Even superheroes aren't immune to being played by the wrong person. That being said,
these infamous casting decisions didn't exactly make for riveting cinema.
Along with incoherent tone and inconsistent
pacing, viewers of Ridley Scott's "House of Gucci" found themselves irritated by Jared
Leto's portrayal of Paolo Gucci, the aspiring but untalented designer son of company chairman
Aldo Gucci. With his cartoonish performance and rather insulting caricature of an Italian accent,
Leto's Paolo stood to be the black sheep of not just the Gucci family in the story,
but also of the biographical crime film itself. Any attempts to strike a serious
tone were thwarted by Leto's repeated squeals that border on a Super Mario impression.
"Stop, you're going to make me… you're going to make me cry!"
Tom Ford – a filmmaker and former Gucci designer — had his own critique of the
movie and the performances it featured, especially Leto's. Having personally known
some of the main characters depicted in the film, including Paolo Gucci, Ford commented —
"Leto's brilliance as an actor is literally buried under latex prosthetics. Paolo,
whom I met on several occasions, was indeed eccentric and did some wacky things,
but his overall demeanor was certainly not like the crazed [...] character of Leto's performance."
Ford likened the Leto's efforts to a "Saturday Night Live" sketch,
but still gave plenty of praise to his co-stars Lady Gaga and Adam Driver.
While he may have gotten his act together when he reprised the character in "Spider-Man:
No Way Home," Jamie Foxx's first appearance as Electro in "The Amazing Spider-Man 2" was
pretty rough, to say the least. Considering that the 2014 Spider-Man sequel was globally
dubbed as "Rise of Electro," you'd expect a formidable primary antagonist whose relevance
in the plot reflects the inclusion of their name in the movie's title.
Instead, Foxx's Max Dillon turned out to be a caricature of the neglected nerd whose turn to
villainy is motivated by the fact that Spider-Man didn't remember his name. Problematic character
motivation and controversial blue redesign aside, Foxx's performance as the overlooked
but brilliant engineer-turned-supervillain seems to elicit more laughs than sympathy.
This could've been fixed with a different casting decision,
as the effortlessly cool Foxx didn't do the best job coming across like a total dork. Fortunately,
the actor had the opportunity to take Electro in a new direction in "Spider-Man:
No Way Home," where he comes across as much more charismatic and likable.
The 2003 superhero film "Daredevil" did no favors for anyone involved in its production,
including lead star Ben Affleck. For him, "Daredevil" was just one of three movies that
year that earned him the Golden Raspberry Award for worst actor — the other two being "Gigli"
and "Paycheck." Fans and critics lambasted Affleck for his lackluster acting, and argued
that he was miscast for the role of Matt Murdock. Although the Hero of Hell's Kitchen is known to be
charming and charismatic in the comics, Affleck's version comes across as more cocky and creepy.
"You're holding back."
"Yes." "Don't."
The reception towards the film — and its portrayal of The Man Without Fear — led
to Affleck refusing any costumed roles for a decade. It was only in 2013 that Affleck was
announced to be the new version of the Dark Knight in Zack Snyder's "Batman v Superman:
Dawn of Justice" and its follow-ups in the DC Extended Universe.
Over the years, Affleck has made it abundantly clear how much he resents
"Daredevil" and his involvement in the film. After accepting the role of Bruce Wayne,
Affleck told Time Magazine of his decision —
"Part of it was I wanted for once to get one of
these movies and do it right — to do a good version. I hate Daredevil so much."
Regardless, Daredevil is still a beloved
character — but we mostly have Charlie Cox to thank for that.
A lot of people were underwhelmed when Jai Courtney and Emilia Clarke were announced
to play Kyle Reese and Sarah Connor in the 2015 franchise reboot, "Terminator: Genisys."
After all, the two actors had quite big shoes to fill, following up the acclaimed performances of
Michael Biehn and Anton Yelchin as Kyle, and Linda Hamilton as Sarah in previous "Terminator" movies.
Sure enough, the film received mixed reviews not just for its plot, but for its casting and
performances as well. Fans and critics had a lot to say about Courtney's bland acting,
with many claiming that his bulky physique wasn't helping sell the
idea that his character grew up in a post-apocalyptic wasteland. Similarly,
Clarke's "youthful looks" simply didn't make sense for Sarah Connor — not to mention the
absolute lack of chemistry between the two actors, who briefly engage in on-screen romance.
Unsurprisingly, Clarke revealed that she did not
have a good time and regrets filming "Terminator: Genisys," citing various
behind-the-scenes incidents that made her rather relieved when production wrapped.
Unfortunately for director Josh Trank and his cast, the 2015 "Fantastic Four" reboot
ended up being one of those movies where the behind-the-scenes drama is much more interesting
than the film itself. The making of the critical and commercial disaster was a total mess,
and Trank found himself clashing not just with executives at Fox, but with some of the core
cast members as well. According to Entertainment Weekly, Kate Mara wasn't Trank's original choice
to play Sue Storm — but after the studio overruled his preferences, Trank allegedly mistreated Mara
on-set. He didn't have a good relationship with Reed Richards' actor, Miles Teller, either.
Perhaps this hostile environment led to the actors' performances being devoid of
chemistry. While Michael B. Jordan's natural charisma made him a solid
fit for the fun-loving Johnny Storm, his casting was criticized by some for being
a poor attempt at diversifying the cast — especially since Johnny's sister Sue is
played by a white woman. Though in the film it is mentioned that Sue Storm was adopted.
Even Jamie Bell's casting as Ben Grimm came with scrutiny, as the actor's 5-feet-7-inch
stature is a far cry from the character's massive frame even before turning into The
Thing. All in all, considering the lousy set experiences of the actors and crew,
it's for the best that any prospects of sequels were promptly canned.
"Does it hurt?"
"I'm used to it."
When "Mamma Mia!" danced into theaters in 2008, audiences loved the vibrant musical numbers,
the jolly and campy tone, and the exuberant characters placed in the fictional Greek
island of Kalokairi. The only aspect of the film that didn't work? You guessed it:
Pierce Brosnan. Brosnan makes for a fine addition to the ensemble cast of the ABBA musical,
but when he sings... let's just say he's not as appealing to the ears as he is to the eyes.
It's only natural that having an actor with no singing expertise perform in a
musical movie would draw some ire — especially when they are up against the inexperienced,
yet melodic voices of Meryl Streep and Christine Baranski. The former James
Bond's singing was brutally lambasted by critics, who described his renditions of
"SOS" and "When All Is Said And Done" as some of the worst in movie history.
While Brosnan received the Razzie Award for worst supporting actor,
that didn't stop him from returning to the 2018 sequel, "Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again." He's even
said that he'd be down to return for a potential third film, telling Good Morning America —
"It's criminal how much fun you have on that movie. I think everybody would be in."
The star-studded cast of 2019's "Cats" wasn't what made the movie so awful — it was probably doomed
from the start. Instead, the casting decisions for the Andrew Lloyd Webber adaptation turned into a
complete disaster for each actor's career. This feline trainwreck features comedic actors like
James Corden and Rebel Wilson, rapper Jason Derulo, and singers Taylor Swift and Jennifer
Hudson alongside renowned thespians like Dame Judi Dench, Idris Elba, and Sir Ian McKellen.
Everyone brings their talents to the table — McKellen's acting chops, Hudson's voice,
Corden's… something — but it's all hidden behind some of the most unsettling CGI that Hollywood
has to offer. The bizarre visual effects make "Cats" a frightening viewing experience, and the
feeble attempts at humor from Wilson and Corden do nothing to cover up their lack of singing ability.
"Right, well that's not going to work, is it?"
Apparently, "Cats" creator and composer Andrew Lloyd Webber hated Corden's performance in
the film, indirectly hinting that the comedian's portrayal of fat-cat Bustopher Jones was unfunny.
While Dench, Elba, and McKellen all do their best, many critics agreed that Swift was the only
redeeming cast member — an interesting tidbit, considering her lack of experience as an actor.
Kristen Stewart is an esteemed actress nowadays, with an Oscar nomination for her portrayal of
Princess Diana in 2021's "Spencer." However, this wasn't always the case,
as the performer found herself mocked for her monotone performances during her "Twilight" years.
The ridicule wasn't limited to the vampiric love story, either — Stewart found herself criticized
yet again when she took on the titular role of Snow White in "Snow White and the Huntsman." In
this 2012 action-fantasy, Stewart's performance was yet again lambasted for her limited range
of facial expressions, leading some viewers to believe that her involvement supposedly
ruined the movie. Reviewer Scott Foundas of Film Comment put it well when he wrote —
"Stewart’s Snow White, meanwhile, pouts her lips,
bats her bedroom eyes, and scarcely seems to have more on her mind than
who might take her to the senior prom—let alone the destiny of an entire kingdom."
Stewart won the Golden Raspberry Award for worst actress that year, after which the actress
chose to focus on independent films instead of studio franchises. She was conspicuously absent
from the 2016 sequel "The Huntsman: Winter's War," which was partially brought on by her
scandalous affair during the production of the first film with wedded director Rupert Sanders.
Martin Scorsese's 2002 historical epic "Gangs of New York" received
positive reviews and garnered ten nominations at the Oscars, including Best Picture and Best
Actor for Daniel Day-Lewis. None of those nominations were for Cameron Diaz, though,
as most movie buffs concur that her performance sadly detracts from the film's overall greatness.
Diaz plays Jenny Everdeane, an Irish pickpocket who falls in love
with Leonardo DiCaprio's gangster Amsterdam Vallon. It's hard to buy
into the 19th-century setting of the film when Diaz's accent — and DiCaprio's too,
to some extent — keeps faltering, making it impossible to stay invested in her performance.
"Don't tell me you're angry with me."
"No, I'm through with ya."
Viewers found the nearly three-hour-long movie muddled enough with various themes as it is — and
many believed that the romance subplot between Jenny and Amsterdam felt unnecessary. Diaz
wasn't even Scorsese's ideal choice for the part: now-disgraced producer Harvey Weinstein compelled
the director to choose Diaz over other actresses, including Sarah Polley and Sarah Michelle Gellar.