The 50 Greatest Actors Alive: Complete List (So Far)

For 50 straight weeks, Yahoo Movies is counting down Hollywood's very best working actors and actresses. Come back to Yahoo Movies every Thursday to see who makes the cut.

50. Brad Pitt

[Read the Article: The 50 Greatest Actors Alive: No. 50 Brad Pitt]

49. Sigourney Weaver

[Read the Article: The 50 Greatest Actors Alive: No. 49 Sigourney Weaver]

48. Joaquin Phoenix

 [Read the Article: The 50 Greatest Actors Alive: No. 48 Joaquin Phoenix]

47. Paul Giamatti

 [Read the Article: The 50 Greatest Actors Alive: No. 47 Paul Giamatti]

46. Forest Whitaker

[Read the Article: The 50 Greatest Actors Alive: No. 46 Forest Whitaker]

45. Matthew McConaughey

[Read the Article: The 50 Greatest Actors Alive: No. 45 Matthew McConaughey]

44. Viola Davis

[Read the Article: The 50 Greatest Actors Alive: No. 44 Viola Davis]

43. Michael Douglas

[Read the Article: The 50 Greatest Actors Alive: No. 43 Michael Douglas]

 42. Jodie Foster

[Read the Article: The 50 Greatest Actors Alive: No. 42 Jodie Foster]

41. Ben Kingsley

[Read the Article: The 50 Greatest Actors Alive: No. 41 Ben Kingsley]

40. Javier Bardem

[Read the Article: The 50 Greatest Actors Alive: #40 Javier Bardem]

39. Sally Field

[Read the Article: The 50 Greatest Actors Alive: No. 39 Sally Field]

 38. Robert Downey Jr.

[Read the Article: The 50 Greatest Actors Alive: No. 38 Robert Downey Jr.]

37. Jennifer Lawrence

[Read the Article: The 50 Greatest Actors Alive: No. 37 Jennifer Lawrence]

36. Clint Eastwood

[Read the Article: The 50 Greatest Actors Alive: No. 36 Clint Eastwood]

35. George Clooney

[Read the Article: The 50 Greatest Actors Alive: No. 35 George Clooney]

What qualifies actors for a slot on Yahoo Movies' running list of the 50 Greatest Actors Alive? First, we limited the pool to actors who are still currently working. Other factors taken into consideration: Pure skill in the craft; their ability to disappear underneath the skin of the characters they portray; versatility and the range of their roles; ratio of strong performances to weak ones; quality of films acted in; strength of recent work; awards and accolades from peers.