Before They Were Geek Bait

Today we bring you six actors and the embarassing/Oscar nomination-garnering films and television shows in which they appeared when they thought no one was watching. Well, I guess no one was watching. But now we are. Enjoy!

6. Robert Downey, Jr. in Chaplin
Before Robert Downey, Jr. was Tony Stark, he was Charlie Chaplin. Actually, he was a seemingly-incorrigible cocaine and Valium addict whose career was tanking faster than...well...it didn't actually tank that quickly. For some reason (probably because he's talented and beautiful) people kept casting him in spite of his many issues, and he kept blowing his chances. But before that, he was nominated for an Oscar for Best Actor in Chaplin.





5. Elijah Wood in North

I haven't got anything witty to say about Elijah Wood. Rather, I just find it interesting that his acting ability peaked at the age of eight.



4. Daniel Radcliffe in David Copperfield

The most shocking thing I learned from this was that Dan also reached the pinnacle of his acting potential before adolescence. I think it just went downhill from there. Somehow, part of being in a Harry Potter film means that you don't actually have to act. I'm assuming this is because the studio can expect a minimum box office take of five hundred gajillion dollars regardless.





3. NPH in Doogie Howser, M.D.

Long before he stole our hearts as evil genius Dr. Horrible, NPH starred in his own sitcom about a super-genius child doctor. Some will argue his role as Doogie or as Barney in How I Met Your Mother are actually far more well known than his role as the titular super-villain in Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog. These people are wrong.



2. Christian Bale in Newsies

Although the future Batman also appeared in Disney's Pocahontas as Thomas, his role in Newsies is far more emasculating. If you ever wondered why the Joker can't stop laughing his ass of when the Dark Knight's around, start watching at 2:13.





1. Zachary Quinto in Touched By An Angel

This one was a difficult choice considering how ZQ and his eyebrows also made appearances in Lizzie McGuire and in Charmed, the latter role being comprised primarily of chasing after and attempting to kill cats. Interestingly, he had the same haircut in all three of these. This makes me wonder whether he began wearing the fug hat simply to try to fend off the hair and makeup artists of Hollywood who seem to think that he looks just fabulous with an emo do. Anyway, I'm slightly disappointed that the angels are doing the touching and not other, more appreciative people. And by that I mean myself. Or Jessica. But mostly me.