10 Movie Performances Way Better Than They Had Any Right To Be

7. Leslie Neilsen - Airplane!

Why It Shouldn't Have Worked

Though you probably think of Leslie Neilsen now as one of the greatest comedy movie actors of all time - and the absolute don of deadpan - he wasn't even a comic actor when he was cast in Airplane!

At the time, he was mostly known for playing serious roles on TV and film - mostly professionals like doctors, lawyers and businessmen. There was no way he could work in a ribald spoof from the makers of The Kentucky Fried Movie. He'd stick out like a sore-thumb, surely?

But Then...

Unbeknownst to everyone bar himself, Neilsen had been concealing incredible comedy timing behind his serious facade and it was precisely his straight-laced demeanour that proved to be the perfect foundation for his brand of comedy. His deadpan skills - later used to full effect in Police Squad and the Naked Gun series - melted away any confusion very quickly.

See also, OJ Simpson in Airplane, but it's best not to talk too much about him...