Careers built on a single role, and one or two actors nobody expected to carry an hour of television. Every name here changed what the job looks like.
1Bryan CranstonWalter White in Breaking Bad, winner of four Lead Actor Emmys for the same role.
2James GandolfiniTony Soprano in The Sopranos, the performance every prestige drama since has been measured against.
3Jon HammDon Draper in Mad Men, holding a whole decade behind a still face.
4Edie FalcoCarmela Soprano, the other half of the marriage and never the smaller performance.
5Elisabeth MossOffred in The Handmaid's Tale, carrying long stretches of the show on one held shot.
6Michael K. WilliamsOmar Little in The Wire, whistling through a Baltimore that got out of his way.
7Claire FoyElizabeth II in The Crown, a young queen learning to disappear into the job.
8Bob OdenkirkJimmy McGill in Better Call Saul, a comic actor turning a spin-off into a tragedy.
9Brian CoxLogan Roy in Succession, terrifying a boardroom without raising his voice much.
10Keri RussellElizabeth Jennings in The Americans, a spy whose marriage is also her cover.
11Sterling K. BrownRandall Pearson in This Is Us, panic attacks and all, across three timelines.
12Jodie ComerVillanelle in Killing Eve, switching accents and moods inside a single scene.
13Cillian MurphyTommy Shelby in Peaky Blinders, a gangster played almost entirely in the eyes.
14Julianna MarguliesAlicia Florrick in The Good Wife, a political spouse rebuilt as a litigator.
15Rhea SeehornKim Wexler in Better Call Saul, the show's moral centre and its biggest surprise.
16Andre BraugherFrank Pembleton in Homicide: Life on the Street, the interrogation-room standard.
17Noah WyleDr. Robby in The Pitt, an emergency-room lead played across one continuous shift.
Comments 1
Bryan Cranston won Lead Actor in 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2014. James Gandolfini is the benchmark the other sixteen here get graded against: https://youpick.best/articles/breaking-bad-vs-the-sopranos-ranked
YP
ypb-teamAug 21
