Watching an actor or actress’ screen test or audition tape feels very voyeuristic, like you’re seeing something that’s not supposed to be seen. They’re reading back scenes that, more often than not, will make it into the movie, but they haven’t mastered the role yet — they’re just auditioning, and God knows I wouldn’t want my first draft of, well, anything to be looked at by thousands, if not millions.
But we’re not here to debate the morality of all that: let’s instead take a look at the audition tapes for 10 comedians, from Steve Carell to Emma Stone, for 10 different roles, all of which they eventually won. And after watching the screen tests, it’s not hard to see why.
Actor: Kristen Bell Role: Sarah Marshall Movie:Forgetting Sarah Marshall Why She Won the Role: She’s a likable villain.
Actor: Steve Carell Role: Brick Tamland Movie:Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy Why He Won the Role: The redness of Carell's face when he's pretending to choke.
Actor: Jim Carrey Role: Andy Kaufman/Tony Clifton Movie:Man on the Moon Why He Won the Role: Jim Carrey really gets that "take my wife, please" joke.
Actor: Michael Cera Role: Evan Movie:Superbad Why He Won the Role: He’s wimpy, sure, but there’s conviction in Cera’s speech, a skill most actors can’t pull off.
Actress: Megan Fox Role: Mikaela Banes Movie:Transformers Why She Got the Role: BEST. COMEDY. EVER.
Actress: Alyson Hannigan Role: Michelle Flaherty Movie:American Pie Why She Won the Role: She's breathless and nerdy, yet also sexy, which is actually what the part required.
Actress: Audrey Hepburn Role: Princess Ann Movie:Roman Holiday Why She Won the Role: So perfectly dignified, but there's something mischievous beneath her majesty.
Actor: Dustin Hoffman Role: Michael Dorsey/Dorothy Michaels Movie:Tootsie Why He Won the Role: At times, and as weird as this is to say, you actually forget it’s Dustin Hoffman playing Dorothy.
Actor: Sam Rockwell Role: Chuck Barris Movie:Confessions of a Dangerous Mind Why He Won the Role:Confessions is barely a comedy, but I wanted to include at least one video of Sam Rockwell dancing, which is precisely the reason he won the role.
Actress: Emma Stone Role: Olive Penderghast Movie:Easy A Why She Won the Role: She breezes through tongue-twisting phrases as if she were coming up with them on her own, and her cadence is just vapid enough that she feels like a real online diary-filmer. But because of her Emma Stoneness, it's never obnoxious and always charming.
That Kristen Bell tape reminded me of Russell Brand's for the same movie, where he basically gets the part by being himself. (Not that there's anything wrong with that! His persona totally works for me.)
Great article. Good finds. Man. Jim Carrey was so amazing in that role. It's really a shame the film wasn't up to par like his performance was. Though, the movie is fine.
Davidwatts
call me crazy, but is Michael Cera the best actor on this page? I never felt for one second like I was watching an actor "do a scene."
Splitsider Presents is a digital comedy store selling great comedy directly to you. There are no hoops to jump through, and you don't need to hand over your identity. Buying is simple and straightforward; you don't need a credit card or an existing account. You can complete payment and be watching a show in seconds, choosing to pay via either Amazon or Paypal.
Splitsider keeps only 20% of the cost of the purchase after transaction, bandwidth and legal costs, with about 70% going directly to the artist.
You can stream your purchases on whatever device you like, or download them to your computer to keep forever in DRM-free file formats.
Purchase/Playback Info
For $5 you get 5 HD or SD DRM-free downloads and 3 streams, allowing you to watch on your computer or any other device. You can choose to pay via either Amazon or PayPal, and you'll be able to log into the site whenever you want to re-download or stream your purchases.
WATCH videos online
DOWNLOAD videos (HD+SD)
SIMPLE payment system
ACCOUNT to access videos
Need Help?
Buying and watching shows on Splitsider Presents should be simple, quick and undemanding, but if you run into trouble, we have an excellent <A href="http://splitsider.com/store/docs/help">help section and customer service</a> to assist you.