Entertainment

'Pitch Perfect' Isn't Their Only Aca-Complishments

by Aly Semigran

We've still got a little less than a year until the release of Pitch Perfect 2 , and honestly that's a lot of time to wait to be reunited with the aca-mazing cast of the beloved original. (Not to mention meeting the newcomers to the Barden Bellas family, including Hailee Steinfeld and Katey Sagal.) So what the heck are we supposed to do between now and May 2015? We mean other than re-watching the first Pitch Perfect every time HBO airs it? (Thanks for that, by the way, HBO!) Why, you can watch other movies by the cast of Pitch Perfect, of course. Because while they may be pitch perfect (sorry) in the 2012 musical comedy, the hyper-talented female-driven ensemble has done some truly impressive work elsewhere.

In fact, before Pitch Perfect 2 hits theaters we've picked the best non-Pitch Perfect performances from the leading ladies of the first film. (No disrespect Skylar Astin and Adam DeVine, we still love you guys!) Some of them you may have already seen (good on you!), some of them may have flown under your radar, but all of them are definitely worth watching if you're a Pitch Perfect super fan. From Oscar-nominated turns to U.S. introductions, let's give it up for these other amazing turns from the leading ladies of Pitch Perfect so far in their careers.

Anna Kendrick

Best Non-Pitch Perfect Performance: This is actually a pretty hard pick considering Anna Kendrick can elevate anything she's in, from a wildly popular YA vampire romance saga (Twilight) to a largely-improvised mumblecore indies (Drinking Buddies). Still, we have to give the edge to her bittersweet turn in the dramedy Up in the Air , a performance that earned her an Oscar nomination. As the young, determined Natalie, Kendrick strikes a perfect balance hyper-anxious go-getter who has a change of heart when she gets to the human side of her rather inhumane career. It's a funny and sad role and she steals the whole thing from none other than George Clooney.

Rebel Wilson

Best Non-Pitch Perfect Performance: Bridesmaids gave us not only one, but two star-making turns. The smash comedy earned Melissa McCarthy an Oscar nomination and introduced American audiences to the hilarious Rebel Wilson, who played the houseguest from hell Brynn. Three years later and we're still quoting all her lines.

Anna Camp

Best Non-Pitch Perfect Performance: Now, don't get us wrong here, we love Anna Camp's turns on shows like The Mindy Project, The Good Wife, and True Blood, as well as her supporting turns in movies like The Help, but we were blown away but how much she did with such a little amount of time in the short film Sequin Raze . Marvel as she and Ashley Williams engage in a mental tennis match as a reality TV star and a reality TV star producer, respectively.

Brittany Snow

You've gotta be good to be bad. No one proved that more than Brittany Snow as the racist, size-ist supervillain Amber Von Tussle in the 2007 movie adaptation of the Broadway musical comedy Hairspray . Yes, she was a horrible brat, but every heroine needs her foe and in this case, that foe is a obnoxiously bubbly, singing, dancing, downright evil blonde.

Elizabeth Banks

Much like with Anna Kendrick, it's pretty damn hard to narrow down the best role to date from Elizabeth Banks (the director of Pitch Perfect 2, thankyouverymuch). She's been a riot as WASP-y cable news anchor Avery Jessup on 30 Rock (a role that earned her two Emmy nods) and a scene-stealer in boys club comedies like The 40-Year-Old Virgin, but she exceeded every Hunger Games fans' expectations as District 12 escort Effie Trinket in the big screen adaptation of the wildly popular YA novels. Under all that makeup and in between all of those biting one-lines, Banks has gotten under all the layers and has made Effie human in The Hunger Games and Catching Fire.

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