15 A-List Actors Who Played Dreaded Killers OnScreen

 A little birdie informed me that Magneto and Professor X are going to be replaced. Is it true? Hmm, whatever it is, Marvel knows. But Fassbender and McAvoy -no longer in those roles. Look at them...

No, I mean just look.

I am sure my uncle would have had the same thought 15 years ago, when they both replaced (rather, played younger versions of) Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart, respectively. But whatever that is, today my blog post is neither about X-Men nor about the new replacements. 

Today I thought of digging up the work histories of a few actors, generally tagged as heartthrobs for the roles they play and the image they have created among audiences. And there is a large number of popular actors who have played dreadful, negative characters, of killers. We all know, but just a dive down memory lane.

1. Al Pacino: Yes, he is still considered a heart-throb at 85. And the movie that comes to my mind where he played a serial killer was Righteous Kill, directed by Jon Avnet, and co-starring Robert De Niro. A bit slow, though, this film was a good watch for the famous Pacino-deNiro pairing and some unthinkable twists at the end.

2. Harrison Ford: What Lies Beneath was a film I had watched for Michelle Pfeiffer. It gave me the chills, and who could have thought of Harrison Ford, the doting husband, to be a killer? Directed by Robert Zemeckis, this movie is a great supernatural thriller.

3. Kevin Costner: Mr. Brooks- should I say more? Directed by Bruce A Evans, this movie is about a serial killer, played by Costner. As far as I remember, it was a box office failure, but I liked it.

4. Tom Cruise: Yes, it's Collateral, we all know. But given the fact that at that time, Cruise was one of the ruling heartthrobs, a large portion of the audience was taken aback to find him playing such a role. Directed by Michael Mann and co-starring Jamie Foxx, this is a must-watch. 

5. Brad Pitt: I found out about the movie, Kalifornia, only last year. And frankly, although I have seen Pitt in various roles of conman, ghost, someone's alter ego, I never thought I would see him as a serial killer. Directed by Dominic Sena, this film has Juliet Lewis and David Duchovny in other roles.

6. Matt Damon: When I watched the movie, long back, while watching my initial reaction was, " KYA aadmi hai!" which by the end of the movie turned to, " Kya AAdmi hai?"Such was Damon's perfect performance in Anthony Minghella's The Talented Mr Ripley. Co-starring Jude Law, Gwyneth Paltrow and Cate Blanchett, this film is another must-watch.

7. Chris Evans: Yes, yes, we are aware. Who can forget Knives Out? And here we are. One of the best Whodunnit murder mysteries with an actor loved for being one of the most gorgeous men in the world, playing a shrewd killer. The film, directed by Rian Johnson, has Daniel Craig, Ana De Armas, Jamie Lee Curtis and Christopher Plummer in other roles. 

8. Colin Farrell: Yes, his portrayal as The Penguin is still fresh in our minds, but while doing research today, I came across a film that I had forgotten about, but had watched a decade back,  Solace. It is an interesting serial-killer hunt thriller by Afonso Poyart, co-starring Anthony Hopkins and Jeffrey Dean Morgan.

9. Zac Effron: There have been many movies about Ted Bundy. And I have watched a few of them. Zac Efron was an unlikely cast for the dreaded serial killer's role. And Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile by Joe Berlinger still managed to make heads turn. The smooth escapes of Bundy multiple times were the most exciting portions.

10. Jake Gyllenhaal: Nightcrawler- what a movie and what a performance by Gyllenhaal. For me, we can still keep aside all the films in this list, but this one is never to be missed. Directed by Dan Gilroy, it co-stars Rene Russo and Riz Ahmed.

11. Elijah Wood: He has mostly been seen in positive character portrayals. But Maniac by Franck Khalfoun had him playing a twisted-minded psychotic serial killer. This film is very graphic and gory.

12. Javier Bardem: No Country for Old Men saw him as a cool-headed psychopathic killer. Directed by Ethan and Joel Coen, this movie co-stars Tommy Lee Jones and Josh Brolin. Again, a must-watch.

13. Bradley Cooper: The supernatural thriller/slasher film, The Midnight Meat Train, had this actor, who turned from a small-time photographer to an accomplice of a devilish killer. Directed by Ryuhei Kitamura, this film co-stars Brooke Shields.

14. Cillian Murphy: I still have not had a chance to watch this film, but given Murphy playing any role, he is given with such perfection, I am sure, how chilling it might have been in the film Red Eye, directed by Wes Craven and co-starring Rachel McAdams. 

15. Christian Bale: The deadliest is best kept for the last. And American Psycho is the deadliest amongst all the films here, for Bale's crazy performance. Directed by Mary Harron, it co-stars Jared Leto and William Dafoe.

Next time I will come back with some female Actors.