There’s a lot of terrible acting on this show, but wanted to devote a thread to some of the better acting moments. Here’s just one:

In the Michael Rosenblum segment, I think the woman who plays Michael’s girlfriend Lisa nails it in the scene where they’re arguing while leaving the hospital. Especially when she says “wait for me, just let me walk beside you!” Something just feels really authentic about her delivery of that line to me.

Can y’all think of others?

The actresses who played the mother and daughter of the man shot to death by Edward Howard Bell.

The actresses who played the mother and daughter of the man shot to death by Edward Howard Bell.

The mother was played by Margaret Bowman, who played roles in quite a few movies. She stole her scene in Hell or High Water as the T-Bone waitress, absolutely hilarious scene

I’m pretty sure I mentioned this years ago but I have to hand it to the actress who played Colleen Ritter. In particular the scene of her running down the driveway. THAT is a realistic scream of somebody who is chasing you with a knife. There are actresses in horror movies who were not as convincing as this.

Even the way she flinches when the neighbor checks on her in the middle of the street was a logical move. That girl brought it.

The actor who played John Mooney.

I’m pretty sure I mentioned this years ago but I have to hand it to the actress who played Colleen Ritter. In particular the scene of her running down the driveway. THAT is a realistic scream of somebody who is chasing you with a knife. There are actresses in horror movies who were not as convincing as this.

Even the way she flinches when the neighbor checks on her in the middle of the street was a logical move. That girl brought it.

came here to say this. i was emotionally affected by the way she screamed when the neighbor tried to help her. i can hear the scream now.

The actresses who played the mother and daughter of the man shot to death by Edward Howard Bell.

that is an excellent choice.

My favorite UM segment is Fritz and the soldiers. I think the actors in that segment all made it seem very real. the first time I watched it I was on edge.

the Debbie segment. It's dark, but the actor that portrayed the criminal did a great job and UM altering his voice adding the creepy music. "where you going? you aint goin nowhere"

I also liked the 2 main actors in the agatha christie segment.

The actresses who played the mother and daughter of the man shot to death by Edward Howard Bell.

These are excellent choices. First of all, those actresses had a tall order ahead of them. The horror of watching a beloved relative get shot so many times, watching them die and then having to confront the killer is the kind of material that’s not easy for any actor/actress. But these ladies really were amazing. The shot of Dawna having to identify Bell in the backseat of the police car and attacking him the way she did was a natural response that I’m sure many would have had.

This was a rare time where even Robert Stack had to prepare the viewers for what they were about to see. I remember as a kid seeing this segment for the first time and I felt drained. It was such a horrible story.

The guy who played Huey Long. Watching old film clips of the real Huey proves that he nailed it

The guy who played Huey Long. Watching old film clips of the real Huey proves that he nailed it

Totally!

My pick is the woman who played Gretchen Burford. Very realistic and the way she did the “He stabbed me!” scene, falling to the ground right after she opened the door. That stayed with me for YEARS!

And the woman who was Marylinn DePue. Just because she really took one for the team by taking a tumble down a flight of stairs! :eek:

The guy who played Huey Long. Watching old film clips of the real Huey proves that he nailed it

good one, it reminds me a lot of John Goodman's character in oh brother where art thou.

The actress that played Ms. Angela Slusher in the Audrey Moat & Thomas Hotard segment. "I don't want dem kids here, I don't want dem underfoot" will probably stick with me all of my remaining days.

The lady who played Marlene Santana's abductor. So cold and calculating.

I watched the Ralph Sigler episode the other day and at the time it struck me how well the actor portraying him and the scene staging gave off an air of espionage. Something about the reenactment where he's being forced to make the phone call by the Soviets also felt authentic.

The actress that played Ms. Angela Slusher in the Audrey Moat & Thomas Hotard segment. "I don't want dem kids here, I don't want dem underfoot" will probably stick with me all of my remaining days.

Caroline Schlesser, but point taken. She was great.
That look she gives the actor playing Hotard when she says "we ain't got nothin to talk about boy" or something to that effect always cracked me up.

The actress that played Ms. Angela Slusher in the Audrey Moat & Thomas Hotard segment. "I don't want dem kids here, I don't want dem underfoot" will probably stick with me all of my remaining days.

I thought I was the only one LOL

Shout out to Taylor Simpson-Wood and her iconic portrayal of Marie Hilley.

GET IN Z KAAAAR

You would put the Nadene Castelle actress (Jose Gonzalez/Milorad Zivkovic segment) in a Best Acting category? LOL, that accent was terrible. Memorable, but terrible. :lol:

You would put the Nadene Castelle actress (Jose Gonzalez/Milorad Zivkovic segment) in a Best Acting category? LOL, that accent was terrible. Memorable, but terrible. :lol:

:lol:

I think drew790 was referring to the bogus countess segment instead, but Nadene Castelle was pretty funny, too. "I cannot get zee kar without zee authorization?" Bonus points for the other lady who slams the car door angrily upon getting subpoenaed.

The lady who played Marlene Santana's abductor. So cold and calculating.

Yes she came off scary and batshxt crazy.

The actor who played Gregory Barker (Hilda Roche murder) was so good that he was probably more convincing as a serial killer than Barker himself.

The actor who played Gregory Barker (Hilda Roche murder) was so good that he was probably more convincing as a serial killer than Barker himself.

I recently watched this one again and totally agree. He was really good at switching from attentive to sinister.

I recently watched this one again and totally agree. He was really good at switching from attentive to sinister.

He pulled off the sinister side very well. But when he was “attentive,” he still portrayed a sense of creepiness. When they’re making small talk at the bar, his voice is so quiet and monotone like. He doesn’t have much personality at all. Likewise the scene where they’re at the table and she figures out her wallet is missing. Maybe the director told him to do it that way but you definitely get a sense of uneasiness before the big reveal that he’s a monster.

I also get the sense from Barker’s mugshot photo that he was much smaller than the actor who portrayed him.

The woman who played Angela Hammond nailed the screaming perfectly along with the guy who played Rob Shaffer.

The guy who played Gary Simmons and the guy who played Tom Dixon

The rest stop killer whoever they got to play the killer really was scary and terrified you

The woman who played Bonnie Wilder while she didn’t say a lot her presence and looks made you feel that she was the actual fugitive

The man who played Jim Burnside nailed his roll

The guy who played Timothy Coombs again not a lot of acting but still was able to give off a vibe of anti government extremists

Literally watching right now and in the Don Smith segment (S01E20), Don's daughter Brenda did an incredible job playing herself and her exasperated interaction with her dad. She was better than several working actors on the show.

good one, it reminds me a lot of John Goodman's character in oh brother where art thou.

Ironically, he's actually in that movie! He's the Woolworth's Manager. Actor's name is John "Spud" McConnell and he was a Coen Brothers' regular appearing in several of their films.

I love the guy who plays Alexander in the WWII Lost Loves segment. He does a great job showing why Siegfried would have been so inspired and happy to have him as a brotherly figure.

I agree completely. They are so believable that I actually cried the first time I saw the segment. Just the way they reacted to what was happening, knowing they had no way to stop it.

Caroline Schlesser, but point taken. She was great.
That look she gives the actor playing Hotard when she says "we ain't got nothin to talk about boy" or something to that effect always cracked me up.

I think she also said something like "and don't talk that trash talk in my house"

The actress that played Ms. Angela Slusher in the Audrey Moat & Thomas Hotard segment. "I don't want dem kids here, I don't want dem underfoot" will probably stick with me all of my remaining days.

you don't want them kids here?

I wanna be a fly on the wall at that house on Christmas morning.

Ironically, he's actually in that movie! He's the Woolworth's Manager. Actor's name is John "Spud" McConnell and he was a Coen Brothers' regular appearing in several of their films.

wow!

The actress who played the Black woman who was the lost love of Oscar, who was in the interracial relationship.

The actress playing Elizabeth Campbell when she was in the convenience store with the creepy Asian man. She looked so beaten down.

Specifically highlighting the people who agreed play themselves in extremely difficult situations they had lived through...even though they were portraying themselves, I don't think acting comes naturally to everybody. That might be one of the reasons they mostly stopped this after the early seasons (also it was probably apparent that it's too much to ask, particularly if you were a victim, or related to one).

Having said that, I think from that group, Investigator Gerry Krieger did a great job in the Greg Webb/Anna Anton segment. He was clearly a skilled investigator and I like how he recreated the tension in the scene where he sniffed out Webb's deception ("Were you and her ever intimately involved??")

Two more.

The actor who played Randall Utterback. He nailed the ick factor.

Also LaDonna Morrow from the Satanic Grandma segment. It looked like she played herself waiting for her little boy in that parking lot. The actress they found to play Pat Farmer, her psychopathic mother, was suitably icky.

Also LaDonna Morrow from the Satanic Grandma segment. It looked like she played herself waiting for her little boy in that parking lot. The actress they found to play Pat Farmer, her psychopathic mother, was suitably icky.

She did play herself. Almost all of the family abduction segments (which were never brought to filmrise) had the parents playing themselves. Off the top of my head, the only family abduction segment that used an actor was Bill Day.

She did play herself. Almost all of the family abduction segments (which were never brought to filmrise) had the parents playing themselves. Off the top of my head, the only family abduction segment that used an actor was Bill Day.

I was actually just thinking about this the other day because of the Paloma Gibson segment. It must have been wild for Paul (her father) to have to spar with an actress playing his wife. I always wonder what that must have been like behind the scenes.

I was actually just thinking about this the other day because of the Paloma Gibson segment. It must have been wild for Paul (her father) to have to spar with an actress playing his wife. I always wonder what that must have been like behind the scenes.

It's been mentioned before but at the time, we all thought it was kind of neat how so many actual family members played themselves in the earlier segments. It was part of what made UM so unique. But looking at those segments now, I just feel really bad for them having to recreate such traumatic moments in their lives. Like Russell Evans' mother recreating the scene in the hospital where her son is clinging to life and covered in bruises...or the doctor telling Jenny Pratt's actual mother that her daughter is braindead. It's just...so uncomfortable and has to be re-triggering for the people involved.

It was really wise how around season 5, the UM producers caught on that this probably wasn't a good idea and they should go with actors for everybody. Although there were some exceptions early on; like Rose Hoffman asking that an actress play her, which I don't blame her for not wanting to relive her story.

came here to say this. i was emotionally affected by the way she screamed when the neighbor tried to help her. i can hear the scream now.

The actress was exceptional. I also thought the guy who played the neighbor did a good job. "Hey, what are you doing?" It sounded so convincing.

I don't know that I would say it was the "best" acting but I just wanted to share the following; the actor who played Joe Owens was named Richard Arnold. I watched him in The Other Side of Hell and he apparently had small parts in other movies. His voice was pretty noticeable.

I don't know that I would say it was the "best" acting but I just wanted to share the following; the actor who played Joe Owens was named Richard Arnold. I watched him in The Other Side of Hell and he apparently had small parts in other movies. His voice was pretty noticeable.

Great callout, that's the reason that segment has stuck with me, even though I have no way to watch it anymore. "I can't find my wife" :(

The actors that play "Deedra" and her rapist David Gause, Season 8, Episode 5. The episode with the White Buffalo and the segment on who killed TV's Superman aka George Reeves.

The actor who plays David Gause looks sketchy from the minute you first see him. His weird intensity, like you know he's going to do something. His confusion when "Deedra" bluffs him into leaving. The actor who plays "Deedra" looks suitably scared and then calm during this ordeal.

Another one: the Alfano family Lost Loves segment. This is the one where the car stalled out on a train track just as a train was coming and the mom tried to start the engine, and the daughter, who was young at the time of the wreck, now has amnesia and is looking for information on her mother and her family. At the moment the train, which tries to stop, this the car, the background actors are just perfect. There's a young couple with shocked looks on their faces and an older man who is just horrified.

The guy who played Huey Long. Watching old film clips of the real Huey proves that he nailed it

Yup... that's the best one for me.

Also, the girl who played teenaged Sharon Stevens and the woman who portrayed Capt. Linda Sharp.

The actor who played Bob Bean was pretty good. He did a good job of mimicking Bob's real voice and acent.

:lol:

I think drew790 was referring to the bogus countess segment instead,


ding ding

So I've been running classic UM behind me while working on various art stuff, and I took note of two actors who I liked: The guy who played conman Eric Kessler in season 3, episode 3; and the guy who played police chief and part-time murderer Gregory James Webber in season 2, episode 4. I have searched including AI and cannot find any information on those actors or even their names. If anyone around here knows or can find the information at some point, I'll give you a cookie. ����

So I've been running classic UM behind me while working on various art stuff, and I took note of two actors who I liked: The guy who played conman Eric Kessler in season 3, episode 3; and the guy who played police chief and part-time murderer Gregory James Webber in season 2, episode 4. I have searched including AI and cannot find any information on those actors or even their names. If anyone around here knows or can find the information at some point, I'll give you a cookie. ����

I enjoyed the acting from multiple actors in the James Webber segment. that is one of the most underrated segments of UM.