Getting arrested twice, writing bad movies, and fronting forgettable films!
This is why Vince Vaughn vanished from the limelight!
At the height of his fame, Vaughn was a bankable, beloved leading man.
Following name-making breakthroughs in films both small, like Doug Liman's "Swingers,"
and big, like Steven Spielberg's "The Lost World," Vaughn's career hit a bit of a rough patch.
The film "Clay Pigeons" was hardly seen by anyone, and "The Cell" and "Domestic Disturbance"
were bombs more notable for their behind-the-scenes turmoil than their box office performance.
The Jon Favreau reunion flick "Made" barely managed to move the needle either.
Around the turn of the century, as the failure of his "Psycho" work playing Norman Bates
was still stinging, Vaughn made a smart pivot.
He began to showcase his comedic potential in films like "Zoolander" and "Anchorman".
Then he began to pick up more steam with starring roles in hit comedies "Dodgeball," "Old School,"
and "Wedding Crashers."
As a real-life romance with Jennifer Aniston dominated headlines, his apex of fame seemed
to arrive with 2006's "The Break-Up"; the Vaughn/Aniston hit opened at number one and
went on to gross over $100 million domestically.
"You just said that you want me to help you do the dishes."
"I want you to want to do the dishes."
"Why would I want to do dishes?"
It was around this time that Vaughn's propensity for picking bad scripts began catching up
with him again.
From "Be Cool" to "Couples Retreat," "Fred Claus" to "The Dilemma," "The Watch" to "Delivery
Man," many of these films paired Vaughn with likable friends.
However, these just so happened to represent some of the worst films they've been a part
of in the last two decades.
Elizabeth Banks, whose career has soared in the years since, can barely conceal her disdain
for "Fred Claus," saying on the "The Graham Norton Show,"
"I got cast as an elf with big breasts and I thought to myself, as I was stuffing padding
into my bra at five in the morning, 'Maybe I have more to offer!'"
Between 2006 and 2016, nearly everything Vaughn touched was trashed by critics and audiences alike.
The exceptions were typically smaller works, such as a supporting role in "Into the Wild"
or his "Anchorman" series cameos.
For about a decade, Vince Vaughn was, unfortunately, the guy his character in "Swingers" said you
don't wanna be.
"I don't want you to be the guy in the pg-13 movie everyone's really hoping makes it happen."
Flashback to 2014, and it seemed likely pop culture fans were on the verge of a Vaughn-renaissance.
The first season of HBO's "True Detective" had been a massive, watercooler-worthy hit,
earning Emmy nominations for Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson.
It made a star out of Alexandra Daddario and established Nic Pizzolatto's and Cary Fukunaga
as formidable talents behind the camera.
When a buzz-worthy Season 2 was announced with a dark new story featuring Vaughn, Colin
Farrell, and Rachel McAdams, it seemed like a no-brainer must-watch triumph waiting to happen.
Unfortunately, the season was met with a mixed — at best — response that nearly killed
the series until the well-reviewed Season 3 brought it back for a soon-to-debut Season 4.
Needless to say, Vaughn's gangster turn didn't manifest the comeback some were expecting.
It did, however, return him to TV, where he has since remained as a supporting character
on "Curb Your Enthusiasm", a voice on "F is for Family," and where he will soon star in
the upcoming Apple TV+ series "Bad Monkey."
For the bulk of his career, Vaughn has been mostly known as a comedic actor, but as Vaughn's
comedies began to diminish in their returns in the late 2000s and early 2010's, he responded
by going dark.
While some of these attempts were underwhelming, like his role in "True Detective," Vaughn's
two most promising roles in recent times were by the same filmmaker.
Writer/director S. Craig Zahler cast Vaughn against type as a meth-dealing prison inmate
forced into an assassination attempt for 2017's "Brawl in Cell Block 99."
He returned to working with Zahler once again to play a scandalized police officer alongside
Mel Gibson in 2018's "Dragged Across Concrete."
Taken as a whole, the Zahler films provided Vaughn with meatier, more complex characters
than he had seen in quite some time.
Neither were highly-commercial mainstream blockbusters; "Concrete" had a budget in the
neighborhood of $15 million and barely took in a half million dollars at the box office.
But Vaughn impressed audiences with significant physical transformations and athletic prowess
leading up to the shoot.
In "Cell Block 99," he sports a giant cross tattoo on the back of his shaved head and
undertook an exercise and boxing regimen to prepare for the role.
Vaughn said of his mindset at the time,
"My mind kinda shifted.
I started to think that I wanted to do different things."
"Can you give me some sort of guarantee?"
"Certainly."
Zahler said of his reasons for looking at the onetime comedy star with freshly-opened eyes,
"Vince has a naturally imposing presence.
[...] I'm seeing him do a lot [of comedic things] and being told he's one thing...
But if I saw him on the street, that's not who I would think he would be."
As Vaughn's Hollywood stock grew, he wisely began working behind the camera as well.
Some of these films were Vaughn vehicles produced alongside friends like Jon Favreau and Peter Billingsley.
But as his studio leading man roles began drying up, he’s leaned more heavily on producing
projects — many of which haven't even featured him on camera.
Vaughn's production efforts have included such diverse fare as the Glenn Beck-backed
reality series "Pursuit of the Truth," the sitcom "Sullivan & Son," and the talk series
"Fear(Less) with Tim Ferriss."
Vaughn, a noted sports fan, has channeled that interest into producing the TV series
"Undeniable with Joe Buck" and an episode of "30 for 30" on his beloved '85 Bears.
In 2012, Vaughn produced his first documentary with the Netflix original "Art of Conflict,"
directed by his sister Valeri.
Vince provides the narration for the film, which details murals in Northern Ireland and
how they've reflected the violence of the area across generations.
Through Wild West Picture Show Productions, which he runs with his sister Victoria Vaughn
and Peter Billingsley, he’s also displayed an affection for holiday films.
In addition to "Four Christmases," Wild West produced the 2022 Hallmark spoof "Christmas
with the Campbells," as well as "A Christmas Story Christmas," featuring Billingsley's
long-awaited return to the role of Ralphie Parker.
Vaughn has also long professed a love for stand-up comedy, first displayed with the
theatrical release "Vince Vaughn's Wild West Comedy Show," a documentary depicting a 30-date
tour of comedians hand-selected by the star.
2017's Netflix effort "Brad Paisley's Comedy Rodeo" and the 2020 Jimmy O. Yang narrative
film "The Opening Act" were also both produced by Vaughn.
After establishing himself as an actor, Vaughn began dipping his toe into screenwriting.
It began with a simple "story" credit for "The Break-Up," but became more involved with
a screenplay credit on "The Internship" and writer credits on "Couples Retreat" and "Christmas
with the Campbells."
With "Couples Retreat," Vaughn co-wrote the screenplay alongside Jon Favreau.
Vaughn would follow up by co-writing "The Internship," which was an eagerly-anticipated
reunion for Vaughn and his "Wedding Crashers" co-star Owen Wilson.
However, it proved far less financially successful, being a critical flop many saw as toothless
compared to their last pairing.
Vaughn even agreed, saying in a 2015 interview,
"'Crashers' is an adult situation comedy.
I think that movie did well because it really captures how guys talk [...] It's sort of
a relief to people when your characters say things people are thinking but don't have
the nerve to say.
Vaughn then went on to blame studio interference for declawing what was meant to be much a
raunchier film.
"'The Internship' was supposed to be an R-rated comedy.
Right before we started shooting, the studio said they wanted to go PG-13.
[...] I said we'd do it both ways and then make the call.
But the ship had sailed and I found myself in a movie that was PG-13, which was not my
initial intent."
"Just get off my back!"
Vaughn has kept himself busy with other pursuits, including his charity work, professional poker,
and his own podcast.
He donated to a number of charities over the years, many military-adjacent, including Army
Emergency Relief, Declare Yourself, the Fulfillment Fund, and Jumpstart.
He also acted as a spokesman, speaker, or guest of honor for numerous other charitable endeavors.
The John Wayne Cancer Institute honored Vaughn in 2017 with the "True Grit" Humanitarian Award.
He’s also appeared at fundraisers for the Motion Picture and Television Fund and Tony
Bennett's "Exploring the Arts" foundation.
He even played poker at the 2016 "Four Kings and an Ace" event, hosted by the World Poker
tour to benefit Mending Kids International.
When not playing poker for charity, Vaughn has been known to do it for recreation.
But in 2021, Vaughn became professionally involved in the annual World Series of Poker.
In 2022, Vaughn competed in a series of three televised poker matches that found him going
head-to-head against world champions, so it was a surprise when Vaughn managed to win
one of his three matches.
In recent years, Vaughn founded his own podcast network/production company called Audiorama
alongside Ryan Kalil and Greg Olsen, both former professional NFL football players.
While Vaughn doesn't have the professional sports experience of his co-founders, he does
have a reputation as one of Hollywood's most sports-obsessed celebrities, and multiple
Audiorama efforts have played to that strength.
In June of 2018, Vaughn was arrested in Manhattan Beach, California, complete with a mugshot
and all.
He was stopped at a sobriety checkpoint, where he at first refused to exit his vehicle.
He then failed both a sobriety test and a blood alcohol test and was charged with reckless
driving, driving under the influence, and refusing to comply with police.
The three charges are all categorized as misdemeanors.
In May 2019, Vaughn had his court hearings for the three charges.
He pled no-contest and was sentenced to three years of unsupervised probation.
He was also required to complete a three-month-long alcohol education class.
The arrest and sentencing don't seem to have had any impact on his career, as Vaughn has
continued working throughout his probation period.
This wasn't Vaughn's first time being arrested, however.
Back in 2001, Vaughn was sprayed with mace and arrested after a violent fight with two
locals outside of a bar in Wilmington, North Carolina.
Vaughn was in town shooting the movie "Domestic Disturbance," and his co-star Steve Buscemi
was also involved in the fight.
Buscemi was stabbed multiple times and rushed to the emergency room as Vaughn and the other
men were arrested.
Vince Vaughn has faced significant public backlash on a handful of occasions due to
his perceived political leanings.
In a British GQ interview, Vaughn said,
"I support people having a gun in public full stop, not just in your home.
We don't have the right to bear arms because of burglars; we have the right to bear arms
to resist the supreme power of a corrupt and abusive government.
[...] It's the same reason we have freedom of speech."
In regards to whether guns should be allowed in schools, he added:
"Of course.
You think the politicians that run my country and your country don't have guns in the schools
their kids go to?
They do."
Another moment that made Vaughn a lightning rod for political controversy came when he
was recorded shaking hands and conversing cordially with Donald Trump at a 2020 football game.
Speaking to the LA Times later that year, Vaughn defended the moment, saying,
"In my career I've met a lot of politicians who I've always been cordial to; I've met
Nancy Pelosi and was cordial to her as well.
It was the only time I've ever met [Trump].
We said hello.
He was very personable...
I didn't get into policies."
Vaughn said in 2020 per the Los Angeles Times,
"I don't have a party that I support and endorse.
In fact, for me sometimes it's difficult to find a candidate that you feel is philosophically
consistent and not just going along with whoever is funding their particular party.
That's as much as I'll get into it at this point."