10 Awesome Acting Performances By Famous Music Stars

Just the other day I watched the movie Slingblade. First of all, it was a fantastic movie. Second of all, do you realize how good Dwight Yoakam was in that? I mean think about how you much you absolutely must have hated that character. Well if you’re a normal person you did. And that hatred tells me how good his performance was.

And that got me thinking. What other famous music stars did great acting jobs in movies? And I’m not talking bit parts here. I’m talking real deal acting.

Here are 10 performances that I thought were worthy of a mention.

Cher in Moonstruck

This is the obvious choice as Cher won an Oscar for playing Loretta Castorini in this great romantic comedy. Who could forget the most memorable line of the movie “Snap out of it!” She was also great in Mask.

Dwight Yoakam in Slingblade

I’ve never hated a character more than Dwight Yoakam’s drunk, pathetic, evil character Doyle in Slingblade. I personally think this is one of, if not best performances of a first time actor. He was truly awesome as a prick boyfriend/potential stepdad.

Justin Timberlake in Alpha Dog

You gotta hand it to the multi-talented Timberlake for his skills. Not only can the guy sing, dance, and have his own clothing line. The guy can definitely act. His skills were on display in Alpha Dog as Frankie Ballenbacher. The scene where they are about to shoot the kid? He was awesome.

Puff Daddy in Monster’s Ball

Oh excuse me, Sean Combs. I personally thought his portayal as convicted murderer Lawrence Hargrove was excellent. He wasn’t in the movie for that many minutes but you definitely felt his fear as he is facing execution.

Ice Cube in Boyz in the Hood

“Either they don’t know, don’t show, or don’t care about what’s going on in the hood.” Enough said. Ice Cube was the man in this classic.

Mos Def in Something the Lord Made

I think Mos Def could easily just be an actor instead of rapper/musician and have an extremely successful career. If anyone ever saw the made for HBO movie Something the Lord Made they’ll know what I’m talking about. His portrayal as medical technician Vivien Thomas was spot on.

Tim McGraw in Friday Night Lights

McGraw nailed his role as the abusive drunk father Charles Billingsley who clinged to his football past in Friday Night Lights. Man that scene when he walked in on his kid messing around with his girlfriend? Crazy when he puts the tape on him. Great stuff. You barely know it’s Tim McGraw.

Eminem in 8 Mile

You have to admit, 8 Mile was definitely a good movie. I loved Kim Basinger as the mom and who can forget the sex scene in the factory? But in all honesty I think that for what the movie was, Eminem made the most of that role. Job well done.

Ludacris in Hustle and Flow or Crash

Interesting in that both movies he’s with Terrence Howard. Obviously they must work pretty well together. I particularly liked him as rapper Skinny Black in Hustle and Flow. He played the drunk part to a T.

David Bowie in The Prestige

It actually took me some time to realize that Bowie was the guy playing electronic genius Tesla in The Prestige. He had a great accent and you definitely caught his eerie vibe. You could also vote for his performance in Labyrinth. He was a solid villain. Overall I think Bowie is a very good actor.

Honorable Mention:

Meatloaf in Fight Club - nothing amazing but definitely worth a mention.

Mark Wahlberg in Fear - put it this way, he was still Marky Mark at this time. Fear put him on the map as an actor.