8) Joseph Gordon-Levitt

Joseph Gordon-Levitt grew up in front of the camera. He started with commercials and sitcoms, but people really noticed him as the quirky alien teenager on 3rd Rock from the Sun (1996–2001). He could’ve stuck with comedy and probably been fine, but he ditched TV and went straight into indie films. He took on heavier stuff like Mysterious Skin (2004) and Brick (2005), which made it clear he wasn’t chasing easy roles. He eventually jumped back into mainstream movies with 500 Days of Summer (2009) and Inception (2010), proving he could go big without losing the edge he picked up in smaller films.
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