Actor / Actress that you thought would hit the next level, but didn\'t
 

I recently watched "Fire in the Sky". I have seen it before and remember thinking at the time that DB Sweeney was ready to make the jump to stardom, but it never happened.

Do any actors / actresses surprise you at their lack of success?

Re: Actor / Actress that you thought would hit the next level, but didn\'t
 

Robert Downey Jr.
David Morse
Parker Posey

Re: Actor / Actress that you thought would hit the next level, but did
 

Mickey Rourke

Re: Actor / Actress that you thought would hit the next level, but did
 

Tim Thomerson (greatest actor of all time see "Dollman" and "Trancers"

Lance Guest "Jaw's 3 & Last Starfighter"

Christopher Lambert (Highlander 1 (the only one) ) and Mortal Kombat. Fortress was good.

Adrien Paul (Highlander and love potion movie)


Tim Thomerson is my favorite actor His character dollman is the coolest guy in town. Dollman vs demonic toys was much better than puppetmaster vs demonic toys although I like corey feldman he could not save a movie where the puppets barely even fought.

Add That to the Trancers Series Jack Deth and Brick Bardo are 2 of the most badass charecters ever. He was the man.


My troll response is Tom Hanks with Splash and Big and bosom buddies he had so much comedic promise but he threw it all away with horrible movies like philidelphia, saving private ryan, davinci code etc etc. His drama pales to his greatness in the movie Joe Vs the Volcano.

Re: Actor / Actress that you thought would hit the next level, but did
 

After watching Kill Bill Vol. 2 i was convinced that David Carradine would get more movie roles. But his great haul from that exposure was a Yellowpages commercial.

Re: Actor / Actress that you thought would hit the next level, but didn\'t
 

[ QUOTE ]
Robert Downey Jr.
David Morse
Parker Posey

[/ QUOTE ]

I am still convinced that if Robert Downey Jr. could get his life together, he'll be a major player. He's certainly got the talent and he gets lots of chances, Hollywood likes him. He'll probably never be box office, many great actors aren't. But he's got an Oscar or two in him.

Morse has taken an interesting turn in playing the villain, and he's done well with that. He's not a leading man type, but he certainly has turned in some creepy performances, especially this season on House. He'll be around awhile.

For some reason Parker Posey never caught on, but she's still doing well. Her career will probably follow the Jennifer Jason Leigh route, lot's of small well acted roles in small films. An impressive body of work, just not box office.

Believe it or not, some actors prefer to just keep working in small roles rather than obtain "stardom". Only rarely are stars great actors, though everyone pretends they are. They're competent, but not great. (Or, they're capable of great stuff, but often you don't see it in their big roles.)

Re: Actor / Actress that you thought would hit the next level, but did
 

[ QUOTE ]
After watching Kill Bill Vol. 2 i was convinced that David Carradine would get more movie roles. But his great haul from that exposure was a Yellowpages commercial.

[/ QUOTE ]

I think this was about what he deserved. He probably did better on those commercials than many actors do in movies anyway.

Re: Actor / Actress that you thought would hit the next level, but did
 

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Robert Downey Jr.
David Morse
Parker Posey

[/ QUOTE ]

I am still convinced that if Robert Downey Jr. could get his life together, he'll be a major player. He's certainly got the talent and he gets lots of chances, Hollywood likes him. He'll probably never be box office, many great actors aren't. But he's got an Oscar or two in him.

Morse has taken an interesting turn in playing the villain, and he's done well with that. He's not a leading man type, but he certainly has turned in some creepy performances, especially this season on House. He'll be around awhile.

For some reason Parker Posey never caught on, but she's still doing well. Her career will probably follow the Jennifer Jason Leigh route, lot's of small well acted roles in small films. An impressive body of work, just not box office.

Believe it or not, some actors prefer to just keep working in small roles rather than obtain "stardom". Only rarely are stars great actors, though everyone pretends they are. They're competent, but not great. (Or, they're capable of great stuff, but often you don't see it in their big roles.)

[/ QUOTE ]

True. Most stars, especially today, find a role that sells really well and stick with it. It's those two things together that make your average star. John Wayne, Clint Eastwood, Sylvester Stallone, Jerry Lewis, Sidney Poitier, and Robert DeNiro are some that come to mind. Even stars that are less narrowly defined in their success and in a narrow selection of roles are still usually quite narrow. Most play, for instance, the good guy who has all the best lines and seems to be the center of absolutely everything. Not a lot of adventure, variety, or surprise going on there. We know he'll by and large be palatable, usually get along with most everyone worth getting along with, instantly wake people up when he walks into a room, and leave everyone looking gray or even non-existent when he leaves it.

Re: Actor / Actress that you thought would hit the next level, but did
 

Agreed w/ Lambert. He's pretty good.

Robert Sean Leonard though. I thought he showed a pretty good range in Dead Poets' Society, and especially Swing Kids.

Playing a douche in Driven, he seemed very underrepresented and stilted.

In looking over his IMDB, I noticed he's in House. I don't watch TV as a general rule though, so I wouldn't know about that.

Re: Actor / Actress that you thought would hit the next level, but didn\'t
 

Two academy award winning actresses I always thought would have stronger careers are Marisa Tomei and Mira Sorvino. Neither seemed to be able to gain any career momentum from winning the big prize.