Jeff Goldblum
He provided quintessential comic relief in two of the 1990’s biggest blockbusters – Jurassic Park and Independence Day – as quirky know-it-alls. Nowadays, the actor prefers to make casual appearances on series like Portlandia, Glee and The League.
Goldblum once said that he loved portraying smart characters who figure out what’s going on before anybody else, which is likely why the only recent series he latched onto was Law and Order: Criminal Intent, where he played Detective Zach Nichols. Goldblum rarely demands lead roles on the big screen anymore and prefers to exercise his eccentricity on New York stages.
Nevertheless, he can capably play loopy and intelligent at the same time, and would be a perfect fit for a quirky HBO comedy in the vein of Bored to Death or Curb Your Enthusiasm. Or he could pull off a scene-stealing supporting turn a la Sam Waterston on The Newsroom (although his manic, haltering rhythm of speaking would likely frustrate Aaron Sorkin) or Entourage’s Jeremy Piven (although as his movies show, Goldblum is not much of a yeller, even when there’s a T-Rex chasing his Jeep). That leaves room for a bumbling, know-it-all investigator type (think Psych, Monk or facsimiles of those shows) who could be personified best underneath Goldblum’s wit and charm.
