Bill Paxton: 5 Awesome Performances (And Five That Sucked)

2. Dad Meiks - Frailty (2001)

Frailty Bill Paxton
Lionsgate

Paxton's feature directorial debut, 2001's Frailty also saw the actor take the lead as a father-of-two who believes he must commit a series of murders in order to destroy demons disguised as human beings.

Though Dad Meiks is, inherently, a bad person (he is a murderer, after all), Paxton is able to make the character one you'll feel sympathetic towards, playing him in such a way that you can't help but feel sorry for the man.

All he wants to do is look after and protect his children - that's why he's killing "demons" - and although he's being manipulated by his religious beliefs (he's visited by an angel, who compels him to begin his demon-hunting quest), he's only doing what he thinks is right, and Paxton smartly focuses on this aspect of the character.

It's a dark tale that's not as easy to watch as the other awesome performances on this list, but it packs a fantastic third-act twist and a strong performance from a pre-Oscar-winning Matthew McConaughey.

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Danny has been with WhatCulture for almost nine years, and is currently Doctor Who Editor and WhoCulture Channel Manager, overseeing all of WhatCulture's Whoniverse coverage. He has been writing and video editing for 10+ years, and first got a taste for content creation after making his own Doctor Who trailers and uploading them to YouTube (they're admittedly a bit rusty by today's standards). If you need someone to recite every Doctor Who episode in order or to tell you about the making of 1988's Remembrance of the Daleks, Danny is the person to ask.