Actor: Kyle MacLachlan

Kyle MacLachlan appeared in Dune, Blue Velvet and Twin Peaks for David Lynch, functioning as the director’s on-screen stand-in, and his particular quality is total sincerity in surreal circumstances.

Dale Cooper is the performance: a man who takes a murder investigation, a cup of coffee and a slice of pie with exactly equal seriousness, and Twin Peaks works because MacLachlan never signals that any of it is strange.

Showgirls is the notorious credit, and he has been good-humoured about it. Portlandia and Agents of SHIELD show a later comic range.