Year in review: The biggest scene stealers of 2021

Hahn was born to steal scenes. Sure, we’d be happy to see her in a lead role, but there are few actors as good at popping in at the right moment to deliver a quick joke or a scenery-chewing performance. Hahn was great on “WandaVision” from the beginning, but then the twist is revealed, and suddenly she was not only the star, but a meme waiting to be born.

Kristen Wiig is established as a comedy genius. Annie Mumolo isn’t as big of a name, but she co-wrote “Bridesmaids,” and she got to star alongside Wiig in “Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar,” which they wrote together as well. And yet, Dornan was as funny as either of them in the movie. Not known for comedy, Dornan earned plenty of laughs not just with the lines written for him, but for his performance. We want to be an official couple with his work in this silly comedy.

When you hire Thompson to play a secondary role in your movie, you are effectively lining her up to steal a scene or two. Even with everything Emma Stone is doing (and wearing) in “Cruella,” Thompson had our attention as “The Baroness.” To be fair, being able to play a character called “The Baroness” definitely helps.

The internet loves Fraser and is rooting for him. After years of stardom, he faded from the spotlight, but he’s starting to reemerge. In Steven Soderbergh’s “No Sudden Move,” Fraser plays an imposing, intimidating figure and brings as much gravitas as he brought charm in his matinee idol days. There are a lot of notable actors in “No Sudden Move,” but Fraser keeps pace with all of them.

Harbour is hamming it up in “Black Widow.” As Alexei, aka the Red Guardian, he’s a superhuman who has gone to seed a bit. While his accent isn’t going to win any awards for authenticity, Harbour provides comic relief and the same charm and good vibes that made him a star in “Stranger Things.”

Jesse Plemons is playing a German submarine captain in “Jumble Cruise,” and yet even he is outshone by Giamatti. He’s doing a lot of business, as they say, and yet we didn’t get sick of him. In fact, we could have probably used a bit more Giamatti. Not too much, though. It was the perfect scene-stealing turn for the veteran character actor.

Kingsley stole scenes in “Iron Man 3” once it is revealed that “The Mandarin” is really just an out-of-work English actor named Trevor. Trevor pops up again in “Shang-Chi,” and this time he gets to just be full-on silly. Granted, with Akwafina along for the ride, we didn’t need an added dose of levity. And yet, it still works. Kingsley gets the biggest laughs in the film.

“The Many Saints of Newark” was an exercise in comparison. It was hard to watch the “Sopranos” prequel movie and not compare the actors to the ones from the show. Granted, a lot of that attention fell onto Michael Gandolfini, as he was playing the role that made his late father an icon. Michael is good, but the standout performance was probably Farmiga, who plays Tony’s tumultuous mother Livia. Even with the makeup to make her look more like Nancy Marchand, Farmiga embodies the role.

For one set piece, de Armas is along for the ride with Daniel Craig’s James Bond in “No Time to Die.” She assists Bond in his trip down to Cuba, and she refuses to fade into the background. We still haven’t wrapped our heads around whatever it was Rami Malek was doing, but de Armas definitely sticks out in our mind.

The real Jon Peters is a trip, and if they made a full movie about him it would be worthwhile. Until then, we will have to settle for Cooper’s turn as Peters in Paul Thomas Anderson’s “Licorice Pizza.” From the first second we saw Cooper in the trailer we were transfixed. Then he smashes up those cars and we wondered if you could win an Oscar for a trailer.

Steven Spielberg’s “West Side Story” has a cast with a few relative unknowns who really pop. Of course, you can’t steal scenes as Maria, or even Anita. Riff, though, is a little further down the pecking order. That didn’t stop Faist from jumping off the screen in Spielberg’s remake.

If you’ve watched “Better Call Saul,” you know that Dalton can steal scenes. There’s something about his acting style that allows him to really pop in small doses. He brings that skill to “Hawkeye” as Jack, the fiancé of Kate Bishop’s mother Eleanor. In a show full of notable characters and potential baddies, Jack always stands out whenever Dalton is doing his thing.

Goldsberry won a Tony, so casting her in a show about a former girl group makes sense. Of course, she won that Tony for “Hamilton,” and a goofy comedy is a different story. Not only has Goldsberry held her own as Wickie the “fierce one” from the titular ‘90s band, but she’s also been arguably the standout in the show. With some real comedy heavyweights in the mix, that’s no mean feat.

When Nathan Lane showed up briefly in “Only Murders in the Building,” it made sense. This is a show co-created by Steven Martin, who co-stars alongside Martin Short. Maybe they were just calling in a favor. Well, Lane turned out to be more than just a famous New York face doing a cameo. He gives a dynamic performance, getting laughs and being genuinely menacing, which is not a mode he gets into much.

2021 was the year Henson ate scenery like Joey Chestnut eats hot dogs, and it was wonderful. She planned Miss Hannigan in the TV musical version of “Annie,” which would have been enough. However, her really peak scene-stealing turn came in “Muppets Haunted Mansion.” She plays “The Bride,” and seems to be having the time of her life. Henson is so memorable that she outshines every Muppet in a Muppets special.

“Mare of Easttown” was headlined by Kate Winslet, who has an Oscar. It had Jean Smart in the cast, who is a TV legend and who won an Emmy for “Hacks” in 2021. Evan Peters won an Emmy for the show as well. And yet, Nicholson was able to steal scenes along the way. In fact, she also won an Emmy for her work. That means having to rise above some notable costars to grab attention. Nicholson managed to do it.

We only remember a handful of things from “Godzilla vs. Kong.” We remember the monster fights, of course. We remember Rebecca Hall saying, “Kong bows to no one!” We remember Kyle Chandler saying, “That podcast is filling your head with garbage!” In terms of performances, the only one that stands out to us is Henry as a conspiracy-loving oddball who happens to be the one behind said podcast. Turns out it wasn’t garbage after all.

“The Suicıde Squad” is full of violence and vulgarity. It’s also full of big actors giving big performances. The movie is silly at times, and it has its winking moments. That is, whenever Davis isn’t on screen as Amanda Waller. She plays things with intensity and straightforwardness. Every time Davis shows up, it’s a reminder that, oh yeah, she’s one of the best living actors today.

In an ensemble miniseries, sometimes one performer manages to stand out among the rest. For “The White Lotus,” that would be Coolidge. Of course, as any fan of Christopher Guest knows, Coolidge has the chops to steal scenes. As Tanya, she does that many times over.

“Succession” is the television drama right now. It’s teaming with Emmy-caliber performances. To just pop in occasionally and make an impact in that show takes real gravitas. Enter Dame Harriet Walter. As Lady Caroline Collingwood, mother to three of the Roy children, Walter makes the most of her screen time. She pops up on a couple of occasions in season three, further solidifying herself as a scene-stealer. It wasn’t her only matriarchal scene-stealing role in 2021 either, as she popped up as Deborah, mother to Rebecca, on “Ted Lasso.”