Mamma mia! There are some surprisingly good singers in Hollywood

A treble-some but clef-fer ranking of Hollywood’s unexpected singing talents

Is there anything that Meryl Streep can’t do? Not only is Streep one of film history’s most celebrated actresses, she’s a pretty good singer too. While this was once a secret – of which only fans of Postcards from the Edge were aware – Streep is now the star of the wildly successful Mamma Mia franchise. With additional performances in A Prairie Home Companion, Ricki and the Flash and Into the Woods (among others), she has long been on the radar as an actor who can also belt it out – and among the untrained musical types, she may very well be the best. Over the years, though, a number of other actors have surprised us with their unexpected musical talents. While none are on a path to supplant Céline Dion or Adele, they at least have enough talent to avoid embarrassing themselves completely. Professional singers need not apply; this is a list devoted to cinema’s great unexpected musical talents. 11. Joseph Gordon Levitt, 500 Days of Summer

There are few performances as brave as Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s turn as Tom, the unbearable, cringey nice guy in 500 Days of Summer. His performance is so good and the role so horrifying that the revelation that the kid from Third Rock from the Sun can sing – which was exceedingly surprising – can only be reluctantly included for fear of boosting the fictional Tom’s already over-inflated ego.

8. Jason Segel, Forgetting Sarah Marshall

As a perpetually affable and stunted man-child in Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Jason Segel unveils his singing talent in a great third act revelation that he has been writing a Dracula musical. Even as Segel puts on a Transylvanian accent to sell the tragic vampiric love story, his voice has a surprising timbre and sensitivity. Not only does he perfectly channel Broadway, but he literally performs a pivotal moment of growth in his character’s maturity by way of a tragic blood sucking puppet musical.

7. Colin Farrell, Crazy Heart

As we collectively embrace the new Colin Farrell – beard, dad bod and all – it is time to consider his performance in Crazy Heart as one of the last vestiges of his greasy, Miami Vice-ponytail era. As a country singer, Farrell doesn’t actually do a whole lot of singing in the film, but he more than holds his own when it comes time to croon a line or two. Like several other entries on this list, Farrell may not be a show-stopping singer, but he is able to ground his musical performances with the presence that has made him such a wonderful actor.

5. Catherine Zeta-Jones, Chicago

With “All that Jazz,” Catherine Zeta-Jones immediately sets the tone for Chicago with confidence and bravura. The actress actually dabbled with the idea of becoming a singer earlier in her career, but while she stole the show every time she was onscreen in Chicago, critics weren’t so taken with her in 2009, when she joined a Broadway production of Sondheim’s A Little Night Music. One reviewer for the Guardian wrote “while Catherine Zeta-Jones can act and sing, she can’t do both at once in this production – at least not in one take.” 3. Reese Witherspoon, Walk the Line

Since karaoke singers the world over know that imitating Johnny Cash isn’t exactly taxing on the vocal cords, Reese Witherspoon gets the honours for greatest singing talent in Walk the Line over her co-star Joaquin Phoenix. Director James Mangold’s choice to have his actors sing, rather than dubbed, remains a peculiar though successful gamble. While Witherspoon’s performance is little more than glorified pantomiming, it was good enough to help earn her an Oscar. And now, we can’t wait unitl she stars in a musical of her own. 10. Ryan Gosling,

Blue Valentine

For the ignorant masses who were not previously aware of Ryan Gosling’s childhood fame as a member of the Mickey Mouse Club (shame on you), his musical chops were made suddenly indisputable by his heartfelt musical performance in Blue Valentine. Sure he plays the ukulele, among the most annoying musical instruments, but deep below the surface of that weird old-man voice, Gosling’s wholesome childstar pipes can still bring it.

9. Carey Mulligan, Shame

In Steve McQueen’s bleak and often graphic portrayal of sex addiction, Shame, the most intimate moment is a long-take close-up of Carey Mulligan singing. In a slowed-down version of “New York, New York,” Mulligan fragile voice temporarily breaks through the film’s (and her brother’s) numbness. The highlight of an unappreciated masterpiece, this scene has the capability to destroy your soul.

6. Keira Knightley, Begin Again

While Keira Knightley isn’t necessarily better than any mid-90s acoustic tremblingvoiced songstress, her tone is unexpectedly good in a mid-day, soft-rock radio kind of way. From John Carney, best known for his musical Once, Begin Again stars Knightley as a struggling musician trying to make it in New York City. It seems unlikely that Knightley herself would get a record contract on the merits of her singing, but she certainly has a pleasant voice for easy café listening. 4. Diane Keaton, Annie Hall Diane Keaton’s voice in Annie Hall won’t call Barbra Streisand to mind, but in a shy interpretation of “Seems Like Old Times,” Keaton reveals an oftforgotten truism when it comes to vocals: a great musical performance is not always about hitting notes perfectly. While over the course of her decades-long career Keaton has rarely sung again, this scene stands out as one of the great musical moments in modern American cinema.

2. Emily Blunt, Into the Woods

Emily Blunt’s husband, John Krasinski, said he cried when he first heard his wife sing. While we won’t go that far in sharing his obviously biased review, it’s difficult not to share his enthusiasm for Blunt’s voice. Even though Rob Marshall’s adaptation of the original Stephen Sondheim production is middling at best, Blunt emerges as the best part of the production. She has cemented her place among the handful of actors on this list we would love to see carry another musical. 1. Ewan Mcgregor, Moulin Rouge

Brimming with charm and talent, it might not be surprising that Ewan McGregor – who seems able to do just about anything – can also sing. However, it is certainly a pleasant fulfillment of our suspicions. His voice serves as the grounding force of Baz Luhrmann’s kaleidoscopic pop musical Moulin Rouge, and his elevated voice brings home the film’s overarching tribute to pop music – and its ability to amplify and immortalize the intense but fleeting experience of romantic love.