Fans often expect to see entertainers promoting their work with enthusiasm and pride.
But the days during press junkets are long.
And after 12 hours of being asked the same questions, it can be hard for even the best
actors to feign enthusiasm.
But occasionally things don’t go as planned, and performers don’t respond in the way
we expect.
Sometimes, that means turning their backs on their own work.
These are Screen Rant’s 10 Famous Actors Who Refused To Promote Their Own Movies.
George Clooney At this point, everyone agrees that Batman
& Robin was the worst film in the character’s history.
Cartoonishly over-the-top, this is the movie that gave the world something it never needed:
bat-nipples.
And while it’s no surprise the movie got raked over the coals by fans, what is interesting
is how bad George Clooney feels about it.
Make no mistake, the actor hates the film, and doesn’t mince words about it.
But what seems to stings him the most, is how badly it wounded the franchise.
Apparently, he even personally apologized to Adam West for it.
In interviews, Clooney’s called Batman & Robin “a waste of money”.
It seems like he hates it more than any of us could, and that’s earned him a lot of
forgiveness.
Johnny Depp More than once, we’ve heard celebrities
bemoaning the loss of privacy that comes with fame.
But, lots of people argue that it’s just part of the job.
If people are interested in reading about an actor, that should be a good thing…
right?
Johnny Depp doesn’t hold back when talking about how much he hates being famous.
Arguing that performing should be treated like any other job you can leave behind at
the end of the day.
And this outlook extends to interviews as well, so it’s not easy to get the actor
to sign on for press events.
But, given how bankable he’s proven to be, his popularity doesn’t seem to be suffering.
Jim Carrey When funnymen turn serious it has a jarring
effect on audiences.
And because of that, very few comedians have found success in non-comedic roles.
And while some of his dramatic attempts have received mixed reviews, Jim Carrey proved
to be one of the few performers who’s ultimately held his own in both genres.
When he decided to return to comedy for 2013’s Kick-Ass 2, audiences were pumped, and so
was he.
But shortly after the tragedy in Sandy Hook, the actor’s enthusiasm for the film disappeared
completely.
After reflecting on the project, the actor took to twitter where he explained that he
could no longer support anything related to child violence.
And in good conscience, could not do press for a film in which kids are violent.
Some followers suggested he donate his Kick-Ass 2 paycheck to a charity with a similar outlook.
But on that point, Carrey had no opinion.
Shia LaBeouf If you thought the most recent installment
in the Indiana Jones franchise was an insult to it’s legacy, you’re not alone!
2008’s Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull has caught flack from almost
everyone who's seen it.
And thanks to the reliably unreliable Shia LaBeouf, we know that the actors hated it
too.
He stated that the movie “dropped the ball,” and told multiple interviewers how much he
despised it.
But, it wouldn’t be dramatic enough if only cast member was disappointed.
So LaBeouf was sure to mention that Harrison Ford didn’t like it either.
Which kind of feels a little like tattletaling.
Edward Norton Edward Norton has a very particular approach
to his craft, and if he feels like the content can’t match his ability as a performer,
then it’s not worth his time to talk about it.
During the junket for 2008’s The Incredible Hulk, that’s exactly what happened.
Norton was allegedly very adamant about changes being made to the script during filming.
Arguing for constant rewrites made him hard to work with, and even harder to stay on track.
The actor maintains that he simply had high hopes for the movie.
And once he realized they wouldn’t be met, spoke up about it.
Thanks to a creative marketing strategy, he didn’t have to do much talking after that,
and his promotional tour was considerably shortened.
Chris Evans Thanks to the massive success of the MCU,
it might be hard to remember a time before Chris Evans was Captain America.
And that’s probably because he’s so perfectly cast as the star-spangled Avenger.
But during one interview where the actor was looking back at his body of work, he revealed
something that surprised fans.
After reminiscing, he stated that out of the roughly 20 films he’s been a part of, he’s
only proud of about 3.
Ever the classy gentleman, Evans left the conversation at that, and allowed the specifics
to remain a mystery.
Still, we really hope Scott Pilgrim vs. the World is among his favorites.
Robin Williams Robin Williams’ voice work for the character
of Genie was top-notch.
Even though some audiences think the sequels left a lot to be desired, Williams as Genie
in the first and third installments of Aladdin proved to be reliably enjoyable.
But around the time of the original’s release in 1992, it wasn’t the only movie he was
promoting.
In order to boost promotion for his other film, Toys, the actor requested that the marketing
team behind Aladdin not focus too much on Genie.
It must be an odd feeling to compete with yourself.
And thankfully for audiences, he did a lot of great work because of it.
Daniel Craig In case you haven’t heard, Daniel Craig
is really over the whole James Bond thing.
And when talking about it in an interview, mentioned he’d rather “slash his wrists”
than think about reprising his role as 007.
Thanks to the rigorous rounds of press he was required to do for 2015’s Spectre, the
actor had more than a few opportunities to voice his distain for the classic character.
Misogynistic and flighty, Craig argues that Bond is part of the problem with how Hollywood
handles depictions of masculinity.
And a lot of people definitely agree.
But since audiences are so used to being told what an honor it is to play the legendary
spy, the actor’s candidness threw a lot of people for a loop.
Including the movie’s PR team.
Burt Reynolds Burt Reynolds hated Boogie Nights so much
that he fired his agent for recommending him the role.
Reynolds reportedly hated the pacing of the movie, arguing it didn’t flow coherently.
Which got him in trouble a couple of times on set.
Leading up to the release, Reynolds wasn’t really included in any promotions.
It might have something to do with what co-star Mark Wahlberg referred to as a “piss-poor
attitude”, which affected his outlook during filming.
Still, when given the opportunity, Reynolds takes shots at the film.
And reminds everyone just how much he loathed the experience.
And Boogie Nights went on to be successful anyway.
Bill Murray There are a handful of people in Hollywood
who have very similar names.
And when those people get mixed up, some super weird movies get made.
So when a script by Joel Cohen landed in front of Bill Murray, he jumped at the opportunity
to work with the great comedic mind responsible for movies like The Big Lebowski, No Country
For Old Men, and Burn After Reading.
Murray admits he was a little worried about wether or not a cat named Garfield could carry
an entire movie.
And when he learned that the story wasn’t actually written by the Coen brothers, it
was too late.
He’d signed on to work with the Joel Cohen behind Daddy Day Camp, and Cheaper by the
Dozen.
Murray reportedly scrambled to make the script funnier once he realized he was locked in,
but was overruled at every turn.
So what do you think of our list?
Did we miss any actors who refused to promote their own movies?
Tell us about them in the comments, and be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel for
more videos.