15+ Movie Roles That Brought Nothing But Trouble To The Actors

Jessica Wilson

It is believed that acting is one of the most interesting and easy careers. Many people dream of becoming a famous actor and getting all the perks such a job involves. However, when hitting the road and trying to get a serious role, all their hopes may vanish away over time. It’s not a piece of cake to star in a huge number of films, play in crowd scenes, and demonstrate how diverse one’s acting can be.
While some roles bring actors worldwide recognition and incredible popularity, others bring a lot of criticism and problems to the actors taking on those roles. It may worsen that actors have to leave the world of cinema forever.
Here is a list of movie roles that brought plenty of problems to the actors. Click here and here to read more of our articles.

#1 David Schwimmer, Friends

Movie Roles 15+ movie roles that brought nothing but trouble to the actors movie rolesSource: © Friends / Warner Bros. Television and co-producers

Unlike others, David Schwimmer got wide recognition for his role in “Friends” but the problem was people couldn’t see anyone but Ross though the actor chose completely different roles. He suffered from fame and wanted to crawl into a hole and stay there.

#2 Jared Leto, Morbius

Movie Roles 15+ movie roles that brought nothing but trouble to the actors movie rolesSource: © Morbius / Columbia Pictures and co-producers

In 2022, we see one of the biggest flops, “Morbius”. The movie got plenty of negative reviews and Jared Leto’s acting was heavily criticized. Even after the failure, the scenes from the movie went viral, and a load of memes was released.

#3 Camila Cabello, Cinderella

Movie Roles 15+ movie roles that brought nothing but trouble to the actors Source: © Cinderella / Columbia Pictures and co-producers

Camila Cabello got famous early. She was in Fifth Harmony, one of the most successful pop groups in history. In 2021, she started filming but unfortunately, her first role was a failure. Although she sang very well, her character, Cinderella received negative reviews.

#4 Michael Bakari Jordan, Black Panther

Movie Roles 15+ movie roles that brought nothing but trouble to the actors Source: © Black Panther / Marvel Studios and co-producers

Unlike other villains, the viewers sympathized with the character Erik Killmonger played by Michael Bakari Jordan. To fulfill the role well, he cost a lot. He had to get therapy because of the psychological problems he had after that. Jordan shared, “I never was in a character for so long period of time and was, I guess, that dark, that lonely, that painful. So coming out of it, I thought, “Oh yeah, business as usual. I can just go back home, I’ll cut my hair off, and everything will be back to normal.”

#5 Angelina Jolie, Eternals

Movie Roles 15+ movie roles that brought nothing but trouble to the actors Source: © Eternals / Marvel Studios

Many believed that it was so awesome when Jolie stepped into the Marvel world. However, “Eternals” proved it was a mistake. The 2021 film was the worst Marvel movie. Critics called it boring and said that the story was underdeveloped. Jolie’s acting got negative reviews. In recent years, the actress hasn’t appeared on the screens as an actress, she is directing now.

#6 Pamela Anderson, Barb Wire

15+ movie roles that brought nothing but trouble to the actors Source: © Barb Wire / Dark Horse Entertainment and co-producers

After reading the script of “Barb Wire”, Pamela Anderson dreamt of getting a big role that would earn her an Oscar. Sadly, the film was a huge flop and the actress got the Golden Raspberry Award.

#7 Madonna, Die Another Day

15+ movie roles that brought nothing but trouble to the actors Source: © Die Another Day / Eon Productions and co-producers

Despite being successful in music, Madonna tried to act. She had some really good roles: Evita and Desperately Seeking Susan. But 2 bad roles in “Swept Away” and “Die Another Day” ruined everything. These roles brought her 2 Golden Raspberries and Madonna was considered a bad actress. Since then, she returned to music.

#8 Dev Patel, The Last Airbender

15+ movie roles that brought nothing but trouble to the actors Source: © The Last Airbender / Paramount Pictures and co-producers

For his role in “Slumdog Millionaire”, Dev Patel got famous. After that, he accepted an offer to play a villain in “The Last Airbender”. The film was a box office bomb that made him decide to never do superhero Movies again.

#9 Emile Hirsch, Speed Racer

15+ movie roles that brought nothing but trouble to the actors Source: © Speed Racer / Warner Bros. and co-producers

Emile Hirsch’s role in “Speed Racer” closed the doors into the world of big movies for a long time. Despite the failure of the movie, Emile was able to find some positive outcomes. After years, he was on the same set with Matthew McConaughey in “Killer Joe” and with Paul Rudd in “Prince Avalanche”.

#10 January Jones, X-Men: First Class

Source: © X: First Class / Twentieth Century Fox and co-producers

January Jones’ portrayal of Emma Frost in “X-Men: First Class” received a ton of criticism. The situation was even spicier due to a rumor that January Jones and the director of the film Matthew Vaughn had a romance. After that, she starred in movies only a couple of times and then decided to take a long break before returning to the big screens.

#11 Meg Ryan, Proof of Life

Movie Roles 15+ movie roles that brought nothing but trouble to the actors Source: © Proof of Life / Castle Rock Entertainment and co-producers

Meg Ryan was considered the queen of romantic comedies after perfectly performing in “Sleepless in Seattle” and “You’ve Got Mail”. The movie itself didn't get good reviews, and also Meg Ryan and Russell Crowe had a romance. But she was still married to actor Dennis Quaid. It was the main reason that ruined the image of Ryan. Later, she mostly starred in independent movies.

#12 Faye Dunaway — Mommie Dearest

15+ movie roles that brought nothing but trouble to the actors Source: © Mommie Dearest / Paramount Pictures

According to Faye Dunaway, her portrayal of Joan Crawford made her career go seriously downhill. She confessed to taking on the role. Every evening, when she came back home, she felt that Crawford was still with her. It had a rumor that during filming, she was absolutely terrible to her co-workers and humiliated everyone. The entire Hollywood knew about her ugly behavior.

#13 Mischa Barton, The O.C.

15+ movie roles that brought nothing but trouble to the actors Source: © The O.C. / Warner Bros. Television and co-producers

After starring in “The O.C.”, Mischa Barton got famous worldwide and the actress couldn’t bear it. She decided to leave Hollywood for several years. The next time she appeared on the screen was only 3 years later.

#14 Jessica Alba, An Invisible Sign

Movie RolesSource: © An Invisible Sign / Silverwood Films and co-producers

At the beginning of the 2000s, Jessica Alba was extremely popular but at the end of the 2000s, she did a series of unsuccessful movies and one of them was “An Invisible Sign” with 0% on Rotten Tomatoes. The flop was mostly associated with Alba. After that, she started doing way fewer projects.

#15 Hugh Grant, Did You Hear About the Morgans?

Movie RolesSource: © Did You Hear About the Morgans? / Columbia Pictures and co-producers

The terrible role in Did You Hear About the Morgans? made Hugh Grunt take a 3-year-long pause until everyone would forget it. Critics said that Hugh Grant and Jessica Parker had no chemistry. Grant said that this film cost him the status of a demanded and well-paid actor. He restored his reputation only in 2012, thanks to Cloud Atlas, where he played 6 characters.

#16 Jessica Chastain, The 355

Source: © The 355 / Universal Pictures and co-producers

Taking part in “The 355” wasn’t Chastain’s wise decision. The movie wasn’t anything special and memorable. To put this past her as fast as possible, the actress started new projects, such as James Gray’s Armageddon Time, and Michel Franco’s Memory.