where the writers are
(laughing maniacally) & 99 Other Ways to Annoy Actors

 

There’s something about screenwriters that they just can’t leave well enough alone in providing direction to actors. Instead of a character simply saying a line, there seems to be an unwritten rule that they have to deliver the line with lots of embellishment. (This is not unlike, I've discovered, fiction writers who attempt to come up with clever substitutions for the word "said".) In honesty, I’ve sometimes spent more time trying to decipher these quirky parentheticals than following the dialogue itself.  They do, however, make for a great party game

1. laughing maniacally

2. cackling hysterically

3. sniffling furtively

4. laughing satirically

5. smiling aggressively

6. whistling angrily

7. blushing fiercely

8. glaring impassively

9. staring aimlessly

10. blanching uncontrollably

11. swallowing lazily

12. chuckling wistfully

13. shouting hesitantly

14. seething wholeheartedly

15. coughing defiantly

16. chuckling contagiously

17. leering mightily

18. shouting orgasmically

19. blinking rhythmically

20. shrugging moronically

21. smiling soberly

22. staring wildly

23. sighing incessantly

24. yawning cavernously

25. gloating boldly

26. sneering leerily

27. sighing soulfully

28. smirking ruefully

29. groaning disparagingly

30. nodding emphatically

31. stretching indifferently

32. smiling rhetorically

33. fainting forcefully  

34. sneezing emphatically

35. smiling successfully

36. smiling diagonally

37. whispering haughtily

38. yawning seductively

39. grinning gnashingly

40. breathing darkly

41. thinking sporadically

42. whimpering mincingly

43. scowling convincingly

44. chirping amicably

45. fidgeting wildly

46. guessing blindly

47. grinning indifferently

48. listening suggestively

49. barking congestedly

50. swearing gracefully

51. blinking embryonically

52. gesticulating dramatically

53. pointing stupidly

54. wheezing weakly

55. deciding definitely

56. retorting repetitively

57. laughing suspiciously

58. plotting purposefully

59. murmuring dejectedly

60. singing hauntingly

61. sneering smugly

62. replying avuncularly

63. gushing falsely

64. staring imperceptibly

65. exploding unexpectedly

66. sighing sensitively

67. crying needlessly

68. parroting annoyingly

69. accusing hotly

70. reminiscing stoically

71. badgering bullishly

72. snickering silently

73. needling relentlessly

74. pausing mysteriously

75. imploding sporadically

76. grinning gregariously

77. spewing effusively

78. thinking desperately

79. gazing majestically

80. looking dangerously

81. lisping angrily

82. weeping woefully

83. responding effectively

84. exclaiming spasmodically

85. reacting plausibly

86. answering painfully

87. replying snootily

88. arguing uncompromisingly

89. threatening forebodingly

90. squealing rowdily

91. quipping facetiously

92. whispering mischievously

93. shouting softly

94. pleading sinfully

95. giggling whimsically

96. digesting ardently

97. demanding truthfully

98. confessing unenthusiastically

99. screaming half-heartedly

100. guffawing bawdily

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"Crying needlessly" is my

"Crying needlessly" is my fav. Oh, no, maybe it's "weeping woefully" or "giggling whimsically."
Too funny!