They Threw It Away - Self-Destruction and Acting Careers

[TMC1982]

Who are the actresses and actors (and directors and writers) who screwed themselves the worst, and lost the potential of great careers over a long period of time? In other words, who could have been better or bigger but threw it all away?

 

[Kyle]

Shia LaBeouf.

It was like he personally sought out to kill hos own career by dissing everyone he worked with. Think I read he and Tom Hardy, or someone else, got into a literal fist fight.

 

[LoganGambit87]

easily mickey rourke he found a way to ruin a comeback lol

 

[Drizzle]

easily mickey rourke he found a way to ruin a comeback lol

I think losing the Oscar to Sean Penn got to him. Wasn't he favored to win too?

 

[Iron_Stark]

Lindsey Lohan.

Cocaine is a MFer.

 

[The Joker]

Charlie Sheen

 

[terry78]

Lohan. She actually did some decent work in her earlier years. Mean Girls was like one of the better satires of high school comedies ever.

 

[David H.]

I think losing the Oscar to Sean Penn got to him. Wasn't he favored to win too?

I remember reading that Rourke was screwed over by Iron Man 2, in a way.

The Oscar thing certainly slowed him down but he signed up for IM2 hoping to jump back into the mainstream only to have his lines cut and scenes shortened to make way for Black Widow and SHIELD.

 

[Isildur´s Heir]

Lohan. She actually did some decent work in her earlier years. Mean Girls was like one of the better satires of high school comedies ever.

I re-watched that some months ago and i felt sad for her.
She was a good actress and a pretty girl...now, she is a shadow of her former self.

 

[TMC1982]

For men, Val Kilmer and Mel Gibson first comes to mind and for women, Katherine Heigl and Sean Young.

 

[Rowsdower!]

I'm glad Heigl's career self-destructed. She was never very good and from what I understand, she's a real a**hole to work with.

 

[terry78]

Her only redeeming role was in My Father The Hero. And you know why.

 

[Rowsdower!]

I vaguely remember that movie but I'm drawing a blank as to why that was a redeeming role for her.

 

[terry78]

Controversial for its time, that is all. I was of age so it was irrelevant.

 

[See Cap Run]

For men, Val Kilmer and Mel Gibson first comes to mind and for women, Katherine Heigl and Sean Young.

What did Val Kilmer do? I always just assumed that as he got older and gained some weight it became harder for him to find good roles.

Also, does anyone know what happened to Mike Myers? I know he starred in that one horrible film which I forget the name of but it doesn't seem like one horrible film would be enough to stop him from ever again appearing in a movie besides Inglorious Bastards. Especially since the last Austin Powers movie in 2002 was the highest grossing one yet.

 

[scarlet-witch]

Lindsay Lohan, Nick Stahl, and Edward Furlong - All have very promising careers that went to the wayside because of drugs.

 

[Rowsdower!]

Not sure what the deal with Mike Myers is. He does have a movie coming out next year with Margot Robbie and Simon Pegg though.

 

[Octoberist]

I vaguely remember that movie but I'm drawing a blank as to why that was a redeeming role for her.

Let's say it's shocking considering her age.

 

[Rowsdower!]

Oh I see.

 

[TMC1982]

What did Val Kilmer do? I always just assumed that as he got older and gained some weight it became harder for him to find good roles.

Also, does anyone know what happened to Mike Myers? I know he starred in that one horrible film which I forget the name of but it doesn't seem like one horrible film would be enough to stop him from ever again appearing in a movie besides Inglorious Bastards. Especially since the last Austin Powers movie in 2002 was the highest grossing one yet.

Val Kilmer and Mike Myers built reputations for being extremely difficult to work with, to put things in a nutshell.

 

[Rowsdower!]

Yeah, check out the notes on Kilmer's antics during the filming of The Island of Dr. Moreau. Granted, that movie was terrible and likely would have been terrible no matter what, but you have to have some sympathy for the director. I mean, Kilmer was set to play the lead role, and then right before they started filming, he demanded his role be reduced by 60%, so they had to create a whole other character for him to play and recast the lead.

 

[Isildur´s Heir]

I'm glad Heigl's career self-destructed.

You hate her so much that you are glad?!?!?!
Dude, live and let live.

 

[scarlet-witch]

Yeah, check out the notes on Kilmer's antics during the filming of The Island of Dr. Moreau. Granted, that movie was terrible and likely would have been terrible no matter what, but you have to have some sympathy for the director. I mean, Kilmer was set to play the lead role, and then right before they started filming, he demanded his role be reduced by 60%, so they had to create a whole other character for him to play and recast the lead.

I'd love to hear David Thewlis talk about that movie the way it seems he'd like to. Sounds like a gigantic clusterF.

ETA: omg there's a documentary about the movie's production on Netflix, I have to watch this.

 

[NotNickFury]

I don't know if I could call it self-destructing, but Eddie Murphy really went downhill with his comedies in the 90s. Coming off of SNL and stuff like Beverly Hills Cop or Coming to America, it seemed promising, then we got those Nutty Professor films, Norbit, Pluto Nash, and so on.

And what's worse is that he was amazing in Dreamgirls. That, I feel, could have been the start of a great comeback. Plus he DID get the Golden Globe, so people did recognize his acting prowess. Now, though, not as much.

 

[terry78]

Nutty Professor 1 and 2 were actually in line with his stuff I felt. He honestly deserved an Oscar for the characters.