10 TV Shows That Actually Benefited From Bad Acting
Twin Peaks' stilted, awkward acting only makes it that much weirder.
Transcript
00:00 There's no denying that even a great script and sharp direction can be completely undermined
00:04 by bad acting, be it from fundamentally miscast actors or genuinely terrible performers doing
00:10 all the wrong things. Yet sometimes bad acting can inexplicably be to a TV show's net benefit
00:17 for one of several unexpected reasons. Namely, a shameless over-actor ends up charming the
00:21 hell out of an audience, perhaps the wooden actor's lack of emotion accidentally informs
00:25 their spaced-out character perfectly, or maybe their sloppy work only enhances the show's
00:31 rather offbeat tones. So let's take a look at them as iron jewels, this is WhatCulture.com,
00:35 and these are 10 TV shows that actually benefited from bad acting.
00:39 10. Star Trek The Original Series
00:42 William Shatner's indelible performance as Star Trek's original Captain Kirk is
00:46 iconic for many, many reasons. One being a certain Family Guy parody which introduced
00:51 a whole new generation to his deliriously hammy work on the original series. Shatner's
00:56 time on Trek was defined by his larger-than-life turn in front of the camera, or, if we're
01:00 to be blunt, his blatant overacting. Shatner left no piece of scenery unchewed throughout
01:06 the series, his energy shifting unpredictably within scenes while also taking odd, unnatural
01:11 pauses during dialogue. Throw in his restless movements and hand gestures, and it's clear
01:15 that Shatner was always playing for the cheap seats. Somewhat fitting, given that he trained
01:19 as a classical Shakespearean actor. While most theatre actors rein in their projection
01:24 for the small screen, Shatner continued to go big. In a different project, it wouldn't
01:28 necessarily work, yet in something as heightened as Star Trek, it absolutely did, in large
01:33 part because of Shatner's charming, unrelenting commitment. Even in the weakest Trek episode,
01:38 it was worth tuning in just to see Shatner's idiosyncratic line reading and wild gesticulations.
01:44 9. Mad Men Though Mad Men boasted one of the most immaculate
01:48 ensemble casts in the history of television, there was one sure outlier in the pack, and
01:52 that was in the form of January Jones, who portrayed Don Draper's distant wife Betty.
01:57 Despite receiving Golden Globe and SAG nominations for her performance on the show, Jones is
02:01 generally accepted amongst the fanbase to be the weakest link, trailing the rest of
02:05 the main cast by a large margin. And yet, Jones' icy lack of effect throughout the
02:10 series - defined by a wooden delivery that borders on robotic at times - is ultimately
02:14 perfect for the role of a dissatisfied 1960s housewife. The creative minds behind the show
02:20 clearly appreciated that Jones' stiff performance would be perfect for the part of the repressed
02:25 and rather shallow Betty. Though Jones' post-Mad Men work, including a shambolic performance
02:30 in X-Men First Class, hasn't exactly shown much improvement. While a different actress
02:34 might have gone to lengths to add more life and different dimensions to Betty, Jones'
02:38 surface-level work was unintentionally quite brilliant in its own way.
02:43 8. Twin Peaks
02:44 David Lynch's Twin Peaks certainly boasted its fair share of excellent acting, but also
02:49 some performances that, to be blunt, were ultimately just quite laughable. By far the
02:54 two biggest culprits are James Marshall and Lara Flynn Boyle, who play young lovers James
02:58 Hurley and Donna Haywood. In Marshall's case, it didn't help that James is held
03:02 by many fans to be the show's worst character - a corny, boring mope whose irritation is
03:07 only elevated by pairing him with the obnoxious Donna. A hellish match, if there ever was
03:12 one. This all culminates in James' infamously, hilariously wretched rendition of the soft
03:16 ballad "Just You" for Donna and Maddie Ferguson, which, over 30 years later, remains
03:21 perhaps the show's single most ridiculed moment.
03:24 Yet David Lynch is as exacting as filmmakers come and knew precisely what he was doing
03:29 here. Lynch has never been particularly interested in realism, and with Twin Peaks existing as
03:34 both an homage to and an example of a soap opera, he clearly leaned into the off-key
03:39 overall performances of his cast at every moment. Marshall and Boyle certainly aren't
03:44 the only wonky actors amongst the huge ensemble, but their hyper-dramatic work feels more perfectly
03:49 attuned to the campy vibe that Lynch was definitely shooting for. It only enhances the feeling
03:54 that this sleepy town and the people within it are very, very off.
03:58 7. Master of None
04:01 Aziz Ansari's dramedy series Master of None has been widely celebrated for its phenomenally
04:05 perceptive writing, superbly sharp direction, and marvellous performances, though one of
04:10 its major triumphs was a bit of a happy accident. Protagonist Dev's Indian immigrant parents
04:15 make a few memorable appearances throughout the show, and best of all, they're played
04:19 by Ansari's real-life parents. Yet the pair are not professional actors in any way, and
04:24 it absolutely shows throughout the series. There's an untrained awkwardness to their
04:27 delivery that makes it clear that they're reading lines rather than speaking from the
04:31 heart, and yet there's a charm to that clumsiness which only makes their on-screen interactions
04:35 with their real-life son that much more funny and poignant. That stilted quality makes them
04:40 feel like real parents genuinely trying to have a heartfelt conversation with their son,
04:44 but because they're not used to speaking in this form, they struggle to get the words
04:48 out.
04:49 6. Orange is the New Black
04:51 Taylor Schilling is a totally solid actress, and yet her performance as protagonist Piper
04:56 in Netflix's hit prison drama Orange is the New Black has received wildly mixed responses
05:01 ever since the show's premiere. There was much outcry after Schilling scored a lead
05:04 actress Emmy nod for her work in the first season, many feeling that not only was Piper
05:08 the most boring member of the series, but that by extension Schilling's performance
05:12 was nothing to write home about. In Schilling's defense, Piper isn't a particularly interesting
05:17 character, though the actress plays her as so obnoxious as to erode all sympathy for
05:21 her altogether. With so many wonderful actors in the ensemble bringing life to the excellent
05:27 characters, Schilling's work definitely seems positively bland by comparison. Evidently,
05:31 the show's creator realised this as subsequent seasons edged away from Piper's story to
05:36 rove around the infinitely more compelling supporting cast, which was ultimately an incredibly
05:40 smart move to ensure the show's longevity. Had they kept focus on Piper and Schilling,
05:45 it's tough to imagine Orange sticking it out for seven seasons.
05:49 5. Once Upon a Time
05:50 ABC's hit fantasy series Once Upon a Time was a frothy good time both despite of and
05:56 because it was full of questionable acting. Beyond the genuinely brilliant, show-stealing
06:02 performances from Robert Carlyle as Mr. Gold/Rumpelstiltskin, the majority of the cast were firmly in phoning
06:09 it in territory, admittedly working with writing that could politely be called as 'not great'.
06:15 One takes no pleasure in singling out a child actor, but Jared S. Gilmore's performance
06:19 as the interminably annoying Henry Mills caught a lot of flack in earlier seasons, even if
06:25 he's simply the worst of an ensemble that's totally all over the place. And yet, the lack
06:29 of consistency between the performances, with actors swinging for so many disparate tones,
06:34 only enhanced the show's already pronounced guilty pleasure quality. It's basically
06:38 a community theatre production with a budget, a fairy tale that is underlined by the flailing
06:42 skittishness of the ensemble cast. It's not good acting, but it's way more fun to
06:47 watch than a more serious, self-regarding version of the show, which it definitely could
06:51 have been.
06:52 4. Altered Carbon
06:54 Netflix's prematurely cancelled Altered Carbon might be the textbook example of a
06:58 style-over-substance TV show, beautifully shot, thematically rich, and yet ultimately
07:03 failing to realise the full potential of its ambition. One of the chief complaints among
07:08 critics and viewers alike, though, was the mediocre performances from the show's leads,
07:12 Joel Kinnaman in the first season and Anthony Mackie in the second. Both Kinnaman and Mackie
07:16 are talented actors, there's no question about that, and yet, as the resleeved host
07:20 bodies for protagonist Takeshi Kovacs, each absolutely fails to convince. Kinnaman's
07:26 hard-boiled take on Kovacs aimed for brooding, but ended up feeling dull and wooden. And
07:31 though Mackie's subsequent portrayal felt more alive, it wasn't remotely consistent
07:34 with the character we were introduced to previously. And yet, this disconnect between the two performances
07:40 ends up unintentionally playing into the show's central theme of identity. The notion that
07:44 a guy being constantly swapped into different sleeves might seem inconsistent and off-kilter
07:49 totally works, it's just a shame that Netflix cancelled the show before season three, which
07:53 would have most likely featured Will Young Lee as the prime Kovacs and basically reconciled
07:58 the three performances into one.
08:00 3. Prison Break
08:02 Throughout the mid-2000s, Prison Break was one of the most talked-about TV shows on the
08:06 planet, a deliciously ridiculous, fiendishly addictive prison drama about a man, named
08:11 Michael, attempting to break his brother Lincoln out of prison before he's executed for a
08:15 crime he didn't commit. While there are a number of genuinely strong performers on
08:19 the show, namely William Fitchner, Peter Stormer, and Wade Williams, the two leading roles are
08:24 played by Wentworth Miller and Dominic Purcell, with a stoic reserve bordering on self-parody.
08:30 Despite the immense turmoil the brothers experience throughout, Miller and Purcell both underplay
08:35 their parts to the point that it's easy to call them cardboard. By any measure, their
08:39 work renders the show's two most important characters weirdly boring at times. And much
08:43 like fellow prison show Orange Is the New Black, the wider ensemble cast ended up surpassing
08:48 them in popularity.
08:49 Yet there's something to be said for their blank slate acting technique. For starters,
08:53 it provides an entertaining contrast to the bigger performances of their fellow prisoners,
08:58 and it also feels rather in-step with the show's shamelessly trashy vibe. A little
09:01 more emoting wouldn't have hurt either actor, for sure, but hearing Miller unveil the next
09:05 step of his wildly convoluted plan with a steely, dramatic whisper was nothing if not
09:10 highly amusing.
09:11 2. Squid Game
09:13 Netflix's Squid Game was the undeniable surprise TV hit of last year, becoming the
09:17 streamer's most-watched series ever and going on to win Golden Globe and SAG Awards
09:21 for the performances of its cast. Yet, as wonderful as the ensemble's performances
09:26 are, there is one aspect of the show that made a lot of fans turn their noses up, and
09:30 that was those damn VIPs.
09:32 In the show's seventh episode, we're introduced to a group of American VIPs who are all wagering
09:36 on the games. And many viewers noted the strangely stilted quality of their masked actors'
09:41 performances, some even citing it as an example of distractingly bad acting. And while it
09:46 was suggested that this was simply a result of the language barrier between the American
09:50 cast members and Korean crew, it's also been claimed that the disjointed performances
09:54 were entirely intentional, so as to create an intentional disconnect between them and
09:59 the rest of the cast. Whether intended or not, the off-base performances are certainly
10:03 effective in portraying the VIPs as stereotypically coarse, bone-headed American tourists.
10:09 An amusing reversal of America's media tendency to portray Asian characters amid broad stereotypes.
10:15 If the hammy acting made the gross VIPs even more off-putting, then good, you're not
10:19 meant to like them.
10:21 1. Riverdale
10:22 There's perhaps no greater guilty pleasure show still airing today than Riverdale, a
10:27 slick and self-consciously trashy reimagining of the classic Archie comic series. The show
10:32 has gone down some increasingly silly rabbit holes in recent years, with many fans believing
10:36 its quality has declined severely, noting the chaotically inconsistent writing of the
10:41 series' beloved main characters. But look, Riverdale was never going to be winning Emmy
10:44 awards for its acting, and though the older cast members largely get away with their dignity
10:49 intact, the teens are all over the place. Especially Archie, Veronica, and Jughead.
10:54 While they're absolutely at the mercy of the show's rough-shod scripts, of the main
10:58 teens the only actress to emerge relatively unscathed is Lily Reinhart, whereas the quality
11:02 of the others' work wildly varies from scene to scene. Yet, given Riverdale's unapologetic
11:07 penchant for slushy melodrama, which is basically styled as a teen rip-off of Twin Peaks as
11:12 it is, the wonky acting helps elevate that vibe into the stratosphere, where the audience
11:17 is simply just having fun laughing at the heightened absurdity of what they're seeing.
11:21 Seemingly well aware of this fact, Cole Sprouse himself hilariously compared the ensemble
11:26 cast to a wax museum a few years ago.
11:28 And there we go my friends, those were 10 TV shows that actually benefited from bad
11:32 acting. I hope that you enjoyed that, and please let me know what you thought about
11:35 it down in the comments section below. As always I've been Jules, you can go follow
11:38 me over on Twitter @RetroJWithA0, or you can swing by Live and Let's Dice where I do all
11:43 of my streaming outside of work, and it'd be great to see you over there my friend.
11:46 But before I go, I just want to say one thing. I hope you're treating yourself well with
11:49 love and respect, both mentally and physically my friend, because you deserve all of the
11:53 best things in life and do not let anything or anyone else tell you otherwise, alright?
11:57 You're a massive ledge and I want you to go out there and smash your life goals today.
12:00 I believe in you.
12:02 As always I've been Jules, you have been awesome, never forget that, and I'll speak
12:05 to you soon. Bye.