Save this article to read it later.
Find this story in your accountsSaved for Latersection.
But character actors dont always stay character actors forever.
Octavia Spencer won the Oscar for 2011sThe Helpand it launched her into a decade of bigger and bigger roles.
Breaking Badbecame a big enough hit on TV that it elevated a few of its actors from character-actor-dom.
Allison Janney was a consummate character actress in movies likePrimary Colorswhen she snagged the role of C.J.
Cregg onThe West Wing.
Over seven seasons, Janney proved so compelling in the supporting role that she built C.J.
into a beloved, fan-favorite lead.
Similarly, Michael K. Williams became an icon via his performance as Omar Little onThe Wire.
Schitts Creekis a more complicated addition to this category, but worthy of mentioning nonetheless.
Showcomedian is suddenly headlining action thrillers like the upcomingJohn WickliteNobody.
McDormand won the first of two Best Actress Oscars (with a thirdmaybe to come next month?
), which pretty much instantly vaulted her into the realm of lead actresses.
That films failure to become a mainstream hit illustrates the limitations of the DIY model.
(Its a Mobius strip of a career path sometimes.)
Sam Rockwells course out of the character-actor realm was a long and staggered one.
