Coupling between cell adhesion and the actin cytoskeleton is thought to require a stable link between the cadherin-catenin complex and actin that is mediated by alpha-catenin. In this issue of Cell, the Weis and Nelson groups call this static model into question, showing that alpha-catenin can directly regulate actin dynamics (Drees et al., 2005 and Yamada et al., 2005).