10 Movies That Ruined Actors’ Careers

A single role can instantly turn you into an A-list actor, but the opposite can happen when an A-list actor chooses a failed project. This doesn’t seem to happen to anyone. Is it really that easy to erase all the artist’s virtues at once? Let’s understand which films and why the public branded their idols.

Elizabeth Berkley – “Showgirls”, dir. Paul Verhoeven (1995)

Many of those who watched this movie in the 90s wonder where the magnificent beauty Elizabeth Berkley went? It’s hard to believe they stopped making the movie. Yet it is what it is. The reason for the boycott of the actress was not her talent or the scandalous erotic scene in the pool. The point is in the plot of “Showgirls”, in which Paul Verhoeven mocks the “underside” of show business. And if most viewers could not catch the satirical subtext, then among people from the film industry the screening of “Showgirls” caused a real stir.

The big bosses, who considered themselves lustful producers and crime bosses, did not forgive Verhoeven for his arrogance. It was rumored that they wanted to “kick” the director out of the Hollywood Hills. Universal hatred towards cinema mastodons also fell on the up-and-coming Berkeley. The blonde is unlikely to trust it when she receives an invitation from the creator of Basic Instinct. And it’s a shame: after all, Sharon Stone had every chance to repeat her success.

Geena Davis – “Cruel Island”, dir. Renny Harlin (1995)

It’s unlikely “Thelma and Louise” star Geena Davis expected starring in her own husband’s movie to ruin her career. “Cruel Island” broke the record for box office losses. The movie grossed 10 million dollars at the box office, 90 million of which was spent. What was your reason; bad acting or bad script? Neither one nor the other. The blockbuster adventure movie was reminiscent of the novels about Captain Blood and had every chance of becoming “Pirates of the Caribbean”. But the director’s ambitions and an unsuccessful advertising campaign “sank” his plans for success, and with it the careers of the actors. After the failure, studios refused to work with them for fear of causing failure.

Alicia Silverstone – Batman and Robin, dir. Joel Schumacher (1997)

Young Alicia Silverstone’s real fame came after the movie Clueless. The success was brilliant but short-lived. Today, even A-list actors would consider it an honor to play a Marvel or DC character, but not too long ago, starring in comic book movies was a lottery. Unfortunately Silverstone was definitely unlucky. The script for the Batman and Robin movie turned out to be frankly weak: it received 11 nominations for the Golden Raspberry anti-award and was recognized as the worst superhero movie of all time. George Clooney and Uma Thurman also starred in the film adaptation, but the public decided to take out its anger on the newcomers. The film also proved fatal for Scent of a Woman star Chris O’Donnell.

Madonna – “Swept”, dir. Adam Ritchie (2002)

Guy Ritchie’s gangster images are now widely used for quotes, but he had his failings too. Among them is the melodrama “Swept Away”, starring his ex-wife Madonna. Not all singers manage to present themselves as actresses like JLo or Cher. Seven-time Grammy winner Madonna had several attempts and all failed except for her role in Alan Parker’s Evita. Perhaps the queen of pop music is closer to stories about strong female heroes than to love melodramas. One way or another, after this film, the singer of the hit Material Girl stopped acting in feature films.

Hayden Christensen – Star Wars: Episode 2 – Attack of the Clones, dir. George Lucas (2002)

Nobody knew about Hayden Christensen before he starred in Star Wars. The actor managed to impress during the auditions and got the role of Anakin Skywalker. Despite his on-screen partners being Natalie Portman and Ewan McGregor, fans found the film childish and the acting unconvincing. Then Christensen had to face the hatred of fans for the first time. Despite the roles in The Virgin Suicides and Narcosis, the actor was reluctantly invited to the cinema, since the young man was associated only with Star Wars. Christensen currently continues to act in low-budget films.

Lindsay Lohan – I Know Who Killed Me, dir. Chris Sivertson (2007)

Rebellious Lindsay Lohan tested the patience of producers for a long time. The star of the TV series “The Parent Trap” has been involved in more and more scandalous stories since she grew up. He was forgiven for his tardiness, drinking parties, drug addiction and rumors of numerous sexual affairs. The hits “Freaky Friday,” “Mean Girls” and “Cool Georgia” were released sporadically.

It seemed like nothing could shake the kids’ love for cute redhead prankster Lindsay Lohan. But his luck suddenly changed when the thriller “I Know Who Killed Me” failed miserably at the box office. The film received nine nominations for the anti-Golden Raspberry award, two of which were awarded to the actor himself. It seems like everyone has bad projects, but for some reason the film studio began to avoid signing a contract with an unpredictable star. Lindsay Lohan recently tried to restart her career by starring in the slasher movie “Scream Queen”, but so far the producers are in no hurry with the invitation.

Mike Myers – “Sex Guru”, dir. Marco Schnabel (2008)

Canadian actor Mike Myers became famous thanks to the TV show “Saturday Night Live”, but viewers will remember him forever thanks to the comedies about Austin Powers. The first movie, which parodied the James Bond series, grossed $16.5 million, the second part grossed $312 million, and the third $297 million! In 1997, DreamWorks Animation offered the actor the voice of Shrek. This seemed like a success, but it wasn’t.

Myers waited for interesting offers from directors for a long time, but they did not come. Later, he decided to star in Marco Schnabel’s movie “Sex Guru”, for which he wrote his own script. However, the film turned out to be so funny that it was stigmatized by both the audience and the press. Since then, he was no longer invited to star in films.

Vasily Stepanov – “Inhabited Island”, dir. Fyodor Bondarchuk (2008)

If you type the actor’s name into a search engine, the most popular queries are “Where did Vasily Stepanov go” and “Why doesn’t Vasily Stepanov make films?” It will happen. The spectacular blonde in the movie “Inhabited Island” won the hearts of millions of TV viewers. They predicted a great future for the guy. I would still do it! The main role in the film adaptation of the story of the Strugatskys, and even Fyodor Bondarchuk himself! However, the actor suddenly disappeared from the radar. Strange rumors occasionally appeared on the Internet: either Stepanov decided to leave his acting career because a famous director persuaded him to an orgy, then he received a serious injury, then the actor fell out of the window from the third floor. or he got depressed because he broke up with a girl, then all together.

Stepanov once told reporters that he was not invited to the cinema because of Maxim Kammerer’s role in the ill-fated “Inhabited Island” and, allegedly, because of Fyodor Bondarchuk’s reputation. Another time, news broke that it was the director who blocked his way to the cinema. Bondarchuk himself denied these rumors, insisting that it was in his interest to promote the star, but Stepanov acted strangely and seemed disinterested. The actor’s ex-girlfriend also said that she stopped understanding Stepanov. One way or another, Vasily Stepanov said that he constantly went to castings, including trying to realize himself as a model, but was rejected everywhere. After his fatal role in Bondarchuk’s film, he starred in several episodes of films that were not very successful and announced his retirement. In 2019, the actor reminded himself again. It turned out that doctors diagnosed him with schizophrenia.

Taylor Lautner – “The Chase”, dir. John Singleton (2011)

Twilight star Taylor Lautner showed great promise. It was predicted that he would be more famous than Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson. And at some point the actor became arrogant: while his colleagues in the series were trying to get rid of the role of the vampire and agreed to different roles, Lautner was bargaining for fees and definitely wanted to play the main role in blockbusters. Of course, many were glad that his audience came, but suddenly it became clear that the young actor lacked experience.

As a result, subsequent films did not bring him success. The action thriller “The Pursuit” was particularly disastrous. Lautner gained a reputation as a useless player due to overestimating his strength. Lautner tried to regain her interest with the help of PR romances with Lilly Collins, Marie Avgeropoulos and Taylor Swift, but when the infidelity was revealed the public also lost trust in him. The actor who currently plays Jacob periodically appears in little-known films and TV series.

Eddie Murphy – A Thousand Words, dir. Brian Robbins (2012)

Today most viewers associate Eddie Murphy with the voice of the donkey in Shrek, but in the 90s and 2000s the actor was in great demand in comedies. His most famous films include Trading Places, as well as the popular double features Doctor Dolittle, Coming to America and The Nutty Professor. It cannot be said that all films were profitable, for example, the fantasy comedy “The Adventures of Pluto Nash” collected only $ 7 million with 100 spent, but there were also films “The Haunted Mansion” and “How to Steal”. a skyscraper.”

Everything changed after the release of the flop comedy A Thousand Words, followed by another flop, Mister Church. Apparently, the actor got carried away with repetition and exhausted himself, so the public, which had to be constantly surprised, stopped watching his films.