay their dues with small to basically non-existent roles. This is extra work, where they are literally put on screen to fill out the shot, something that Christopher Nolan has even used cardboard cutouts for in the past. There may be a small pay at the end of the day, there may not, but even some of the biggest stars in the industry have had to do it before their faces were recognisable.

Then there are also famous actors whose roles in a movie have been cut down to little more than extra work, as well as some who were thrown in the background for a laugh.

There was a time when it felt as though Kenneth Branagh was set to always be the bridesmaid at the Oscars, until 2021, when he finally won his first (Best Original Screenplay for Belfast), after seven nominations in various categories over the years.

The man has also appeared in multiple films that themselves won Academy Awards, including the likes of Oppenheimer and Dunkirk, though his first experience on such a set came long before crossing paths with the great Christopher Nolan.

Before making any kind of name for himself, Kenneth Branagh appeared in the Best Picture winner at the 54th Academy Awards, Chariots of Fire. This was his very first on-screen appearance, for which he went uncredited; something that is no surprise given the nature and story behind the role.

During the filming of the picture, extra work for some of the Cambridge University-based scenes was offered at £10 for two days, which of course the future Hollywood legend took up, alongside plenty of others - one of whom just so happened to be Stephen Fry, a decade before they would work together on Peter's Friends.