# Actors who killed (or very nearly so) their careers by taking \*too\* memorable a role. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 26, 2004, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-killed-or-very-nearly-so-their-careers-by-taking-too-memorable-a-role/261631 "2004-08-26T17:28:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Loopydude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e56c9b/32.png) [@Loopydude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loopydude)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2004, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-killed-or-very-nearly-so-their-careers-by-taking-too-memorable-a-role/261631/81 "2004-08-27T04:40:38Z")
People, _people_, how can we forget [Gilligan’s Island](http://www.gilligansisle.com/)? If ever there was a career doomer, that show was it. Did _any_ of the cast do _anything_ afterwards besided Gilligan’s reunion specials? Well, actually, Jim Backus seemed to have a reasonably healthy career, but the rest, especially Bob Denver, seem to have been hopelessly typecast. I think the most noteworthy thing he did post-Gilligan was get busted for pot. Sad. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2004, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-killed-or-very-nearly-so-their-careers-by-taking-too-memorable-a-role/261631/82 "2004-08-27T12:05:59Z")
Linda Lovelace? :eek: ---
**Author:** ![look\_ninjas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b2d939/32.png) [@look\_ninjas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/look_ninjas)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2004, 12:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-killed-or-very-nearly-so-their-careers-by-taking-too-memorable-a-role/261631/83 "2004-08-27T12:17:15Z")
Perhaps it’s too soon to say, but I have to wonder about Jason Biggs. “Hey, didn’t you have sex with a pie?” ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2004, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-killed-or-very-nearly-so-their-careers-by-taking-too-memorable-a-role/261631/84 "2004-08-27T13:06:38Z")
Why bring up **Titanic** to talk about Billy Zane when Kate Winslet will probably be “Rose” forever? ---
**Author:** ![roger\_thornhill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d9b06d/32.png) [@roger\_thornhill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/roger_thornhill)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2004, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-killed-or-very-nearly-so-their-careers-by-taking-too-memorable-a-role/261631/85 "2004-08-27T13:08:40Z")
Nah, Kate will be the chubby bird who keeps taking her clothes off. I hope. ---
**Author:** ![Askia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Askia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askia)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2004, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-killed-or-very-nearly-so-their-careers-by-taking-too-memorable-a-role/261631/86 "2004-08-27T13:50:16Z")
The remaining Cosby kids who’re still acting – **Malcolm Jamal Warner, Tempest Bledsoe, Jasmine Guy** and \*\*Kadeem Hardison \*\* – are having a hell of time finding other roles outside the wholesome kid mold. (Excepting **Marisa Tomei** , who started out on _It’s A Different World_ and who’s since been typecast as Vinnie’s Girlfriend.) **Jasmine Guy** at least has the stage as an outlet for her singing and dancing. **Raven Simone \*\* was so young even when the show ended that once she made the transition to Disney.** Lisa Bonet \*\* was so out there as a bohemeian – on and off-stage – I don’t think she counts anymore. **Jaleel White** is probably doomed as Urkel, despite his talent for physical comedy – although one hears the rumor he’s the old dancing white guy in those Six Flags commercials. His [imdb.com](http://imdb.com) page hasn’t been updated since 1999. Think of all those blaxploitation stars of the seventies who’ve never escaped their seminal roles: \*\*Richard Roundtree \*\* will always, always be Shaft, \*\*Ron O’ Neal \*\* will always be Youngblood Priest and \*\*Pam Grier \*\* will always be Foxy Brown (Jackie Brown notwithstanding). **Jim Brown** is just Jim Brown, tho. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2004, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-killed-or-very-nearly-so-their-careers-by-taking-too-memorable-a-role/261631/87 "2004-08-27T14:15:49Z")
> [@roger thornhill](#): > > Kevin Costner. ‘No Way Out’ was a good thriller and showed he had talent, but after ‘Dances with Wolves’ his career has been all downhill. It’s as if that film squeezed the life out of him. I thought _The Big Chill_ did that… ---
**Author:** ![plnnr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@plnnr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/plnnr)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2004, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-killed-or-very-nearly-so-their-careers-by-taking-too-memorable-a-role/261631/88 "2004-08-27T15:07:51Z")
> [@supervenusfreak](#): > > Hmmm did anyone hear of a little Stanley Kubrick movie called “The Shining”? She was terrific as Wendy. Man, I’ve got to get my computer looked at - I could swear that this says that Shelley Duval was “terrific” in “The Shining.” Her name should have been “Woody” the performance was so wooden and monotone. Bela Lugosi had a career before playing “Dracula,” but was typecast forever after that. He was a bit of a success, so I don’t know that his career was killed, but he sure was limited by the part. ---
**Author:** ![holmes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e95f7d/32.png) [@holmes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/holmes)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2004, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-killed-or-very-nearly-so-their-careers-by-taking-too-memorable-a-role/261631/89 "2004-08-27T15:30:59Z")
> [@Askia](#): > > **Jaleel White** is probably doomed as Urkel, despite his talent for physical comedy – although one hears the rumor he’s the old dancing white guy in those Six Flags commercials. His [imdb.com](http://imdb.com) page hasn’t been updated since 1999. No, I heard it was Carlton (Alfonso Ribeiro) from Fresh Prince…He’s an accomplished dancer (Tap Dance Kid). I can’t see Jaleel moving like that. ---
**Author:** ![KGS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/90ced4/32.png) [@KGS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KGS)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2004, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-killed-or-very-nearly-so-their-careers-by-taking-too-memorable-a-role/261631/90 "2004-08-27T15:32:09Z")
I’ll bet a lot of the _Lord of the Rings_ actors are going to find themselves typecast. Already, whenever I see them in another movie, I think, “Oh look, it’s Boromir the terrorist!” or “Wow, Yoda’s fighting Saruman!” or “Oh dear, Legolas fell out of the helicopter and now the whole Somali mission’s gone to shit!” The ones in heavy makeup roles (Ian McKellan & John Rhys-Davies) will probably avoid it, though…and as for Elijah Wood, I always thought he was a hobbit since _Avalon_. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2004, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-killed-or-very-nearly-so-their-careers-by-taking-too-memorable-a-role/261631/91 "2004-08-27T15:48:36Z")
I don’t think any of the _Willy Wonka_ kids ever really went on to anything else. > [@Loopydude](#): > > People, _people_, how can we forget [Gilligan’s Island](http://www.gilligansisle.com/)? **Bosda** certainly didn’t. See post #8. ---
**Author:** ![Cluricaun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bb73d2/32.png) [@Cluricaun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cluricaun)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2004, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-killed-or-very-nearly-so-their-careers-by-taking-too-memorable-a-role/261631/92 "2004-08-27T16:05:38Z")
How about John Ritter? Sure, he had a few films (the one where he gets sucked in to the TV, the older Ben Hanscomb in IT, and Problem Child), but he had just gotten another big show when he up and died. He will always be Jack Tripper to me. ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Tan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/charlie_tan/32/12582_2.png) [@Charlie\_Tan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Tan)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2004, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-killed-or-very-nearly-so-their-careers-by-taking-too-memorable-a-role/261631/93 "2004-08-27T16:36:24Z")
I still stick with nominating Tom Hulce. Rememeber, the OP asked for a memorable performance that killed a career, inadvertently. Before Amadeus he was sort of on the rise. He landed the lead in a major box office hit and Oscar winner, although F. Murray Abraham won the Oscar for leading actor (which is kinda weird). So one would think that Hulce would get good offers, and that he has been able to profit from this huge succes, no? IMDb lists 10 features released for the theatre in 20 years. And I don’t think a single release since 1990 has been with him in the lead, if you exclude voice acting. He did Quasimodo in The Hunchback, back in '96 and since then has only one role credited to him: Voice acting in the Hunchback II. I think both Gwynneth Paltrow and Sally Field killed (or at least harmed) their respective careers with their acceptance speeches at the Oscars. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2004, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-killed-or-very-nearly-so-their-careers-by-taking-too-memorable-a-role/261631/94 "2004-08-27T16:44:20Z")
> [@Cluricaun](#): > > How about John Ritter? Sure, he had a few films (the one where he gets sucked in to the TV, the older Ben Hanscomb in IT, and Problem Child), but he had just gotten another big show when he up and died. He will always be Jack Tripper to me. Ritter once said that if he discovered a cure for AIDS and was going up on stage to accept his Nobel Prize, the music playing would be “Come and knock on our door…” ---
**Author:** ![Estilicon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/848f3c/32.png) [@Estilicon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Estilicon)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2004, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-killed-or-very-nearly-so-their-careers-by-taking-too-memorable-a-role/261631/95 "2004-08-27T16:49:50Z")
How about [this](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0077003/) tv show? I think we have a winner. His name is estilicon and he found several actors that were killed by one memorable role. The best example is gary coleman, I think he is a security guard somewhere. ---
**Author:** ![Threadkiller](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/aca169/32.png) [@Threadkiller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Threadkiller)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2004, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-killed-or-very-nearly-so-their-careers-by-taking-too-memorable-a-role/261631/96 "2004-08-27T16:49:49Z")
Brandon Lee’s career never survived _ **The Crow** _ 😃 OK, that was enough tastelessness for one day. > [@DKW](#): > > I put Mark Hamill in the same boat as Billy Zane (the short-tempered, insanely jealous, and quite possibly mentally ill Caledon Hockley in _Titanic_), in that while he’ll always be remember for his one big role, he was never talented enough for another one anyway. For the record, Hamill’s settled very comfortably in his role as a voice actor for a long, long time, and Zane’s been in all kinds of minor roles since _Titanic_. Just two guys who had their moment in the sun and then settled back into their niche. Billy Zane was a character actor before, during and after _ **Titanic** _. A $billion movie certainly gets you more attention. He has been the star a couple of times but the projects never amounted to much: _ **The Phantom** _ is one of my favorite “bad movies that don’t qualify as camp”. ---
**Author:** ![Estilicon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/848f3c/32.png) [@Estilicon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Estilicon)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2004, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-killed-or-very-nearly-so-their-careers-by-taking-too-memorable-a-role/261631/97 "2004-08-27T16:55:47Z")
Following a link, I just found out about Dana Plato. My last post wasn’t, therefore, my best one. ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2004, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-killed-or-very-nearly-so-their-careers-by-taking-too-memorable-a-role/261631/98 "2004-08-27T16:59:46Z")
> [@Askia](#): > > (Excepting **Marisa Tomei** , who started out on _It’s A Different World_ and who’s since been typecast as Vinnie’s Girlfriend.) No, to be typecast in a role is to be relegated to playing parts that are almost identical to that one. Looking at her [screen career](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000673/) post-1992, I can only find one role (among more than two dozen) that strongly resembles Ms. Vito. If anything, she’s been typecast more often as a scatter-brained sweet-girl, which is quite the opposite of the role for which she won the Oscar. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2004, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-killed-or-very-nearly-so-their-careers-by-taking-too-memorable-a-role/261631/99 "2004-08-27T17:19:37Z")
> [@supervenusfreak](#): > > Hmmm did anyone hear of a little Stanley Kubrick movie called “The Shining”? She was terrific as Wendy. She was also great as Dixie in “Roxanne”, yet another hit. Also, like other smart Hollywood actors, she went into the production end of the business, creating, producing and starring in several children’s series for Showtime. A. Quote _and read_ the whole message. I actually made the same points. “Dixie” in “Roxanne” is Yet Another Great Shelley Duvall role, but, like I said, a secondary character. B. Look up stuff at IMDB. “The Shining” came out earlier the same year as “Popeye”. So doing “Popeye” obviously didn’t hurt her career insofar as being able to do “The Shining” did it? Well??? ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2004, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-killed-or-very-nearly-so-their-careers-by-taking-too-memorable-a-role/261631/100 "2004-08-27T17:40:16Z")
If Meg Ryan shot up a kindergarten class with a machine gun, who among us wouldn’t say… “You mean the cute chick who faked an orgasm in a deli?” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-killed-or-very-nearly-so-their-careers-by-taking-too-memorable-a-role/261631.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-killed-or-very-nearly-so-their-careers-by-taking-too-memorable-a-role/261631.md?page=6)