29 Famous Actors Starring in Their Own Netflix Series
Netflix has become home to a growing number of original series headlined by big-name celebrities. Let’s look at 29 major actors leading their own shows on the streaming giant.
1. Kevin Spacey – House of Cards
Oscar winner Kevin Spacey played Machiavellian politician Frank Underwood on the binge-worthy political drama House of Cards before being fired over misconduct allegations.
2. Jon Bernthal – The Punisher
Jon Bernthal brought gritty intensity starring as vigilante antihero The Punisher, spinning off his Daredevil role into his own brutal series.
3. Edie Falco – Nurse Jackie
Respected actress Edie Falco earned acclaim playing the title role of Nurse Jackie, a troubled ER nurse leading a double life.
4. Ricky Gervais – After Life
Comedic provocateur Ricky Gervais created, directs and stars in After Life, playing a depressed widower trying to restart his life.
5. Aziz Ansari – Master of None
Comedian Aziz Ansari co-created and stars in Master of None, earning praise for the show’s fresh take on modern romance.
6. Ellen Page – The Umbrella Academy
Oscar nominee Ellen Page heads the family superhero series The Umbrella Academy as Vanya Hargreeves, a violinist with hidden powers.
7. Katherine Langford – Cursed
After breaking out in 13 Reasons Why, Australian actress Katherine Langford now leads the medieval fantasy series Cursed.
8. Krysten Ritter – Jessica Jones
Krysten Ritter brings streetwise attitude starring as tough private investigator Jessica Jones in the gritty Marvel show.
9. Emma Roberts – Scream Queens
Emma Roberts plays the head mean girl in Ryan Murphy anthology horror comedy Scream Queens.
10. Ashton Kutcher – The Ranch
Ashton Kutcher stars in the multi-cam sitcom The Ranch as a failed semi-pro football player who returns home to manage the family business.
11. Penn Badgley – You
Penn Badgley terrifies as bookstore manager Joe Goldberg, an obsessive stalker and serial killer in psychological thriller series You.
12. Millie Bobby Brown – Stranger Things
Millie Bobby Brown shot to fame as gifted psychokinetic Eleven on Stranger Things, fighting monsters in 1980s Indiana.
13. Anna Konkle & Maya Erskine – PEN15
Creators and stars Anna Konkle and Maya Erskine play their 13-year-old selves in the cringe comedy series PEN15.
14. Nick Kroll – Big Mouth
Comedian Nick Kroll co-created and lends his voice to Big Mouth, an R-rated animated comedy about puberty.
15. Paul Rudd – Living With Yourself
Paul Rudd pulls double duty playing a burned-out man and his cloned replacement in existential comedy drama Living With Yourself.
16. Christina Applegate – Dead to Me
Christina Applegate produces and stars in pitch-black comedy Dead to Me as a grieving widow with a darkly humorous secret.
17. Linda Cardellini – Dead to Me
Linda Cardellini co-stars opposite Applegate on Dead to Me as a hot mess realtor guarding her own shocking revelations.
18. Natasha Lyonne – Russian Doll
Natasha Lyonne co-created, directs and stars in Russian Doll as a New Yorker caught in a surreal time loop.
19. Miley Cyrus – Black Mirror
Pop icon Miley Cyrus stunned critics playing a lonely outsider in Black Mirror’s dark episode “Rachel, Jack and Ashley Too.
20. John Stamos – Fuller House
John Stamos revisited his Full House character Uncle Jesse as a father in the nostalgic sequel series Fuller House.
21. Winona Ryder – Stranger Things
Winona Ryder made her major TV comeback as Joyce Byers, the mother of a missing boy in 80s sci-fi phenom Stranger Things.
22. Jonah Hill – Maniac
Academy Award nominee Jonah Hill plays a troubled man seeking meaning in mindbending limited series Maniac.
23. Emma Stone – Maniac
Oscar winner Emma Stone reunites with Hill as an addict joining a pharmaceutical trial in psychological drama Maniac.
24. John Cho – Cowboy Bebop
John Cho leads the live-action version of acclaimed anime Cowboy Bebop as hip bounty hunter Spike Spiegel.
25. Queen Latifah – The Equalizer
Queen Latifah stars as an ex-CIA agent turned vigilante in The Equalizer, based on the Denzel Washington action films.
26. Rob Lowe – The Grinder
Rob Lowe parodied his heartthrob status as an actor who joins his lawyer brother’s firm despite no legal experience in The Grinder.
27. Drew Barrymore – Santa Clarita Diet
Drew Barrymore produces and stars opposite Timothy Olyphant in Santa Clarita Diet as suburban wife turned zombie Sheila Hammond.
28. Timothy Olyphant – Santa Clarita Diet
Timothy Olyphant plays hapless husband Joel Hammond opposite zombie wife Sheila in gory horror comedy Santa Clarita Diet.
29. Martin Freeman – Breeders
The Hobbit star Martin Freeman juggles parenting pressures in Breeders, a comedy about raising two young children.
Hollywood Icons Head to the Small Screen
Netflix has succeeded in providing a platform for these A-listers and respected talents to create buzzworthy shows, marking a major shift from film to prestige TV projects. The streaming service offers them valuable creative freedom and marketing reach to bring compelling original stories to life.
