Top Actors in the Music Business
There are a number of actors who have portrayed musicians over the years. Val Kilmer is considered by many to have portrayed the definitive Jim Morrison in the Oliver Stone biopic The Doors. Lou Diamond Phillips was cast as Ritchie Valens in La Bamba. Jamie Fox took to the silver screen as Ray Charles in Ray and numerous actors took on the role of Bob Dylan in I’m Not There.
As many actors as have portrayed famous musicians over the years there seems to be an ever-growing number of actors who have chosen to take the concept a step further and actually pursue musical careers while still maintaining their acting credibility. While the concept of musicians pursuing acting careers has been around as far back as Elvis Presley, these days, there seems to be an even greater influx of already established actors tackling roles as musicians. Dish decided to round up the top actors pulling double duty these days as musicians and came up with the following list of their most recent projects.
Robert Pattinson - Bad Girls
Ranked as the #1 actor worldwide on IMDB’s STARmeter, Robert Pattinson has a lot going for him. Young girls all over the world swooned as they watched him play Edward Cullen, the pale faced vampire in last year’s film adaptation of Stephanie Meyer’s hit series, Twilight. The up-and-coming actor is also a musician, and has been for quite a while. He plays guitar and piano and is a phenomenal singer, but he has not recorded much more than a few tracks of his own music, opting instead to play pubs and other intimate venues. Of the few songs that are recorded, however, two (“Never Think” and “Let Me Sign”) are on the Twilight soundtrack. “Let Me Sign” is a haunting electric blues ballad whose dark themes echo those of the movie that has made him a huge star. In “Never Think,” Pattinson interprets simple lyrics with tortured vocals, telling a story that explores some of young love’s darker contradictions. In his recent film How To Be (2008), Pattinson sings three original songs for the soundtrack. The Twilight Saga: New Moon and Little Ashes are two new Pattinson starrers set for release later this year. According to IMDB, he has also been cast in the lead roles for two films still in pre-production (Unbound Captives and Remember Me). His current band, in which he plays with an ex-girlfriend’s current boyfriend, is called Bad Girls.
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