Bill Paxton
In 2014, Kevin Costner drew some of the poorest reviews of his career for his Liam Neeson-style thriller, Three Days to Kill. Costner’s biggest success immediately before that role was the History miniseries Hatfields & McCoys, which also starred Bill Paxton as the leader of the other half of that historic family feud. If Costner could snarl and shoot his way across the big screen in Kill, why can’t Paxton?
After headlining the HBO series Big Love for five years, Paxton is slowly finding his way back to worthwhile film roles. He had a reliable turn in Nightcrawler last fall as Lou Bloom’s rival and stole a few scenes from Tom Cruise in Edge of Tomorrow last summer. He is still as good a character actor as he used to be in his films for James Cameron, including Aliens and Titanic.
However, while his Texas charm is still a dependable asset in supporting roles, Paxton has the chops to make for both a vicious and vulnerable action star, just like Neeson. Action fans who adored his work as the arrogant, trash-talking Private Hudson in Aliens would get a huge thrill seeing Paxton get more screen time and a proper vehicle for his blend of crazed humor and compelling dramatic chops.