13 Stand-Up Comedians Who Became More Well-Known For Their Acting

Multitalented Steve Martin got his first taste of the entertainment industry in 1967 after landing a writing job for the comedy and variety series, "The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour." Throughout the next decade, Martin fine-tuned his material, appeared on late-night talk shows, and frequently hosted SNL. With the release of his first comedy album, 1977's "Let's Get Small," Martin began experiencing a new kind of fame. He was selling out arenas, releasing more albums, and winning Grammy Awards. In 1980, he left it all behind. "The act had become so known that in order to go back, I would have had to create an entirely new show. And I wasn't up to it, especially when the opportunity for movies and writing movies came around," Martin revealed in an interview with NPR.

His transition to movies proved to be the right decision. His most popular works born out of the '80s included "¡Three Amigos!," "Little Shop of Horrors," "Planes, Trains and Automobiles," "Roxanne," and "Parenthood." In 2016, he collaborated again with longtime friend, Martin Short, and made a stand-up comeback, and in 2021, the duo premiered their mystery comedy series, "Only Murders in the Building." Unfortunately, this is expected to mark the end of Martin's career. "When this television show is done, I'm not going to seek others. I'm not going to seek other movies. I don't want to do cameos. This is, weirdly, it," Martin revealed to The Hollywood Reporter in a 2022 interview.