Joel Edgerton: 5 Awesome Performances And 5 That Sucked

3. Detective Malcolm Toohey - Felony

Edgerton proved that he was more than capable of simply playing characters with 2014's Felony, a crime thriller for which he wrote the screenplay in addition to appearing in the starring role. He plays Malcolm Toohey, a detective who becomes caught up in a web of lies after he's involved in a fatal accident while driving home over the legal alcohol limit. Jai Courtney (in one of his few performances where he actually feels like his character has a personality) and Tom Wilkinson play the other detectives caught up in the investigation, but it's Edgerton who dominates the film. Understatement is the key word in Felony, and Edgerton's pivotal role is played out with an assured restraint. The way in which tension is sustained effectively throughout the film is in no small part on account of his borderline melancholy performance.