10 Most Underrated Actresses Currently Working In Television

One of the most underrated jobs an actor can have is that of the straight man. And in a dramedy as frequently outrageous and darkly comic as Shameless, that job must become ten times harder by default. Enter the even-keeled, plain-spoken, lucid gem that is Emmy Rossum.

Now, it wouldn't be surprising (or unwarranted) if you read the above description and instantly thought "that's the most boring way you could ever possibly present an actor, what's so great about that?" But her character isn't boring. She's the show's heavy.

Sure, William H. Macy steals the spotlight with his, ahem, "eccentricities,"  but it's Rossum who's the real lifeblood. She's the one constantly setting up the jokes for everyone else, and also devours the most soul-crushing scenes when things turn more serious. (Remember that scene in the court when Fiona attempts to become her siblings' legal guardian? Oof.)

Rossum is to Shameless what Jason Bateman is to Arrested Development. (Or literally anything else he's done since.) Her timing is precise, her sly wit undervalued, and her ability to straddle the line of the show's seriocomic universe is unmatched in modern television.