Hollywood keeps chasing the next big actor. But when they fail to connect with audiences, the studios sometimes continue to push the actors into roles anyway. You’ve probably noticed the push. They’re the actors who appear on movie posters, in interviews and are constantly in big roles, even when nobody really cares for them. What they fail to realize is that sometimes an actor just doesn’t click with the crowd. These 20 actors had budgets, buzz, and big release dates, but never landed the star power they wanted. Not every flop is the actor’s fault, though: here are 10 box office flops that are actually worth watching.
20. Liam Hemsworth: The Hemsworth Who Never Became a Movie Star
At 19, Liam Hemsworth hit Hollywood chasing a dream his brothers made look easy. You met him in The Last Song in 2010, then he shot arrows in The Hunger Games and fought aliens in Independence Day: Resurgence (Rotten Tomatoes: 29%). Chris gets the love, but Liam gets the side-eyes. He’s also taken over from Henry Cavill as Geralt in Netflix’s The Witcher, a casting that split fans.
19. Daisy Ridley: Star Wars Made Her Famous, but Not a Box Office Draw
Daisy Ridley hit Hollywood in 2015 as Star Wars’ Rey, a pretty big role for a newcomer. But it didn’t launch her career the way everyone expected. She told Stylist in 2017, “I found the hardest thing was everyone saying, ‘Your life’s going to change.’” It didn’t. After the Star Wars sequel trilogy came Cleaner, Magpie, and The Marsh King’s Daughter. None of them were big hits. She’s set to return as Rey in a new Star Wars movie, though it doesn’t have a release date yet.
18. Theo James: The Divergent Lead Who Got Boxed In
Hollywood nudged Theo James into brooding mode with 2014’s Divergent, a franchise that showed up late and caught the Hunger Games leftovers. You probably remember the stare. It worked. It also boxed him in. He’s appeared in a number of big movies and TV shows (like The Gentlemen, The White Lotus and Osgood Perkins’ The Monkey) since, but none of them truly launched his career.
17. Joseph Gordon-Levitt: The Indie Darling Hollywood Stopped Pushing
For a stretch, Joseph Gordon-Levitt was everywhere. In 2012, he showed up as John Blake, a.k.a. Robin, in The Dark Knight Rises and played a young Bruce Willis in Looper. You probably still link him to Inception or 500 Days of Summer, but his filmography actually runs much deeper. He started young with A River Runs Through It, hit sitcom gold on 3rd Rock from the Sun, then rode an indie-friendly wave into the late 2000s. But the momentum slowed down quickly after Sin City: A Dame to Kill For, The Walk, and Snowden struggled to land. Hollywood stopped trying to make him a huge lead a long time ago.
16. Miles Teller: The Whiplash Star With the Fantastic Four Scars
When he was just 23 years old, Miles Teller landed his first feature, Rabbit Hole, after Nicole Kidman personally cast him. A few years later, Whiplash turned him into a stress test for audiences. Fame hit super fast. Too fast, some would say. A series of bad interviews gave him a bad rep. And it stuck until 2022. Thankfully, Top Gun: Maverick reminded people why he was a good actor. Sixteen years in he’s had very high highs and very low lows. And he’s got the Fant4stic scars (Rotten Tomatoes: 9%) to prove it. But Hollywood just hasn’t managed to convince audiences that he has lead star power yet.
15. Chris O’Donnell: The ’90s Robin Hollywood Never Fully Sold
He played Robin and starred in forgettable movies like The Chamber and Vertical Limit. Chris O’Donnell was Hollywood’s polite attempt at a ’90s movie star. He wasn’t bad. He just never connected with audiences. He found his real home on TV in NCIS: Los Angeles.
14. Orlando Jones: The Early-2000s Comedy Star Who Vanished
Evolution, Double Take, The Replacements. Yeah, Orlando Jones owned the early 2000s. Then he vanished faster than an alien under shampoo. He popped back as Anansi in American Gods and Gregory’s dad on Abbott Elementary, reminding everyone he’s still got it. But he never quite made it beyond being a co-star in okayish movies.
13. Jai Courtney: The Action Star Hollywood Kept Pushing
Divergent. Insurgent. Terminator Genisys. I, Frankenstein. A Good Day to Die Hard. Suicide Squad. Yeah, it’s a long list of films, but Hollywood hasn’t listened. They keep giving Jai Courtney more roles. He’s basically the Sam Worthington of the 2010s. Execs sold him as the next big thing, but every movie proved he wasn’t.
12. Alex Pettyfer: The Next Big Thing Whose Reputation Got in the Way
For a season, Alex Pettyfer had everything needed to be Hollywood’s next big star: the looks, the roles, and the ego. After breaking out in Stormbreaker and I Am Number Four, he stepped away from YA leads and went straight for Magic Mike — where he and Channing Tatum reportedly couldn’t stand each other. His reputation tanked, and despite reinventing his career more than once since, he never had the box office to back up the hype. Hollywood forgives divas with box office clout, not newcomers with attitude.
11. Noah Centineo: From Netflix Heartthrob to Street Fighter’s Ken
Noah Centineo went from being called “the next Zac Efron” to “wait, is he still acting?” after milking the same charming-guy routine in too many forgettable rom-coms. To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before worked, but the rest? Not so much. Now he’s back as Ken in Street Fighter (Rotten Tomatoes: 40%), probably his most interesting role yet. The movie opened at No. 1 at the box office on October 16 despite lukewarm reviews.
RELATED: Noah Centineo Reveals He Still Hasn’t Spoken to Sylvester Stallone About Playing Rambo
10. Jon Heder: The Napoleon Dynamite Star Hollywood Misread
Following Napoleon Dynamite, Hollywood tried to turn Heder into a mainstream comedy icon with movies like Blades of Glory and School for Scoundrels. Blades of Glory was a hit, but Will Ferrell was the draw, while School for Scoundrels grossed about $24 million worldwide against a reported $35 million budget. Nobody was buying that. Instead, Heder was a better fit for smaller indie roles and TV appearances. Lesson learned.
9. Charlie Hunnam: The Sons of Anarchy Star Who Couldn’t Carry a Blockbuster
On paper, Charlie Hunnam had everything to be a huge star. In fact, his breakthrough performance as Jax Teller in Sons of Anarchy convinced the industry he was destined to become a leading man. However, the lukewarm reception of his roles in Pacific Rim and King Arthur: Legend of the Sword (Rotten Tomatoes: 31%) changed everyone’s minds. Fast. He’s since landed his first Emmy nomination, for playing Ed Gein in Netflix’s Monster: The Ed Gein Story.
8. Cara Delevingne: The Supermodel Who Never Became a Movie Lead
Supermodel-turned-actress Cara Delevingne exploded into popularity with Paper Towns, which led to her starring roles in Suicide Squad and Valerian (Rotten Tomatoes: 47%) – only Suicide Squad proved to be a box office success. She’s since found herself more comfortable working on TV, where she’s doing some excellent work in shows like Carnival Row. She’s just not the lead Hollywood thought she was.
7. Armie Hammer: The Leading Man Whose Hollywood Career Collapsed
Armie Hammer really had everything it took to be the next big deal in Hollywood. Why didn’t it happen? Well, you know the answer to that question. With the fame and the looks to thrive in Hollywood, Hammer’s career got derailed at its highest point following a series of disturbing allegations and box office bombs that stopped his meteoric rise. Hammer has denied the allegations, and the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office declined to file charges in 2023. He returned in June with the controversial thriller Citizen Vigilante.
RELATED: Armie Hammer Calls His Comeback Movie ‘Hateful’ and ‘Disgusting’
6. Josh Hartnett: The 2000s Heartthrob Who Didn’t Chase Fame
You saw Josh Hartnett everywhere soon after Pearl Harbor, popping up in Hollywood Homicide, then stealing scenes in Sin City. Fame chased him, but he never really chased it back. Hartnett, now 48, is doing great work again in Oppenheimer and Trap. He just didn’t reach the heights Hollywood expected him to.
5. Ansel Elgort: The West Side Story Lead Who Lost His Momentum
The Fault in Our Stars and Baby Driver had him tracking toward leading-man status, and Spielberg handed him the lead in West Side Story. It underperformed at the box office despite critical acclaim, and the momentum never came back. He’s kept working, but Hollywood stopped positioning him as the next big thing.
4. Clive Owen: The Children of Men Star Who Moved to TV
Clive Owen could have been huge. Children of Men positioned him at a high level, opening doors to more action-heavy roles. But when movies like Shoot ’Em Up underperformed at the box office, the silver screen actor quietly moved to television instead, headlining The Knick.
3. Taylor Kitsch: The John Carter Flop That Stalled His Movie Career
The breakout success of Friday Night Lights launched Taylor Kitsch straight to the big screen. Unfortunately, it also landed him in back-to-back flops like John Carter (Rotten Tomatoes: 52%) and Battleship, which seriously hurt his shot at becoming a top-tier leading man. We just never really see him carry a film anymore.
RELATED: The Cast of John Carter: Where Are They Now?
2. Sam Worthington: The Avatar Star Who Never Left Pandora
Avatar should’ve made Sam Worthington a household name, but his subdued screen presence didn’t quite stick with audiences. Much like Jake Sully, Worthington’s leading career stayed in Pandora, where we saw him again in Avatar: Fire and Ash. Netflix’s I Will Find You gave him a streaming hit in June, but outside Pandora the big screen hasn’t followed. Maybe he would’ve been more famous without the blue skin.
RELATED: Netflix’s New No. 1 Thriller Starring Sam Worthington Had 24 Million Views In Just 4 Days
1. Taylor Lautner: The Twilight Heartthrob Hollywood Couldn’t Reinvent
From teenage heartthrob to action star, Lautner was meant to become a big deal, rivaling even the biggest names in the biz at the time. Unfortunately, his role as a teenage werewolf with an aversion to wearing shirts stuck with him, even when he wanted to pursue more serious roles. His 2011 action vehicle Abduction (Rotten Tomatoes: 5%) flopped. Where is he today? He’s set to star in and executive produce Taylor Lautner: Werewolf Hunter, an Amazon MGM Studios series in which he plays himself.
RELATED: Is Jared Leto Next? 9 Actors Whose Careers Never Recovered From Box Office Bombs
