Actor: Albert Brooks

Albert Brooks wrote and directed Real Life, Modern Romance, Lost in America and Defending Your Life, a body of comedy about self-absorption that has been steadily reappraised.

Broadcast News brought a Best Supporting Actor nomination, playing a reporter whose competence cannot compensate for what the medium wants.

Drive cast him completely against type as a violent producer, and the performance is genuinely alarming. He voices Marlin in Finding Nemo, which is his most widely heard work.