30 times A-list actors starred in major music videos

Actor: Christopher WalkenArtist: Fatboy Slim featuring Bootsy Collins“Weapon Of Choice” features one of the greatest actor appearances (arguably the greatest) in any music video. Directed by the acclaimed Spike Jonze, the video follows a seemingly forlorn traveler (Walken), who perks up when he hears music from a cleaning person’s boombox and proceeds to tap dance, jump, cartwheel, and fly around the lobby of what is now the L.A. Grand Hotel Downtown. It’s silly fun as we witness his euphoria, and the spirited performance was a revelation for many fans, who didn’t know Walken could dance like that. The clip won six MTV Music Video Awards and the Grammy Award for Best Music Video in 2002.

Actor: Jeremy RennerArtist: PinkIn her own take on the Wild West directed by Sophie Muller, Pink is a brawling, badass babe who rides into a small town, starts fights with a lot of the local troublemakers, liberates the working girls, and manages to wiggle out of jail by seducing a sheriff played by Jeremy Renner. In the end, the outlaw and lawman have a showdown baring whips rather than guns. Guess who wins? This was an early, pre-MCU appearance from Renner before he became a big action star, although he had just appeared in S.W.A.T.

Actor: Eric RobertsArtist: The KillersThe video for The Killers’ “Mr. Brightside” recreates the romantic triangle from the movie Moulin Rouge. Singer Brandon Flowers is enamored with a courtesan at a local brothel/music hall, but he has to watch her go off with different men every night. And, of course, he has to compete for her affection with the establishment’s rich owner, played by Eric Roberts. This was actually the beginning of a number of music video appearances for Roberts, who would go on to do shoots for Godhead, Mariah Carey, Akon, and Ja Rule, before reprising this role in the 2012 clip for The Killers’ “Miss Atomic Bomb.”

Actors: Evan Rachel Wood and Jamie BellArtist: Green DayIn one of Green Day’s most iconic videos, a young Evan Rachel Ward is the fiancee of a young man who decides to enlist in the military (played by Jamie Bell), presumably because it’ll offer the couple a more secure future later. But he soon finds himself on a deadly battlefield in Iraq with friends getting shot around him. The video actually ends with uncertainty as to whether or not he will come home, but there is the hope that somehow he’ll be happily reunited with his girl later on. It’s a song and video that has resonated with many people coping with tragedy and loss. Frontman Billie Joe Armstrong wrote the lyrics about his father passing away when he was 10 years old.

Actor: Scarlett JohanssonArtist: Justin TimberlakeJustin Timberlake plays a singer and a dancer who gets caught up in a steamy, passionate romance, but things unravel when his best friend starts falling for her as well. The short film, directed by Samuel Bayer (Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” video) and featuring dialogue from writer/director Nick Cassavetes, has a bit of a modern Moulin Rouge vibe to it and ends with a high-speed car chase that you know will not end well. It’s all a bit melodramatic, but “What Goes Around…” did get nominated for Best Music Video at the MTV VMAs.

Actor: Alexander SkarsgårdArtist: Lady GagaIn this video, Lady Gaga’s lover (Alexander Skarsgård) sets her up to be photographed by paparazzi. During a fight that ensues, she’s pushed over a balcony, and ends up temporarily paralyzed with her career seemingly down the drain. But in a bizarre twist of fate, after being rehabilitated, she poisons him and admits to it, thus being thrust back into the public spotlight. Ultimately, she’s acquitted of the crime. The ending of the video mirrors the finale of the famous Hollywood tragedy Sunset Boulevard, although the story arcs are different. Gaga said that “Paparazzi” is her commentary about the extremes that people are willing to go to achieve fame. This was the second single from her debut album, and this video was shot early into Skarsgård’s big run on True Blood.

Actor: Dominic Monaghan and Megan FoxArtist: Eminem with RihannaEminem and Rihanna trade raps and singing in this tale of a toxic couple in an emotionally and physically abusive relationship, something that both of them had experience with. Their video avatars are Dominic Monaghan and Megan Fox, who play out this drama that will have deadly consequences if it keeps spiraling down. The song has touched a raw nerve with many people, especially those who have experienced abuse and gaslighting, having racked up more than 2.5 billion views on YouTube.

Actor: Rupert GrintArtist: Ed SheeranThis video plays off of the similar looks of Ed Sheeran and Harry Potter co-star Rupert Grint, with the latter taking Sheeran’s place as he “sings” and strolls along walkways, on a tour bus, and backstage, imitating poses and copying the singer-songwriter’s hoodies, T-shirts, and jeans look. But once Grint goes on stage in front of an audience and gets nabbed by security, we realize he’s not subbing for Sheeran here but portraying a guy obsessed with him who is just imitating him. The two gingers cross paths briefly at the very end as Grint is being escorted out of the venue by security.

Actor: Daniel RadcliffeArtist: Slow ClubIn “Beginners,” Daniel Radcliffe wakes up hungover one morning in an empty bar. Then he begins to sing most of the lyrics to this song while looking into the camera with frequent anguish. It’s a gender-swapped performance (since Rebecca Taylor is the band’s singer) as he stumbles around the bar, does a little air guitar, drinks more booze, then collapses to the floor. It’s an impressive one-shot video. Turns out Radcliffe is a big fan of the band, and naturally Taylor and bandmate Charles Watson jumped at the chance to include him in this.

Actor: Idris ElbaArtist: Mumford & SonsIdris Elba appears as a man who savors the simple pleasures in life, from tactile sensations to smelling the ingredients of his breakfast. But we soon discover that he’s blind when he makes the choice to leave his house without either his guide dog or his cane. He rushes up and down a mountainside, runs past a speeding car, and races towards a cliff; at the last instant, he stops. He is a man who wants to live his life to its fullest no matter what. Mumford & Sons wanted to try something different with this video, and as its star and director, Idris Elba did just that.

Actor: Gary Oldman and Marion CotillardArtist: David BowieIn this short but sweet clip, Gary Oldman plays a priest of dubious piety as he knocks a homeless man out of the way to go into an S&M bar with other religious types and presumed prostitutes. Bowie is seen performing with his band while Oldman starts to dance with Marion Cotillard, but things go awry when stigmata form on her hands and she starts gushing blood everywhere. It’s the type of provocative clip that one would expect from the iconic and ever-experimental rocker, and it was temporarily banned from YouTube two hours after its premiere.

Actors: Johnny Depp, Jeremy Irons, Chris Pine, Jude Law, Sean Penn, Alice Eve, James Corden, Meryl Streep, Tracey Ullman, Howard Long, Kate Moss, Lily Cole, and Laura BaileyArtist: Paul McCartneyPaul McCartney does a late-night take of a song for his recording engineer at Abbey Road Studios—just singing and playing piano to a song with other recorded tracks. But gradually over time, more and more people start materializing to hang out and groove to the music until a whole roomful of fans are dancing along to the tune. None of this is seen by the engineer, and you also wonder if the former Beatle is even aware of their presence. Or is he dreaming it?

Actors: Aisha Tyler, Margaret Cho, Eric Stonestreet, Kristen Schaal, and Jack BlackArtist: “Weird Al” YankovicThis kooky Weird Al video was done in one very well-executed Steadicam shot that moves between two floors of a live venue. The master of musical mirth starts off lip-synching his own song, a parody of Pharrell Williams’ “Happy,” before passing the lip-synch baton to Aisha Tyler, then on to Margaret Cho, Eric Stonestreet, Kristen Schaal in an elevator, and then to Jack Black, grooving and twerking down stairs. Finally, Weird Al returns to wrap things up. It’s a lot of fun, and all the stars were clearly into vamping for it. There were six takes of the video done, and they picked the sixth and final one.

Actors: Kristen Stewart, Anne Hathaway, and Brie LarsonArtist: Jenny Lewis“Just One Of The Guys” was produced by Beck and features his backing vocals, but he does not appear onscreen. Supporting singer-songwriter Jenny Lewis in her fabulous rainbow tuxedo, Oscar winners and nominees Kristen Stewart, Anne Hathaway, and Brie Larson dress up in white suits and “perform” barefoot, but they also take on satirical bro personalities with fake mustaches, backwards baseball caps, and tracksuits. Stewart in particular really enjoys hamming it up. They humorously echo some of the chorus lyrics: “No matter how hard I try to be just one of the guys/There’s a little something inside that won’t let me.”

Actor: Tom HanksArtist: Carly Rae JepsenHere’s another fun example of an actor lip-synching to a performer’s words. Tom Hanks starts his day early in the morning, preparing to go to a video shoot to do a big dance number with Carly Rae Jepsen and her crew. He’s running late, but the entire time he’s singing the words to her song. He makes his way down New York City streets, posing for fan photos and signing autographs and generally enjoying life. The best part is when Jepsen jokes in the song about being pregnant, except he’s saying it to her on camera when he reaches the set of their video. The pairing of Jepsen and Hanks was likely conceived to play off of their nice person personas.

Actors: Selena Gomez, Lena Dunham, Hailee Steinfeld, Serayah, Gigi Hadid, Ellie Goulding, Martha Hunt, Cara Delevingne, Zendaya, Hayley Williams, Lily Aldridge, Karlie Kloss, Jessica Alba, Mariska Hargitay, Ellen Pompeo, and Cindy CrawfordArtist: Taylor Swift featuring Kendrick LamarIn this action-packed video, two ass-kicking super spies, Catastrophe (Swift) and Arsyn (Selena Gomez), have a falling out after Arsyn steals the briefcase they obtained and kicks Catastrophe out of a skyscraper window. From that point on, they’re each assembling their super crews to settle the score and take the other down. There’s a slew of celeb cameos, and you just have to keep up with the famous faces flying by during the training and prep montages.

Actor: Drew BarrymoreArtist: SZAThis is the sneakiest appearance on our list. SZA’s lyrics reflect feeling like an outcast sometimes and were also inspired by the experiences of a young Drew Barrymore. The video features SZA hanging out and partying with friends, but during a solitary moment on a steep sidewalk in the city, Drew Barrymore walks up and past her, smiling in a friendly manner and indicating they share a bond. It’s a blink and you’ll miss her moment, but it’s also clever since the song does not directly reference her beyond the title.

Actors: Mahershala Ali and Danny GloverArtist: Jay-ZThis two-and-a-half-minute song addressed Jay-Z’s absent father from childhood. Here, Mahershala Ali plays a boxer seemingly preparing for a fight, and occasionally, the presence of an older man, presumably his father, appears to hold his punching bag or watch from the wings. That patriarchal figure is portrayed by Danny Glover in this black-and-white clip. Jay-Z wrote the song as an unsent letter to his father, who abandoned him when he was 11, and with whom he reconciled months before his father’s death from liver failure.

Actors: Issa Rae, Tessa Thompson, Tiffany Haddish, Lakeith Stanfield, Lil Rel Howery, and Jerrod CarmichaelArtist: Jay-ZJay-Z’s “Moonlight” is an unusual entry into this list because it’s seven-and-a-half minutes long but only features only about two minutes of actual music. A group of actors is doing a black version of Friends, and the man playing Ross (Jerrod Carmichael) is really not happy about doing something derivative. During a surreal moment, one of his co-stars breaks him out of their TV reality and leads him to a door that opens onto a field at night, where he sits and looks at the stars. The closing line is “And the Oscar goes to La La Land.” That’s a reference to when Moonlight’s Best Picture win at the Oscars was overshadowed by the mistaken initial announcement that La La Land had won.