It’s no secret that acting is difficult to break into. Furthermore, making it into Hollywood as an A-list actor or actress is even more challenging. Sometimes, all it takes is one great performance in the right movie for an actor’s career to take off or be discovered as a child and progress through the industry from youth. Meanwhile, other actors grind away, turning in one stellar performance after another but never really reaching stardom. Some actors make the cut, while others sadly don’t.

Update August 28, 2023: This article has been updated with even more underrated performers who don't get the credit they deserve.

Yet, this doesn’t mean that their performances go unnoticed. Just as there are tons of underrated television and a bevy of underrated films that develop strong interest, there are also great underrated actors whom audiences root for. Today, we are taking a look at the most underrated working actors or actresses. These are the artists who brought tears to our eyes, laughter to our lips and inspired us by pouring their hearts into their roles. Here are the actors who have yet to receive the critical acclaim and praise they deserve from the mainstream populace at large.

15 Selena Gomez

We know what you are thinking. How can a famous performer like Selena Gomez be underrated? Despite having such a large fanbase on social media, she does not quite get the credit she deserves for her work as an actor. While some might associate Gomez with her Disney Channel work on Wizards of Waverly Place, not only was she good on that show, but has since shown her range as a performer. Most notably in the hit television show Only Murders in the Building.

Related: Every Selena Gomez Movie, Ranked

Holding one's own with Steve Martin and Martin Short is no easy task, but Gomez pulls it off effortlessly. Despite her incredible work, Gomez is often overlooked in terms of awards recognition for the series compared to her two co-stars. Some people still might not take her seriously, but Gomez is showing that she is becoming one of the best stars working today.

14 Andy Serkis

This is a tough one-- everyone knows Serkis' performance, but not too many of them know his name. Perhaps Andy Serkis fails to reach A-list status because we hardly ever see his face when he is acting. That’s because he is most notably known for his roles portraying creatures such as Gollum in the Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trilogies and Caesar in the reboot of the Planet of the Apes movies.

While Andy Serkis has done his fair share of portraying humans, those movies have slid under the radar and have never reached the same level as LOTR, or his extensive work with Matt Reeves on the Apes films and The Batman. It’s a shame, though, as Andy Serkis is a master of distorting his voice and incorporates a physicality to his characters that is rare in other actors.

13 Mia Wasikowska

Australian actress Mia Wasikowska made her screen debut by playing a mentally unstable gymnast in HBO’s acclaimed drama In Treatment. Shortly after, she was in the ensemble cast for The Kids Are All Right, for which she received the Hollywood Film Festival Award for Breakthrough Actress. Following that, she has starred in many movies, including Alice in Wonderland, Jane Eyre, and Crimson Peak. Yet, despite her many acting credits, she has yet to make Hollywood’s A-list and truly become a household name. There is a subtleness to her work that always makes her characters multi-dimensional.

12 Thomas Brodie-Sangster

British actor Thomas Brodie-Sangster is the youngest actor on this list. His first major theatrical film was Love Actually in 2003, followed by Nanny McPhee in 2005. In addition, he voiced Ferb in Disney’s animated show Phineas and Ferb and played Newt in the popular young adult dystopian film trilogy The Maze Runner. Other projects include Netflix’s western miniseries drama Godless and The Queen’s Gambit.

Despite being nominated for an Emmy for his role as Benny Watts in that series, he did not win and is still looking for the recognition and roles his talents deserve. While young and relatively inexperienced compared to others on this list, Thomas Brodie-Sangster stands out in every project he has done by letting his expressions reveal his thoughts and putting power into his actions.

11 Dale Dickey

Dale Dickey is a character actress whom you've certainly seen. In the 2000s, fans might have recognized her for her roles in My Name is Earl or Breaking Bad. She won an Independent Spirit Award in 2010 for her role in Winter's Bone and, throughout the 2010s, appeared in films like Super 8, Iron Man 3, and Hell or High Water and television series like True Blood, Justified, and recently the canceled A League of Their Own. She finally got the chance to star in 2022's Love Song, one of the most underrated movies of 2022. Dickey is a committed performer whose presence always elevates whatever project she is in.

10 Carrie-Anne Moss

Many people will know Carrie-Anne Moss from the original Matrix series. In addition, she played Jeri Hogarth in Netflix’s dark Marvel drama Jessica Jones and starred in films like Disturbia, Brain on Fire, and Chocolat. While Carrie-Anne Moss is great at what she does, her projects tend to be relatively similar and, as she typically plays a fiery and fierce, dark and brooding woman (and does it excellently). Most people only know her as Trinity in The Matrix, but that doesn’t mean that her work elsewhere should go unnoticed, as there is a silent power behind every character she plays.

9 Lena Headey

British actress Lena Headey gives one of the standout performances in Game of Thrones. For her portrayal of Cersei Lannister, she gained international recognition and acclaim and received several Emmy nominations as well as one Golden Globe nomination. Playing a villain can be challenging as some actors portray them as one-note, inherently evil. However, Headey brought humanity to Cersei, and brings the same level of empathy to all her parts, though she isn't very well known outside of Game of Thrones. In addition to that show, she has starred in other projects such as the 2005 action-adventure/fantasy The Brothers Grimm, the original horror cult classic The Purge (2013), and her newest action/thriller film Gunpowder Milkshake (2021).

8 Aidan Turner

You may or may not remember Aidan Turner from The Hobbit trilogies, where he played Kili, the dwarf who had feelings for the elf Tauriel and who unfortunately met a tragic ending in The Battle of the Five Armies. As he played one of many dwarfs, his performance may have gotten lost in the crowd at times. However, his performance in the British historical drama Poldark showed his potential and range as a leading actor. Besides The Hobbit and Poldark, he has been in other smaller projects like the TV series Leonardo, and the dark horror show Being Human.

7 Diane Kruger

German actress and model Diane Kruger began her career pursuing ballet at the Royal Ballet School in London but had to stop due to a knee injury. She then moved to Paris, where she started modeling and later acting, her debut being a TV film titled The Piano Player. Since then, she has racked up credits in huge films, including the National Treasure films, Troy, and The Host, yet is not a household name by any means, and has never received a Golden Globe or Academy Award nomination, despite some incredible performances, like In the Fade.

Kruger is also multilingual, and as a German actor, she has said that she often receives offers to do World War II films but turns them down. However, that was not the case when she was offered a part in Quentin Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds. In the film, her character, Bridgit von Hammersmark, is strangled to death in one of the most realistic death scenes ever filmed (partly because she was actually briefly strangled by Tarantino himself). The end result is incredible, showcasing Kruger’s talent and trust in her craft and why she deserves much more recognition than she gets.

6 Kevin Corrigan

Kevin Corrigan is one of the all-time great character actors. He has popped up in films ranging from Living in Oblivion, Pineapple Express, The King of Staten Island, and The Departed, to name a few. His highest profile role was on the hit television series Grounded For Life, where he played one of the all-time great television uncles. Corrigan has never been given the spotlight role, but he steals the show every time he shows up.

5 Donal Logue

Corrigan's Grounded for Life on-screen brother Donal Logue. From his roles on television series like Sons of Anarchy, Terries, and Gotham to films like Blade, The Tao of Steve, and Zodiac, Logue is always a welcome presence when he appears. He can pull off comedic roles and dramatic roles, and what is really remarkable is that he can bring levity to dramatic projects or gravitas to comedic projects. He does not get the credit he deserves as one of the best and most committed actors working, even managing to make small roles pop.

4 Maggie Gyllenhaal

Maggie Gyllenhaal's story of fame is a little too familiar to those who know sibling rivalry. As her little brother Jake Gyllenhaal's career in acting takes off, Maggie is struggling to achieve that one performance that will break her free from her brother's shadow. After her graduation, she started off with supporting roles in movies like Cecil B. Demented and Riding in Cars with Boys. She only achieved recognition, however, through her role in the indie movie Donnie Darko, which she ironically co-starred with her brother in 2001.

Maggie Gyllenhaal had her lucky break after that, being part of movies that are now considered classics, like Secretary, Mona Lisa Smile, and Sherrybaby, for which she earned a Golden Globe Award nomination. Her small role in the big-scale movie The Dark Knight is arguably one of her best performances. Maggie definitely deserves wider recognition for the amazing quality onscreen performances that she offered us across her career.

3 Rooney Mara

Rooney Mara debuted her career in acting by accepting roles in independent movies and television, like her roles in Women's Murder Club, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, and ER. Her breakthrough role, for which she is most known, is Lisbeth Salander in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, for which she received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress.

The actress was then very picky about her next roles and starred in interesting movies like Side Effects, Her, and, as of late, the highly acclaimed movie Women Talking. The actress's uniqueness is not only obvious through her acting but also through her choice of movies and the fact that she cares more about the quality of her resume rather than being simply prolific. Given more opportunities, Rooney Mara would not hesitate to surprise her audience with top-notch screen time.

2 Sean Bean

Sean Bean, the actor who played Eddard Stark in Game of Thrones, is an actor with a longer acting career than just one season in a big-shot series. Bean is certainly a professional, as he graduated from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art after years of sitting through courses. He played in some of the most well-known movies and TV series like Troy, Goldeneye, and The Lord of the Rings.

Related: The Best Movies Where Sean Bean Doesn’t Die

Bean also certainly likes to keep his roles diverse. From a wife-beating ex-prisoner, a kidnapper, a mentor, a diplomat to the king's hand in Game of Thrones, the actor's resume is certainly as impressive as can be. Whether he is given the appropriate appreciation for it or not is irrelevant, especially since the actor's roles and performances speak for themselves. It's already enough that his character's death stirred eight long seasons in one of the best TV shows ever made.

1 Toni Collette

The actress and producer Toni Collette is the familiar face that we only remember when we see her onscreen. She is one of the underrated actresses that have the quality of fading away into ghostland as soon as the movie is over. The comedy-drama Muriel's Wedding was her breakthrough movie, for which she was offered a Golden Globe nomination. Her appearances in movies like The Sixth Sense, The Hours, Hereditary, and Knives Out further proved her merit as an actress. In all her roles, she adds a quality that is uniquely hers, making her a great asset to the movies at large. Despite receiving five AACTA Awards, it just isn't enough to pay tribute to this unjustly overlooked talented actress.