Entertainment
10 Greatest Forgotten Movie Characters of the ’90s, Ranked
There are dozens and dozens of ’90s movie characters that have become icons. Fans will quote them daily, dress as them for Halloween, and have generally elevated them to pop culture royalty status. Think of characters like Cher from Clueless, The Dude from The Big Lebowski, or Vincent and Jules from Pulp Fiction. This list is not about those characters. Instead, it’s about those characters that are just as equally charming, quirky, scary, or otherwise indelible that have somehow become forgotten through the passage of time.
These also-rans are played by some of the greatest actors of the era in films by eclectic and talented directors. The pictures themselves range from underrated gems to massive blockbuster successes, and yet none of these characters are as celebrated as they should be. These are ten of the greatest forgotten movie characters of the ’90s, unique figures worthy of your acknowledgment and praise.
10
Dusty (Philip Seymour Hoffman) in ‘Twister’ (1996)
Character actors were eating well in the ’90s. Almost every action blockbuster featured an expanded supporting cast that was filled out by rising stars and supporting actor mainstays. The 1996 disaster thriller Twister was no different, and none of that film’s supporting characters are more colorful than Dusty, the excitable storm chaser played by the singular Philip Seymour Hoffman.
Before Hoffman became the preeminent talent and Oscar winner he was known as, and long before he tragically passed away too young, he was burning up the screen in supporting roles that roasted most of his higher-profile co-stars. Movies like Scent of a Woman, Boogie Nights and Patch Adams all benefited from Hoffman’s presence, and his boisterous, boundless energy made Dusty a lovable sidekick.
9
The Collector (Billy Zane) in ‘Demon Knight’ (1995)
The ’90s were a transitional period for horror, and while the decade had its fair share of hits, it was absolutely overflowing with cult classics. Demon Knight, the inaugural feature film to come out of the spectacularly spooky horror television series Tales From the Crypt, is a solid midnight movie that can be loads of fun. A great deal of that fun comes from Billy Zane‘s performance as the movie’s supernatural big bad.
As the demon-leading villain who sets off a siege against the unfortunate residents of a boarding house, Zane completely understands the assignment. The ever-underrated actor vacillates between over-the-top theatrics and genuine, sinister villainy, and has a ball with all of it. Zane was one of the ’90s slimiest movie villains, best known for playing the rich and callous cuck in Titanic, and the Collector in Demon Knight gave him the opportunity to play with every weapon in his arsenal.
8
Drexl Spivey in ‘True Romance’ (1993)
Gary Oldman was one of Hollywood’s favorite Brits to cast as villains in the ’90s, and several of those roles have deservedly become icons. From the titular performance in Bram Stoker’s Dracula to the pill-popping corrupt cop in The Professional, his place in the villain hall of fame is assured. Counted among those iconic heavies should be the dreadlocked drug dealer Drexl Spivey in the cult action classic True Romance.
Though he only features in a couple of scenes in the film, Spivey leaves a lasting impression thanks to some very memorable lines courtesy of screenwriter Quentin Tarantino and Oldman’s typically committed performance. It’s the biggest scene-stealing character in a film filled with scene-stealing characters, and a testament to Oldman’s admirable ability to make the most out of any role, screen time be damned.
7
Lawrence Woolsey (John Goodman) in ‘Matinee’ (1993)
Matinee is Joe Dante‘s most personal movie. A nostalgia-tinged love letter to monster B-movies set during the Cuban Missile Crisis, it was well-reviewed but failed to make much impact at the box office, which is unfortunate because it’s a sweet and heartfelt coming-of-age story. At the center of it is John Goodman’s energetic performance as the fictional filmmaker Lawrence Woolsey.
A showman at heart, heavily inspired by the real-life filmmaker William Castle, Woolsey enjoys shocking audiences and loves a good gimmick. Far from a heartless huckster, though, he’s played with genuine warmth and charm by Goodman, who should have gotten more award notice for the performance. Alas, he’s never been nominated for an Oscar, and that is one of the most egregious oversights in Academy Awards history.
6
Amy Archer (Jennifer Jason Leigh) in ‘The Hudsucker Proxy’ (1994)
The Coen Brothers have created a cavalcade of memorable characters, and their output in the ’90s was, without exception, character-driven heaven. The Hudsucker Proxy was a major failure for the filmmaking duo at the time, and remains one of their most underrated features, which is unfortunate because it features hilarious character work from Tim Robbins, Paul Newman, and, especially, Jennifer Jason Leigh.
As fast-talking news gal Amy Archer, Leigh channels the spirit of screwball comedy mavens Rosalind Russell and Katharine Hepburn. She’s quick with a quip and delivers her dialogue at warp speed, only slowing down when she gets her heart broken in this delightful confection of a film that homages Preston Sturges and Frank Capra. While some critics derided the performance and character as a broad caricature at the time, in retrospect, it’s been proven to be a performance of comedic precision and perfection.
5
Ichabod Crane (Johnny Depp) in ‘Sleepy Hollow’ (1999)
Before his career devolved into personal drama and diminishing returns, Johnny Depp was a pretty reliable presence on screen, delivering some of the quirkiest leading man performances. His work with Tim Burton during the ’90s began with his iconic role as Edward Scissorhands, progressed through the Oscar-winning biopic Ed Wood, and culminated in the truly underrated Sleepy Hollow.
As Ichabod Crane, Depp is a one-man circus of idiosyncrasies. In the film’s version of the character, he’s a constable sent to investigate a series of murders in the titular town. He’s a character who values logic and reason over superstition, using a variety of forensic techniques to investigate. Ichabod is also prone to fainting and hysteria, with Depp eschewing any action hero characteristics, instead portraying Crane as if he were a frightened, fragile child.
4
Dolores Claiborne (Kathy Bates) in ‘Dolores Claiborne’ (1995)
When it comes to Kathy Bates and Stephen King, the character of Annie Wilkes, the obsessive fan in Misery, looms large. While that character rightly earned the actress an Academy Award, her titular role in another King adaptation, Dolores Claiborne, should be just as lauded. It’s a tense psychological drama about the bond between a mother and daughter and the trauma that tests it. Dolores may not be as colorful a character as Annie, and Bates’ performance may not be as showy, but it’s just as emotionally impactful, if not more so.
Set on a small Maine island, the film focuses on Dolores, whose involvement in the death of an elderly woman for whom she was the caretaker spurs a re-connection with her grown daughter, Vera, that reopens old wounds. Both mother and daughter were subject to abuse from Dolores’ husband, but while Dolores has lived with it and the repercussions of it, Vera has all but completely repressed her memories of it. Dolores Claiborne is one of King’s most heartfelt stories, and the lead character is one of the most fascinating and multidimensional in ’90s cinema. She’s brought to vivid life by Bates in a tour-de-force performance that has been overshadowed for far too long.
3
Ghost Dog (Forest Whitaker) in ‘Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai’ (1999)
One of the most idiosyncratic and underrated crime films of the ’90s, Jim Jarmusch‘s Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai focuses on a reclusive hit man who adheres to a strict warrior’s code while carrying out kills for the mob. While clearly indebted to crime films like Le Samouraï and Branded to Kill, it is distinctly a Jarmusch film in every way. Forest Whitaker‘s lead performance as the titular character is a brilliant depiction of the kind of quiet violence and strict morals often depicted in filmic assassins, but rarely ever as successfully as done here.
Whitaker has made a career out of playing characters who operate on both sides of the law, but are often colored in moral shades of grey as opposed to black and white. His quiet intensity and imposing figure have always served him well in these kinds of roles, but he wasn’t given proper award recognition until he fully inhabited Idi Amin in The Last King of Scotland. Arguably, he should’ve gotten far more notice before then, particularly for Ghost Dog, who speaks far more softly but is just as compelling and capable of violence.
2
David Jason (Jeff Goldblum) in ‘Deep Cover’ (1992)
Jeff Goldblum‘s career in the ’90s is mostly defined by his eccentric performances in blockbusters like Jurassic Park and Independence Day, but his best performance, by far, came in the completely forgotten Bill Duke-directed crime film Deep Cover. It stars Laurence Fishburne as an undercover cop in the Los Angeles drug trade, where he meets Goldblum’s corrupt attorney and drug trafficker. Even when the film covers some familiar territory, it’s never anything less than immediately compelling thanks to the two lead performances.
Goldblum is dynamic as hell, playing a milquetoast character whose taste for the underworld only causes him to become greedier and more violently unhinged. It’s an especially astounding performance for anyone who generally only associates Goldblum with his more recent comedic persona. He gives layers to his character that make him alternatively sympathetic and deplorable, and it’s always fun to watch Goldblum go full dark.
1
Edgar (Vincent D’Onofrio) in ‘Men in Black’ (1997)
Maybe it’s because of the diminishing returns of the sequels, or that the original film seems much smaller now in comparison to the career of its most major star, but Men in Black never gets enough credit for being such a clever, funny and perfectly executed blockbuster. It’s visually dynamic, has a great mix of practical and digital effects and, most of all, a terrific cast. Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones are perfectly mismatched as odd couple partners, and the severely underutilized Linda Fiorentino gives tons of dimension in her supporting role. As for Vincent D’Onofrio, he should’ve won a damn Oscar for his brilliant villain performance.
As a giant alien bug wearing a local yokel’s skin as a suit, D’Onofrio’s work as Edgar is full-bodied. He walks and talks in a way that makes you fully believe there’s a 20-foot-tall cockroach inhabiting his body, and he’s scary, funny and weird in all the best ways. Edgar set a bar for future villains in the Men in Black franchise that none have come even close to touching, despite being played by some very talented actors. It’s a testament to how committed D’Onofrio is in the role, creating a blockbuster villain that has no real comparison, yet somehow is not continually listed among the greatest of all time.