5 Actors Who Aren’t Known for Casino Movies, But Enjoy Poker

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Some celebrity actors are known for their roles in movies that feature gambling. Plenty of the cast of the casino heist movie Ocean’s Eleven is known to enjoy playing poker, for instance. This must help when shooting this kind of film.

Do actors play online or in-person? The simple answer is that they may enjoy either (or both). Playing poker in person will almost always draw a certain level of attention from a celebrity.

This could be a good thing or a bad thing, but a lot of them would rather keep things quiet and play online, especially in the age of virtual reality, where websites like Ignition offer poker games, or other platforms that have options for many other games.

That said, there have even been some actors who have won poker tournaments in person, as we’ll explore below.

Jennifer Tilly

We had to mention Jennifer Tilly as she is one of the most successful actors ever when it comes to forging a second career in poker. A lot of actors play just for fun, but for Tilly, this has turned into much more than that.

She has won hundreds of thousands of dollars playing against top poker players from all over the world.

In her acting career, Tilly was known for roles in huge blockbuster films such as Liar Liar. She first rose to prominence in the 1980s when she got some bit-part roles such as one in Cheers, but it was the 90s and 00s when she experienced most of her success.

Chucky and I are ready to do battle in today’s #HighStakesPoker livestream on ⁦@PokerGO⁩ ⁦@ChuckyIsReal⁩ pic.twitter.com/aGT4nB6vqA

— Jennifer Tilly (@JenniferTilly) April 27, 2023

She’s had some serious critical acclaim, too. She was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress when she played a character by the name of Olive Neal in Woody Allen's film Bullets Over Broadway.

Aaron Paul

Aaron Paul is someone known to enjoy both online poker and in-person events and has taken part in some very high-profile tournaments.

When he took part in PokerStars Duel he came up against one of the world’s most famous soccer stars, Cristiano Ronaldo.

He lost to the former Real Madrid and Manchester United superstar, but he’s done okay in some other tournaments.

Paul made day two of the WSOP main event, which is not to be sneered at, and also took part in the PokerStars Championship.

While Aaron Paul is a talented actor who has played many different roles, there’s no denying what most people know him for.

His breakthrough to superstardom came when he played Jesse Pinkman in the smash hit show Breaking Bad. To our knowledge, he’s yet to use any of his catchphrases like “Yo Mr. White” when he is playing at the poker tables.

Tobey Maguire

Tobey Maguire is certainly not known for casino movies, but he enjoys playing the game in real life. Whether the Spider-Man star uses his spidey senses when he’s at the table is unknown, but he has a desire to be the best.

Maguire has taken his love of poker very seriously. He has been coached by the cool-handed Daniel Negreanu who has won numerous ranking tournaments and is one of the most famous poker players in the world.

Tobey Maguire is said to have been involved in some high-stakes games that were put together by Molly Bloom back in the early 2000s. These were in-person events with some serious high-rollers taking part.

Jason Alexander

Jason Alexander is probably best known for his role in Seinfeld, but he has also acted in many different Hollywood films and provided voices for animated movies.

On top of this, he has had a successful stand-up comedy career, so it is fair to say he has a lot of different strings to his bow.

He also excels at poker and likes to play online so you never know when you might randomly see him in a tournament. However, Alexander he has also participated in tournaments in person.

He won a $500,000 prize on Bravo TV’s “Celebrity Poker Showdown” and was able to give these winnings to a charity helping the New Orleans area after flooding.

He’s also played in the World Series of Poker and has appeared on many poker-related television shows. This is a second career for him rather than just a simple hobby.

Brad Garrett

Brad Garrett may not quite be a Hollywood A-lister, but there is no denying that he has had an impressive acting career including being the star of Everybody Loves Raymond.

He’s also provided voice acting for some huge movies including Finding Nemo (he voiced Bloat the pufferfish).

Garrett’s poker career is impressive, and he has won some big prizes including $100,000 at one event, the Celebrity Poker Showdown Championship.

He’s won prizes against non-celebs, too, and appeared at the World Series of Poker including the event in 2022.

The Bottom Line

A lot of the actors who are known to love poker are also well-known for movies in the casino niche, but there are others whom you may have had no idea were so into the game.

The likes of Jennifer Tilly have even gone on to make impressive careers out of playing poker.

Now, the next time you see one of these stars in a movie you can wow your friends with information about their poker antics.