11 Awesome Actors Who Broke Into Hollywood Late

2. Chris Cooper

Chris Cooper's acting career started in the theatre, and he didn't appear in his first movie until 1987's John Sayles drama Matewan, by which point he was already in his mid-thirties.

Cooper's profile then slowly began to rise throughout the 1990s as he performed in almost 30 TV shows and movies, but it wasn't until 1999 that he truly found his breakthrough role.

At age 48, he received a Best Supporting Actor nomination from the Screen Actors Guild for his wonderful performance in 1999's American Beauty, and ever since he's carved out a fine niche for himself as an intense - not to mention consistently acclaimed - supporting player.

Most memorably Cooper won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his role in 2002's Adaptation, and has appeared in a steady mix of art-house dramas and tentpoles over the last two decades.