David Schwimmer‘s attempt to become a leading man was a disaster. The Pallbearer & Kissing a Fool were disasters and box office bombs, even his supporting roles in Apt Pupil & Six Days, Seven Nights were not great. Who else failed miserably?
Jim Sturges - The Way Back and 21 come to mind. He can act, but he has little to no charisma. Not leading man material.
by Anonymous | reply 1 | August 31, 2023 4:45 PM |
I can’t think of one…
by Anonymous | reply 2 | August 31, 2023 4:47 PM |
Jessica Alba.
by Anonymous | reply 3 | August 31, 2023 4:49 PM |
Jude Law
by Anonymous | reply 4 | August 31, 2023 4:51 PM |
Josh Hartnett
by Anonymous | reply 5 | August 31, 2023 4:51 PM |
Matthew Perry
by Anonymous | reply 6 | August 31, 2023 4:51 PM |
R4 Jude had some successes
R5 total flop, but so hot
R6 Matthew flopped in romantic comedy but did okay with those Whole However Many Yards movies which were carried by Bruce Willis I guess
by Anonymous | reply 7 | August 31, 2023 4:53 PM |
R1 nice find. Yeah, so forgettable never even really knew his name and I saw those movies
by Anonymous | reply 8 | August 31, 2023 4:55 PM |
Tom Greene
by Anonymous | reply 10 | August 31, 2023 4:56 PM |
Lily Collins
by Anonymous | reply 11 | August 31, 2023 4:58 PM |
Russell Brand
by Anonymous | reply 12 | August 31, 2023 4:58 PM |
R10 Daddy, would you like some sausage?!
by Anonymous | reply 13 | August 31, 2023 4:58 PM |
Clive Owen got the big push for a few years, and then was demoted to supporting roles.
by Anonymous | reply 14 | August 31, 2023 5:01 PM |
The studios tried with Schwimmer but the audiences said “neigh”
by Anonymous | reply 15 | August 31, 2023 5:13 PM |
Taylor Kitsch
by Anonymous | reply 16 | August 31, 2023 5:20 PM |
R16 good one
by Anonymous | reply 17 | August 31, 2023 5:21 PM |
Steve Guttenberg. Had some success as a leading man in the 1980s, but then shifted to supporting or behind-the-scenes roles.
by Anonymous | reply 18 | August 31, 2023 5:22 PM |
Dane Cook
by Anonymous | reply 19 | August 31, 2023 5:23 PM |
R18 wasn't he on Married with Children?
by Anonymous | reply 20 | August 31, 2023 5:23 PM |
Sarah Jessica Parker, who played Carrie Bradshaw in every fucking movie she did after SATC. Why pay to see Carrie Bradshaw in a movie when you can watch her on tv for free?
by Anonymous | reply 21 | August 31, 2023 5:25 PM |
R21 she’s so obnoxious in films. In fact she works best when her character is meant to be hated: First Wives Club, Family Stone
by Anonymous | reply 22 | August 31, 2023 5:27 PM |
Personally I enjoyed David d Caruso's movies but he had a very narrow range. The cool tough guy speaking in a restrained monotone.
by Anonymous | reply 24 | August 31, 2023 5:35 PM |
I think Shelley Long is in the Failed Leading Film Careers Hall of Fame.
by Anonymous | reply 25 | August 31, 2023 5:44 PM |
Madonna. Bless her
by Anonymous | reply 26 | August 31, 2023 5:45 PM |
Madonna beats Shelley
by Anonymous | reply 27 | August 31, 2023 5:46 PM |
Re: Josh Hartnett. His failure was his choice because he didn’t want to be a movie star. He turned down several offers including the Superman franchise and several other films that would have vaulted him into the stratosphere career wise. But he didn’t want to and it pissed off Hollywood’s bigwig producers.
by Anonymous | reply 28 | August 31, 2023 5:51 PM |
Farrah Fawcett three bombs after leaving Charlie’s angels to make movies and her leading lady chance was gone.
Marisa Tomei and Mira Sorvino briefly tried to be leading ladies after their Oscar wins. Tomei was able to bounce back and is a permanent A list character actress.
by Anonymous | reply 29 | August 31, 2023 5:53 PM |
As far as actors go, Josh Hartnett seems smarter than most. I don't blame him for not wanting to be Superman. And he's done lots of small interesting things instead -- the man starred in Raoul Peck's Exterminate All the Brutes miniseries ffs. And now he's shining in a small role in Oppenheimer. He's going to have a longer career than expected
by Anonymous | reply 30 | August 31, 2023 6:01 PM |
Jennifer Aniston, Katherine Heigel and Kate Hudson
by Anonymous | reply 31 | August 31, 2023 6:07 PM |
Jim Parsons
by Anonymous | reply 32 | August 31, 2023 6:11 PM |
LOL, Hartnett would be playing leads in films if the public cared. They don't
by Anonymous | reply 33 | August 31, 2023 6:20 PM |
Obvious lesbian DL fave Ellen as a straight woman looking for a husband as the leading lady in a romantic comedy. Who thought this would be remotely believable? But she's done well for herself otherwise.
by Anonymous | reply 34 | August 31, 2023 6:23 PM |
Topher Grace Thomas Jane Chris O'Donnell Eric Bana
by Anonymous | reply 35 | August 31, 2023 6:32 PM |
Wow I completely forgot about Jim Sturgess, r1. I was so hot for him after seeing 21. I wonder if he got harassed by Spacey.
by Anonymous | reply 36 | August 31, 2023 6:39 PM |
I OWN this thread.
by Anonymous | reply 37 | August 31, 2023 7:03 PM |
Seinfeld. His biggest role was an animated Bee and it flopped.
by Anonymous | reply 38 | August 31, 2023 7:26 PM |
Roseanne
by Anonymous | reply 39 | August 31, 2023 7:51 PM |
R38 But he never attempted live action leads. You tried it.
by Anonymous | reply 40 | August 31, 2023 7:51 PM |
Gretchen Mol
by Anonymous | reply 41 | August 31, 2023 7:56 PM |
Linda Fiorentino
by Anonymous | reply 42 | August 31, 2023 8:10 PM |
Anyone from Downton Abbey
by Anonymous | reply 44 | August 31, 2023 8:17 PM |
Oprah
by Anonymous | reply 45 | August 31, 2023 8:26 PM |
TimOTay big bent veiny chlamydia cock Chalamet
by Anonymous | reply 46 | August 31, 2023 8:32 PM |
Linda Fiorentino quit acting. I just saw her today in Dogma. She was a weirdo.
by Anonymous | reply 47 | August 31, 2023 8:33 PM |
Schwimmer as a leading man is just...hilarious in the worst way possible. Sure, he was an ensemble member on the biggest (read: also the worst) TV sitcom of the 90s, but that doesn't always translate to the big screen, and it definitely did not.
by Anonymous | reply 48 | August 31, 2023 8:37 PM |
Miss Anna Sten, grandmother of all failed Hollywood leading careers
by Anonymous | reply 49 | August 31, 2023 9:06 PM |
Who wants to watch a movie named The Pallbearer?
by Anonymous | reply 50 | August 31, 2023 9:24 PM |
Timothée Chalamet
by Anonymous | reply 51 | August 31, 2023 9:25 PM |
Aaron Eckhart, Gerard Butler. Coincidentally, both did horrendous rom-coms with Jennifer Anniston.
by Anonymous | reply 52 | August 31, 2023 9:35 PM |
R52 I watched this POS while stuck on a runway while a plane was de-iced. Horrendous movie.
by Anonymous | reply 53 | August 31, 2023 9:38 PM |
Ansel Elgort
by Anonymous | reply 54 | August 31, 2023 9:46 PM |
Josh Hartnett may not have become huge but he had/has major charm and looks.
by Anonymous | reply 55 | August 31, 2023 10:13 PM |
Justin Long OWNS this fucking thread
by Anonymous | reply 56 | August 31, 2023 10:14 PM |
R56 I can remember when Justin was in all those aughtie horror movies like Jeepers Creepers. He wasn't bad in those.
by Anonymous | reply 57 | August 31, 2023 10:15 PM |
Brenton, I love you bunches but you haven’t really registered on the big screen…
by Anonymous | reply 58 | August 31, 2023 10:16 PM |
I really like Aaron Eckhart.
by Anonymous | reply 59 | August 31, 2023 10:18 PM |
Justin Timberlake
by Anonymous | reply 60 | September 1, 2023 12:24 AM |
Johnathon Schaech
by Anonymous | reply 61 | September 1, 2023 12:24 AM |
Monica Potter
by Anonymous | reply 62 | September 1, 2023 12:48 AM |
Jennifer Connelly
by Anonymous | reply 63 | September 1, 2023 12:49 AM |
Didn't Monica Potter suffer from resembling Julia Roberts a little too much?
by Anonymous | reply 64 | September 1, 2023 12:59 AM |
Love Suzanne Pleshette, but it seems as though there was an attempt to make her a film star in the early 1960s and it didn't happen. Similarly, MTM tried movies post-Dick Van Dyke show and it went nowhere. The MTM show, was her 'crawling back to tv after failing in movies and Broadway' moment.
by Anonymous | reply 65 | September 1, 2023 1:01 AM |
Samantha Eggar
by Anonymous | reply 66 | September 1, 2023 1:02 AM |
R45 Oprah’s only flop was Beloved. You tried it.
by Anonymous | reply 67 | September 1, 2023 1:13 AM |
Robert Preston.
by Anonymous | reply 68 | September 1, 2023 1:16 AM |
I'd like to buy a G.
by Anonymous | reply 69 | September 1, 2023 1:21 AM |
G is the greatest actress of all time. The Academy almost never gets it right.
by Anonymous | reply 70 | September 1, 2023 1:27 AM |
Zoe Zaldana.
by Anonymous | reply 72 | September 1, 2023 3:23 AM |
Margaret Elliot
by Anonymous | reply 74 | September 1, 2023 3:35 AM |
Schwimmer directed the charming British film "Run, Fatboy, Run", and quick google tells me he's directed a lot of TV as well as producing.
I'm perfectly happy to say that he's better employed behind the camera in front of it.
by Anonymous | reply 75 | September 1, 2023 3:55 AM |
[Quote] Oprah’s only flop was Beloved. You tried it.
Well, it was the only theatrical release she starred in.
by Anonymous | reply 76 | September 1, 2023 4:18 AM |
Chris Evans
Sebastian Stan
Chris Hemsworth
by Anonymous | reply 77 | September 1, 2023 4:21 AM |
Scarlett Johansson is great in an ensemble cast but not so good at carrying films all on her own, Lucy, that Japanese movie etc
by Anonymous | reply 78 | September 1, 2023 4:24 AM |
I don't think Jennifer Aniston is a good example at all, although someone listed her above. She's had quite a number of financially successful movies: Office Space, Bruce Almighty, The Break-Up, Marley & Me, Just Go With It, Horrible Bosses, We're the Millers, and Murder Mystery. And she's also had critical successes: Office Space (again), The Good Girl, Friends with Money, and Cake.
by Anonymous | reply 79 | September 1, 2023 4:34 AM |
Vera Hruba Ralston
Anna Sten
by Anonymous | reply 80 | September 1, 2023 4:35 AM |
Chris Pine
Harry Styles
Florence Puke
by Anonymous | reply 81 | September 1, 2023 4:39 AM |
Meghan Markle
by Anonymous | reply 83 | September 1, 2023 4:42 AM |
R79 what a bunch of forgettable garbage and only a few of them were financially successful. Joan Rivers remarked that all her movies seemed the same.
by Anonymous | reply 84 | September 1, 2023 4:51 AM |
Woody Harrelson
by Anonymous | reply 85 | September 1, 2023 5:34 AM |
[quote] only a few of them were financially successful.
Actually, every single one I listed as financially successful did indeed turn a profit. (Check on imdb if you don't believe me.)
As for "forgettable garbage": that has nothing to do with the topic at hand. She has been a very successful (because profitable) movie star, like it or not.
by Anonymous | reply 86 | September 1, 2023 5:44 AM |
Diane Kruger
Claire Forlani
Josh Duhamel
Martin Henderson
Hayden Christensen
Orlando Bloom
Ashton Kutcher
by Anonymous | reply 87 | September 1, 2023 5:50 AM |
Alicia Silverstone owns this thread
by Anonymous | reply 88 | September 1, 2023 5:51 AM |
Rosamund Pike
by Anonymous | reply 89 | September 1, 2023 5:59 AM |
Jessica Biel
Charlie Hunnam
Gretchen Mol
Jeanne Tripplehorn
by Anonymous | reply 90 | September 1, 2023 6:06 AM |
Stephen Dorff; Ann Magnuson; Cyndi Lauper; Anne Heche; Andrew Dice Clay; Tom Selleck; Rob Lowe; Dana Carvey; Chris Kattan; Julie Brown; Eric Stoltz; Cindy Crawford; Britney Spears; Courtney Love
by Anonymous | reply 92 | September 1, 2023 6:32 AM |
Dane Cook
by Anonymous | reply 93 | September 1, 2023 6:33 AM |
Elisha Cuthbert
by Anonymous | reply 95 | September 1, 2023 7:28 AM |
Yahoo Serious
by Anonymous | reply 96 | September 1, 2023 8:49 AM |
Skeet Ulrich, Peter Gallagher, Alexander Skarsgård (his brother still has a chance)
by Anonymous | reply 97 | September 1, 2023 9:02 AM |
Jennifer Aniston's lifetime box office is respectable. Buy you have to admit she didn't attain A list leading lady status.
by Anonymous | reply 98 | September 1, 2023 9:04 AM |
Billy Eichner
by Anonymous | reply 100 | September 1, 2023 9:20 AM |
Polly Bergen!
by Anonymous | reply 101 | September 1, 2023 1:57 PM |
LaWanda Page
by Anonymous | reply 102 | September 1, 2023 1:59 PM |
Ken Osmond
by Anonymous | reply 103 | September 1, 2023 2:00 PM |
In regards to Chalamet, I agree pushing him as an action star has been utterly ridiculous. However, he and his team will keep pushing if it's the last thing they do. He still has Dune 2 and Wonka so while I wouldn't exactly called it failed yet, the public just isn't buying him.
by Anonymous | reply 104 | September 1, 2023 2:47 PM |
[quote] the public just isn't buying him.
Maybe new Hollywood will program it's AI movie stars with the illusion of testosterone
by Anonymous | reply 105 | September 1, 2023 2:51 PM |
All the plain Jane looking girls of the 2010s:
Emma Stone
Brie Larson
Jennifer Lawrence
Saoirse Ronan
by Anonymous | reply 106 | September 1, 2023 2:51 PM |
R106, I'm not sure the first three can be classified as "failed".
by Anonymous | reply 107 | September 1, 2023 2:59 PM |
Cuba Gooding, Jr. Although a lot of it has been by his own hand.
by Anonymous | reply 108 | September 1, 2023 3:03 PM |
R107: I'm not sure many of the people listed on here can be marked as failed. This thread will inevitably end up being like many other threads just listing celebrities we hate.
by Anonymous | reply 109 | September 1, 2023 3:21 PM |
Rami Malek. He goes from a Best Actor win to essentially a cameo with like only one line of dialogue in Oppenheimer.
by Anonymous | reply 110 | September 1, 2023 3:22 PM |
R106 Jennifer Lawrence was literally the biggest movie star in the world, male or female, for a good sustained half a decade. All 3 of these women are Academy Award winners and have starred in more than one huge commercial and critical hit. All 3 of them are considered attractive by wide sections of the public. That their careers may have had some dips and dives is virtually true of every movie star who has ever lived.
What the fuck are you talking about?
by Anonymous | reply 111 | September 1, 2023 3:31 PM |
Rachel Zegler in a year from now.
by Anonymous | reply 112 | September 1, 2023 3:32 PM |
R109, exactly. And anyone who brings up facts will be dismissed/mocked as a stan or something.
by Anonymous | reply 113 | September 1, 2023 3:36 PM |
Adrien Brody
by Anonymous | reply 114 | September 1, 2023 3:44 PM |
R111 nice rant. Did you notice there are 4 names on that cunt's list? Not 3.
by Anonymous | reply 115 | September 1, 2023 3:51 PM |
R114: He won too young.
by Anonymous | reply 116 | September 1, 2023 3:55 PM |
HALLE BERRY. I guess that's karma for that hit and run accident where she considered herself "the victim".
by Anonymous | reply 117 | September 1, 2023 4:04 PM |
Richard Grieco.
by Anonymous | reply 118 | September 1, 2023 4:41 PM |
Marion Davies
by Anonymous | reply 119 | September 1, 2023 4:43 PM |
R117: One word: Catwoman.
by Anonymous | reply 120 | September 1, 2023 4:46 PM |
Jennifer Anniston is a huge romcom star and successful female lead of comedies in general. Y’all Mary’s be hating.
Her Friends costar could only wish they attained her success in film.
by Anonymous | reply 121 | September 1, 2023 4:49 PM |
R120, absolutely. It proved that she wasn't an actress (which we already knew).
by Anonymous | reply 122 | September 1, 2023 4:57 PM |
R122 We did? Halle was brilliant in Jungle Fever and Boomerang. Cat woman was a horrible movie with a horrible script.
by Anonymous | reply 123 | September 1, 2023 4:58 PM |
A lot of these men have done well in comic book films, but have failed as a leading man in a straight drama or romcom.
by Anonymous | reply 124 | September 1, 2023 4:59 PM |
R123, admittedly, I have seen her later movies versus the earlier ones. Maybe I should give Jungle Fever and Boomerang a chance.
by Anonymous | reply 125 | September 1, 2023 5:02 PM |
R124 Excellent point.
by Anonymous | reply 126 | September 1, 2023 5:10 PM |
[quote]HALLE BERRY.
Halle had a leading film career and even she will admit, and has many times over, that Catwoman was horrible. She has had no problem making fun of it and even accepted the Razzie. She still makes fun of it to this day.
As someone else pointed out Boomerang & Jungle Fever were great. Most people didn't see Gothika (and it wasn't great) but she acted her ass off. The funny thing is, I'd say her best performance was "Introducing Dorothy Dandridge," but that was not a theater release. She went for the sexpot roles like Swordfish and Die Another Day. There's a marked difference between Halle in "Losing Isaiah," and "Monster's Ball." She grew, she just didn't always take roles to show that off.
by Anonymous | reply 127 | September 1, 2023 5:13 PM |
David Schwimmer and Justin Long are both so fucking ugly and unappealing I will never understand how either one of them achieved any level of success.
by Anonymous | reply 128 | September 1, 2023 5:26 PM |
The one and only really good Schwimmer performance I've ever seen was in Band of Brothers. It was most unexpected.
by Anonymous | reply 129 | September 1, 2023 5:31 PM |
R128: Tell me about it.
by Anonymous | reply 130 | September 1, 2023 5:34 PM |
[quote] I think Shelley Long is in the Failed Leading Film Careers Hall of Fame.
I agree. But, I will always love her as Carol in the theatrical Brady Bunch movies. She and Gary Cole had great chemistry. Gary should have had a bigger career.
by Anonymous | reply 131 | September 1, 2023 5:36 PM |
Kate McKinnon only won her two Emmys because of politics. She tried a transition into movies but failed because people saw her for the talentless hack she is.
by Anonymous | reply 133 | September 1, 2023 6:07 PM |
I was always curious why Halle was never paired with Denzel in a movie. It seems almost like people didn’t want them in a film together.
by Anonymous | reply 134 | September 1, 2023 6:11 PM |
Justin Long was cute and dorky when he was young. Unfair to link him to Jewish Boo Radley from Friends.
by Anonymous | reply 135 | September 1, 2023 6:17 PM |
R20, no, it doesn't appear he was in that. There was a nebbishy character named Steve, I think.
I read this once about Steve Guttenberg: that he had a character actor's face but built a leading man's physique, so I guess that screwed him for both types of roles for a while.
by Anonymous | reply 136 | September 1, 2023 6:22 PM |
The guy who was going to take over Indiana Jones. Alden Ehrenreich.
R24 His best role was getting blown away by Christopher Walken in "The King of New York".
by Anonymous | reply 137 | September 1, 2023 6:32 PM |
[Quote] Jennifer Aniston's lifetime box office is respectable. Buy you have to admit she didn't attain A list leading lady status.
You're so right.
by Anonymous | reply 138 | September 1, 2023 7:06 PM |
David Duchovny.
See him in "Playing God." He disappears among Angelina Jolie, Timothy Hutton, and a few no-name gangsters.
by Anonymous | reply 139 | September 1, 2023 7:14 PM |
"The one and only really good Schwimmer performance I've ever seen was in Band of Brothers. "
He was also excellent in that miniseries about the O.J. Simpson trial, he played Robert Kardashian and was subtle and affecting as a man who slowly realized his friend was actually guilty of a double murder.
And I'm no fan of his, and am happy that he's mostly behind the camera. But he impressed even this non-fan, in that one role.
by Anonymous | reply 140 | September 1, 2023 7:39 PM |
R140, is that the one where he kept saying "juice! Juice!!!!!".
by Anonymous | reply 141 | September 1, 2023 7:45 PM |
Saoirse Ronan had four Academcy Award nominations by the time she was 25, three for Best Actress. She's always been pushed for a Kate Winslet type career, not a Julia Roberts one. She's doing fine..
by Anonymous | reply 142 | September 1, 2023 8:30 PM |
Emma Stone R106?
You mean the Emma Stone whose new movie, [bold]Poor Things[/bold], just debuted in competition at the Venice Film Festival and is already getting rave reviews?
You mean [italic]that[/italic] Emma Stone?
by Anonymous | reply 143 | September 1, 2023 8:54 PM |
While she has limited range, Scarlett is a lead. She was nominated for Marriage Story and had Black Widow built for her.
But I find all the current top lead actresses (Emma Stone, JLaw, Margot) to be bland.
by Anonymous | reply 144 | September 1, 2023 9:27 PM |
I wouldn't know Saoirse Ronan if she was sitting next to me on the subway.
by Anonymous | reply 145 | September 2, 2023 12:15 AM |
[Quote] You mean the Emma Stone whose new movie, Poor Things, just debuted in competition at the Venice Film Festival and is already getting rave reviews? You mean that Emma Stone?
Mark Ruffalo, Willem Dafoe and Ramy Youssef also star in a genre-defying film that starts as absurdist comedy but evolves into an unconventional reflection on female freedom.
With costars like that what could possibly go wrong . . .?
by Anonymous | reply 146 | September 2, 2023 12:16 AM |
R145, Great, that doesn't change the fact that she's had a successful career. Didn't Little Women make $100 million?
by Anonymous | reply 147 | September 2, 2023 12:17 AM |
They seem to remake LITTLE WOMEN every few years or so…why?
by Anonymous | reply 148 | September 2, 2023 1:50 AM |
[quote]Didn't Little Women make $100 million?
Worldwide: $206 million on a $40 million budget.
by Anonymous | reply 149 | September 2, 2023 6:53 AM |
R149, what a BOMB!
by Anonymous | reply 150 | September 2, 2023 6:36 PM |
R140 yes you nailed it. I was going to say that. And it’s perfectly edited with how his character’s story arc played out.
by Anonymous | reply 151 | September 2, 2023 8:13 PM |
William Peterson
by Anonymous | reply 152 | September 2, 2023 11:54 PM |
Nick Cannon
by Anonymous | reply 153 | September 2, 2023 11:58 PM |
Jimmy Fallon
by Anonymous | reply 154 | September 2, 2023 11:59 PM |
Tracy Ullman, sadly. Very talented, but could not get traction
by Anonymous | reply 155 | September 3, 2023 12:17 AM |
Tracy Ullman was made for sketch comedy and character acting anyway.
by Anonymous | reply 156 | September 3, 2023 12:40 AM |
Liberace
by Anonymous | reply 157 | September 3, 2023 12:54 AM |
Mitch Gaylord
by Anonymous | reply 158 | September 3, 2023 1:06 AM |
Tracey Ullman is a character actress, she was never built up as a lead actress. And I'm sure she never wanted that anyway.
by Anonymous | reply 159 | September 3, 2023 1:25 AM |
Sam Worthington
by Anonymous | reply 160 | September 3, 2023 2:06 AM |
Eric Bana
by Anonymous | reply 161 | September 3, 2023 2:18 AM |
Too bad about Bana, I liked him.
But I heard he insisted on spending a lot of time with his family in Australia, it may be that he just wasn't ambitious enough to claw his way all the way to the top. Well, I genuinely hope he's happy with the choices he made, and choosing family over Hollywood is much more likely to make a person happy than the reverse.
by Anonymous | reply 162 | September 3, 2023 2:22 AM |
[quote]choosing family over Hollywood is much more likely to make a person happy than the reverse.
That's bullshit.
by Anonymous | reply 163 | September 3, 2023 2:26 AM |
[quote] They seem to remake LITTLE WOMEN every few years or so…why?
Because it's one of the most beloved novels of all time? Just a guess.
by Anonymous | reply 164 | September 3, 2023 2:27 AM |
Little Women, the Three Musketeers, Lorna Doone, Pride and Prejudice, etc., will be made over and over. We should be due for a Treasure Island remake soon.
by Anonymous | reply 165 | September 3, 2023 2:31 AM |
in the US anyway I'd include Javier Bardem and Antonio Banderas
by Anonymous | reply 166 | September 3, 2023 2:34 AM |
Penelope Ann Miller—she was in several big films in the early 90s, seemed to disappear, and then started showing up in supporting roles.
by Anonymous | reply 167 | September 3, 2023 2:43 AM |
Lauren Holly
by Anonymous | reply 168 | September 3, 2023 2:51 AM |
R21 i really liked SJP in Extreme Measures. I never watched Sex And The City, not my thing.
by Anonymous | reply 169 | September 3, 2023 3:32 AM |
Dermot Mulroney
by Anonymous | reply 170 | September 3, 2023 3:43 AM |
I had a crush on Loren Dean. WEHT him?
by Anonymous | reply 172 | September 3, 2023 6:07 AM |
R44, many of Downton Abbey's cast had very respectable careers and still do. The UK isn't like Hollywood.
by Anonymous | reply 173 | September 3, 2023 6:48 AM |
Jon Hamm. Box office poison. Confess Fletch was a piece of shit. Too many chances given to guy, that usually plays the asshole half way though the movie. Doing crappy commercials for a payday hasn’t helped either. He is not funny.
by Anonymous | reply 174 | September 3, 2023 10:25 AM |
He’s got a big role in the 2nd season of Good Omens. So far (I’ve only watched two episodes). It’s a goofball roll and I think he’s funny.
by Anonymous | reply 175 | September 3, 2023 12:28 PM |
^ role
by Anonymous | reply 176 | September 3, 2023 12:29 PM |
I like Eric Bana, really hot and a good actor. He never really became a household name.
by Anonymous | reply 177 | September 3, 2023 12:33 PM |
(R175) Hi Jon. Which bar are you at?
by Anonymous | reply 178 | September 3, 2023 2:11 PM |
R174: He must be getting desperate....he finally showed his ass in the season premiere.
by Anonymous | reply 179 | September 3, 2023 2:50 PM |
Christopher Atkins. A pretty face and a cute ass did not an actor make.
by Anonymous | reply 180 | September 3, 2023 2:55 PM |
R179 he better show us the Hammaconda now
by Anonymous | reply 181 | September 3, 2023 3:34 PM |
I've posted this before but Tracy Ullman's career was hurt by the fact she was loathed by everyone she worked with. A nasty, cruel woman. Remember, she sued the Simpsons creators for millions of dollars because, as she said something along the lines of: I suckled that show on my own tit.
James Brooks once said that he'd rather give up his career than ever talk to Tracy again.
Too bad, because her comedy is excellent. In real life, she's a walking tragedy.
by Anonymous | reply 182 | September 3, 2023 3:41 PM |
R182 When did Brooks ever say that?
Tracey has plenty of friends in the business. And she did “breast-feed the yellow people,” which is why the network paid her millions in royalties for the early episodes.
You might be mistakenly blaming her for her dead husband’s producer antics. Allan McKeown was famously a prick and a clumsy producer in Hollywood. He was a music video director who conned her into letting him run her career, and he bullied anyone who came near her.
He’s dead now, so things are different.
by Anonymous | reply 183 | September 3, 2023 4:15 PM |
Like Lilly Tomlin I find myself studying Tracey Ullman rather than laughing at her. Loved her in PLENTY as Meryl Streep’s cross dressing sidekick.
by Anonymous | reply 184 | September 3, 2023 4:27 PM |
In Plenty she played the "only thing worth watching part". Every Streep movie seems to have one (though its never Meryl herself).
by Anonymous | reply 185 | September 3, 2023 5:36 PM |
Emile Hirsch
by Anonymous | reply 186 | September 3, 2023 7:47 PM |
Camilla Belle. Doing movies on Great American Family now.
by Anonymous | reply 187 | September 3, 2023 7:49 PM |
I think Eric Bana will have work whenever he wants it, at least in Australia - besides being incredibly hot, he's actually talented. Chopper was the first thing I saw him in and he's crazy good in it. He also was a comedian before becoming an actor which always surprised me - comedians shouldn't be that hot
by Anonymous | reply 188 | September 3, 2023 9:19 PM |
Griffin Dunne
by Anonymous | reply 189 | September 3, 2023 9:21 PM |
The late Treat Williams.
by Anonymous | reply 190 | September 3, 2023 9:46 PM |
Did Brenda Vaccaro ever make it in feature films?
by Anonymous | reply 191 | September 3, 2023 10:40 PM |
Some of these people just didn't have "It". Others, like Treat Williams, got sidetracked by drugs.
It's hard for people to believe, but there are people who just don't want leading film careers.
by Anonymous | reply 192 | September 3, 2023 10:46 PM |
The very FIRST Oscar winner Emil Jannings, winning for the Blue Angel alongside Marlena Dietrich,.
He is the first winner of an Academy Award, as after being announced as a winner, he was presented his Academy statuette a month before the actual ceremony. This also makes him the first no-show winner at an Academy Award presentation.
Because of his thick German accent, the advent of sound ended his American career. Returning to Germany, he became an enthusiastic supporter of the Nazis; thus, he spent the next decade-plus making films that supported Nazi ideology.
At war's end Jannings was blacklisted by the Allied authorities, and he never made another film. He died five years later, lonely and bitter.
Jannings reportedly carried his Oscar statuette with him as proof of his former association with Hollywood. However, his active role in Nazi propaganda meant that he was subject to denazification, and a comeback attempt would not be legal.
by Anonymous | reply 193 | September 3, 2023 10:53 PM |
[quote] The one and only really good Schwimmer performance I've ever seen was in Band of Brothers.
Never found him sexy until I saw him in Band of Brothers. He's actually a great actor when he performs in roles outside of comedy.
by Anonymous | reply 194 | September 3, 2023 10:55 PM |
Maxwell Caufield.
by Anonymous | reply 195 | September 3, 2023 10:59 PM |
R195, saying Caufield was being groomed to be a leading man is like saying Lorna Luft was being groomed to be a leading lady.
by Anonymous | reply 196 | September 4, 2023 12:56 AM |
As an aside, Polly Bergen was a cunt.
by Anonymous | reply 197 | September 4, 2023 1:11 AM |
Why r195?
by Anonymous | reply 198 | September 4, 2023 1:47 AM |
R171 Loren Dean seems like a poor man's Matthew Modine combined with a poor man's Kurt Russell
by Anonymous | reply 199 | September 4, 2023 1:51 AM |
Mandy Moore
by Anonymous | reply 200 | September 4, 2023 2:45 AM |
Elizabeth Shue
by Anonymous | reply 201 | September 4, 2023 2:50 AM |
So… everyone?
by Anonymous | reply 203 | September 4, 2023 3:04 AM |
Veronica Lake
Betty Hutton
Brandon Routh
by Anonymous | reply 204 | September 4, 2023 3:09 AM |
Rik Mayall. Americans just didn't get him.
by Anonymous | reply 206 | September 4, 2023 3:31 AM |
Betty Hutton had a huge film career
by Anonymous | reply 207 | September 4, 2023 4:57 AM |
"Emile Hirsch"
Emile Hirsch made enemies. I forget the story, but apparently he assaulted a big cheese, or someone who was close to a big cheese. And he was basically blacklisted after that, the offers stopped dead.
Now it's possible for some actors to come back after assaulting someone, but even someone as talented as Russell Crowe had to spend a few years in purgatory before becoming employable in Hollywood again. But Crowe was both talented and a proven moneymaker before his little scandal, and Hirsch hadn't proven himself at the box office when he made his little slipup. So he'd made a powerful enemies and allegedly pissed other people off, so when he found himself in trouble nobody would help him.
by Anonymous | reply 208 | September 4, 2023 5:19 AM |
Rachael Leigh Cook
by Anonymous | reply 209 | September 4, 2023 5:22 AM |
Jennifer Love Hewitt
by Anonymous | reply 210 | September 4, 2023 5:27 AM |
Freddie Prinz Jr
by Anonymous | reply 211 | September 4, 2023 5:27 AM |
It always seemed like Freddie just walked away.
by Anonymous | reply 212 | September 4, 2023 5:36 AM |
Eric Bana was great in Dirty John.
by Anonymous | reply 213 | September 4, 2023 5:41 AM |
50's actress Maggie McNamara (Three Coins in the Fountain). She was poised to be the American Audrey Hepburn, but she had mental issues and walked away from acting after just 10 years and 5 films. She committed suicide at 50
by Anonymous | reply 214 | September 4, 2023 5:47 AM |
Ezra Miller
by Anonymous | reply 215 | September 4, 2023 5:51 AM |
I mean they really are LUCKY when they're cast in a sitcom as themselves based on their ability to land a joke.
by Anonymous | reply 216 | September 4, 2023 6:13 AM |
I remember in the mid-90s when Julia Ormond was everywhere--Legends of the Fall, First Knight, Sabrina, Smilla's Sense of Snow, etc., but she never really caught on as a leading lady.
by Anonymous | reply 217 | September 4, 2023 6:14 AM |
Lindsay Lohan
by Anonymous | reply 218 | September 4, 2023 7:11 AM |
R217 She’s a perfect example, because while she was certainly talented enough and perfectly attractive, she just didn’t have the extra “something” that makes a star. In some inexplicable way that you couldn’t quite put your finger on. And Hollywood really tried to make her happen. And it just didn’t…happen.
Of course the Emile Hirsch example, if true, shows that we never really know what goes on behind the scenes that is make or break time. It not always just about what we see on the screen.
by Anonymous | reply 219 | September 4, 2023 8:26 AM |
[quote] Jennifer Love Hewitt
I still have no idea to this day why so many people think/thought she was stunning and hot. Sure, she had a rack, but everything else was "meh".
by Anonymous | reply 220 | September 4, 2023 4:52 PM |
Ryan Philippe
by Anonymous | reply 221 | September 4, 2023 6:46 PM |
I hated JLH for life when she portrayed Audrey Hepburn. That alone should have gotten her banned from Hollywood.
by Anonymous | reply 222 | September 4, 2023 7:47 PM |
JLH and her squinty, fake smile:
Blecchh
by Anonymous | reply 223 | September 5, 2023 3:29 AM |
Emile Hirsch assaulted a young woman at a bar. He appears to have serious violence/mental issues.
by Anonymous | reply 224 | September 5, 2023 7:19 AM |
Julia Ormond was fucking Harrison Ford and that is how she got Sabrina. No idea about the other roles. Of course, even the talented have to fuck for roles in Hollywood.
by Anonymous | reply 225 | September 5, 2023 7:20 AM |
R225 That certainly applies to the men as well.
by Anonymous | reply 226 | September 5, 2023 8:17 AM |
Eve Plumb never made it big after ‘Dawn: Portrait of a Teenage Runaway’.
by Anonymous | reply 227 | September 5, 2023 9:41 AM |
Mama’s mussy twitching with Josh Hartnett‘s Black Mirror episode with him and Aaron Paul face to face in their skivvies up in orbit, HAWT!!
by Anonymous | reply 228 | September 5, 2023 10:23 AM |
Rae Dawn Chong. She was the It Girl for a brief moment in the 80s, but once the 90s rolled around her career took a nosedive.
by Anonymous | reply 229 | September 5, 2023 11:10 AM |
Rae Dawn is so obnoxious that it would not surprise me if she alienated people in Hollywood.
by Anonymous | reply 230 | September 5, 2023 12:13 PM |
Elizabeth Berkeley
by Anonymous | reply 231 | September 5, 2023 12:27 PM |
I like 'While You Were Sleeping' but I think Sandra Bullock has made a lot of forgettable garbage.
by Anonymous | reply 232 | September 5, 2023 12:36 PM |
Ronnie and Nancy got married right after he made that movie with the chimp.
Then they both just fell off the face of the earth.
by Anonymous | reply 233 | September 6, 2023 3:26 AM |
Peter MacNicol was supposed to the great white boy hope prior to Sophie's Choice. Kevin and Meryl stole the movie away from him. Then he played a goofy asshat in Ghostbusters 2 and his entire career went down the shitter.
by Anonymous | reply 234 | September 6, 2023 3:26 AM |
R234 He did great work on Veep and 24, and seems content with his career
by Anonymous | reply 235 | September 6, 2023 4:10 AM |
R235 Even though he was horrible on Veep
by Anonymous | reply 236 | September 6, 2023 4:16 AM |
Sharon Stone, movie star for life. Rarely very good in a leading role, with a few exceptions. Couldn't carry movies to make a career.
Leading role worldwide box office under 1 billion. Charlize Theron career box-office as a lead = 1.6 billion. Kristen Stewart = 4 billion!!!
by Anonymous | reply 237 | September 6, 2023 11:59 AM |
Lee Tracy
Rangy, red-headed and straightforward to the bone while possessing distinctively adenoidal vocal tones, this actor with a voracious appetite for high living was a fine cinematic representation of the racy and race-paced style of pre-Code Hollywood. Lee Tracy patented with peerless skill the lightning rod timing and machine gun delivery so identified with that period and would have continued on handsomely in films had severe typecasting, a hair-trigger temper and a notoriously reckless off-camera life not gotten the best of him.
During the filming of Viva Villa! (1934) in Mexico City, Tracy displayed shocking, ungentlemanly behavior that resulted in fisticuffs with the law and a high-profile arrest on public morals charges. MGM not only kicked Tracy off the picture but felt compelled to apologize publicly to the Mexican people for his disrespect and terminate the actor's five-year contract.
"ungentlemanly behavior" ie he got drunk and peed off a hotel balcony onto a crowd of Mexicans.
by Anonymous | reply 238 | September 6, 2023 12:51 PM |
R237 Jesus. Huge box-office stats is not the full story of a successful Hollywood career. If that is the case then Meryl Streep should be shuffled to the margins.
You acknowledge that Sharon Stone was a movie star, so why include her at all? If iconic Sex Goddess Sharon Stone gets dismissed as “failed”, then who else? Sophia Loren? Marilyn Monroe?
by Anonymous | reply 239 | September 6, 2023 8:42 PM |
Sophia Loren was a SUCCESSFUL leading lady. It's been often said that Sharon Stone is a Movie Star without a movie career.
by Anonymous | reply 240 | September 6, 2023 8:44 PM |
R236 He was a delightfully foul villain, and stole every scene. They tried to put him up for an Emmy, but he appeared in too many scenes to count as a guest star.
by Anonymous | reply 241 | September 6, 2023 8:50 PM |
I guess it’s all relative. Sharon Stone remains a very famous person. And Basic Instinct, Total Recall and Casino were all big hits of their time. Either commercially or critically. I personally wouldn’t put Stone in the same category as a Julia Ormond.
by Anonymous | reply 242 | September 6, 2023 8:50 PM |
Nor would I.
by Anonymous | reply 243 | September 6, 2023 8:57 PM |
[quote] Timothée Chalamet
I'm afraid his career is doing just dandy, much to your regret.
by Anonymous | reply 244 | September 6, 2023 9:26 PM |
Sharon gets a pass because her performances in Basic Instinct and Casino are iconic. She was redhot from 1992-1996. Definitely a huge star and one of the highest paid actresses in Hollywood. Not an overall failure at all.
by Anonymous | reply 245 | September 6, 2023 9:31 PM |
There is no Hollywood star that hasn’t had flops. Some of the major ones have had as many flops as successes. It’s the nature of the business. Only on DL would someone as successful, rich and famous as Sharon Stone-or Margot Robbie or Jennifer Lawrence for that matter-be included in a thread on “failed careers”. And many, many of the all-time Hollywood greats went through serious career slumps before rebounding back in later years. Katherine Hepburn, Bette Davis and Joan Crawford are some prime examples.
Now there have been many examples of overhyped newcomers that were given multiple chances, didn’t catch on, and basically faded into obscurity.The Gretchen Mols and Christopher Atkins’s of the world. That’s different. For some it’s fairly obvious why. For others it’s more inexplicable.
The OP did say failed “leading” careers. Many do go on to fairly successful careers as character actors in supporting roles. There’s nothing to be ashamed of in that. The much maligned Julia Ormond popped up in some episodes of Mad Men a few years back. I thought her work was interesting and even sexy. And she looked beautiful. Clearly she had reserves of talent that Hollywood didn’t tap.
by Anonymous | reply 246 | September 6, 2023 11:31 PM |
Geena Davis would've had a stronger career if she hadn't fucked so many failures.
Her worst films usually involved a boyfriend/husband. Cutthroat Island. The Long Kiss Goodnight. Earth Girls are Easy.
by Anonymous | reply 247 | September 6, 2023 11:38 PM |
Jeff Goldblum isn’t a failure
by Anonymous | reply 248 | September 6, 2023 11:50 PM |
R249 Yeah he seemed promising in the beginning but he’s gone full Hollywood douchebag.
by Anonymous | reply 250 | September 7, 2023 5:04 AM |
R18 They liked him when he was young and pretty, but that didn't last.
by Anonymous | reply 251 | September 7, 2023 5:14 AM |
Dan Stevens from Downton Abbey and Jessica Raine from Call The Midwife. They both left their respective hit shows after 3 seasons for their film careers. I can't help think that both would have been better to stay in their roles and ride the success of them.
by Anonymous | reply 252 | September 7, 2023 9:46 AM |
I doubt Stevens' career would be any different if he had stayed on Downton
by Anonymous | reply 253 | September 7, 2023 8:24 PM |
He would have got decent money from the remaining series and films and played a big part in the storylines of a globally watched tv series.
by Anonymous | reply 254 | September 7, 2023 9:56 PM |
I couldn't stand Jessica Raine in CTM, but she will probably have a longer career from doing various roles than the woman who's been playing Trixie for a million years now.
by Anonymous | reply 255 | September 8, 2023 12:21 AM |
Jessica Raines has the worst case of resting bitch face of any actress alive today. (Or dead)
by Anonymous | reply 256 | September 8, 2023 1:03 AM |
Geena Davis
by Anonymous | reply 257 | September 8, 2023 1:26 AM |
LeeLee Sobieski
by Anonymous | reply 258 | September 8, 2023 1:47 AM |
Didn't she become a dominatrix?
by Anonymous | reply 259 | September 8, 2023 1:58 AM |
Shannyn Sossamon
by Anonymous | reply 260 | September 8, 2023 2:00 AM |
Lolita Davidovich
Lena Olin
by Anonymous | reply 261 | September 8, 2023 2:01 AM |
Anne Heche
by Anonymous | reply 262 | September 8, 2023 2:04 AM |
Abbie Cornish
by Anonymous | reply 263 | September 8, 2023 2:22 AM |
Freddie Prinze, Jr. Those insipid romcoms were like poison to his film career. Also he wasn’t very good.
by Anonymous | reply 264 | September 8, 2023 2:25 AM |
Lisa Eichhorn
by Anonymous | reply 265 | September 8, 2023 9:50 PM |
Julia Stiles
Jason Biggs
by Anonymous | reply 266 | September 8, 2023 10:02 PM |
Mena Suvari
by Anonymous | reply 267 | September 8, 2023 10:05 PM |
Heather Graham.
Gretchen Mol. Especially her. I felt bad for her because she was promoted with so much drama and hype. It got out of control through no fault of hers.
by Anonymous | reply 268 | September 9, 2023 12:22 AM |
Klinton Spilsbury
by Anonymous | reply 269 | September 9, 2023 12:53 AM |
Lucille Bremer
by Anonymous | reply 270 | September 9, 2023 12:53 AM |
Lucille Bremmer was fucking a big-time producer, someone high up in the MGM musicals department. She was known around the MGM lot as "[Big Producer's] Piece".
She got as far as she did because she was passably pretty, was a passable dancer, and knew who to fuck for roles. But she was totally lacking in acting chops and star quality, so her career was actually better than the career she deserved.
by Anonymous | reply 271 | September 9, 2023 3:55 AM |
I’m not sure what we’re counting as failure.
Shirley Temple certainly failed as an adult lead. As did Deanna Durbin.
by Anonymous | reply 272 | September 9, 2023 4:15 AM |
I cannot stand David Schwimmer.
by Anonymous | reply 273 | September 9, 2023 4:20 AM |
No, Deanna Durbin had hits as a young adult.
by Anonymous | reply 274 | September 9, 2023 4:22 AM |
R272 On the DL any actor whose films haven’t all grossed $500 million worldwide, or won 3 Academy Awards, is embarrassing failure.
by Anonymous | reply 275 | September 9, 2023 5:16 AM |
R271 Lucile Bremer was fucking Arthur Freed. Some of her other roles weren’t great, but she was perfect in Meet Me in St Louis.
by Anonymous | reply 276 | September 9, 2023 6:15 AM |
Has Taylor Kitsch been mentioned?
by Anonymous | reply 277 | September 9, 2023 3:41 PM |
Isn't it funny how Taylor is getting all this press about a "comeback" and he never ever mentions his role in "The Normal Heart"?
by Anonymous | reply 278 | September 9, 2023 4:56 PM |
Kitsch was the weakest link in TNH. cute but not the best actor IMO.
by Anonymous | reply 279 | September 9, 2023 4:58 PM |
He wasn't much of a pleasure on the set either.
by Anonymous | reply 280 | September 9, 2023 5:00 PM |
[quote]Has Taylor Kitsch been mentioned?
Yes.
by Anonymous | reply 281 | September 9, 2023 5:01 PM |
R280, details…c’mon now.
by Anonymous | reply 282 | September 9, 2023 5:04 PM |
(R253) I wanna know why he did the horrible Lucy in the Sky with Natalie Portman? He was so miscast.
by Anonymous | reply 283 | September 10, 2023 6:05 AM |
Was Taylor’s boyfriend on set? R280
by Anonymous | reply 284 | September 10, 2023 6:21 AM |
Who’s Taylor’s boyfriend?
by Anonymous | reply 285 | September 10, 2023 6:24 AM |
Micheal E. Knight left All My Children and got the lead in Date with an Angel with Phoebe Cates. It was a bomb, and he was soon back on AMC.
by Anonymous | reply 286 | September 10, 2023 1:36 PM |
Stars appear to be on top but still have a hard time predicting their career. Some get their second wind because they partner with a certain director. Quentin Tarantino said no one wanted Travolta at the time of Pulp Fiction. Travolta's last film was Look Who's Talking 2, before Tarantino hired him. Linda Hamilton's career flatlined after breaking with James Cameron.
Famous actors like Freddie Prince Jr. hit walls behind the scenes. They're household names and we think they could have any movie they want, but it's harder work staying on top. Ruffling the wrong feathers can shut someone out.
I see why some actors like Josh Hartnett, Bridget Fonda, get a taste, make their movies, find out it's really kind of unfulfilling and don't care about playing someone else's game. Waiting hours in trailers for sets, doing multiple takes, green screens, multiple takes of the boring parts of acting work. It's so much different than a lively theatrical performance on stage.
Doing the promotional interview circuits, competition with costars being asked the same questions over and over, hounded or autographs and privacy invaded. Imagine doing all that work, feeling like acting in movies isn't all that cracked up to be just to find out all after all the hard work you put in, it was mediocre, or a bomb.
Seems to me, more than being an actor, actors have to really love the whole game to keep at it. That's why the ego maniacs survive.
by Anonymous | reply 287 | September 10, 2023 4:12 PM |
He is so sexy to me on Friends. But only on Friends.
by Anonymous | reply 288 | September 10, 2023 4:13 PM |
Thank God, Molly Shannon.
by Anonymous | reply 289 | September 10, 2023 4:49 PM |
"Seems to me, more than being an actor, actors have to really love the whole game to keep at it. That's why the ego maniacs survive."
That's why I think that Narcissistic Personality Disorder is a huge career advantage in Hollywood. It gives a person the overwhelming need for attention that it takes to devote years of your life to put in the gruntwork it takes to maintain fame, and it gives you the casual ruthlessness needed to clear all obstacles out of your way. The Jennifer Lawrences of the world may decide that being tops of the A-list isn't worth it, but a Tom Cruise or Joan Crawford will make that A-List fame the cornerstone of their existence. And that's why they stayed stars for decades.
by Anonymous | reply 290 | September 11, 2023 12:30 AM |
Will Ferrell I believe he is a one note actor. He cannot hold my attention in a leading role. No sex appeal and zero chemistry with the camera. His falling out with his business partner (Adam McKay) was a reflection of Adam agreeing Will was not suitable for the leading role. Will acted like a pathetic baby and threw a tantrum.
Correct me if I am wrong.
by Anonymous | reply 291 | September 11, 2023 4:01 AM |
R290: Honey they wouldn’t be in show business if they weren’t narcissistic looney tunes.
by Anonymous | reply 292 | September 11, 2023 4:03 AM |
I worked with the girl that was Gretchen Mol’s colorist, and you could smell the starlet’s desperation on her when she came in!
by Anonymous | reply 293 | September 11, 2023 3:12 PM |
R293 what would Gretchen do?
by Anonymous | reply 294 | September 11, 2023 5:22 PM |
R294, it’s not something you can “do”, but she wasn’t “on”- vivacious, colorful, or endearing. There wasn’t an overall likeability or “stickiness” factor to her like Jennifer Coolidge or Sigorney Waever (I worked with both of them)
She’d just come off Boardwalk Empire, and seemed cautious, wan, and weary- a sort of dishwater personality. At that junction, you become part of a much larger publicity and marketing machine, get pulled along for the ride, and a lot of it is how you respond to luck, timing, and exposure. You cannot take yourself or the process seriously, second guess, or wear your emotions on your sleeve.
She did. I admit I am very much the same way with my career.
Female celebrity momentum also very much like a pregnancy in that if you haven’t landed an even more notable, prestigious or meaty project in nine months than the previous, you’re dead in the water and forgotten.
by Anonymous | reply 295 | September 11, 2023 7:05 PM |
True
by Anonymous | reply 296 | September 12, 2023 12:50 AM |
Kate Hudson? Did she ever live up to the promise of ALMOST FAMOUS?
by Anonymous | reply 297 | September 12, 2023 2:20 AM |
Hell NO!!!!
by Anonymous | reply 298 | September 12, 2023 2:26 AM |
Penny Milford was a neighbor of mine in NYC very briefly R294.... and never was able to capitilize on her early Oscar nom
Does anyone on DL remember the name Penny Milford??
by Anonymous | reply 299 | September 12, 2023 2:38 AM |
Holy crap. Penny's still alive? Damn, she was good.
by Anonymous | reply 300 | September 12, 2023 5:02 AM |
"Kate Hudson? Did she ever live up to the promise of ALMOST FAMOUS?"
She went on to single-handedly kill the RomCom genre, which has to be a major achievement of a sort.
by Anonymous | reply 301 | September 12, 2023 6:55 AM |
Of course, R299 she was Miss Flem in Heathers
by Anonymous | reply 302 | September 12, 2023 8:34 AM |
[Quote] "Kate Hudson? Did she ever live up to the promise of ALMOST FAMOUS?"
Never even came close.
by Anonymous | reply 303 | September 13, 2023 3:41 AM |
Linda Cardellini
by Anonymous | reply 304 | September 18, 2023 1:15 PM |
Linda Fiorentino. Touted as the successor to Barbara Stanwyck after THE LAST SEDUCTION. But she was outspoken about things and many bigwigs in Tinseltown were not happy with her comments and she was greylisted. She still got work but nothing major.
by Anonymous | reply 305 | September 18, 2023 4:18 PM |
R297 She got to fuck MCBogo and star in a movie with him. She’s fine.
by Anonymous | reply 306 | September 18, 2023 5:09 PM |
She’s done far better than was warranted by her lack of talent.
by Anonymous | reply 307 | September 18, 2023 6:42 PM |
I think a lot of this defines the industry more than the actors mentioned, mostly. It’s a churn.
by Anonymous | reply 308 | September 18, 2023 7:12 PM |
Hilary Duff. I don't need to say anything except....Hilary Duff. Oh and Lindsay Lohan (obviously).
by Anonymous | reply 309 | September 18, 2023 7:16 PM |
Has Teresa Wright been mentioned? She was an A-list ingenue (Shadow of a Doubt is my favorite Hitchcock, and his), but never really moved on to leading lady roles with any success.
by Anonymous | reply 310 | September 18, 2023 9:10 PM |
Teresa Wright took home the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for "Mrs. Miniver" the same year she was nominated for Best Actress for "Pride of the Yankees." In both films, she was a sweet-natured, devoted young wife, and in "The Best Years of Ours Lives," she was a sweet-natured devoted young daughter. She was in a lot of big, prestige pictures, but her public falling out with Samuel Goldwyn seemed to doom her chances of bigger success.
by Anonymous | reply 311 | September 18, 2023 10:06 PM |
Betty Hutton was another one who allowed her mouth to sabotage her career.
by Anonymous | reply 312 | September 19, 2023 1:58 AM |
Has Nastassia Kinski been mentioned yet, because it sure seemed like they were trying hard to make her happen in the early '80s (Exposed, Cat People, Unfaithfully Yours, The Hotel New Hampshire...)
by Anonymous | reply 313 | September 19, 2023 3:27 AM |
The discount Leo DiCaprios -- Michael Pitt and Dane DeHaan
by Anonymous | reply 314 | October 1, 2023 11:15 AM |
Shiloh Fernandez. They tried to make him happen.
by Anonymous | reply 315 | October 1, 2023 12:25 PM |
Richard Madden.
by Anonymous | reply 316 | October 1, 2023 2:03 PM |
Peter Firth. Great comeback as an older actor in "MI:5," ("Spooks"), but he didn't resemble his former self! (Launching pad series for careers of Nicola Walker and Matthew MacFadyen.)
by Anonymous | reply 317 | November 13, 2023 8:18 AM |
R314: Don't forget Mouseboy.
by Anonymous | reply 319 | November 14, 2023 9:22 PM |
R318 Kit doesn’t really have star power and was just lucky to ride the GOT wave to the bitter end. He’s always going to be ‘Jon Snow’. Compare that to Richard Madden’s character being killed off early allowed him to use GOT as a stepping stone to move on to other things.
by Anonymous | reply 320 | November 15, 2023 9:18 AM |
R119, that’s not true. Marion Davies had a very successful career. She chose to retire in 1937. As a result, her films were no longer shown.
In 1942, “Citizen Kane” harmed her reputation; people perceived Marion as “Susan Alexander”. It was a horrible injustice. Even Orson Welles regretted the damage to Marion’s reputation.
by Anonymous | reply 321 | November 15, 2023 12:27 PM |
No one's mentioned Anne Heche.
She was meant to be the next "It Girl" of the late 90s, but she got with Ellen right as her first leading role dropped, and she claims the studios killed her career because of it.
But was it her talent/persona that did her in?
by Anonymous | reply 322 | November 15, 2023 3:18 PM |
Virginia Mayo
by Anonymous | reply 323 | November 15, 2023 3:24 PM |
Brie Larson she's not a marvel
by Anonymous | reply 324 | November 15, 2023 4:03 PM |
R299 Penelope was good in Heathers Her performance in the vastly overrated Coming Home for which she received an Oscar nomination was nothing to write home about
by Anonymous | reply 325 | November 15, 2023 4:06 PM |
Linda Fiorentino’s last credit is in 2009. She torched her own career with her bad behavior.
by Anonymous | reply 326 | November 15, 2023 4:35 PM |
[quote]As an aside, Polly Bergen was a cunt.
What, r197? I guess maybe when she was younger, but I did several projects in her later years and she was an absolute sweetheart.
Really charming and very nice.
by Anonymous | reply 327 | November 16, 2023 12:04 AM |
Rebecca Ferguson
by Anonymous | reply 328 | November 16, 2023 5:20 AM |
[Quote]As an aside, Polly Bergen was a cunt.
R327 You know how bitchy fags cane be
by Anonymous | reply 329 | November 16, 2023 6:13 AM |
[quote]R49 Miss Anna Sten, grandmother of all failed Hollywood leading careers
aka Miss Anna STENCH, to investors.
by Anonymous | reply 330 | November 16, 2023 7:42 AM |
Sam Goldwyn financed his films with his own money so he did’t have investors, afaik.
by Anonymous | reply 331 | November 16, 2023 7:51 AM |
[quote]R148 They seem to remake LITTLE WOMEN every few years or so…why?
Because it always makes money.
What do you think Hollywood is there for?
by Anonymous | reply 332 | November 16, 2023 7:54 AM |
I saw all three of Anna Sten’s big leading roles for Goldwyn and the only one I didn’t enjoy was Nana. She was great in The Wedding Night but she got a bum rap and her looks were out of synch with the times. Plus that thick accent. Good actress, though - she had a big part in Soldier Of Fortune with Clark Gable and Susan Hayward (1955) and nailed it.
by Anonymous | reply 333 | November 16, 2023 7:55 AM |
John Lund. Paramount thought he would be their postwar Clark Gable, went so far as to pose him in exact copies of Gable publicity stills from the ‘30s.
Rosemary Clooney. She was in a handful of early 1950s films, then played the female lead in White Christmas, the highest grossing of 1954. Young, pretty, soulful - good singer and actress. Very promising film career - but she decided to have five kids for the next five years, instead.
William B. Peterson was supposed to be the next big thing in movies, with To Live And Die In LA.
Edward Albert really went nowhere after Butterflies Are Free.
by Anonymous | reply 334 | November 16, 2023 8:07 AM |
*William L. Petersen
by Anonymous | reply 335 | November 16, 2023 8:09 AM |
R323 Virginia Mayo was a popular leading star for a reasonable amount of time. Most stars of those days had 5 or10 years at the top (like Ruth Roman). She had more than 10, under contract to Sam Goldwyn, then Warner Bros.
Viveca Lindfors comes to mind. More success as a character actress or on the stage. Warner Bros. Launched her as a beautiful leading lady opposite Errol Flynn.
Nancy Olson, Barbara Bel Geddes, Signe Hasso, Tana Elg.
Nancy Davis (Reagan).
John Hodiak.
Alida Valli. Really good actress from Italy. David Selznick failed to turn her into an American star, though she went back to greater success in Italian films. And was great in The Third Man.
Faith Domergue.
Jane Russell, kind of.
by Anonymous | reply 336 | November 16, 2023 8:23 AM |
Lucille Bremer
by Anonymous | reply 337 | November 16, 2023 8:26 AM |
Tippi Hedren
by Anonymous | reply 338 | November 16, 2023 8:26 AM |
C. Thomas Howell, Mitch Gaylord, Ally Sheedy, Judd Nelson, Andrew McCarthy, Kelly McGillis, Charlie Schlatter, Craig Scheffer, Brooke Shields, Matthew Modine, Christian Slater, Deborah Foreman, Skeet Ulrich, NEVE CAMPBELL.
by Anonymous | reply 339 | November 16, 2023 8:34 AM |
Anne Heche wasn't pretty enough, interesting enough or sexy enough to be leading lady material. Plus, she was a weirdo. And I agree her relationship with Ellen didn't help, but that was not the only reason.
by Anonymous | reply 340 | November 16, 2023 1:21 PM |
[quote]r334 Very promising film career - but she decided to have five kids for the next five years, instead.
Clooney needed to keep her legs closed to married men - including her husband.
by Anonymous | reply 341 | November 16, 2023 10:08 PM |
Rebecca De Mornay
by Anonymous | reply 342 | November 18, 2023 5:32 AM |
R342 She did okay after she took over running that homeless shelter and charity bookstore in NYC. Even if they didn’t want the muffin tops.
by Anonymous | reply 343 | November 18, 2023 7:10 AM |
Diane Venora
by Anonymous | reply 344 | November 19, 2023 3:33 PM |
Lara Flynn Boyle
by Anonymous | reply 345 | November 19, 2023 3:35 PM |
After winning America’s heart as Tiffany Welles, it seemed there was nothing Shelley Hack couldn’t do. Woody Allen and Martin Scorsese fought to have her in their movies, increasing her luster, but then the highly anticipated TROLL (1986) failed to score at the box office.
The once meteoric ride was over. And it was back to television.
by Anonymous | reply 346 | November 19, 2023 4:46 PM |
Betsy Drake
by Anonymous | reply 347 | November 20, 2023 5:04 AM |
Maggie McNamara
by Anonymous | reply 348 | November 20, 2023 5:07 AM |
Ansel Elgort.
The great Jon Bernthal, always a bridesmaid.
Benjamin Bratt.
by Anonymous | reply 349 | November 20, 2023 8:07 AM |
Jonny Lee Miller.
Garrett Clayton.
Leonard Whiting.
by Anonymous | reply 350 | November 20, 2023 8:19 AM |
Mary Tyler Moore. She was in Elvis' last theatrical feature and didn't make another film until 1980s Ordinary People after which she did Six Weeks and Just Between Friends.
by Anonymous | reply 353 | November 22, 2023 6:15 AM |
The she was in a dreary flop, after.
Back to TV, Beth!
by Anonymous | reply 354 | November 22, 2023 6:29 AM |
WTF ??
by Anonymous | reply 356 | November 22, 2023 7:17 AM |
Michael Ontkean. Peter Fonda. Blythe Danner didn't really make it as a movie star despite the critics' praises and comparisons to Jean Arthur, and other '30s darlings. Jill Clayburgh didn't become big, either. James Brolin tried the big-screen route, also.
Marsha Mason!
by Anonymous | reply 357 | November 22, 2023 8:49 AM |
Timothy Hutton. No young actor ever got more critical praise that I can think of, other than Sean Penn (who didn't deserve as much).
by Anonymous | reply 358 | November 22, 2023 8:50 AM |
In the 1950s Barbara Bel Geddes and Kim Stanley were the hottest actresses on Broadway. They got the best roles, and the best critiques. They both deserved their status -- probably the best actresses of their time.
Hollywood lured both of them to make movies, promising them celebrity status. Didn't work. Bel Geddes settled for secondary roles and then TV. Stanley made a few good movies and then went back to New Mexico for the rest of her life. Turned out that being a great actress didn't amount for much if you weren't 1950s style pretty,
by Anonymous | reply 359 | November 22, 2023 3:43 PM |
Barbara did go back to Broadway and had a huge hit in the 60s with Mary, Mary, and was also in the play Finishing Touches, later (and other things). Kim Stanley also went back to Broadway for a while, post-Hollywood. She also did movies and TV, sporadically, playing the mother of Frances Farmer (Jessica Lange) in Frances, and was in The Right Stuff. She played big Mama on V in Cat On A Hot Tine Roof, and was on Medical Center, Night Gallery, Quincy, and shows like that.
by Anonymous | reply 360 | November 23, 2023 3:03 PM |
*on TV
by Anonymous | reply 361 | November 23, 2023 3:03 PM |
I absolutely love DL fave Julia Roberts's response when she was asked about Jennifer Lawerence being America's Sweetheart. "Just how many of us are there?" I fucking love this self absorbed narcissistic super bitch.
by Anonymous | reply 362 | November 24, 2023 6:52 AM |
Jill Clayburgh had back to back Oscar nods and prior to that had 2 big movies with silver streak and semi tough. She turned down Norma Rae to do the awful La Luna and that seemed to be the beginning of some mediocre/bad choices that she never recovered from career wise. I don’t think she cared after starting her family and taking an extended break from acting.
by Anonymous | reply 363 | November 24, 2023 7:16 AM |
R363, Even though Clayburgh received a GG nomination, wasn't there a controversy over the mother-son incest element of "La Luna" at the time?
Because that motif might not have ultimately been a career winner for Clayburgh with John and Jane Q. Moviegoer.
Meanwhile, Sally Field as "Norma Rae".....
by Anonymous | reply 364 | November 24, 2023 12:43 PM |
R362, that really is a great response.
by Anonymous | reply 365 | November 24, 2023 1:12 PM |
I don’t know if this counts, but Don Ameche went from being a popular film star in the 30s and 40s (and doing a lot of radio) to not being able to get arrested where movies were concerned in the 50s or for many years afterward. He was in a hit Broadway musical in the 50s (Silk Stockings) but not movies. I remember when I was a little kid watching him host a weekly show in the 60s featuring acts from international circuses. I think he did some TV in the 70s. Of course his movie career came roaring back after he was cast in Trading Places, and he eventually won an Oscar in the 80s.
by Anonymous | reply 366 | November 24, 2023 3:29 PM |
They tried to make Jon Hamm the next Clooney. Didn’t happen. Did movies nobody watched. Has returned to television. Begging for a role in the Marvel Universe. Doubt it happens. Always plays the cop/sheriff/FBI asshole. Shows his wide ass and beer gut now.
by Anonymous | reply 367 | November 25, 2023 4:40 AM |
R567: You know he's desperate now that he's showing his fat ass.
by Anonymous | reply 368 | November 25, 2023 4:41 AM |
Clooney himself hasn't done much in a long time.
by Anonymous | reply 369 | November 26, 2023 3:51 AM |
R369, Were Clooney's filmography non-existent, it wouldn't really matter to him, money-wise.
by Anonymous | reply 370 | November 27, 2023 5:43 AM |
R370 He needed the income from being a star to start the company.
by Anonymous | reply 371 | November 27, 2023 1:16 PM |
He actually has done some pretty damn good movies.
by Anonymous | reply 372 | November 27, 2023 7:52 PM |
I recent watched The Truth About Cats and Dogs, and yes, Janeane Garafalo would definitely make that list, but I also remembered that Hollywood was trying to make Ben Chaplin happen (end of the 90's - early aughts. He also starred in Washington Square with Jennifer Jason Leigh and Birthday Girl with Nicole Kidman. Nothing seemed to stick (cute but a bit dull) and I believe he went back to the UK to do stage work. He's also recently appeared in some streaming UK tv dramas.
Anyone else remember this guy? Here he is on Conan:
by Anonymous | reply 373 | November 30, 2023 7:58 PM |
Desi Arnaz, Jr.
by Anonymous | reply 374 | December 1, 2023 4:35 AM |
R274 Deanna Durbin wasn’t a failed leading lady.
by Anonymous | reply 375 | December 3, 2023 10:17 PM |
Ben did a Broadway show with John Lithgow, then disappeared.
by Anonymous | reply 376 | December 3, 2023 10:30 PM |
William Devane, in the 1970s...he was the love interest of Vanessa Redgrave in Yanks and was one of the male leads in Hitchcock’s Family Plot.
Liv Ullmann was unsuccessful at least in becoming a Hollywood star.
Marthe Keller.
Jason Robards Jr. (as a romantic lead).
Luise Rainer.
Troy Donahue.
Pat Boone.
by Anonymous | reply 377 | December 4, 2023 2:17 AM |
Robert Wagner
by Anonymous | reply 378 | December 4, 2023 2:18 AM |
I feel kind of bad saying this, but… Rita Moreno?
I don’t remember her in any leading roles. (Though of course her times were working against her.)
by Anonymous | reply 379 | December 4, 2023 3:28 AM |
In our time, Rami Malik.
by Anonymous | reply 380 | December 4, 2023 3:34 AM |
William Devane has had a steady career in movies and television.
Not every actor can become a legend.
by Anonymous | reply 381 | December 4, 2023 4:40 AM |
And not all of them can win an Oscar, a Tony, an Emmy, and a Grammy!
by Anonymous | reply 382 | December 4, 2023 4:57 AM |
R381 The name of the thread is “Failed Leading Film Careers.” I. e., any actor who the film industry put in lead roles who failed to maintain a career as a lead in films.
by Anonymous | reply 383 | December 4, 2023 1:22 PM |
Maxwell Caulfield
by Anonymous | reply 384 | December 4, 2023 1:24 PM |
R383, Is there a "retirement age" cut-off as it were, like with normal careers? Or do you mean "maintain" unto 80s, a la Clint Eastwood or Paul Newman?
by Anonymous | reply 387 | December 5, 2023 9:54 PM |
R46, I'm not a fan, but Timmy does have the lead in next year's "Dune: Part 2."
William J. Peterson.
by Anonymous | reply 388 | December 5, 2023 10:04 PM |
Jesse Eisenberg.
by Anonymous | reply 389 | December 5, 2023 11:23 PM |
Kate Hudson is probably the reason Italian men beat their girlfriends.
by Anonymous | reply 390 | December 5, 2023 11:58 PM |
Carol Burnett, Alan Alda, Richard Thomas, Pamela Tiffin
by Anonymous | reply 391 | December 6, 2023 2:37 AM |
Elizabeth Ashley
by Anonymous | reply 392 | December 6, 2023 2:38 AM |
Ronald Reagan
by Anonymous | reply 393 | December 6, 2023 2:44 AM |
Lynn Redgrave After Georgy Girl it was assumed that she would have 'a blazing bonfire of a future'
by Anonymous | reply 397 | December 6, 2023 3:56 AM |
Farrah Abraham Paris Hilton Kim Kardashian
The plotline in each of their respective pieces left much to be desired.
by Anonymous | reply 398 | December 6, 2023 4:12 AM |
Brooke Shields. You would've thought after that start she could have parlayed it into some kind of film career like Jodie Foster. Something went off there.
by Anonymous | reply 400 | December 6, 2023 6:13 AM |
She couldn’t act.
by Anonymous | reply 401 | December 6, 2023 6:17 AM |
Mariah
by Anonymous | reply 402 | December 6, 2023 6:24 AM |
It’s true Brooke Shields was a fairly bad actress at that age. She turned down a lot of films (like Scarface) while in college, however, and her mother wasn’t a professional manager who’d ever given a thought of building Shields’ career long term. The actress didn’t even have an agent - everything went through (drunk) Teri.
by Anonymous | reply 403 | December 6, 2023 6:30 AM |
Jodie's mother was her manager too but was not a drunk and much smarter. Plus it didn't hurt that Jodie understood how to interpret a script and understand a character and their motivation. Brooke learned lines and looked pretty.
by Anonymous | reply 404 | December 6, 2023 6:34 AM |
It’s interesting that both moms (Brandy and Teri) were lesbians.
Maybe they should have hooked up and joined forces.
by Anonymous | reply 405 | December 6, 2023 6:50 AM |
Seann William Scott.
Owen Wilson.
by Anonymous | reply 406 | December 6, 2023 12:31 PM |
Jodi Foster's mom was a lez?
by Anonymous | reply 407 | December 7, 2023 12:49 AM |
Robert Sean Leonard
Alana Haim -was supposed to be the next big thing and and an Oscar contender before Licorice Pizza laid an egg.
by Anonymous | reply 409 | December 8, 2023 3:32 AM |
Cuz she's fugly.
by Anonymous | reply 410 | December 8, 2023 5:55 PM |
Did someone already say Jennifer Garner? Oof 13% on RT.
by Anonymous | reply 412 | December 8, 2023 6:13 PM |
Rob Morrow.
by Anonymous | reply 413 | December 9, 2023 2:33 AM |
Ryan Phillippe.
by Anonymous | reply 414 | December 9, 2023 6:53 AM |
Edward Furlong.
by Anonymous | reply 415 | December 9, 2023 10:20 AM |
David Naughton. Griffin Dunne. Julia Sweeney. Lindsay Lohan. George Maharis. Robert Morse.
by Anonymous | reply 416 | December 9, 2023 3:01 PM |
Jack Webb
by Anonymous | reply 417 | December 9, 2023 3:21 PM |
Rita Moreno never had the lead in a film, afaik. She blamed it on her being Latina but maybe she also just wasn’t a leading lady type of actress.
by Anonymous | reply 418 | December 9, 2023 3:51 PM |
^ R379 (I mean we can’t say she had a failed leading film career when she didn’t play leads anyway.)
by Anonymous | reply 419 | December 9, 2023 3:52 PM |
George Lazenby....Carrie Snodgress....Glenne Headly
Lance Guest...Ken Wahl...Billy Campbell
by Anonymous | reply 420 | December 9, 2023 6:24 PM |
In other words, everyone except 17 people.
by Anonymous | reply 421 | December 9, 2023 7:35 PM |
Mischa Barton.
by Anonymous | reply 422 | December 9, 2023 7:40 PM |
Jamie Gertz
by Anonymous | reply 424 | December 10, 2023 7:04 PM |
Ryan O'Neal
by Anonymous | reply 425 | December 10, 2023 7:23 PM |
R412 God I love that movie. It’s sooo bad.
by Anonymous | reply 426 | December 10, 2023 7:52 PM |