6. Rushmore - Bill Murray
Whilst it's both ludicrous and somewhat blasphemous to claim that Bill Murray has ever been unpopular, there was, shockingly, a period in which everybody's favourite entertainer reached a crisis point in his career. With the exception of Groundhog Day, and smaller roles in Ed Wood and Kingpin, Murray had not appeared in anything either critically acclaimed or financially fruitful since the weaker of the Ghostbusters films in 1989. And yes, unfortunately I include a minor role in Space Jam during that period. Finally, after a wait of nine years, Murray's chance came with the Wes Anderson comedy, Rushmore. The film not only allowed Murray to flex his much practiced meandering comedic muscles, but also gave us our first real taste of his ability to portray a character somewhat deeper and darker than we'd previously seen. Murray swelled his already cult following, thanks in part to a successful working relationship with Anderson. This glimpse into the more serious side of Murray led to his being cast in Lost In Translation, in which he gave a performance that gained him an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor; not too shabby a turn around from being an unfathomable ringer for Michael Jordan and Bugs. Speaking of Lost In Translation...