Top 10 YouTubers Who Thought They Could Be Actors

Top 10 YouTubers Who Thought They Could Be Actors

Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the most famous YouTubers who attempted to make a career as a mainstream actor. But, for one reason or another, it didn’t work out, so they had to pivot.

#10: Colleen Ballinger

After taking the internet by storm with her character Miranda Sings, Ballinger became one of the earliest stars to transition from YouTube with her character into the mainstream industry. With her history in acting and performing, she should’ve had a long, stable career. However, when Ballinger’s TV series “Haters Back Off” dropped on Netflix, viewers, especially those not familiar with Sings, didn’t like its cringey humor and awkward acting. Despite the show being canceled, Ballinger still had a mainstream career, as she cameoed in 2018’s “Ralph Breaks the Internet.” However, that security vanished in the wake of allegations of her misconduct with minors in 2020 and again in 2023, with the final nail being Ballinger’s bizarre, half-apology, half-defence ukulele video.

#9: Ryland Adams

Long before he began publishing his own YouTube videos and becoming a power-couple on the platform alongside Shane Dawson, Adams had aspirations to be an actor. After changing his name from Ryan Adams, as many performers had that name, he relocated to Los Angeles, California, to break into Hollywood. Adams secured some film gigs, including a minor role in 2011’s “3 Times a Charm.” However, the production was panned by the audience. Adams later took part in the YouTube channel LARK LARK WHOS THERE, which created strange, cringey sketches that gained little attention. With this experience, he developed his own channel, gaining fame from parodying stars before turning to vlogging.

#8: Lucas Cruikshank

In 2006, Cruikshank debuted the high-pitched character of Fred Figglehorn. Within three years, it was the biggest thing on the platform. This led Cruikshank to reprise the character and act in other roles on several Nickelodeon shows, such as “iCarly.” Yet the high point was 2010’s “Fred: The Movie.” However, away from the fans Fred already had, the reviews were brutal. Regardless, Cruikshank had two other TV films in his iconic role in 2011 and 2012, as well as the TV program “Fred: The Show.” Yet after this, Cruikshank essentially retired Fred, beyond a couple of brief returns over the years, to avoid being typecast. However, he hasn’t been in a big production since 1 episode of the TV show “Monsters vs. Aliens” in 2013.

#7: Jake Paul

After growing to fame on Vine, Paul shifted to YouTube, increasing his brand even further as he vlogged about his life and did practical jokes. This led to Disney casting him in “Bizaardvark,” as Dirk, an influencer who does dares. However, in 2017, Paul was suddenly fired. This was due to him causing too much negative controversy with his channel’s content, and parties causing havoc for his neighbors. However, Paul took it in stride and stated he’d outgrown the House of Mouse and was looking for more mature roles. Yet, that didn’t really happen. Beyond playing versions of himself in a couple of productions, and writing 2019’s “Airplane Mode,” with his brother, Logan, Paul hadn’t had any major roles since.

#6: Addison Rae

In TikTok’s infancy, Rae became one of its first breakout stars as her dances took it by storm. After making a name for herself as a musician, she created a YouTube channel that focuses on her songs. With her ever-increasing fame, Rae took the plunge into acting. Firstly, she was cast as one of the leads in 2021’s “He's All That,” a remake of 1999’s “She's All That.” However, the shortage of chemistry with co-star Tanner Buchanan and Rae’s lack of presence and experience on the big screen were seen as big issues. Rae followed this with 2023’s horror flick, “Thanksgiving.” Yet, once again, reviewers pinpointed the TikToker’s weak acting abilities as a substantial problem in maintaining a long-term career in the industry.

#5: KSI

After joining YouTube in 2009 as a content creator, KSI rose up the ranks of the platform, becoming one of the most influential people on it. Yet in 2016, looking to break into the mainstream, KSI signed up to star in “Laid in America,” alongside fellow YouTuber Caspar Lee. However, rather than make him a force to be reckoned with in acting, the project tanked KSI’s performing career before it took off. Not helped by the film itself being panned by the audience, so was the YouTuber for essentially not acting and seemingly playing himself as Duncan. As a result, KSI hasn’t been in another film since, beyond a couple of shorts.

#4: Steven He

Trying to make a name as an actor is incredibly difficult. Not many know this better than He. The influencer has stated publicly that by the time the pandemic took effect in 2020, he’d been rejected from around 3100 acting jobs. Most of those gigs never got back to him for an audition as he struggled to pay his rent. So, He took the drastic decision to change directions and become a content creator. Backed up with his own writing and production know-how, He began creating skits, which really took off in 2021 when his phrase “emotional damage” went viral with all the memes. Since then, He has taken a few acting jobs, but seems content in controlling his own narrative on social media.

#3: Lilly Singh

Formerly known as Superwoman, Singh began creating skits on YouTube in 2010. Her content soon took off, turning her into one of the platform's biggest names. This led to plenty of collaborations with mainstream stars, including Zendaya and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. In 2019, her talk show “A Little Late with Lilly Singh” debuted. While there was praise for her work, there was criticism for Singh acting in sketches. Some critics felt it was more like watching her early YouTube work, rather than a big, modern production. In 2024, Singh then starred in “Doin’ It.” Unfortunately, on top of the film receiving bad reviews, her performance didn’t go down too well as it was described as “awkward.”

#2: Shane Dawson

In his heyday, Dawson was one of the top dogs of YouTube. After making his channel in 2008, he soon began dipping his toe in the acting world. In one of his biggest early works, Dawson appeared in 2012’s “Smiley,” which, while he received some praise, the film was heavily criticized. Dawson was looking at writing and directing productions, as well as acting. As such, he created 2014’s “Not Cool.” With him as a focal point of the project, there was no escape for Dawson from critics taking shots at it. The LA Times took no prisoners by calling it, “an insult to the craft of filmmaking, storytelling and entertainment in almost every way.” As such, it's no surprise Dawson hasn’t done much acting since.

#1: Logan Paul

With his massive fan base, Paul began starring in films in 2016 with YouTube Premium’s “The Thinning.” Despite the production getting negative reviews, Paul continued carving out a slice of an acting career with more productions. However, the 2018 sequel, “The Thinning: New World Order,” brought him a lot of criticism for his acting. It didn’t help that several months before its release, Paul had found himself in controversy with filming a deceased person in Japan’s Aokigahara forest. This caused several productions he was involved in to be halted or canceled. One affected was 2019’s “Airplane Mode,” which he co-wrote. He was later sued by production company Planeless Pictures for Paul’s Japan scandal for causing the film to lose money, which was settled in 2024.

Which YouTuber has had the most successful acting career in your opinion? Let us know below!