Five Anton Yelchin performances you need to seek out

You might have heard the tragic news that Anton Yelchin, who played Chekov in the rebooted Star Trek films, tragically died yesterday aged just 27.

But though the star found mainstream attention in the sci-fi franchise, his career spans over a decade, meaning he has plenty of other roles worth checking out. On the off chance you're not that familiar with the actor, we've rounded up the best of his most memorable roles.

Alpha Dog (2006)

A young Yelchin played a kidnapping victim in this gritty, true-crime drama that debuted at Sundance Festival in 2006. An excitable teen, he allegedly told press at the after-party that the whole experience was “pretty fucking awesome”. Co-star Emile Hirsch tweeted that he was “a great man, a true friend, and an artist” following Sunday’s news. 

Green Room (2015)

This truly terrifying indie thriller features Yelchin as a punk rocker who witnesses horrific violence whilst playing a gig at Patrick Stewart’s neo-nazi gathering (it sort of sounds funny, but trust us, it isn’t). Although the film was first screened at Cannes in 2015, it was only released widely this May, so you’ll find plenty of people to talk about what-the-hell-you-just-watched afterwards.

Like Crazy (2011)

You get a true sense of Yelchin’s talent in this romantic drama, as the actor improvised almost all of his lines. The director – Drake Doremus – wrote a 50-page outline instead of a traditional script, meaning Yelchin and his co-star, Felicity Jones, had to come up with the rest. The pair play a long-distance couple who struggle with jealousy, longing, and – naturally – a buttload of immigration issues. 

Fright Night (2011)

This remake of the 1985 classic didn’t perform spectacularly at the box office, but is worth checking out for its humour, style, and gore galore. Yelchin plays a teenager who suspects his neighbour Jerry (Colin Farrell) is a vampire. He described him as “a monster in the traditional sense of monster movies”, so it’s definitely worth a gander for any classic horror fans.

Terminator Salvation (2009)

Although he claimed to be averse to remakes, Yelchin clearly felt Terminator was ripe for a reboot too. He played the teenage version of Kyle Reese, trying to survive whilst developing into the iconic character he would later become. “It's a classic for anyone who grew up in the late '80s, early '90s, so I couldn't not be in a Terminator movie,” he said.