Top 10 Actors Who Are in EVERY Rom-Com
#10: Matthew McConaughey
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To some of us he will always be Wooderson, but McConaughey has had a very impressive and diverse career since the days of “Dazed and Confused.” And while he broke out with the film “A Time To Kill” in 1996 and has earned acclaim for his dramatic work in the 2010s, you may have forgotten that the 2000s was a decade filled with McConaughey rom-coms, starting in 2001 with “The Wedding Planner.” His resume would go on to include “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days” “Failure to Launch” and 2009’s “Ghosts of Girlfriends Past.” If rom-coms and Matthew McConaughey are your two favorite things, then the 2000s had you feeling “alright alright, alright.”
#9: Katherine Heigl
When “Grey’s Anatomy” premiered all the way back in 2005 it was an immediate hit, and made overnight stars of its main cast. But out of all of them, it was Katherine Heigl who saw her star rise the highest and the fastest, and for the next few years she was a rom-com machine. Starting in 2007 with “Knocked Up” she was in a romantic comedy every year for four years straight. In 2008 it was “27 Dresses.” The next year it was “The Ugly Truth,” and in 2010 she starred opposite Josh Duhamel in “Life as We Know It.” That’s a lotta rom and com!
#8: Cameron Diaz
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Cameron Diaz might not be in the front of people’s minds these days given that she basically retired from the business back in 2014. However, those of a certain age will no doubt remember Cameron and her many rom-com roles. Diaz made her debut in 1994 in “The Mask” which is definitely a comedy with romance, although some might not define it as a rom-com. However, just looking at the rest of the ‘90s and we see Diaz rockin’ the rom-coms from “She’s The One” to “There’s Something About Mary.” With “My Best Friend’s Wedding” and “A Life Less Ordinary” inbetween. She didn’t slow her rom-com role in the 2000s either with “In Her Shoes,” “The Holiday” and “What Happens in Vegas” all on her resume.
#7: Jennifer Lopez
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While her real life romances have always seemingly been filled with more drama than comedy, on screen J.Lo’s combined love and laughs a number of times, with varying degrees of success. Her rom-com career started off strong with 2001’s “The Wedding Planner.” And with the release of her album, “J.Lo” at the same time she became the first woman to have a number one movie and album in the same week. Her next rom-com effort was the much derided mega-flop “Gigli,” but she got back in the successful saddle with “Shall We Dance?” and “Monster-in-Law.” Even the critically-panned “The Back-up Plan” was a financial success. Is there anything this girl from the block can’t do?
#6: Meg Ryan
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She did other kinds of movies from thrillers to war dramas: think “Proof of Life” and “Courage Under Fire.” But for better or for worse there are few actresses ever more associated with romantic comedies than Meg Ryan. And given that those films include “You’ve Got Mail,” “Sleepless in Seattle” and “When Harry Met Sally,” we think it’s definitely for better. And that doesn’t even take into account “I.Q.” “Addicted to Love” and “French Kiss.” In fact, Ryan made 14 live-action movies in the ‘90s and seven of them were romantic comedies. For a while, it really did feel like she was in every rom-com. And it felt good.
#5: Sandra Bullock
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The talented Mrs. Bullock rose to stardom on the backs of action movies like “Speed” and went on to Oscar-winning performances like the one she gave in “The Blind Side.” And yet, in case you hadn’t noticed, over her impressive career, she’s starred in a surprising number of romantic comedies. We can go all the way back to 1992 with one of her first starring roles, in the film “Love Potion No. 9.” From there we continue to “While You Were Sleeping,” “Two Weeks Notice,” and “Forces of Nature” And of course, we could never forget Bullock’s iconic reign as “Miss Congeniality.”
#4: Hugh Grant
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If all you know of Hugh Grant’s work is what he’s done in the last 10 years, then seeing him at number four on this list should make absolutely no sense to you. Over the last decade or so Grant has embraced his darker side and played very non rom-com characters, from the villainous Phoenix Buchanan in “Paddington 2” to the rich doctor who might be a murderer in the HBO’s “The Undoing.” However, there was a time, following his star turn in the 1994 hit, “Four Weddings and a Funeral” that it felt like they didn’t make a romantic comedy unless Hugh Grant was in it. Think “Notting Hill,” “Bridget Jones's Diary,” “Love Actually” and “Music and Lyrics” to name just a few.
#3: Drew Barrymore
Although her character’s love for E.T. was real, we aren’t counting that as one of Drew Barrymore’s romantic comedies. Drew was so young when she started acting that the first part of her career is rom-com free. However, once she hit her 20s in the mid ‘90s, she went on an almost two-decade long rom-com roll which includes “Everyone Says I Love You,” “Never Been Kissed” and the aforementioned “Music and Lyrics.” And we can’t forget “The Wedding Singer,” “Blended” and “50 First Dates,” featuring Drew and her three-time-rom-com partner Adam Sandler.
#2: Jennifer Aniston
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Before “Friends” premiered in 1994, Jennifer Aniston was just an actress. After it premiered, she soon became one of the most famous actresses in the world, complete with one of the most famous haircuts, and roles in what seemed like every romantic comedy since 1997. That was when she got her first big headlining role in the sweet rom-com, “Picture Perfect.” After that, she was off to the rom-com races, from “The Object of My Affection” to “Along Came Polly” to“Just Go with It,” with many more in between. And it’s fitting that the show that made her a star also provided her with one of her greatest romantic and comedic moments of all time.
#1: Julia Roberts
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Who else but Julia Roberts could top this list? And what’s amazing about Roberts is how she was able to do so many romantic comedies while avoiding being typecast as a rom-com star. As you may remember, she won an Oscar for the non-rom-com film, “Erin Brockovich.” But with that said, this is Julia Roberts, the star of four of the biggest rom-coms of the ‘90s: “Pretty Woman,” “Notting Hill,” “My Best Friend's Wedding” and “Runaway Bride.” And come the 21st Century, Julia kept it going with “America's Sweethearts” and “Larry Crowne.” That’s definitely an impressive 20+ years of romance and comedy.
