The All Time Top 25 American Actors

Probably the most versatile American actor I have seen and also in his peak years was good at choosing good roles in good movies. Rain Man was possibly his most memorable performance, though there have been many. A great actor.

One of the great actors. Although known for his distinctive way of speaking, he was also very versatile. Vertigo and Rear Window were both great roles. Stewart always brought great strength and conviction to his roles. The 1940s and 50s were Stewart's peak years and he had many memorable roles during that period. My favourite Hitchcock actor.

During the 1970s Peter Falk was at his peak. He will always be remembered for his brilliant portrayal of Lieutenant Columbo (in his prime during the 1970s episodes) but also had a few great movie roles during the 70s such as Nick in A woman under the influence and one of The in laws.

For a period in the 1960s was one of the very best actors in the world. In the heat of the night was a great movie that featured two of the great actors, Poitier and Rod Steiger. Poitier's characters were not merely heroic good guys, they were often strong and tough as well.

Rod Steiger's performance as Sherriff Gillespie in In the heat of the night is one of the very best performances ever seen on screen. Steiger was a very intense actor.

My favourite actor of modern times.

Had a strong screen presence. Great at playing tough sometimes anti-establishment characters. Probably his best performance was the title role in Papillon, though The Great Escape and Bullitt were also excellent.

My favourite Western actor. Although brilliant as 'The Bad' in The Good, the bad and the ugly, he could also play tough good guys such as Douglas Mortimer in For a few dollars more. Whatever character he was playing, he had an aura that said "don't mess with Lee Van Cleef".

Although he often played strongly moral good guys, one of his most memorable performances was as the villain Mengele in The boys from Brazil.

A great actor that only became a big movie actor in his fifties. Hoke in Driving Miss Daisy was a great performance from Freeman. He was also brilliant in The Shawshank Redemption. Has one of the most memorable voices in the world.

His spaghetti Western characters always spoke slowly and quietly, he was always calm and yet he could be tough and ruthless. Eastwood was brilliant at these roles.

Humphrey Bogart was one of the great actors in the golden age of Hollywood. Tended to play the same sort of roles (cynical and tough, with a strong heart that lurked beneath) and no one played them better. He was brilliant in The African Queen, probably his best performance.

The Shawshank Redemption is a movie that often gets voted the best movie of all time. There were a number of great performances in this movie, but for my money the best was Bob Gunton's role as the monstrous Warden Norton.

Newman's characters often had brooding intensity and at his peak he was one of the best actors in the world.

Rain Man is a movie everyone seems to remember for Dustin Hoffman's performance, but all through the movie Tom Cruise is in full view giving a great performance. But Hoffman got the Oscar.

A very underrated actor. Was brilliant in Bullitt and one of the best Columbo villains. Was best known for The Man From UNCLE.

A great actor. Was excellent in Birdman of Alcatraz.

My trio of Good, bad and ugly actors would not be complete without Eli Wallach, a great character actor with a long career. My favourite role of his was the 'ugly'.

Overshadowed by Mr. Spock in Star Trek because he was so good at playing him. However, he was also one of the most ruthless villains in Columbo and was very sinister as Dr. Kibner in Invasion of the body snatchers. Was one of the best actors at playing pure evil. A very underrated actor.

A great actor. My favourite performance of his was in The Conversation.

Although known as a great character actor, played the lead in Paris, Texas and was excellent in this role.

Back in the 1950s and early 1960s, William Holden was one of the best actors in the world. Was excellent in Bridge on the River Kwai and also in the underrated thriller The Counterfeit Traitor.

Kirk Douglas was a great actor. In roles such as 20,000 leagues under the Sea and Spartacus, Kirk Douglas' characters were usually physically strong and determined, like the man himself. He survived a helicopter crash and a major stroke and went on to celebrate his 100th birthday in 2016.

Although known for his nice guy roles, Van Dyke could be just as convincing as a villain, as he proved in Columbo.

His three Columbo appearances as the villain in the show''s 1970s heyday are all rated among the show's best episodes. Cassidy was great in these roles.