Actors Who Should've Been Bigger Stars

Barbara McNair. So beautiful and sexy, yet smart, too.

Nicholas Clay

R2 Yes! He was gorgeous in Lady Chatterley's Lover and Evil Under the Sun!

Tom Berenger, more talented and masculine than many guys that made it as stars of big military/action/western movies. Casper Van Dien, much more handsome than many actors that were cast as pretty boys. Meg Tilly was cute and then disappeared from movies entirely to write books about her horrific childhood. Jenny Shimizu, famous for fucking Angelina Jolie, yet barely ever acts.

James Patric Stuart

Nigel Green.

Elder gays, can you please tell me what you know about Nigel Green? Do you believe that he committed suicide? He was such a great actor. There is a rumor that he was in the closet, but i don't think that is accurate.

[You do realize that this is a troll, right? It does not believe what it posts. It just craves attention. You might want to stop talking to it.]

john hawkes, first noticed him in a crossover episode of "without a trace" and "CSI", impressive performance as a fugitive father, always wondered why he didn't hit big.

There was another one no long applied, viola davis, her role as a corrupt security guard in an episode of "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" was so good that it eclipsed that "annoying" leading detective bobby, she obviously is "big" now, so it finally paid off for her.

I was molested.

I [italic]am[/italic] big; it's the pictures that got small.

Cary Elwes

Soap actor Danny Markel.

The delicate, the flower-like, Miyoshi Umeki, Oscar winner

I knew he looked familiar, r5!

From the Hallmark site: He also appeared as a French ski instructor on a critically acclaimed episode of "Frasier."

His father is Chad Stuart, of Chad and Jeremy. I feel old (and I just saw Chad in concert!).

Sarge (Terence Knox) and LT (Stephen Caffrey) both, from "Tour of Duty."

Ken Wahl owns this thread, though.

Why Joan Van Ark, of course!

[There is nothing more tedious than a race baiting troll. Except the people that talk to it.]

Powers Booth

Ken Whal owns this thread. I believe he would have gone on much further had he not suffered a crippling back injury.

Skeet Ulrich? Casper Van Dien? Steven Dorff? There' a reason those guys didn't become famous (despite tons of hype)

Valentina Cortese. When she came to Hollywood after WWII she was given leading roles in now cult movies "Thieves Highway" and "The House on Telegraph Hill" but soon after that she returned to Europe and worked mostly as a character actress. It was like no one in Hollywood even tried to make her a bigger star - The House on Telegraph Hill didn't even feature her face on the movie poster but a face of some other chick who had a small supporting role. And I agree with Ingrid Bergman - that really should have been Cortese's Oscar in 1974.

R21, I really like Thieves' Highway and Cortese was very good in it.

Michael Biehn was/is a far better actor than Tom Cruise, and also way hotter. Beyond hot in "The Terminator."

[There is nothing more tedious than a race baiting troll. Except the people that talk to it.]

Nancy Allen.

[There is nothing more tedious than a race baiting troll. Except the people that talk to it.]

I don't think Maximilian Schell really wanted to become big in the US (yeah yeah, I know people who fail to make it big there usually say stuff like this, but I think it was actually true in his case). He was a very artistic person who did a lot of theatre and directing and even most English-language movies he made were actually filmed entirely in Europe (Judgment at Nuremberg, The Young Lions, Topkapi, Julia, The Odessa File...). He was probably most happy eating strudl on his small Austrian farm and didn't care for the hectic lifestyle of the LA.

As for Valentina Cortese, I think the problem with her was that she arrived to Hollywood ten years too late. She certainly wasn't bad looking but 1950's were all about bombshell bimbos like Marilyn Monroe, Sophia Loren and Brigitte Bardot. Even gorgeous Alida Valli couldn't make it in Hollywood because by the late 1940's people didn't care for mysterious looking actresses a la Garbo anymore. If some studio brought Valentina to the USA in the 1930's she would probably quickly become a big star like Luise Rainer (who actually had a very similar looking face).

Catherine Hicks

I Always thought the guy from "Billy Bathgate" (Loren Dean) had star potential.

He´s a good actor but always stayed in supporting roles.

Really don´t know why he wasn´t bigger. Drug problem?

How dare you, R26.

Agree with R20.

[There is nothing more tedious than a race baiting troll. Except the people that talk to it.]

Jon Erik Hexum.

+1, R29.

Val Kilmer

Carla Gugino

Alison Elliott

William Petersen from To Live and Die in L.A. and Manhunter.

Dawn Davenport.

But didn't William Petersen's career rebound by becoming a household name through CSI?

Newt.

R38, I have never watched CSI so I have no idea (maybe that makes me lame). I just think he should have been a bigger movie star, at least in the action category.

Wes Bentley. He was so charismatic in American Beauty. But apparently he did himself in with his drug problem.

Paul LeMat -- Made a big splash as John Milner in "American Graffiti," only to watch virtually every member of the cast have a far more prolific career. Even Mackenzie Phillips. Even when he starred as one of the two title roles in "Melvin & Howard," Mary Steenburgen got the Oscar nod, not him. Now he does car shows, selling his autograph to make ends meet.

Timothy Bottoms -- Was really hyped for awhile and starred in high-profile, well regarded projects (The Last Picture Show, Johnny Got His Gun, The Paper Chase) but somehow it just never really happened for him. Int he '80s he segued into doing TV, probably hitting his nadir portraying Dubya in Comedy Central's "That's My Bush!" I think he raises horses now.

Both guys were great looking when younger and could act, and they got a big build-up (especially T.B.). Not sure why they never really went anywhere.

Both Brendan Fehr and his Rosewell costar Jason Behr. Fehr is back on tv in NBC's new ER style drama after years of obscurity but Behr hasn't been seen on the small or big screen since Roswell.

Canadians Andrew Walker and Luke Macfarlane are both talented and sorely underused.

Sean Patrick Flanery came on the scene with Young Indiana Jones Chronicles and appeared in several cult independent films but he should have had a bigger career. But he is now middle aged and past his glory years.

Andreas Wisniewski who was the buff villain in the Bond film Living Daylights. Was very hot but never did anything else.

Ron Eldard

Jason Behr could have made millions selling his sperm. That is one beautiful male person.

Madeline Kahn, just look for her sketch on YouTube with Eunice, Ed and Mama, on Carol Burnett

Lousie Lasser, steals every scene she's in. Too bad she was a druggie and hard to work with because of it, 'cause that lady was hysterical and should've been bigger, much bigger.

Sandy Dennis, watch the "Out of Towners," she is so funny yet so dry and unassuming. Should've been bigger.

Brad Renfro

Louise Lasser was never a "druggie". There is so much misinformation about her.

R43 Timothy Bottoms could've had a much bigger career if only he'd lived up to the promise of his name.

r49

She's still funny as hell. I remember her on Mary Tyler Moore as the bank manager. Hysterical and watch her on "Making A Living," (AKA "It's A Living" much better show with her on it.) And that's just to start.

[There is nothing more tedious than a race baiting troll. Except the people that talk to it.]

Michelle Monaghan. Sam Rockwell, John Goodman, Marisa Tomei, Philip Baker Hall, Carey Mulligan, Bobby Cannavale, William C Macy, Paul Dano, Toni Collette, Tom Hollander

Paul Walker. Despite his tragic death, he was around long enough to make some real quality pictures.

Brendan Frazier. It seems to me he had great potential, but nothing came of it.

*William H Macy

Marisa Tomei is a pretty big star imho R53.

"Brendan Frazier. It seems to me he had great potential, but nothing came of it."

It's Fraser, but....yeah, I loved him, too. He was very handsome and capable of being very good in movies like Gods and Monsters.

[There is nothing more tedious than a race baiting troll. Except the people that talk to it.]

[quote]If some studio brought Valentina to the USA in the 1930's she would probably quickly become a big star like Luise Rainer (who actually had a very similar looking face).

Cortese was only a child/teenager in the '30s and didn't make her film debut until 1940 when she was 17.

Enver Gjokaj - Single-handedly sold me on "Dollhouse" when I was going to give up on it, solely based on his wide range. Seriously talented guy who deserves to get more work.

Devon Gummersall

Matt Keeslar

Ed Harris

Clive Owen

How obscure can you go? If it doesn't matter than I offer up Cali Timmins.

Debra Winger

R64 I'll second Cali Timmins - talented, gorgeous, incandescent. Like January Jones, with charisma.

Timmins, James Patrick Stuart, Stephen Caffrey - I'll add to the "Ryan's Hope/ All My Children" pool by mentioning Kim Delaney.

Billy Zane, I thought, was going to br a huge star.

Colin Farrell.

Bridget Fonda.

D B Sweeney

Rupert Everett

Andy Garcia

Campbell Scott

Klinton Spilsbury

R19, it also would have helped if Ken Wahl wasn't a major asshole.

Love Cali Timmons. Her husband continues on in character roles but we never see or hear of her.

Jude Law

So true about Biehns.

Was so hot and a decent actor. Gorgeous in "The fan"

I watched "Once Upon A Time In America" the other night, and afterward decided to look up the actor James Hayden, who played "Patsy", childhood friend of Robert DeNiro's character, and a member of his gang of hoods. I was surprised to hear that Hayden died before the film was even released. He was a close friend and protegee of Al Pacino, who got him a small role in "Cruising"(his scenes were cut), and was his costar in the revival of "American Buffalo", where he played a junkie to rave reviews. The story goes that Hayden received a standing ovation for his performance, then went back to his apartment and overdosed on heroin. He seemed to be a well-liked young actor, who had a very promising future ahead of him.

Here's his big scene from "Once Upon A Time..." (warning: violent)

Tami Erin

Gary Cole, hands down. He's hot as hell and can do drama and comedy equally well--in American Gothic he did it in the same role.

Henry Czerny--great, intense Canadian actor; made it to Hollywood, known for Mission Impossible role, but he got derailed-don't know why.

Peter Weller--amazing, wonderful guy Renaissance man and great actor who was around a high end group of NYC creatives like the late Noel Behn, took a genre movie (Robocop) and totally sold it --do a name search for any interviews, he's a great storyteller-now directs many Sons of Anarchy eps

Clark Johnson-brilliant, under-rated actor-he did a lot of crap, but he was great on Homicide-not least b/c he was nothing like that character-also a brilliant director who never made it big--should have on both counts

Kyle Secor--another Homicide vet, did great work and I never really saw him around afterwards-always wondered why

[There is nothing more tedious than a race baiting troll. Except the people that talk to it.]

[There is nothing more tedious than a race baiting troll. Except the people that talk to it.]

Some of these people ARE big stars - Ed Harris? He was in a ton of high-profile films - it's just that he aged out of the movie business. Fucking hot as hell too.

Jude Law? Brendan Fraser? Again, both have had very big careers.

It's rare that anyone stays on the decade after decade. I'd say they all have had fantastic careers.

R74 Kyle Secor is playing a gun lobbyist on "Scandal."

[There is nothing more tedious than a race baiting troll. Except the people that talk to it.]

"Jude Law? Brendan Fraser? Again, both have had very big careers."

Jude Law doesn't have a big career. He works but he never cut it as a leading man.

Law had a shot, though, but he couldn't sustain it when he hit the bald wall hard, as UKers often do.

A lot of the people mentioned either never got a shot, or had a semi-famous role then faded.

Campbell Scott..especially with his pedigree, loved him in the Hallmark movie "The Love Letter."

Elias Koteas

ME!

The fact that there are posters who know and like Cali Timmins on Datalougne is one reason to love the place. She's had two prime-time series on Canadian TV and has consistently worked supporting guests shots on US TV. One of her bests was play Diane in Diane's play on Frasier. She just fucking nailed it.

She just stole every scene she was in. Especially when she was playing a sex kitten role.

Shelley Hack.

R82: Agree about Campbell Scott. He was great in Rodger Dodger.

Nan Woods and Brian Wimmer.

R6 -- was it suicide? In any case, he died way too young, as did his handsome Zulu co-star, Stanley Baker. Nigel was wonderful in that film and in Jason and the Argonauts.

I think Dan Futterman should have been a star, along with James Purefoy.

In terms of having a film career, Diana Rigg.

[quote]Henry Czerny--great, intense Canadian actor; made it to Hollywood, known for Mission Impossible role, but he got derailed-don't know why.

I've loved him since I first saw him in "The Boys of St. Vincent." Great actor and hot as hell.

R77 And Colin Farrell too, remember when he was in 10 films a year?

R4 I second Tom Berenger, he was brilliant in Platoon. How did he end up doing B-movie crap not that long afterwards?

The Ashmore Twins. I think it doesn't help that they are identical, people think of them expendable because of that. Both are quite talented and willing to push themselves if given enough to do. One is still playing an X-Men character a decade after getting the part, and the other is stuck doing Syfy channel fare.

One of them dated Michelle Trachtenberg for a while, who I also thought would make it big. She's charming and very likeable and easy to watch on screen. Post-Gossip Girl, however, she hasn't done much acting. Maybe she writes?

Mostly though, it's Jordan Brower. If you can make 'Speedway Junky' seem heart rending and affecting, you should have people beating down your door. He was also an utterly handsome young man, totally transfixing on screen. Why did Jesse Bradford and JTT get more work in the end than Jordan?

too bad Patty Duke did not maintain her big stardom

Well, if someone is going to say Shelly Hack, I'm going to say Nancy McKeon.

Gordon Tootoosis

r88, you must be a China Beach fan!

As the OP said Max Schell was an Oscar winner and kept busy acting and directing, how much bigger could he be? Just because he was not starring in rubbish multiplex movies means he was not a bigger star !

Agree re Tom Berenger, much hotter than Richard Gere!

Nancy Kwan. Ok, there were not that many leading roles for Asian actresses back in the 60s.

Campbell Scott. He gave some really excellent nuanced performances in films and on stage. I saw him in person a few times walking around Manhattan during the early 90s. He's one of those people who look incandescent in person.

Lana Wood claims that Max Schell raped her.

Sam Elliott should have been a major leading man, rather than the character actor he's become.

Schell did his share of multiplex stuff too, r99 - as well as the arty stuff, remember DEEP IMPACT or THE BLACK HOLE?

I have just two words:

Shawn Hatosy

I cannot tell you how much I love this guy and his work. He should be a major star of TV and film.

Sal Mineo

Bruce Davison

Diana Scarwid

Carrie Snodgress

Sam Elliott aged very quickly, but I like his shower scene in The Legacy.

I liked Shawn Hatosy in a movie called Borstal Boy that no one saw

Maxwell Caulfield

"Sam Elliott aged very quickly, but I like his shower scene in The Legacy."

So did Gary Cooper, but that didn't diminish his star status.

Jill Clayburgh.

Brad Rowe

Never understood why Gloria Grahame wasn`t an A-Lister. She was almost as sexy and dangerous on-screen as the unsurpassed Susan Hayward. Also, Roy Thinnes was, in my opinion, one of the hottest guys on 60`s TV (something very Jeff Chandler-ish about him, though I don`t think he wore ladies` undergarments!)

Gary Coleman. He was always funny. Even when he was serious he was funny.

Kelly Reno

"Never understood why Gloria Grahame wasn't an A-Lister. She was almost as sexy and dangerous on-screen as the unsurpassed Susan Hayward"

She wasn't that great an actress, and didn't have much range. I mean, I'm always glad to see her pop up on TCM because she did have something, but she didn't have the charisma or realism for the A-list. She may have been sexier than Hayward, but I can't see her in the same big Diva roles.

A British actress Justine Waddell (The Mystery of Natalie Wood) looks like Gloria Grahame's lost daughter. She also looks uncannily like Natalie Wood's daughter Natasha.

Wasn't Gloria Grahame's career tarnished by her divorcing Nicholas Ray and then marrying his son Tony?

RANDOLF SCOIT!

Catherine Burns who starred in 'Last Summer'(1969).

[You do realize that this is a troll, right? It just craves attention. You might want to stop talking to it.]

Another vote for Hatosy here. Not sure what happened there.

Rutger Hauer owns this thread. I have read his career stalled because he was difficult to work with, and burned some bridges.

I agree that Powers Booth should have had more success, he is a phenomenal actor.

Patrick Bergin should have been huge, but his career plummeted after Sleeping With the Enemy. I wonder if Julia Roberts had him blackballed or something.

Jennifer Jason Leigh is one of the greatest actresses from her generation, yet she does not seem to want the limelight at all.

James Remer is always fantastic in any role he is given, yet he has never been given a role that would bring him the recognition he deserves.

I thought Joseph Fiennes would be huge.

I think Tom Berenger MAY have an alcohol problem - as far as I'm concerned, he's lost his looks, and yes, there was a time when he was very up and coming and very handsome. The same with another actor who's had a similar career and whose name I can't remember now. Jeff something.

There's nothing new about any of this. The old fan magazines are filled with people who started out with studio contracts and never "made it" as big as some others - some of them moved on to TV, some quit.

As far as the old days, there's a wonderful book called "The Star Machine" that talks about how studios groomed stars, and the conclusion was that the public made them. One studio - not sure which - did everything to make Barbara Lawrence a star. In fact, her name is bandied around one film like she WAS a star - but she just never caught on. Some people don't get the opportunities, some get them and don't make an impression, and sometimes it's personal problems like alcoholism or drug use that makes them impossible to work with.

Brian Bloom

Ann Wedgeworth

"RANDOLF SCOIT!"

If you mean Randolph Scott, he was a big star.

Peter Strauss should have become a big star after his success in "Rich Man, Poor Man".

R121, Jan Michael Vincent ruined his career with drugs, booze and being hard to work with on projects. I think he also did something to ruin his face, which was beautiful at one time. He freely admits that he wrecked his career. Same with Michael Biehn.

Lot of times when you see people who should be much bigger stars not get work or struggle to get work, 8, 9 times out of 10 it is because they are pains in the asses behind the scenes and not worth it. Or it is like F. Murray Abraham, who thought he was too good for everything AND needed to be paid a ton of money despite not being a box office champ. Everyone is replaceable.

I recall on a Merv Griffin Show back in the 1960s, when asked by Merv whom she thought among the current crop of male actors was comparable to the Old Hollywood leading men, she responded immediately, "Roy Thinnes".

Oops, I forgot to identify Joan Crawford.

r123, great minds...I was just about to post Rutger Hauger.

I always thought Mark Ruffalo would have been a bigger star by now.

He's hot as fuck, a good actor and doesn't seem to have a bad rep in any way.

If anything, he doesn't play the game enough to overcome the powerhouse agents who push and package their clients.

Ruffalo is part of the one of the biggest movie franchises going right now. He's doing as well as can be expected.

Another Hatosy lover, since his appearance in HLOTS.

I wonder how many "difficult" types have been labeled that for being proselytizers, of Scientology or anything else.

Shawn Hatosy aged superbly. He wasn't even cute when he was young, now he is a handsome man.

Billy Campbell

Billy Crudup:

It doesn't surprise me if a great-looking guy doesn't make it, but it does when the great-looking guy also has the critics in his corner. And Crudup did. Critics mostly really liked him and championed him as the next big thing. But it never happened.

He still pops up in movies, but never a big part. Like in Public Enemies he played J. Edgar Hoover in a tiny cameo, but Johnny Depp and Christian Bale are playing the leads and you look at Crudup standing next to Bale and you realize he has the same kind of chiselled, sculpted good looks as Bale or Depp. But he's barely in the movie. But there was a time when he seemed like he could have competed with them for major roles.

Ewan McGregor:

He's barely aged and he still looks great, and he's thoroughly charming, funny, and adorable in interviews. And that goes a long way: ask Jennifer Lawrence. But he's never been nominated for an Oscar and he rarely gets any high-profile offers. He was so young when he did Trainspotting and it became a sleeper smash, and then he was in the Star Wars prequels and it looked like the world was his oyster. But nothing happened. The momentum stalled early and he's never rebounded.

Misty Rowe

What put the nail in the coffin for Crudup career was that he left Mary Louise Parker when she was 7 or 8 months pregnant to have an affair with Claire Danes. People hated him for that. Just from a business perspective, at least wait until the baby is born and break up with her a few months later. No one looks good cheating on a heavily pregnant girlfriend with a young starlet.

I don't know what happened with McGregor. Lack of ambition after Star Wars did not work out?

Gale Harold.

Well, no...not really.

Crudup never really launched, dating Claire Danes had nothing to do with it - his movies flopped, that was the nail in the coffin.

So many of those hot young (and talented!) British actors start strong and seem to be cast in everything and then disappear:

Jeremy Northam

James Purefoy

Clive Owen

Dominic Cooper

R124 Jeff Daniels?

I'll add Phoebe Cates, Linda Hamilton, Rick Rossovich, and River Phoenix

Sally Struthers.

[quote]R102

Rape ? Sure about that ?

When Lana was 15 she had a small part in the insipid FIVE FINGER EXERCISE which starred Rosalind Russell, Dick Beymer & Maximillian Schell. I forget but either her sister Natalie or their mother had promised Lana a really nice ring if she managed to break her bad habit of nail biting. Lana had the ring by the time filming commenced. Anyway, much of the movie takes place at the beach and one day Lana asked Schell to hold the ring for her while she was in the ocean. He then refused to return it unless she went out with him; Lana was 15, Schell twice her age. Lana wasn't interested in him and (was) worried about how she'd explain the missing ring to her mother. She called Natalie either that night or within a few nights and told what had happened. Natalie told her not to worry, that she'd have the ring back by the next day & to steer clear of Schell. Schell returned the ring to Lana the following day as Natalie had said. He was furious and kept his distance after that.

[quote]Rick Rossovich

He was hotter than fuck, but didn't have much range once his shirt went back on.

[quote]R118

You're correct. That was like the icing on the cake. Grahame already though had a lousy reputation in the industry for being somewhat difficult on sets; not a good career move. She was particularly difficult on the 1954 set of OKLAHOMA and it was that episode that really hurt her. She didn't marry Tony Ray, her onetime stepson until 1960.

I liked her. She did however have an annoying marble mouth delivery in part due to her habit of stuffing bits of cotton in her mouth to make her lips appear fuller.

R146, how did Natalie convince Schell to return the ring?

[quote]One studio - not sure which - did everything to make Barbara Lawrence a star. In fact, her name is bandied around one film like she WAS a star -

It was Fox. Like you said audiences just didn't take to her or she never got the good breaks etc...

One who was also an excellent example of just never getting the right role to push her over the top was the wonderful VIRGINIA GREY.

[quote]R146

According to Lana, Natalie said soemthing to her along the line of, "that SOB did what ?" "I'll take care of it !!!"

Natalie in 1961 had a lot of clout. I don't know whether she (NW) called him herself or placed a few choice phone calls but Lana got the ring back the following day. I asked Lana about Schell once right after he died & she offered just the good recollections, never mentioned the ring episode etc...

Gloria Grahame was very good in "The Big Heat", a not so well known film with Glenn Ford.

[quote]R152

She, Ford & Lee Marvin = One great film !!

Did you know that Marilyn Monroe was also considered for the role of 'Debbie' ? True. IMO the right actress got the part.

Jeremy Northam is a good call, he seemed to be everywhere for a while, but last thing I saw him in was The Tudors in a small part where he gets the chop. He would fit in to Downton nicely (like his Ivor Novello in Gosford Park). He was even Dean Martin in that Martin & Lewis tv biopic.

Ditto Dominic Cooper, terrific as Saddam's son and his double (can't think of the title now) but he seems to have stalled too, Mamma Mia didn't do much for him.

I saw Purefoy on the stage in London couple of years ago, he just didn't project anything at all.

Jeff Daniels has been terrific for a long time too - I saw Arachnaphobia and Speed again recently, but I think he is always second tier leading man material.

I'm a film buff nearing 60 and only became aware of "The Big Heat" about two years ago. Why isn't such a good film better known?

Billy Crudup can afford to only do movies he likes. Priceless.

You are not a "film buff" if you had never heard of "The Big Heat," r156. It is a canonical noir film. Keep up.

[There is nothing more tedious than a race baiting troll. Except the people that talk to it.]

r159

Zach was in love with Phoebe Cates. After she broke his heart, I guess he lost the desire to have an acting career.

I think Rutger Hauer had a hard time fitting in with the Hollywood crowd. Dutch actors are known to be straightforward, down-to-earthl and no-nonense. They are used to seeing themselves as equal to everyone else who's part of the production, they don't isolate themselves from and place themselves above the rest of the crew like most US stars.

R161= Anne Frank

Rutger Hauer still beliebs people are really good at heart, R162?

R159, I read an interview Zach did where he said he should've moved to LA and "struck while the iron was hot." Instead, at his parents urging, he went back to school, graduated from Columbia, and his acting career never regained momentum. He currently teaches acting at a Tisch-affiliated conservatory, and works steadily in indies and b-movies.

Doesn't Jeff Daniels kind of limit himself because he wants to stay in Michigan?

What's in Michigan?

Daniels has a theater in Chelsea, MI.

Jeff Daniels has been quite good in the past two seasons of HBO's The Newsroom. (Doesn't season 3 start soon?)

[quote]You are not a "film buff" if you had never heard of "The Big Heat," [R156]. It is a canonical noir film. Keep up.

You know I was thinking the same thing when I read the earlier post. I mean, it's a Fritz Lang movie for God's sake.

A film buff could just mean someone who likes movies as a pasttime, not necessarily a film student or film historian. "The Big Heat" has only begun being shown on cable channels fairly recently, lighten up.

[quote]R169

I agree. Alright, a couple of the previous posters weren't aware that THE BIG HEAT is a motion picture of some merit, and note, no reason to rub their noses in it.

The ugly kid from Tool Time.

[quote]I agree that Powers Booth should have had more success, he is a phenomenal actor.

Did Powers Boothe screw himself for crossing the SAG/AFTRA picket line to accept his Emmy in 1981? He was literally the ONLY acting nominee there to accept that year. 33 years later, he still hasn't been nominated for anything major, although he's given numerous award-worthy performances.

Linda Fiorentino, but her notorious assholism did her in.

Yeah. Linda became IMPOSSIBLE to work with. My number one on this list is Jane Badler. I thought she would be huge. Oh well. Too bad she turned down the role of fake Fallon on Dynasty.

The beautiful Dorothy Malone.

Treat Williams. Hyped a lot in the late 70s and early 80s but never really clicked.

Hart Bochner's disappearance never made sense to me. He smoldered.

Lili Taylor. Always enjoy her werq.

She annoys the living shit out of me, R178. If anything she should have been a smaller star.

Amy Jo Johnson

Sarah Brown

Jason Behr

Shawn Hatosy

Giancarlo Esposito. Most people I know had never heard of him before "Breaking Bad", which is a shame. A great talent who should be doing more high-profile work.

Obviously John C. Reilly is a big star, but his dramatic work is very good and I am missing some of that - as a lead. I'm thinking "Hard Eight" as an example, though he was also v. good in "Terri" a few years ago, though that was marginally a comedy.

I've been watching him since he was on HLOTS, R181, as Lieutenant Giardello's son.

doo doo doo dah dan dah, that's all I want to say to you.

Treat Williams was sensational and sexy in HAIR but pretty much a bore in everything else. Sorry, but it's true. Some actors get exactly the career they deserve. TW is a prime example.

If anything, he should have gotten into TV sooner, where he might have clicked with audiences and had an even longer, more lucrative career.

Esposito and Ron Eldard worked together on "Bakersfield PD", a terrific little series.

It really depends on how their PR team set them up. Look at Marisa Tomei. Does she have the career you might have expected her to have in 1993 when she was a fresh oscar winner and getting lead roles? No. Is she one of the more respected character actresses working today who is usually in quality movies? Absolutely.

OTOH, look at Tilda Swinton. She was in a few Derek Jarman movies and "Orlando" in 1993. You would never have expected her to become a very famous, Oscar-winning basically mainstream actress these days and the new face of NARS cosmetics.

The curse is when the actor is positioned as the next hot LEADING MAN/LADY and it falls apart: Jude Law being a famous example.

Jonathan Rhys Meyers is very talented, owns the screen, beautiful man and a nice guy. Has a well known bout with addiction which I'm sure impeded his stardom.

Colin Farrell is very talented, too. I hope "True Detectives" works out well for him.

Also, Ileana Douglas, Samantha Morton and WHET Gary Burghoff, who played Radar on "MASH?"

Cillian Murphy was brilliant in "Breakfast on Pluto." I wish I could see more of him.

R187 Also Gretchen Mol.

In terms of singers, Sheena Easton seems like she could have had a much bigger career. Talents, looks. So many with fewer gifts have had made it bigger.

Sheena was very bland, very cruise ship. The most magnetic and sexual thing about her was her first name.

Jason Behr is a hot looking guy, but a really wooden actor.

Jensen Eckles

R190 and her sugar walls. Girl could SAAAANG

Treat Williams.

Before Hair there was the film version of "The Ritz". Don't know why but it seems every bio on TR seems to begin with the former.

TW was so fresh and young, not to mention handsome in the Ritz. The voice (his or dubbed?) one could have lived without.

Gary Burghoff in contrast to his Radar character apparently was not a very nice person to work with, thus perhaps why he wasn't around much after MASH.

R195 Hence the Gary Jerkoff nickname

R188 watch "Peaky Blinders" on Netflix. Cillian Murphy stars, and is tremendous. It's a wonderful British show, about a post WWI Birmingham gang that controls racetrack betting.

George Peppard. Robert Drivas. George Maharis.

George Peppard WAS a big star.

George Maharis once gave me a blow job in a rest room.

R200 with his mouth?

NO, I stuck it in his ear. DUH

Ryan Phillippe. Yes, I know he's done well, but he never got to the level of DiCaprio, Hanks, Cruise, etc.

R202, dude, that's called "ear sex." It was on an episode of FAMILY GUY.

R204, how dare you speak to me you Burger watcher or Simpson watcher or whatever the hell you call yourself. You are WAY out of your league attempting to speak to me. If you only knew how handsome, young and masculine I am you would be ashamed of yourself.

I could just barf.

Michelle Forbes.

Ewan McGregor is doing just fine. As is Mark Ruffalo. They are stars who've been in some of the biggest movies in the past decade or two. And we don't need to pity Jude Law either. He has always been a great character actor, and now that his leading-man looks have faded, he's where he wants to be. And he's also doing amazing stage work.

On the other hand...

Illeana Douglas. She was so great and seemed to be working all the time. What the hell happened?

Clea Duvall. Another interesting actress. She did get a part in Argo, thank goodness, but she should be bigger.

I also like Shawn Hatosy. Haven't seen him in ages.

Timothy Bottoms was so beautiful.

Timothy Hutton got an Oscar and then, whoosh!

Stephen Rea recently reemerged on the scene with the amazing "An Honorable Woman". He's so good.

And after Virginia Madsen got her Oscar nomination, and showed she had real acting chops in "Sideways", why didn't more come her way? She was transcendent in that role, revelatory.

Some very talented people really do only get 15 minutes. Then again, many got none.

Christopher Jones was on the fast track after a TV series and the cult exploitation film WILD IN THE STREETS. then came high profile RYAN'S DAUGHTER and his career went nowhere. He walked away, got heavy into drugs and claimed that he had been having an affair with Sharon Tate up to the time of her murder.Jones claimed that Tate's unborn baby would have been his and not Roman Polanski.

Did Tippi Hendren have any kind of movie career after MARNIE?

R29 - David Lean and Sarah Miles have said some terrible things about Christopher Jones and his performance in Ryan's Daughter, but I rather liked him in it. He was incredibly handsome and his woodenness didn't really bother me. It suited the character's reserve and sadness.

I don't know that he would have gotten much bigger without some good formal training. He had plenty of attitude in Wild in the Streets, but that starts to get old as the actor gets old.

I do wish we had gotten to see him get a better shake at a career.

Thanks for the Gary Burghoff info, iDunno. It baffles me throw some jerks still manage to make it big in spite of their personalities and some don't.

R197, thank for for suggestion. I will check it out.

It didn't help that Gary was short, fat, bald, and nearly blind. I lived near him. Complete fucking asshole.

Everyone in this video

https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQ4cBVU2HhLnqfICpc2M7gqVZqV7XfhHnGEl7BlGWBsb7Py3xVQCA

Ron Eldard. If you haven't seen Roadie, watch it. He was fantastic in it. It co-stars Bobby Cannavale and Crossing Jordan. An excellent movie.

Corky Nemec: Parker Louis Can't Lose and then his best work was in the TV movie "I Know My First Name is Steven" about abducted Steven Staynor.

"Did Tippi Hendren have any kind of movie career after MARNIE?"

Tippi had a supporting role in that movie Charlie Chaplin directed starring Marlon Brando and Sophia Loren, "A Countess from Hong Kong".

George Newbern.

R10 Rumor is that Lean had Christopher's lines dubbed by another actor in post production.

Color me still astounded that the biggest 'star' with the longest career of the actors in the Young Guns western movies was Kiefer Sutherland. The hell?

I was convinced Christian Slater's star was on the rise in the late 90's... Where did it all go wrong?

And on the back of Manhunter, William Petersen should have had all the awards, ever.

As for the rest, though....I thought Emilio Estevez would keep it together into the Millenium, but it seems The Mighty Ducks took him further and further from Hollywood. He seems happy to hang out with his dad though, so I don't feel too sorry for him. Lou Diamond Phillips had some unfortunate domestic abuse allegations, which sunk him. The less said about Charlie Sheen the better.

Kim Greist

Kelly Lynch

Madeline Potter

All of the Twin Peaks girls, actually.

Ethan Hawke never reached the heights I thought he would. He was like my first actor crush.

He gets attention on DL for all the wrong reasons, but Gale Harold is an excellent actor with real range and a good ear for comedy. Too bad he's been restricted to nighttime soaps and weak indie films. He would have made a bitching Batman, could do a lot of angsty inde roles too. Has the ability to do a lot of acting without speaking.

Thora Birch

Did a little research on Shawn Hatosy and see that he has been working steadily all this time. Mostly TV and mostly as a cop but working. He has a movie coming out in 2015 called "Medicine Men."

He is in the TV series, "Reckless" alongside such actors as Kim Wayans, Gregory Harrison, David Keith and Linda Purl!

I have to find this series and give it a look. maybe it's "on demand."

[quote]Has the ability to do a lot of acting without speaking.

Gale Harold IS "Johnny Belinda"!

Patty Duke

Joshua Jackson, who's currently steaming it up on SHOWTIME'S "The Affair". Great sex scene in last week's episode, with Joshua showing some major skin.

I didn't check, but has anyone mentioned Gary Coleman yet?

John Holmes.

[quote]Wayans

click!!

James Holmes. He hasn't had a hit in theaters in awhile.

Claudia Wells owns this thread.

Agree with Diana Rigg. She completely stole the screen in that Bond movie. Alan Rickman is great too.

The beloved Tami Erin.

Dawn Wells owns this thread.

James Remar

Richard Jordan

Sasha Alexander! She has become more beautiful with time, and the woman really can act!

Kenneth Mars

Judith Chapman. She should have been a major movie star instead of a soap hack.

R228, HELL yes to Joshua Jackson. He completely stole the show in Cruel Intentions. Even to this day, the sassy, upper crust, wheeler dealing drug-peddler Blaine is one of the most nuanced and entertaining gay characters I've ever seen onscreen. Repulsive and endearing all at once, that's hard to pull off.

Joshua always brings dynamism, hi jinx and odd little quirks to his roles, little things that not many others think of. I would love to see him in a big movie again--not in a leading man role but as a deuteragonist or villain.

James Wilby.He was such pretty and talented in Maurice.

James Wilby.He was such pretty and talented in Maurice.

"Richard Jordan"

Saw him on a 1962 episode of "Naked City" last weekend on MeTV playing a young man with a badly scarred face and resulting emotional problems. He was such a good actor.

Rupert Graves too, also in Maurice, and other pretty boy roles, he is ageing nicely (as in Sherlock) but could surely have been much bigger than those Merchant-Ivory costume films he got mired in.

It seems like there's a new thread on this every week!

R207, I believe Illeana Douglas is another one of those actors who was difficult and not well liked. When her career was going well, she was dating Martin Scorsese, and her career fell off after they broke up. She also wasn't Hollywood beautiful, which didn't help. Same thing with Clea Duvall. She's talented, but not beautiful, and there aren't really lead character roles for women, as there are with men. I doubt it helps that she doesn't really hide her lesbianism.

A lot of these actors really did get their chance, especially Jude Law and Colin Farrell. Hollywood pushed those guys hard and they had numerous chances as lead actors, it just didn't take. I don't think Mark Ruffalo really was well cast when he was first hitting it big and he got stuck doing some lousy rom coms. He's also great looking, but looks Italian, and the movies have moved away from ethnic looking white actors when they were all the rage in the 1970's.

Christian Slater was another actor who had addiction issues. He went to jail for 50 days for beating his girlfriend and a police officer while drunk and disorderly. Most male actors get a second chance, but he basically had to go to TV.

Eddie "The Patty Duke Show" Applegate, whose comic timing was spectacular.

Mark Rylance. Except he doesn't like making movies. Although he just signed on to play a story book giant in a Steven Spielberg movie.

Molly Ringwald

[quote] Mark Rylance. Except he doesn't like making movies. Although he just signed on to play a story book giant in a Steven Spielberg movie.

Yes!! An amazing actor.

Corin Nemec - big time $cientologi$t

Colin Farrel - too much, too soon.

Casper Van Dien - personality of a wood block

Cliff Gorman

Colin Farrell and Jude Law are both tacky

Cliff Gorman became resentful of his having been in "The Boys in the Band", claiming it tainted his career, even though he went on to success in Lenny and moderate success in films.

Actually, his career is going well and he's definitely carved out a nice psycho-auteur niche, but I would like to see Crispin Glover step onto the A-list dais, possibly by playing The Joker in another (wretched I'm sure) Batman sequel. Crispin reliably brings the charismatic cray.

David Burtka

...and I'm still gonna be a big stah, goddammit!

Nick Stahl.

Henry Thomas

Gary Cole

R261, I love Gary Cole. Very good actor.

Dick Van Dyke

As successful as he's become, he could have gone even further.

nick stahl, but i guess drugs are to blame.

Bump for R215's mention of "Parker Lewis Can't Lose". Loved it. Didn't know Corin "Corky" Nemec was a Scieno.

Kyle Chandler: sexy, adorable, from "Homefront" thru "Early Edition" and "Friday Night Lights". He could have been a Harrison Ford type, he's good in "Super 8". But...

Geena Davis: had it in her grasp, then...poof

Brad Renfro. So much potential. The camera loved him. Alas...

Agree with Kyle Chandler

On the filmmaking front, I would say Dan Clowes as writer or director. "Ghost World" is a classic, "Art School Confidential" kind of sucked, but he is a great writer. Hell, even Shia LeBoof knows that, and stole from him. There's still time, though.

Kyle Chandler was by far the best thing in "Wolf of Wall Street."

[quote]As successful as he's become, he could have gone even further.

Oops, my bad.

R247,

Thank you!

R264, Stahl is excellent. He's engaging and affecting every time I've watched him. He seems to bare his every nerve when taking on a role, to the point it's almost uncomfortable to watch. He's truly talented, can't stress it enough.

Did DL see him in 'Sleepwalking' with Charlize? It brought me to tears in places. I also recommend watching Nick in 'Twist' and 'Afghan Luke'.

I don't know if he should have been a bigger star, but I met George Chakiris at the Hollywood Museum the other night. We were there for the opening of the Tyrone Power Exhibit which, by the way, is spectacular.

I want his secret. He was born in 1934.

Just echoing what has been said before, but both Jan-Michael Vincent and Michael Biehn should have been huge, if not for the booze.

Poor guys.

Talented, beautiful, charming, wounded and with charisma.

Brings to mind the charming and beautiful Gail Russell (good friend of John Wayne), who died incredibly early, also from alcohol abuse.

R94 that's some lovely chemistry in the 'Shakespeare's Sonnet' clip. Vincent Kartheiser plays excellently and his interpretation of a gay man is sensitive and heartfelt, but Brower is captivating in a more subtle way. His beauty definitely helps with appreciating his character (as in 'Speedway Junky') but Brower's presence gives more. Jordan got landed with a Tiger Beat reputation unfortunately, but he grew to be so much more than that as an actor. Shame.

Strange that Kartheiser hasn't been hurting for steady, high-profile work since then while Brower disappeared.

Ann Dvorak

Warren Oates

Scott Bakula

Warren William

Lee Tracy

Tim Holt

Jordan Bower - Speedway Junky is mostly forgotten these days but he was great in it

Will Estes - Always thought he would have a bigger career. Still aging very well.

Ryan Merriman - Thought he had the dramatic chops but seems stuck in Z grade fare

Joseph Cross - Gave an excellent performance in Running with Scissors. Ellar Coltraine may pick up from where he left off.

Devon Sawa - Looks like the drugs got to him

Jonathan Taylor Thomas - Was a bonafide teen idol but wasn't able to translate that success into anything substantial as an adult

Gregory Smith - Was such a cutie in Everwood, thought he'd have more mainstream success by now.

Brian Backer

Sean Marshall, the original Pete in [italic]Pete's Dragon[/italic], also had two TV shows around the same time, the first being [italic]The Fitzpatricks[/italic], with DL non-favorite Helen Hunt, and seemed like he was being groomed for teen idolhood—his costars were Clark Brandon and Jimmy McNichol—but he just walked away from it voluntarily because he did not enjoy being famous.

Kristy McNichol - she was really good in "Little Darlings" and "Only When I Laugh"

Sally

Brian Wimmer. After China Beach and Late For Dinner I was sure he was ready to break out.

This isn't so much a 'should be bigger' as a 'should be doing more serious work', but Kristen Stewart.

Scoff if you will, but watch her in THE PANIC ROOM with Jodie Foster and tell me Stewart is bad. She had incredible early promise and still indeed has the goods deep down, but she doesn't get to read for the respectable and high-minded roles and so must languish in this gross ghetto for lead actresses where women only appear in fragrance commercials or summer popcorn movies until Broadway knocks.

I also wonder if being an obviously Out lesbian has damaged her rep and pushed her aside. Hmmm.

R283 yes it has damaged her career she now mostly gets lesbian roles sad :( this happened with Whishaw too

Sarah Gadon

Sarah Snook

Paul Bettany

R283 Stewart said she's bisexual

Ben Whishaw

Eva Green

Cillian Murphy

Rebecca Hall

Sally Hawkins

Andrew Scott

Romola Garai

Samantha Morton

Toni Collette

Ralph Fiennes

Matthias Schoenaerts

Tatiana Maslany

Andrea Riseborough

Robert Carlyle

Chloe Sevigny

Ludivine Sagnier, Melanie Laurent, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Gaspard Ulliel, Lou de Laage, Emily Watson

[quote] Jordan Brower. If you can make 'Speedway Junky' seem heart rending and affecting, you should have people beating down your door. He was also an utterly handsome young man, totally transfixing on screen. Why did Jesse Bradford and JTT get more work in the end than Jordan?

His career story is almost a literal tragedy in the vein of SPEEDWAY JUNKY. He's from San Antonio, TX and was terrified that playing gay roles in College would get him excommunicated. He ended up more or less typecast in gay roles thereafter (meaning Disney dropped him) and so far hasn't racked up enough credits to climb the ladder, even from playing gay parts in seldom-seen indies and short film.

He really is beautiful and terribly underrated as an actor, and I hope he gets more roles this year.

Funny to see this because have been thinking a lot today after watching a bootleg of "Spike of Bensonhurst" -- and being reminded just how much I adored Sasha Mitchell in that movie. Always stuff going on behind the eyes, gorgeous guy of course, pure charisma. And then he ended up on a crappy sitcom and on the wrong end of (false, apparently) domestic abuse charges.

Watching him again 30 years later, I felt the same way. He could've been a Tom Cruise. Should've been. He even had humor. All pretty remarkable for an untrained model turned actor. Watch it if you can find it.

So fucking cute.

And he can act. See for yourself.

Topher Grace

I always wondered why Nightmare on Elm Street gals Heather Langenkamp and Amanda Wyss didn't hit it big. They had such a nice, refreshing quality to them. I really believed them in those roles and they seemed like girls you'd actually live down the street from or go to high school with. Maybe they just weren't vampy enough to be leading ladies.

I just saw Wyss in a new-ish indie horror movie on Amazon called The Id and she's really wonderful in it. She still looks great, too, and she barely seems to be wearing makeup for most of the movie. It's worth checking out.

Speaking of Nightmare girls, what about Lisa Wilcox? She was probably the most beautiful of the Nightmare gals (I met her at one of those conventions and she's only gotten more beautiful over time) and she's the only one who managed to survive, not one but two, entries in the franchise. After that, I think I remember her playing Florence Henderson in some Brandy Bunch TV movie and that's it. I thought she had a similar relatable quality as Heather and Amanda. You really did root for them. So much better than the bimbos and douchebags we have in horror films these days.

Another one, pure charisma. What's it going to take to make him huge?

Soap addicts will be the only ones who'll know this one but Taylor Miller who was the original Nina on AMC seemed destined for stardom. She looked and even acted like a young Grace Kelly and had rocketed to the top of popularity polls at almost her debut on the show. Other ingenues on the show went on to stardom, but Miller was the most intriguing and went nowhere.

Esai Morales and Elizabeth Pena, after La Bamba, Michelle Phillips after Dillinger, Juliet Prowse after CanCan.

William Zabka, he of ‘80s movie villainy.

But, he’s getting that recognition at long last. Don’t call it a comeback.

"Barbara Lawrence "

R124, wherever you are, in the Davis film "The Star" Lawrence plays herself in one scene, as washed-up Davis glowers at all the fuss being made. It's a low-budget film, but Davis got an Oscar nom. Lawrence may have been best as Darnell's sister in "Letter to Three Wives."

Ronald Reagan.

I recently watched Lil Abner (1959) starring Peter Palmer in the lead and am at a loss to know why he didn't make it big. Most of his subsequent stuff was tv and nothing after the 1990s. I thought he had died but according to IMDB he's still alive.

Never seen it, R290.

Gina Gershon.