10 Actors Who Play Themselves In Every Movie

5. Paul Giamatii

Paul Giamatti finally got his well-deserved break by starring as Harvey Pekar in American Splendour, and then Miles in Sideways. Even prior to that, though, he always pretty much played the same character, a likeable, somewhat overweight schlub, an average Joe who simmers with a slight bitterness but is basically a good guy. While he has entertained some villainous variations of this in the likes of Ironclad, The Hangover 2 and Shoot 'Em Up, he's still very clearly Paul Giamatti as a bad guy; he's still got the same type of personality, and thus we still like him even when he's a baddie. There's a certain irony to this, because Giamatti's name is not that well known to casual cineastes, and similarly, his niche is not a particularly colourful or cartoonish one, yet it is still one that he has managed to entirely associate with himself no problem. Much like Adam Sandler, it's easy to believe that he's probably just a richer version of his characters, specifically his Sideways counterpart.