re: Does Clint Eastwood belong in a list of the top 10 actors of the last 50 years?

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I think you can place Eastwood somewhere in the next five.

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Guys I can consider in the same league as Clint, purely as an actor over the past 50 years:

George Clooney

Dustin Hoffman

Philip Seymour-Hoffman (2 Hoffmans, go figure?)

Kevin Spacey

Anthony Hopkins

Tom Hanks

Morgan Freeman

Denzel Washington

Paul Newman

Ed Norton

I hesitate to put Depp, DiCaprio or Pitt in this because I have, at various times, completely dismissed them as actors.

I'm not sure Brando or Jimmy Stewart would fit the bill here, because much of their outstanding work was prior to 1963 (Brando much more of a contemporary with Eastwood, though, while Stewart was of the previous generation).

Certainly I can see Clint getting in the top 15 or 20, though, which is impressive when you consider his longevity, his influence, overall body of work, his outside interests and his directing credentials - certainly there are very, very few double/triple threats as impressive as Clint in all of Hollywood history.

Mel Brooks, maybe? Sydney Pollack? I don't know if either of those guys compares to Clint as a dual-threat... at all.