Being the show-business capital of the world, getting into Hollywood is no mean feat. You are up against massive competition, you have to speak fluent English, and you will find that working in the movie industry can be very tiring.
But rest assured: you will not be judged by your appearance alone. If there is something we all know about the old Hollywood, it is the lack of actor diversity. Strangely enough, however, the same Hollywood does not seem bothered with the actors’ height. Throughout the 20th century, Hollywood has seen many short actors who are also talented. They are not short at all on-screen though and it’s all thanks to the camera work. There are times when it pays to be short even when not on set.
For measure, we will assume an American has the average height ranging from 5’9″ (177cm) to 6′ (180cm). This list features 50 actors who are considered short by this standard.
#1 Al Pacino
Source: KGC-03/STAR MAX/IPx/AP Photo
Age: 82
Height: 5’6″ (167cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, director, producer
#2 Aziz Ansari (right)
Source: Vince Bucci/AP Photo
Age: 39
Height: 5’5¾” (167cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, comedian, filmmaker, writer
#3 BD Wong
Source: Richard Shotwell/AP Photo
Age: 61
Height: 5’5″ (165cm)
Occupation(s): Actor
#4 Ben Stiller (right)
Source: mpi04/MediaPunch/IPX/AP Photo
Age: 56
Height: 5’7″ (170cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, comedian, director, producer, writer
#5 Billy Crystal (right)
Source: Richard Shotwell/AP Photo
Age: 74
Height: 5’6¼” (~168cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, comedian, film director, producer, writer
#6 Breckin Meyer (being carried by Shaquille O’Neal)
Source: Evan Agostini/AP Photo
Age: 48
Height: 5’5″ (165cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, musician, producer, writer
#7 Daniel Radcliffe (left)
Source: Charles Sykes/AP Photo
Age: 33
Height: 5’5″ (165cm)
Occupation(s): Actor
#8 Danny DeVito (left) (3rd shortest actor on this list)
Source: Christian Charisius/AP Photo
Age: 77
Height: 4’10” (147cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, comedian, filmmaker
#9 Danny Trejo
Source: Jordan Strauss/AP Photo
Age: 78
Height: 5’6″ (168cm)
Occupation(s): Actor
#10 Dave Franco (right)
Source: Jordan Strauss/AP Photo
Age: 37
Height: 5’7″ (170cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, producer, screenwriter, voice actor
#11 David Faustino (left)
Source: Chris Pizzello/AP Photo
Age: 48
Height: 5’3″ (160cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, radio personality
#12 David Spade
Source: Chris Pizzello/AP Photo
Age: 58
Height: 5’7″ (170cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, stand-up comedian, television host, writer
#13 Dustin Hoffman (left)
Source: Jordan Strauss/AP Photo
Age: 85
Height: 5’6″ (168cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, filmmaker
#14 Elijah Wood
Source: Evan Agostini/AP Photo
Age: 41
Height: 5’6″ (168cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, producer
#15 Emilio Estevez (right)
Source: Evan Agostini/AP Photo
Age: 60
Height: 5’6½” (169cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, filmmaker
#16 Frankie Muniz
Source: Willy Sanjuan/AP Photo
Age: 36
Height: 5’5″ (165cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, race car driver
#17 Jack Black
Source: Joel C Ryan/AP Photo
Age: 53
Height: 5’6″ (168cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, comedian, singer, songwriter, YouTuber (Jablinski Games)
#18 Jackie Earle Haley
Source: Brent N. Clarke/AP Photo
Age: 61
Height: 5’5″ (165cm)
Occupation(s): Actor
#19 James McAvoy (left)
Source: Evan Agostini/AP Photo
Age: 43
Height: 5’7″ (170cm)
Occupation(s): Actor
#20 Jason Alexander (left)
Source: Richard Shotwell/AP Photo
Age: 63
Height: 5’5″ (164cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, comedian, director, television presenter
#21 Jesse Eisenberg
Source: Richard Shotwell/AP Photo
Age: 39
Height: 5’9″ (175cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, playwright, humorist, narrator
#22 Jet Li
Source: Chris Pizzello/AP Photo
Age: 59
Height: 5’7″ (171cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, film producer, martial artist
#23 Joe Pesci
Source: ZZ/RE/Westcom/STAR MAX/IPx/AP Photo
Age: 79
Height: 5’4″ (163cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, musician, singer
#24 Johnny Galecki (left)
Source: Evan Agostini/AP Photo
Age: 47
Height: 5’5″ (164cm)
Occupation(s): Actor
#25 Jonah Hill (left)
Source: Christopher Smith/AP Photo
Age: 38
Height: 5’7″ (170cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, comedian, director, producer, screenwriter
#26 Jonathan Taylor Thomas (left)
Source: BuzzFeed/Twitter
Age: 41
Height: 5’5″ (165cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, director
#27 Josh Hutcherson (right)
Source: Evan Agostini/AP Photo
Age: 29
Height: 5’5″ (165cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, producer
#28 Ken Jeong (left)
Source: Vince Bucci/AP Photo
Age: 53
Height: 5’5″ (165cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, licensed physician, producer, stand-up comedian, writer
#29 Kevin Hart (right)
Source: Joel C Ryan/AP Photo
Age: 43
Height: 5’2″ (157cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, comedian
#30 Marc Anthony
Source: Eric Jamison/AP Photo
Age:
Height: 5’7½” (173cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, singer, songwriter
#31 Martin Freeman (left)
Source: Jon Furniss/AP Photo
Age: 51
Height: 5’7″ (170cm)
Occupation(s): Actor
#32 Martin Lawrence (right)
Source: Richard Shotwell/AP Photo
Age:
Height: 5’7½” (172cm)
Occupation(s): Actor
#33 Martin Sheen
Source: Matt Sayles/AP Photo
Age: 82
Height: 5’7″ (170cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, activist
#34 Michael J. Fox (right)
Source: Evan Agostini/AP Photo
Age: 61
Height: 5’4″ (~162cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, activist, author, producer
#35 Nathan Lane (right)
Source: Evan Agostini/AP Photo
Age: 66
Height: 5’5″ (165cm)
Occupation(s): Actor
#36 Nathan McMullen (left)
Source: Nathan_McMullen/Twitter
Age: 34
Height: 5’4″ (162cm)
Occupation(s): Actor
#37 Patton Oswalt
Source: Phil McCarten/AP Photo
Age: 53
Height: 5’3½” (161cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, author, screenwriter, stand-up comedian
#38 Peter Dinklage (2nd shortest actor on this list)
Source: Jordan Strauss/AP Photo
Age: 53
Height: 4’5″ (135cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, producer
#39 Richard Dreyfuss
Source: Faye Sadou/AP Photo
Age: 74
Height: 5’5″ (165cm)
Occupation(s): Actor
#40 Rob Schneider
Source: JMA/STAR MAX/IPx/AP Photo
Age: 58
Height: 5’3½” (161cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, comedian, screenwriter
#41 Scott Caan
Source: Evan Agostini/AP Photo
Age: 46
Height: 5’5″ (165cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, director, photographer, rapper, writer
#42 Seth Green
Source: Jordan Strauss/AP Photo
Age: 48
Height: 5’4″ (163cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, director, producer, writer
#43 Simon Helberg (right)
Source: Jordan Strauss/AP Photo
Age: 41
Height: 5’5½” (166cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, comedian, musician
#44 Toby Jones
Source: Vianney Le Caer/AP Photo
Age: 56
Height: 5’5″ (165cm)
Occupation(s): Actor
#45 Tom Cruise (right)
Source: Evan Agostini/AP Photo
Age: 60
Height: 5’7″ (170cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, producer
#46 Tom Hollander (right) (not to be mistaken with MCU’s Tom Holland)
Source: Jon Furniss/AP Photo
Age: 55
Height: 5’5″ (165cm)
Occupation(s): Actor
#47 Warwick Davis (the shortest actor on this list)
Source: Rob Grabowski/AP Photo
Age: 52
Height: 3’6″ (107cm)
Occupation(s): Actor
#48 Wayne Knight
Source: Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP Photo
Age: 67
Height: 5’7″ (170cm)
Occupation(s): Actor
#49 Woody Allen (middle)
Source: Evan Agostini/AP Photo
Age: 86
Height: 5’5″ (165cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, comedian, director, writer
#50 Zach Galifianakis (right)
Source: Mark J. Terrill/AP Photo
Age: 53
Height: 5’7″ (170cm)
Occupation(s): Actor, comedian
