What a tragic loss. Sudden. A young actor taken in his prime. Anton Yelchin passed away yesterday at the age of 27. A son of Russian immigrant parents who were famous skaters, Yelchin broke into Hollywood as a child actor, working his way to Hearts In Atlantis, where he held his own against Anthony Hopkins.
He has a few films in the can, including Star Trek Beyond this July. After that, he’s in We Don’t Belong Here with Catherine Keener, Rememory with Peter Dinklage, Porto, and Thoroughbred.
Here’s a look at my top 5 favorite performances from Anton Yelchin.
5) Hearts In Atlantis- He brought a lot of depth to his role, showing he was one of the rare child actors that could really stand on his own. That’s important, because he had to share his big break role with Anthony Hopkins, which is no small feat. He left an impact on Hollywood casting agents, and this role launched his career.
4) Star Trek- As Chekov, Yelchin took on a role with all these expectations from fans, but he never wavered. Sure, it’s a supporting performance, but he’s an important character in the franchise, and it will be absolutely heartbreaking to see him in Star Trek Beyond knowing that this is the last time.
3) Like Crazy- Opposite Felicity Jones and Jennifer Lawrence, his performance as a man in love in a long distance relationship was great. There was a little awards buzz for the film, but not enough. He did manage some critics circle nods.
2) The Beaver- A lot of people ignored this film because of Mel Gibson, but Yelchin was great in this too. Another film where he shared the screen with Jennifer Lawrence, but this time he was also the son of Gibson, who played a man so depressed he only talked through a puppet on his hand. Gibson was great in this, but Yelchin was the heart of the film.
1) Rudderless- Unexpectedly one of my favorite films. I didn’t know what to expect going into it, and the whole film blew me away. I’ll be honest, a lot of it was because of Billy Crudup’s performance, but Anton Yelchin was great too. Definitely watch this if you’re feeling nostalgic for Yelchin.
