Jason Segel Wants To Branch Into Dramas: 5 Other Comedic Actors Who Made The Leap

Segel, who garnered critical acclaim for his script and acting in 2011's The Muppets, told The Huffington Post that his latest film, Jeff, Who Lives at Home, is a comedy that contains more serious scenes [i.e. nothing like Segel's long full-frontal nudity scene in 2008's Forgetting Sarah Marshall.]

Jason Segel was asked by The Huffington Post if he sees more drama for himself.

Professionally? (Laughs) Yeah, I'd love to do a little bit of everything. The dramatic scenes in this made me nervous. I didn't get to rely on jokes. You had to do some acting. And that was exciting and scary, Segel told the website.

Should Segel make the leap from comedies to dramas, he has a lot of actors who can serve as role models.

 Here are five funnymen that wowed us with their dramatic chops:

1.       Jim Carrey

Carrey first became known to us in the sketch comedy show In Living Color during the 1990s and was remembered for his characters, including Fire Marshall Bill.

Carrey later went on to star in comedic films, including the Ace Ventura franchise.

But we started taking Carrey seriously in 1998's The Truman Show, where he played a soldier with amnesia. He earned a Best Actor Golden Globe for his performance.

Carrey was also nominated for a Golden Globe in 2004 for his terrific performance in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.

2.       Jamie Foxx

Like Carrey, Jamie Foxx is an alumnus of In Living Color.

Fox earned an Academy Award for Best Actor for his spot-on portrayal of Ray Charles in 2004's Ray. That same year, he was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his role as a Los Angeles taxi driver in the thriller Collateral, opposite Tom Cruise.

3.       Jonah Hill

Hill's path to stardom began in the Judd Apatow comedies Knocked Up and Superbad, released in 2007 and 2008, respectively.

Hill's 2011 portrayal of Oakland Athletics Assistant General Manager Peter Brand in Moneyball led to Golden Globe and Oscar nominations for best supporting actor.

4.       Bryan Cranston

Cranston played the role of Hal in the sitcom Malcolm in the Middle, which lasted for 151 episodes and seven seasons. Cranston received three Emmy nominations and a Golden Globe nod for his performance.

He gained critical acclaim for the dramatic AMC series Breaking Bad, where Cranston plays Walter White, a chemistry teacher who cooks methamphetamine to pay for his lung cancer treatments.

Cranston has won three Emmys and has scored two Golden Globe nominations for playing Walter White.

5.       Adam Sandler

From Happy Gilmore to Billy Madison, Sandler has starred in some dopey comedies.

But when the former Saturday Night Live cast member took some dramatic roles, he impressed us with his performances.

Sandler was convincing as a New Yorker who lost his wife on 9/11 in Reign on Me, and his role as Barry Egan in the 2002 comedy-drama Punch Drunk Love was well received by critics.