The Top 10 Greatest American Shakespearan Film Actors (Male)

Was tempted to include John Barrymore, who was considered the major American Shakespearan actor of his time and also did a Shakespeare movie, but I just don't think his acting style on film really holds up today.

Solid. But I think he's a little bit out of his depth, and outperformed by several of the more seasoned Shakespearan actors in the film (Paul Scofield, Alan Bates  Ian Holm, Glenn Close etc)

Your dome is missing  a key word from the title! 

Must be... Biodome. 

Damn, damn. Alright, new list:

Al Pacino
Marlon Brando
Orson Welles
Tim Blake Nelson
Denzel Washington
Kevin Kline
Laurence Fishburne
Nathan Lane
James Cagney
Stanley Tucci

We've talked about this in the past, but Heston really never got the credit he deserved (even as an Oscar-winning actor). The dude understood that to better yourself as a performer, you have to hone your skills, and there's no better whetstone than the Bard. Imagine a universe where Heston had gotten to play Macbeth for DeMille, or even Lear in his winter years (when the man was at the height of his skills with Billy Shakes).

Bit of explanation for the rankings of my top 3:

1 Denzel Washington:

This one is easy. I don't think another American actor has given as great a Shakespearan film performance as Washington did in The Tragedy Of Macbeth. Only two actors come close, and they are #2 and #3 on my rankings. Add to that, he is 2 for 2 with Shakespearan film performances,  delivering a note perfect and definitive performance as Don Pedro in Kenneth Branagh's sublime adaptation of Much Ado About Nothing. 

2 Orson Welles 

Welles isn't #2 for his uneven and florid performance as Macbeth in the version he directed. It was a worthy attempt though, so it helps his ranking. He's really here for his outstanding work as Falstaff in Chimes At Midnight. It's hard to see anyone else as Falstaff after Welles, even though Falstaff isn't one of the "major" Shakespearan parts, Welles gave him far more prominence in his adaptation, and that's mostly down to how good his performance was. 

3 Marlon Brando 

Before Washington, Brando was the only American man to be nominated for an Oscar for a Shakespearan performance.  Both Washington and Brando achieved it in the lead category. A great performance as Mark Antony in Julius  Ceasar that proved he was more than a method mumbler and left people in no doubt of his range. Before Washington delivered as Macbeth, I had him as the best Shakespearan film performance by an  American actor. He held that distinction for close to 70 years. A good run. Had he done more Shakespeare on film, he might have  been able to hold off Washington for my #1 spot. As it stands, I give Welles the edge over him for #2, because  Welles did more Shakespeare on film, even though I don't think his peak was quite as high as Brando's single performance (it was close enough  though).

Great list/thread. I can’t think of any others right now.

Honorable Mention to Michael Keaton as Dogberry in Much Ado About Nothing:

The premise: King Lear is dead, murdered by Macbeth and Cleopatra while Lear's heir, Hamlet, is exiled to Verona, where he is held hostage by the Capulets. It falls to the LSC (The League of Spear-Carriers) to rescue the Danish prince.

Horatio (as played by Stephen Dillane from the 1990 Hamlet).

I've always bizarrely seen Heston's Julius Caesar film a number of times, while it's kinda ludicrious and doesn't match up to the Brando version, kinda feeling like a TV production in some ways, his delivery of the big Roman speech is pretty dang aces. 

Brando's version also benefited from the actor really being young and in his prime. You can feel his raw energy on screen vs. Heston who was already in his late fourties by the time he played Marc Anthony. Not that age should be the only factor for a great performance, but that and the better production definitely make a notable difference.