With so many actors trying to make it big, the chance of becoming a known name with a
generous filmography, are slight.
Even after obtaining such fame, not all actors are able to maintain an exceptional career.
A single film can ruin it all.
Here are 10 famous actors whose careers were ruined by one movie.
Mike Myers, The Love Guru Mike Myers first cracked up audience on Saturday
Night Live, a show with a reputation of churning out some of the most hilarious comedians from
the last four decades.
He was able to adapt his SNL character Wayne Campbell for the feature film, Wayne’s World,
cementing himself as a film star.
After Wayne’s World and its sequel, the talented Canadian made Austin Powers: International
Man of Mystery, a sleeper hit that built a massive audience once it was released on video.
Two sequels followed with varying success and Myers branched out to more family friendly
fair with Shrek.
The funnyman’s good luck streak came to a screeching halt with The Love Guru.
The disastrous so-called comedy was worse than just being offensive, it also wasn’t
funny.
Watching Myers desperately recycle old jokes and voices made audiences a bit queasy.
After a decade of being at the top of his game, The Love Guru was a loser that he has
yet to come back from.
Brenda Fraser, Monkey Bone Where did it all go wrong with Brendan Fraser?
He was young, handsome, and talented.
With memorable turns in comedies like Airheads and Encino Man to dramas like School Ties
and With Honors.
He even got into the action adventure game with The Mummy franchise.
While 1997’s George of the Jungle was a slight embarrassment, it only opened up the
possibility for family friendly films like Dudley Do-right.
Though it seemed his varied genres were a benefit to him, it was the one-two punch of
2000s Bedazzled and 2001’s Monkey Bone that ruined his fantastic trajectory.
Both films exposed Fraser’s goofy side far more than necessary and the films themselves
were just not good enough.
Fraser continues to work regularly but has not since made a film that compares to his
past winners.
Kevin Costner, Waterworld There was a time when Kevin Costner held an
impressively high spot on the A-List.
With films like Field of Dreams and Bull Durham, he was the likeable guy with the endearing
smile that made women swoon.
In the early 90s, it seemed his hot career was scorching with The Bodyguard.
His directorial effort for 1991’s Dances with Wolves earned him countless accolades.
1995’s WaterWorld was the only thing that could trip up Costner in his winning streak.
The big budget film was costly and embarrassing for the studio.
In the two decades that followed, Costner has made few decent flicks.
Instead he is relegated to underwhelming films that he manages to make a bit shinier than
they deserve.
John Travolta Battlefield Earth John Travolta has not always had a smooth
acting career.
After the classic musical Grease, and playing the slick moved Tony Manero in Saturday Night
Fever, Travolta became a household name.
The 1980s were a quiet time but the beginning of the 90s provided a decent role as Kirsty
Alley’s paramour in the Look Who’s Talking films.
However, it was Quentin Tarantino’s 1994 film Pulp Fiction that sparked an official
comeback.
His role as a loquacious hit man reminded audiences of his charming presence.
He quickly began releasing film after film of solid work in the 1990s playing a lunatic
in Broken Arrow to an angel in Michael.
The scientology based film Battlefield Earth caused Travolta’s career to veer off the
rails.
The film about an alien planet just ended up alienating film fans.
While Travolta still works occasionally, his name and films have been tarnished by the
big budget disaster.
Halle Berry, CatWoman Halle Berry was a popular working actor in
the 1990s not because of her stellar acting ability but because of her stunning appearance
and ease on camera.
It seemed her name was more recognizable than many of the movies she was in.
Either way, she still delivered solid performances in even the most average films.
There was no question about her skills after 2001’s Monsters Ball.
Her critically lauded performance earned her an Academy Award and industry cred.
Then came Catwoman.
Today, comic based films carry high expectations for quality but in the 2004, along with Daredevil,
filmmakers dropped the ball with beloved characters.
The ridiculous film caused many to believe that Berry’s trophy winning prior work was
just a fluke.
Jake Lloyd, The Phantom Menace Jake Lloyd’s name may be familiar to Star
Wars fans but to everyone else, he was never able to build a solid enough career to become
a big name in Hollywood.
After scoring one of the most sought after roles, Anakin Skywalker, it would seem that
the child actor was just beginning a promising career.
Rather than exploding on the scene with a big budget box office hit, Lloyd’s performance
was highly scrutinized giving him little opportunity to prove himself in other films.
For Jake Lloyd, it was a case of too much too soon as The Phantom Menace ended a career
right at its beginning.
Cuba Gooding Jr, Boat Trip John Singleton’s 1991 drama Boyz N the Hood
introduced audiences to the perils of living in the gang infested South Central.
It also introduced Cuba Gooding Jr.
He hit even bigger success a few years later in 1996’s Jerry Maguire, a film that lent
him the unforgettable line “Show me the money”.
His role as football player Rod Tidwell highlighted Gooding Jr.’s unending likability and talent.
After winning an Academy Award for best supporting actor, his choices expanded exponentially.
With a few decent films like Medal of Honor and Radio, he made a major misstep with Boat
Trip.
The regressive film about a guy who goes on a gay cruise was not just a terrible film,
it was a sad moment in Gooding Jr’s career that had grown sketchy leading up to it.
The movie ultimately left a lasting bad taste in audience’s mouths.
C Thomas Howell, Soul Man There are some actors whose careers warm up
in the eighties and only get hotter.
Then there are actors who disappear into obscurity.
C. Thomas Howell was one of the unlucky 80s stars who made such a poor film choice that
he was given little room to grow.
After playing Pony Boy in the film adaptation of The Outsiders, he went on to star in the
killer ensemble film Red Dawn.
It was 1986’s Soul Man that not only ruined his potentially long lasting career, it left
audiences wondering how the film was green lit in the first place.
The premise of the film involves a white student sporting black face to earn a scholarship
for African American students.
It is hard to clearly state whether Soul Man was the sole reason for C. Thomas Howell’s
ruined career but it certainly didn’t help.
Alicia Silverstone, Excess Baggage After appearing in three music videos for
Aerosmith, it was hard not to fall in love with Alicia Silverstone.
The bubbly blonde teen was beautiful yet had devilish eyes that aided her villainous role
in The Crush.
Her performance as the filthy rich but incredibly sweet Cher Horowitz in 1995’s Clueless catapulted
her to instant mainstream star.
After the overwhelming success of Clueless, all eyes were on Silverstone’s next career
move.
After a short hiatus, Silverstone returned with two films in 1997, Batman and Robin and
Excess Baggage.
While the superhero flick was ridiculed plenty, it was Excess Baggage that took the largest
jab at her career.
The mediocre film was made worse with Silverstone’s constant high pitched whine, something she
avoided in the past.
Though she was able to obtain a lead role in the underrated 1999 comedy Blast from the
Past, she has been unable to recapture her same level of fame.
Demi Moore, Striptease Ever since 1985’s St. Elmo’s Fire, Demi
Moore was a notable star.
Her full wattage power only grew brighter in the following decade with roles in A Few
Good Men, Disclosure and the two-Hanky tearjerker, Ghost.
With her raspy voice, silky black hair, and enviable acting skills, Demi Moore became
a bankable star who could do no wrong.
Unfortunately, the film Striptease proved she actually could do wrong.
Her role as a single mother who takes a job as a stripper seemed beneath such a famous
and serious actress but she was committed.
Possibly hoping that undressing may lead to Oscar gold, Moore even went under the knife
for breast enhancements prior to filming.
Ever since Striptease, Moore has not been able to regain the momentum of her prior success.
What do you think of our list?
Who did we forget?
Let us know in the comments and be sure to subscribe to our channel to watch more videos
like this one.