Did you know Jennifer Lawrence has had a song on the Billboard top 20? Or that Kristen Bell actually sings the songs on Frozen?
Both Lawrence and Bell are "double threats", a term coined to describe a multi-talented performer – an actor who can sing (or maybe, a singer who can act?). Check out this list of successful actors who are in fact also really gifted singers, and are even cooler than we already knew. And if you don’t believe us, google their name + singing, what you hear will blow your mind.
Both Lawrence and Bell are "double threats", a term coined to describe a multi-talented performer – an actor who can sing (or maybe, a singer who can act?). Check out this list of successful actors who are in fact also really gifted singers, and are even cooler than we already knew. And if you don’t believe us, google their name + singing, what you hear will blow your mind.
1. Emma Stone
Stone started acting at age four, and since her initial focus was toward musical theater, she took voice lessons as a kid. Those lessons came in handy in 2014, when Stone made her Broadway debut in the revival of classic musical Cabaret.
That is also where director Damien Chazelle saw her perform, and decided to offer her the role in romantic musical La La Land, for which she received her first Academy Award.
2. Jennifer Lawrence
Even though Jennifer Lawrence has admitted on The Late Show that her biggest fear is singing in public, she recorded a song for the first movie in the Hunger Game trilogy, Mockingjay.
The Song, The Hanging Tree, was released as a single in 2014 – it reached number 12 on the US Billboard, and music critics were impressed with Lawrence’s raspy, soulful delivery.
3. Dylan Minnette
The 13 Reasons Why star is in fact also a serious singer, and in addition to his acting career he’s the front man and guitarist of LA alt-rock band Wallows.
Minnette has never had any formal music lessons, but grew up around his dad’s - musician Craig Minnette - guitars, and used to go up on stage with him – even as a young kid.
4. Zooey Deschanel
Growing up, Deschanel has always loved music and singing. And since 2006, singing is not just a hobby for her - she is the singer of indie duo She & Him with guitarist M. Ward, where she also plays the piano and the ukulele.
The duo was even nominated for a Grammy Award for the song So Long that Deschanel wrote for Winnie the Pooh’s soundtrack.
5. Hugh Jackman
Jackman started his career in musical theater in the late 90s, and even won a Tony Award for his role in The Boy from Oz in 2004. He later moved on to blockbuster Hollywood movies, but in 2011 returned to his roots and had a one-man show featuring a mix of his favourite Broadway and Hollywood musical numbers.
In 2012 he starred as Jean Valjean in Les Misérables, an adaption for the classic musical, a role for which he received much praise.
6. Kristen Bell
When Frozen came out, fans were curios to discover who did the singing for Anna, Bell’s character, in the hit Disney movie – and they were shocked to discover it was bell herself.
Bell in fact majored in musical theater in university, and dropped out her senior year after she got the role of Betty in the Broadway musical The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.
7. Meryl Streep
Streep is hailed as one of the greatest actresses of modern Hollywood, but throughout her long career she’s also proved herself to be a fantastic singer, singing in films like Mamma Mia and Into the Woods.
On Inside the Actors Studio, Streep admitted that if she hadn't become an actress, she likely would have been a singer.
8. Michael Cera
Michael Cera’s singing scene in Superbad was less than impressive, but the actor is in fact a talented singer and songwriter. In 2014 he released his debut indie album, True That, to critical acclaim.
Cera is also a bass player, he has toured with rock band Mister Heavenly, and also played the bass on the movie Scott Pilgrim vs. the World.
9. Seth MacFarlane
The Family Guy creator is also a talented singer who’s already released five studio albums, all featuring new arraignments for classic songs, and was nominated to five Grammy Awards. MacFarlane is big fan of 40s and 50s jazz music and film score composers.
He names Frank Sinatra as his biggest influence, and has performed on many tributes to his idol.
10. Johnny Depp
Depp is one of the most successful actors in the world, but he has also always been a serious musician, performing as guitarist and singer with numerous bands, among them rock supergroup Hollywood Vampires which he formed with musicians Alice Cooper and Aerosmith’s Joe Perry.
Depp has also used his talent to sing in movies, most notably in the musical films Cry-baby and Sweeney Todd.