Mainstream stars don’t always own a YouTube channel, but there are plenty of hidden pieces celebrity gold scattered across the platform. Below you’ll find ten clips that deserve a second look, even if the view counts look modest.
Why These Pieces Celebrity Gold Matter
10 Daniel Radcliffe
Daniel Radcliffe’s résumé stretches from the bizarre Horns to the wizarding world of Harry Potter. Yet on the Chilling Tales for Dark Nights channel he lends his voice to the short story “Fear of Hue,” penned by teenage British author Nicola Torch. In the creepy narration Radcliffe describes a relentless female ghost that clutches at him and seems to breathe death onto his face – a vivid reminder of Moaning Myrtle.
Even if you’re not steeped in Potter lore, the video is worth a watch. It has under 30,000 views but boasts thousands of positive votes, proving that a modest audience can still appreciate quality storytelling.
9 Tom Cruise
MTV’s YouTube channel, now home to over 800,000 subscribers, hosted a brief interview with Tom Cruise that should have been a hit. The clip captures Cruise failing to recognize catchphrases from his own movies, offering a light‑hearted, self‑deprecating moment that lasts just under two minutes.
Despite the humor, the video never took off. Uploaded while Cruise was promoting Mission: Impossible—Rogue Nation, it likely got lost amid the flood of official promo material, highlighting the gap between cinema fans and online audiences.
8 Penn Jillette
Penn Jillette’s personal YouTube channel is a minefield of viral moments – from urging Obama to legalize marijuana to declaring he received a Bible after a Las Vegas show. One April 2014 night, he stood beneath the Luxor Hotel’s dazzling lights, convinced the massive “birds” above were angels.
He repeatedly shouted “Look at that!” in a high‑pitched voice for a mere 37 seconds. The absurdity mirrors the infamous Double Rainbow video, and the clip garnered about 11,000 views – a lucky escape from any potential network pressure to rename his magic series.
7 Patton Oswalt
Patton Oswalt, known for roles in Pixar’s Ratatouille and the sitcom King of Queens, also appears in the upcoming revival of Mystery Science Theater 3000. In a sub‑two‑minute fake ad for Paul F. Tompkins’s show No, You Shut Up, Oswalt parodies the polarizing presidential ambitions of Donald Trump.
He jokes about “illegalizing terrorism” to show his soft side and hilariously lists the entire Duck Dynasty cast and the dentist who killed Cecil the lion as his vice‑president. Though the channel’s subscriber base is modest, the video has only about 1,300 views as of January 2016 and deserves far more attention.
6 Mark Ruffalo
Mark Ruffalo, Oscar‑nominated for Foxcatcher and Spotlight and beloved as Bruce Banner in the Avengers saga, took a turn on The Graham Norton Show. While the show’s channel often pulls millions of views – think David Beckham’s hair‑cut review – Ruffalo’s unicycle stunt didn’t echo that success.
He attempts a regular‑sized unicycle for the first time in 25 years, then graduates to a towering version. Even before climbing aboard, Norton asks if he wants a crash pad, underscoring the borderline reckless nature of the stunt.
5 Stephen Colbert
Stephen Colbert’s The Late Show may not dominate the ratings, but it still births viral gems. One animated sketch, seemingly a leaked pitch‑meeting recording, opens with an exaggeratedly slow, creepy smile from a caricatured Colbert.
The sketch dives into a fictional California law that would force porn actors to wear goggles, prompting jokes about a surge in swimming‑themed adult films. It also imagines a porn scenario where Colbert, in a diving suit, delivers a harpooned fish and then spends 45 minutes trying to escape the wetsuit. Despite its humor, the clip never gained traction.
4 Teller
Often overshadowed by his outspoken partner Penn Jillette, Teller’s silence doesn’t stop him from crafting compelling narratives. After his acclaimed documentary Tim’s Vermeer, he launched a 2008 mock video‑diary series titled & Teller.
One three‑minute episode follows a zombie apocalypse in Las Vegas that claims Penn as a victim. Teller jokes about the undead avoiding the Strip, then dramatically “shoots” Penn in the head because he’s become a zombie – a moment that elicits cheers as if it were a real magic trick. This short also offers the rare pleasure of hearing Teller narrate.
3 Rachel Bloom
Rachel Bloom broke onto the scene through viral videos, later writing for Robot Chicken and earning a Golden Globe for starring in Crazy Ex‑Girlfriend. Among her YouTube uploads, the song “I Have Friends” slipped under the radar.
The brief tune shows a girl strolling down a school hallway, handing out large invitations while chanting, “I have friends, I definitely have friends.” The lyrics reveal a desperate craving for connection rather than genuine happiness. The adult Bloom reenacts the same behavior, underscoring the song’s commentary on social‑media‑driven yearning, all wrapped in a catchy melody.
2 Steve Carell, Will Ferrell, And Paul Rudd
On December 18, 2013, UK radio’s Capital Breakfast gathered comedy heavyweights Steve Carell, Will Ferrell, and Paul Rudd (plus character actor David Koechner) for a karaoke rendition of Katy Perry’s “Roar.”
While a few struggled with pitch and enthusiasm, Carell was instantly labeled a “Roar fan” and eagerly confessed his guilty pleasure, despite his co‑stars’ teasing. The clip’s brevity keeps the joke fresh, and the 11,800‑view count recorded in early 2016 suggests it still warrants a larger audience.
1 Charlize Theron
In December 2015, The New York Times launched the dialogue‑free “Taking Flight” series, each under‑two‑minute vignette exploring weightlessness. Directed by Daniel Askill, the series features stars like Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Benicio del Toro, and Michael Fassbender, but Charlize Theron steals the spotlight.
Theron awakens in a stark black void, initially startled, then calmly goes along with the surreal setting. Viewers immediately speculated: Is she dead? abducted by aliens? Experiencing an out‑of‑body event? The ambiguity makes the piece hauntingly beautiful, deserving far more exposure.
Also worth noting, Adam and Dustin Koski’s story “The Man in My Eye” – though not featuring a celebrity – is primed to go viral.