Top 10 Pre-Fame Celebrity Appearances On Seinfeld

A little show about nothing took these up-and-coming actors a long way. Welcome to WatchMojo.com, and today we’re counting down our picks for the top 10 pre-fame celebrity appearances on “Seinfeld.”

For this list, we’re taking a look at actors that made guest spots on this landmark sitcom before they became famous, which means we’ve excluded actors that were already fairly established stars like James Spader, for example.

Jerry dated an assortment of actresses that would eventually become household names. However, Debra Messing proved to be one of the most memorable objects of his affection as Beth. Although she’s originally spoken for, Jerry eagerly waits for Beth’s marriage to crumble so he can score a date. It takes a couple of episodes, but Jerry finally gets an opening to ask Beth out. At first, they seem to be a match made in heaven, both being anti-dentites and all. Jerry begins to second-guess their relationship, however, upon realizing Beth is also a racist and anti-Semite. Whoa, did that really come out of Grace Adler’s mouth?

Kristin Davis went on to have intercourse with lots of men in “Sex and the City.” Even before getting her big break as Charlotte York, though, Davis was no stranger to putting unsanitary objects in her mouth – hi-yo! In the “Seinfeld” episode “The Pothole,” Davis plays Jenna, the latest in a long line of Jerry’s girlfriends. Jerry dooms their relationship upon dropping her toothbrush in the toilet and retrieving it. Jenna then proceeds to obliviously brush her teeth. While they make up after the incident, Jerry can’t bring himself to stay with a woman he’s seen covered in toilet water. Jenna will have to settle for Bania.

Rarely able to keep a girlfriend for more than a week, Jerry never tied the knot. He did get a taste of marriage, however, while dating Courteney Cox’s Meryl. Just months before beginning her breakout role on “Friends,” Courteney plays the role of Meryl, who plays the role of Jerry’s wife to get a dry cleaning discount. Over time, the two find that they actually enjoy the married lifestyle as much as they enjoy pancakes. Alas, the honeymoon doesn’t last long as Jerry cheats on his fake wife by giving his dry cleaning discount to another. The fake marriage results in a fake divorce, but at least Meryl would get reincarnated as Monica and find love with Chandler.

Given his hard-hitting performance as Detective Vic Mackey on “The Shield,” it’s hard to imagine Michael Chiklis in a comedic role – or with hair for that matter. Chiklis gave an outrageous performance on “Seinfeld,” however, as Steve Pocatello. After hosting Jerry at a party, Steve takes Seinfeld up on his offer to stop by his apartment when in New York, making himself right at home when he gets there by ordering up a prostitute. Jerry not only has to pay for the pretty woman’s services, but also pays an even heftier price when the cops show up. Suddenly, Kramer starts to seem like an ideal houseguest by comparison.

Following up her short stint on “Saturday Night Live,” Sarah Silverman landed a guest role as Kramer’s girlfriend, Emily. While the sex is pretty all right, Emily gets just a little too clingy for Kramer’s taste when spending the night. Fed up with her Jimmy legs, Kramer manages to convince Emily that they’d be better off sleeping alone. When Kramer becomes paranoid that somebody’s breaking into his apartment, though, he starts to desire somebody to cuddle with at night. Alas, Emily has also flip-flopped. Fortunately, they find the solution in a set of separate beds.

If you go back and watch this classic “Seinfeld” episode, you might not even recognize Jeremy Piven. As Michael Barth, Piven plays an actor who auditions to play George in the “Seinfeld” show within a show. Sporting a balding head, glasses, and a dumpy persona, he seems like a dead ringer for George, even if the real George can’t see the resemblance. Evidence of Piven’s commitment to character is seen already in this early role, and was fleshed out completely in the career-defining character of Ari Gold in “Entourage.” Of course Ari has a much fouler mouth on him.

She may’ve only appeared on-screen for a couple minutes, but this brief appearance on “Seinfeld” may be one of Denise Richards’ most memorable roles. As the daughter of an NBC executive overseeing Jerry’s pilot, she’s in the wrong place at the wrong time for George, who can’t help but sneak an extended peak when the fifteen-year-old displays her cleavage. For the record, Richards was 22 at the time. The hapless George is caught in the act as Bob Balaban delivers one of the show’s most hilarious lines. George got a good look and he probably got an even better look if he ever saw “Wild Things.”

Before directing box office hits like “Elf” and “Iron Man,” Jon Favreau was primarily known for being a character actor. One of Favreau’s earliest acting gigs was as Eric, a clown hidden under a rainbow wig and makeup. Despite his profession, Eric isn’t especially fun-loving or friendly. He doesn’t even know who Bozo is, much to the shock of George. Even if Eric doesn’t make the kids laugh until they drop dead, though, he does save their lives when he puts out a fire with his clown shoes. George on the other hand, isn’t quite as calm in a crisis.

Even with eight seasons on “Desperate Housewives” under her belt, Teri Hatcher will always be best remembered for her unforgettable appearance on“Seinfeld” as Sidra. Jerry is immediately drawn to Sidra’s natural beauty, until he finds out that her breasts may not be all that natural. Just when Jerry is about to uncover the truth firsthand, bad timing gets in the way as usual. Before walking out on Jerry, however, Sidra lets him know what he’s missing. That’s got to be among the show’s most quotable lines, which was partially ad-libbed by Hatcher. And it comes back when you least expect it…

Before we get to our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions:
- Brad Garrett as Tony
- Amanda Peet as Lanette
- Peter Dinklage as James’ Telephone Voice
- Patton Oswalt as Clerk
- Mariska Hargitay as Melissa
- Peter Krause as Tim

Bryan Cranston has hit it out of the park with one great character after another, from Hal on “Malcolm in the Middle” to Walter White on “Breaking Bad.” One notable role that helped launch Cranston to mainstream popularity was Tim Whatley. Whether making out with Elaine, having kinky sex in his office, or converting to Judaism for the jokes, it was always fun when this dentist popped up. This can be attributed to both Cranston’s performance and the “Seinfeld” writers’ ability to squeeze grade-A material out of even the most minor characters.

Do you agree with our list? What other future celebrities made an appearance on “Seinfeld”? For more entertaining Top 10s published every day, be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com.