Regardless of how people feel about Shapiro’s picks (and on a few them he’s totally out to lunch), the mark of a good actor is how well he or she can play different roles and make you forget the last one. A really good actor can play a good guy and a bad guy equally well. Nicholson has done quite a few non Jack Nicholson roles (About Schmidt, The Crossing Guard, the Pledge) where he doens’t play Jack Nicholson. I think Shapiro is a tad wet behind the ears.
Viggo Mortenson liberal loony, but was great in Crimson Tide, Eastern Promises, and A History of Violence. See the reference to Ed Harris above. Wonderful characters both.