Top 10 Actors that Were in Two Great & Iconic Movies in the Same Year

The Top Ten
1 Marlon Brando - The Godfather & Last Tango In Paris (1972) Marlon Brando, Jr. was an American actor, film director, and activist. He is credited with bringing a gripping realism to film acting, and is often cited as one of the greatest and most influential actors of all time. He died on July 1, 2004 at the age of 80.
2 Joe Pesci - Goodfellas & Home Alone (1990) Joseph Frank "Joe" Pesci is an Italian-American actor, comedian and musician, known for playing tough, volatile characters, in a variety of genres.
3 Kevin Spacey - The Usual Suspects & Seven (1995) Kevin Spacey Fowler KBE (born July 26, 1959) is an American actor and producer. He began his career as a stage actor during the 1980s, obtaining supporting roles in film and television. Spacey has received various accolades for his performances on stage and screen including two Academy Awards, a Tony Awards, two Laurence Olivier Awards, and four Screen Actors Guild Awards. He received nominations for a Grammy Award as well as twelve Primetime Emmy Awards. Spacey received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1999, and was named an honorary Commander and Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 2010 and 2015, respectively. ...read more.
4 Leonardo Di Caprio - Shutter Island & Inception (2010) Leonardo Wilhelm DiCaprio (born November 11, 1974) is an American actor and film producer. Known for his work in biopics and period films, he is the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, and three Golden Globe Awards. As of 2019, his films have grossed over $7.2 billion worldwide, and he has been placed eight times in annual rankings of the world's highest-paid actors. ...read more.
5 Ryan Gosling - La La Land & The Nice Guys (2016) Ryan Thomas Gosling is a Canadian actor, musician, and producer. He began his career as a child star on the Disney Channel's Mickey Mouse Club and went on to appear in other family entertainment programs including Are You Afraid of the Dark?
6 Mena Suvari - American Beauty & Americn Pie (1999) Mena Alexandra Suvari is an American actress, fashion designer and model. Shortly after beginning her career as a model, Suvari appeared in guest roles on such 1990s television shows as Boy Meets World and High Incident.
7 Tom Hanks - Apollo 13 & Toy Story (1995) Thomas Jeffrey "Tom" Hanks (born July 9, 1956) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is known for his roles in Splash, Big, Turner & Hooch, Philadelphia, Forrest Gump, Apollo 13, Saving Private Ryan, You've Got Mail, The Green Mile, the Toy Story Franchise, Cast Away, The Da Vinci Code, Captain Phillips, and Saving Mr. Banks.
8 Ian McKellen - The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King & X2 (2003) Sir Ian Murray McKellen is an English actor. He is the recipient of six Laurence Olivier Awards, a Tony Award, a Golden Globe Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, a BIF Award, two Saturn Awards, four Drama Desk Awards and two Critics' Choice Awards.
9 Samuel L. Jackson - The Avengers & Django Unchained (2012) Samuel Leroy Jackson is an American actor and film producer. He achieved prominence and critical acclaim in the early 1990s with films such as Jungle Fever, Patriot Games, Amos & Andrew, True Romance, Jurassic Park and his collaborations with director Quentin Tarantino including Pulp Fiction, Jackie ...read more.
10 Sidney Poitier - In the Heat of the Night & Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967) Sir Sidney Poitier was a Bahamian-American actor, film director, author, and diplomat. In 1964, Poitier became the first Bahamian and first black actor to win an Academy Award for Best Actor, and the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor for his role in Lilies of the Field.

Both movies are powerful and intelligent statements against racism (one about racism in general and the other one about mixed racial couples) at a time when this wad very brave, and were nominated for several Oscars and ITHOTN even won Best Picture - however Sidney Poitier, the black main actor was not nominated for each. Probably a coincidence (if they were racist they wouldn't have nominated the movies in the first place) but very unfortunate, especially since the performances were so impressive.

The Contenders
11 Tom Cruise - Mission: Impossible & Jerry Maguire Thomas Cruise Mapother IV is an American actor and producer. He has received various accolades for his work, including three Golden Globe Awards and three nominations for Academy Awards. He is one of the highest-paid actors in the world.
12 Andrew Garfield - Hacksaw Ridge & Silence (2016) Andrew Russell Garfield is a British-American actor. Born in Los Angeles, California and raised in Epsom, Surrey, Garfield began his career on the UK stage and in television productions. He's best known for The Amazing Spider-Man films, and The Social Network (a film about the founding of Facebook), ...read more.
13 Gregory Peck - How the West Was Won & to Kill a Mockingbird (1962) Eldred Gregory Peck (April 5, 1916 – June 12, 2003) was an American actor who was one of the most popular film stars from the 1940s to the 1960s. Peck continued to play major film roles until the late 1980s. His performance as Atticus Finch in the 1962 film To Kill a Mockingbird earned him the Academy Award for Best Actor.

He had also been nominated for an Oscar for the same category for The Keys of the Kingdom (1944), The Yearling (1946), Gentleman's Agreement (1947) and Twelve O'Clock High (1949). ...read more.

THREE if you include 'Cape Fear' which is also very iconic.

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