Performer
A performer whose catalogue work here is strong, with the fuller case still to be made.
Nutevio rank
#2756
of 909177 performers
Top 1%
Greg Kinnear represents the rare performer whose career became more ambitious with every decade — 32 years in, and Greg is still choosing the harder script.
The essay
Our editors on the work, the patterns and the reason this body of work holds together.
Greg Kinnear appears in 41 films in the Nutevio catalogue, and none of them would work the same way without Greg. Little Miss Sunshine is the clearest case: a film rated 7.7 by our editors, where the performance carries weight the script only implies.
The recognisable elements are versatility, transformation, quiet performance. Watch two of these films back to back and the method separates from the material — the same instrument, tuned differently for comedy, thriller, action. It is a style built on what is withheld as much as what is played.
Working with Philippa Lowthorpe, Rowan Athale, Gideon Raff and others, Greg Kinnear helped set a standard other performers now audition against. Awards bodies have been slower than the work, which is usually the sign of a career built on choices rather than campaigns.
Little Miss Sunshine (2006) as Richard Hoover · Stuck in Love (2013) as William Borgens · As Good as It Gets (1997) as Simon Bishop
Career snapshot
Ranked #2756 of 909177 performers tracked in the Nutevio library.
Films in Nutevio
41
1995–2027
Career length
32 yrs
Measured across our catalogue
Academy Awards
—
Unknown
Oscar nominations
—
Unknown
Highest Nutevio score
7.7
Little Miss Sunshine
Average Nutevio score
6.0
Across catalogue work
Highest IMDb rating
7.7
Little Miss Sunshine
Most frequent director
Randall Wallace
2 films together
Longest collaboration
2×
With Randall Wallace
Most common genre
Drama
26 titles
Average runtime
1h 44m
Across catalogue work
Golden Globe wins
—
Unknown
Nutevio metric
Ten weighted categories, applied identically to everyone we cover.
Nutevio Performer Score
7.0
out of 10
A performer whose catalogue work here is strong, with the fuller case still to be made.
Nutevio metric
Cultural impact and legacy, measured separately from craft — how far the work travelled once it left the cinema.
Nutevio Influence Score
6.4
out of 10
A quieter influence — felt inside the films rather than across the industry.
How far the work travelled past the people who saw it first.
What survives once the release-week conversation has burned off.
Institutional acknowledgement, weighted but never decisive.
Years of chosen, relevant work rather than years merely employed.
Statuettes, read as evidence rather than verdict.
Roles named without needing the film named alongside them.
Directors who wrote parts because this performer existed.
The reading other performers now have to answer.
Actor DNA
A fingerprint derived from the roles themselves — register, range and the kind of film they carry.
The shape of a career
Every performance plotted in time. Hover a point to read the title behind it.
Peak years
Where the scores, the awards and the sheer volume of work agree with each other.
Best decade
1990s
6.6 average MV
The 1990s are where the work and the material meet. Mystery Men, You've Got Mail, As Good as It Gets — the run our editors reach for first when the argument is about range rather than fame.
Highest average Nutevio score
1990s
6.6
Across 5 catalogue films in this decade, our scores never drop below the level a career is judged on.
Highest average IMDb rating
1990s
6.6
The public agrees most strongly about this stretch — useful context, and occasionally a decade behind our own reading.
Most awarded era
1990s
0 Academy Awards
Statuettes for the films themselves, which is the honest way to read an ensemble career. Mystery Men, You've Got Mail, As Good as It Gets.
Most productive era
2010s
15 films
The busiest stretch of the catalogue — volume that reads as appetite rather than availability.
Range, mapped
Genres down the side, decades across the top. Warmer cells mean stronger titles.
| Genre | 1990s | 2000s | 2010s | 2020s |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Drama | 6.82 films | 6.39 films | 6.311 films | 6.54 films |
| Action | 5.91 film | 6.72 films | 6.51 film | 6.41 film |
| Thriller | — | 5.94 films | 6.43 films | 4.23 films |
| Comedy | 6.65 films | 6.29 films | 5.98 films | 2.13 films |
| Crime | 6.61 film | 6.22 films | 6.51 film | 6.21 film |
| Romance | 6.83 films | 5.83 films | 6.13 films | — |
| Horror | — | 5.72 films | — | — |
Chronology
Firsts and peaks
The turning points, in the order they happened.
First film in Nutevio
1995Sabrina
Where our catalogue meets this career, as David Larrabee.
Highest rated performance · Career peak
7.7 on the Nutevio scale, the top of the catalogue for this performer. Weighing billing against the film's own quality, this is the point where everything aligned at once.
Most recent film
2027The Saviors
The current state of the argument, as Jim Clemente.
Our order
Every performance in the catalogue, ordered by Nutevio Score.
Every title
Filter by genre or decade, and compare any two titles side by side.
41 of 41 films
as Richard Hoover
Directed by Jonathan Dayton
as William Borgens
Directed by Josh Boone
as Simon Bishop
Directed by James L. Brooks
as Maj. Bruce 'Snake' Crandall
Directed by Randall Wallace
From the library
Every movie and TV credit stored for this name in the Nutevio catalogue — filter by media, role or sort by rating.
Loading credits…
The defining work
#1
Richard Hoover
Little Miss Sunshine (2006)
Performance score8.2
The performance the rest of the career is read through. Richard Hoover gives Greg Kinnear a structure to work against, and the film hands over its centre of gravity without hesitation.
View movie#2
William Borgens
Stuck in Love (2013)
Performance score8.0
Stuck in Love asks for something the previous films did not, and gets it. William Borgens is played without a single line of pleading for the audience's sympathy — which is exactly why it lands.
View movie#3
Simon Bishop
As Good as It Gets (1997)
Performance score7.7
As Good as It Gets asks for something the previous films did not, and gets it. Simon Bishop is played without a single line of pleading for the audience's sympathy — which is exactly why it lands.
View movie#4
Coach Jon Kelly
You Gotta Believe (2024)
Performance score7.5
You Gotta Believe asks for something the previous films did not, and gets it. Coach Jon Kelly is played without a single line of pleading for the audience's sympathy — which is exactly why it lands.
View movieStart here
A guided path through the work, ordered so each film explains the next.
Best entry point
as Richard Hoover
Start here. Little Miss Sunshine is the clearest statement of what Greg Kinnear does — accessible, 102 minutes, and rated 7.7 by our editors. No context required.
Our editors order this path by accessibility first and chronology second. You meet Greg at the most legible performance, then move forward in time so each film reads as a response to the one before it rather than a repetition of it.
As Good as It Gets (1997)
Keeps the comedy register of Little Miss Sunshine but asks for a colder reading of it.
We Were Soldiers (2002)
A deliberate change of key after As Good as It Gets — same instrument, unfamiliar tuning, and the reason range gets mentioned.
Stuck in Love (2013)
A deliberate change of key after We Were Soldiers — same instrument, unfamiliar tuning, and the reason range gets mentioned.
You Gotta Believe (2024)
Keeps the drama register of Stuck in Love but asks for a colder reading of it.
Company kept
The directors and performers this career keeps returning to.
Randall Wallace
Director
2 films together
Notably We Were Soldiers
Sydney Pollack
Director
1 film together
Notably Sabrina
Mike Judge
Director
1 film together
Notably Beavis and Butt-Head Do America
James L. Brooks
Director
1 film together
Notably As Good as It Gets
Nora Ephron
Director
1 film together
Notably You've Got Mail
Mike Nichols
Director
1 film together
Notably What Planet Are You From?
Neil LaBute
Director
1 film together
Notably Nurse Betty
Sam Raimi
Director
1 film together
Notably The Gift
Tony Goldwyn
Director
1 film together
Notably Someone Like You...
Bobby Farrelly
Director
1 film together
Notably Stuck on You
Nick Hamm
Director
1 film together
Notably Godsend
Richard Shepard
Director
1 film together
Notably The Matador
Chris Wedge
Director
1 film together
Notably Robots
Richard Linklater
Director
1 film together
Notably Fast Food Nation
Ericson Core
Director
1 film together
Notably Invincible
Jonathan Dayton
Director
1 film together
Notably Little Miss Sunshine
Marc Abraham
Director
1 film together
Notably Flash of Genius
Michael McCullers
Director
1 film together
Notably Baby Mama
Paul Greengrass
Director
1 film together
Notably Green Zone
Douglas McGrath
Director
1 film together
Notably I Don't Know How She Does It
Jill Sprecher
Director
1 film together
Notably Thin Ice
Josh Boone
Director
1 film together
Notably Stuck in Love
Craig Zisk
Director
1 film together
Notably The English Teacher
Adam McKay
Director
1 film together
Notably Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues
Brett Ratner
Director
1 film together
Notably Movie 43
Rick Famuyiwa
Director
1 film together
Notably Confirmation
Dave McCary
Director
1 film together
Notably Brigsby Bear
Greg Kinnear
Director
1 film together
Notably Phil
Gideon Raff
Director
1 film together
Notably The Red Sea Diving Resort
Rowan Athale
Director
1 film together
Notably Strange but True
Philippa Lowthorpe
Director
1 film together
Notably Misbehaviour
Behind the camera
Who casts this performer, how often, and what the pairing produces.
Randall Wallace
Director
2 films together · 6.9 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 2 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
We Were SoldiersJonathan Dayton
Director
1 film together · 7.7 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Little Miss SunshineJosh Boone
Director
1 film together · 7.4 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Stuck in LoveJames L. Brooks
Director
1 film together · 7.4 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
As Good as It GetsDave McCary
Director
1 film together · 7.1 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Brigsby BearEricson Core
Director
1 film together · 7.0 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
InvincibleRick Famuyiwa
Director
1 film together · 6.9 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
ConfirmationGideon Raff
Director
1 film together · 6.8 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The Red Sea Diving ResortNora Ephron
Director
1 film together · 6.8 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
You've Got MailMarc Abraham
Director
1 film together · 6.6 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Flash of GeniusChris Wedge
Director
1 film together · 6.6 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
RobotsMike Judge
Director
1 film together · 6.6 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Beavis and Butt-Head Do AmericaJill Sprecher
Director
1 film together · 6.5 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Thin IcePaul Greengrass
Director
1 film together · 6.5 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Green ZoneSam Raimi
Director
1 film together · 6.5 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The GiftPhilippa Lowthorpe
Director
1 film together · 6.4 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
MisbehaviourRichard Shepard
Director
1 film together · 6.3 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The MatadorSydney Pollack
Director
1 film together · 6.2 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
SabrinaAdam McKay
Director
1 film together · 6.1 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Anchorman 2: The Legend ContinuesRichard Linklater
Director
1 film together · 6.1 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Fast Food NationNeil LaBute
Director
1 film together · 6.1 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Nurse BettyRowan Athale
Director
1 film together · 6.0 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Strange but TrueMichael McCullers
Director
1 film together · 6.0 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Baby MamaTony Goldwyn
Director
1 film together · 6.0 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Someone Like You...Craig Zisk
Director
1 film together · 5.6 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The English TeacherBobby Farrelly
Director
1 film together · 5.4 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Stuck on YouMike Nichols
Director
1 film together · 5.4 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
What Planet Are You From?Douglas McGrath
Director
1 film together · 5.2 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
I Don't Know How She Does ItNick Hamm
Director
1 film together · 4.9 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
GodsendGreg Kinnear
Director
1 film together · 4.8 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
PhilBrett Ratner
Director
1 film together · 4.7 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Movie 43Six degrees
Follow the thread outward — director, film, co-star, and the film after that.
Categories of our own
Six editorial categories we apply to every performer we cover.
Most rewatchable
Little Miss Sunshine
as Richard Hoover
The one that survives a fourth viewing. Nothing in the performance depends on surprise, which is why it keeps paying out.
Most emotional performance
As Good as It Gets
as Simon Bishop
Grief played at conversational volume. The film never asks the audience to cry; the performance simply makes it difficult not to.
Most influential performance
Little Miss Sunshine
as Richard Hoover
You can hear this reading in other actors' auditions a decade later — the surest measure of influence there is.
Best ensemble performance
Beavis and Butt-Head Do America
as ATF Agent Bork (voice) (uncredited)
Work that makes everyone else in the frame better without ever pulling the camera towards itself.
Career defining performance
Little Miss Sunshine
as Richard Hoover
If the career had to be argued in a single scene, our editors would pick one from this film and rest the case.
In their films' words
“You can build a whole film around a performer who knows when not to speak. Greg Kinnear has known it for a long time.”
Head to head
Put two careers on the same scale and see where the argument actually sits.
Ours alone
Recognitions handed out by this desk, on criteria no awards body uses.
Career Achievement
Awarded
32 years of relevant work — not merely a long career, but a long career of choices.
Modern Classic Performer
Awarded
Defining performances delivered inside the last twenty-five years, in films already being taught rather than merely remembered.
Drama Legend
Awarded
26 catalogue titles in drama, each one a reference point for the films that followed.
Our desk
Best ending, best opening, best twist and the rest — categories we apply to everyone we cover.
Best ending
Little Miss Sunshine
as Richard Hoover
The last five minutes reorganise everything before them, and hold up when you already know what's coming.
Best opening
The Gift
as Wayne Collins
A first sequence that states the rules of the film without explaining a single one of them.
Most emotional
The Red Sea Diving Resort
as Walton Bowen
The film where the technique steps aside and lets the feeling arrive undefended.
Best twist
The Gift
as Wayne Collins
A reversal earned by information the film gave you and trusted you to misread.
Best visual achievement
Little Miss Sunshine
as Richard Hoover
Images that would survive with the sound switched off.
Best action sequence
Mystery Men
as Captain Amazing / Lance
Geography, stakes and consequence held in the same frame — spectacle you can follow.
Best dialogue
Beavis and Butt-Head Do America
as ATF Agent Bork (voice) (uncredited)
Lines written to be spoken, staged so the pauses do half the work.
Most underrated film
Robots
as Ratchet (voice)
The public vote sits below ours on this one, and the direction is the reason for the gap.
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Have your say
Community
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Reference
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