Marlon Brando

Did you know one actor changed how people act in movies — making them feel like real life? Meet Marlon Brando, a movie star who made small, honest moments on screen feel huge.

Marlon Brando (1924–2004) was an American actor who became famous from the 1950s through the 1970s. He used 'method acting'—drawing on real feelings—to build characters that seemed alive and complicated. That natural style is his biggest contribution to movies.

His famous roles show this power. He played Stanley Kowalski in A Streetcar Named Desire (1951), shocking people with raw energy; Terry Malloy in On the Waterfront (1954), which won him his first Academy Award; and Vito Corleone in The Godfather (1972), a quiet, powerful boss that made him a legend. He won two Best Actor Oscars and once refused the award to protest how Native Americans were treated in Hollywood.

Why it matters: before Brando, many film actors used bigger, showy styles. Brando taught people to look inside a character and show real feeling — a whisper, a stare, a small action. That changed how filmmakers told stories and inspired generations of actors. Ask an adult to show you a short clip — you might be amazed how simple and strong his acting still feels.