# Entertainers who "got out of their lane" and failed **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** tv-shows-scripted, movies, music\ **Created:** [April 10, 2022, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/entertainers-who-got-out-of-their-lane-and-failed/962621 "2022-04-10T16:18:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2022, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/entertainers-who-got-out-of-their-lane-and-failed/962621/1 "2022-04-10T16:18:03Z")
There’s a couple of [other](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comedians-who-turn-out-to-have-good-dramatic-acting-skills/962515) [threads](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/serious-actors-or-non-actors-doing-comedy-later-on/962529) about serious actors going comedy and comedians going dramatic, both about the successes, but what about the failures? Who’s tried to “change lanes” and failed? ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2022, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/entertainers-who-got-out-of-their-lane-and-failed/962621/2 "2022-04-10T16:18:54Z")
Vince Vaughn qualifies I think. His hits, and most of his work, have always been comedies and he’s usually good in them, even if the movie isn’t great. He’s usually a kind of sarcastic “straight man” and he’s got that character down. He fails at dramatic roles because he essentially plays them the same way, but without the sarcasm, which is basically the only reason he’s likable at all. ---
**Author:** ![jaycat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jaycat/32/3015_2.png) [@jaycat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jaycat)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2022, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/entertainers-who-got-out-of-their-lane-and-failed/962621/3 "2022-04-10T16:19:35Z")
I’m going to nominate Elvis Costello’s and Paul McCartney’s various attempts at “classical” music. (You did say entertainers, not just actors). ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2022, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/entertainers-who-got-out-of-their-lane-and-failed/962621/4 "2022-04-10T16:21:37Z")
> [@jaycat](#): > > (You did say entertainers, not just actors). Yup. Everything’s fair game here. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2022, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/entertainers-who-got-out-of-their-lane-and-failed/962621/5 "2022-04-10T16:28:25Z")
I win. [![](https://i.discogs.com/hFHl9KRySNMJBbw-UWtpF8KN610_FRrrcY2mWmzuI2E/rs:fit/g:sm/q:90/h:480/w:480/czM6Ly9kaXNjb2dz/LWRhdGFiYXNlLWlt/YWdlcy9SLTgxNDkx/NjMtMTQ1NjIzNDcw/OS04MjQ5LmpwZWc.jpeg) ](https://i.discogs.com/hFHl9KRySNMJBbw-UWtpF8KN610_FRrrcY2mWmzuI2E/rs:fit/g:sm/q:90/h:480/w:480/czM6Ly9kaXNjb2dz/LWRhdGFiYXNlLWlt/YWdlcy9SLTgxNDkx/NjMtMTQ1NjIzNDcw/OS04MjQ5LmpwZWc.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2022, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/entertainers-who-got-out-of-their-lane-and-failed/962621/6 "2022-04-10T16:57:05Z")
Well, Keanu Reeves got waaay out of his lane for “_Much Ado About Nothing_” but he still prospered quite well when he went back to his lane. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2022, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/entertainers-who-got-out-of-their-lane-and-failed/962621/7 "2022-04-10T17:01:08Z")
IIRC Garth Brooks made an attempt at doing rock music, and it didn’t go well for him. And Dee Dee Ramone quit The Ramones and put out a rap album, which was abysmal. ---
**Author:** ![flurb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/51bf81/32.png) [@flurb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flurb)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2022, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/entertainers-who-got-out-of-their-lane-and-failed/962621/8 "2022-04-10T17:01:08Z")
The number of actors and actresses who’ve tried to launch music careers and failed is legion. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2022, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/entertainers-who-got-out-of-their-lane-and-failed/962621/9 "2022-04-10T17:10:42Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > IIRC Garth Brooks made an attempt at doing rock music, and it didn’t go well for him. You remember correctly (mostly). He released a rock album in 1999, under the persona of “[Chris Gaines](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chris_Gaines)” (though it was no secret that Gaines was Brooks) and while it was critically panned, a song from the album made #5 on the Billboard pop chart. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2022, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/entertainers-who-got-out-of-their-lane-and-failed/962621/10 "2022-04-10T17:11:05Z")
I would argue Pat Boone was just doing what he always did; adopting a counterculture and neutering it. ---
**Author:** ![crowmanyclouds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crowmanyclouds/32/19884_2.png) [@crowmanyclouds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crowmanyclouds)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2022, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/entertainers-who-got-out-of-their-lane-and-failed/962621/11 "2022-04-10T17:18:17Z")
Jerry Lewis’ _The Day the Clown Cried_. ---
**Author:** ![california\_jobcase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@california\_jobcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/california_jobcase)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2022, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/entertainers-who-got-out-of-their-lane-and-failed/962621/12 "2022-04-10T17:23:50Z")
That album was hilarious! I laughed harder than I had in years when I first heard it. Job well done! ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2022, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/entertainers-who-got-out-of-their-lane-and-failed/962621/13 "2022-04-10T17:35:14Z")
Jerry Lewis as well for his attempt at talk show host. And he’s certainly not alone; a lot of comedians have failed spectacularly at breaking into talk shows. Chevy Chase, Wanda Sykes, Megan Mullally, George Lopez, Tony Danza, Caroline Rhea… ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2022, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/entertainers-who-got-out-of-their-lane-and-failed/962621/14 "2022-04-10T18:13:48Z")
> [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > a lot of comedians have failed spectacularly at breaking into talk shows. Chevy Chase I remember the first episode of Chevy Chase’s talk show. It was painful to watch, he was so out of his element. ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2022, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/entertainers-who-got-out-of-their-lane-and-failed/962621/15 "2022-04-10T18:21:15Z")
> [@flurb](#): > > The number of actors and actresses who’ve tried to launch music careers and failed is legion. Eddie Murphy and John Travolta come to mind. Just because you got money and connections doesn’t mean you should attempt to crossover. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/iWa-6g-TbgI/maxresdefault.jpg "Eddie Murphy - Party All the Time") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iWa-6g-TbgI) [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/7H4NRyqEwyY/hqdefault.jpg "John Travolta - Let Her In") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7H4NRyqEwyY) It physically hurt to hear those again after 40 years. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2022, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/entertainers-who-got-out-of-their-lane-and-failed/962621/16 "2022-04-10T18:23:05Z")
> [@Si\_Amigo](#): > > It physically hurt to hear those again after 40 years. I won’t link to Don Johnson’s “Heartbeat” – you’ve suffered too much already. ---
**Author:** ![dorvann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/df705f/32.png) [@dorvann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dorvann)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2022, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/entertainers-who-got-out-of-their-lane-and-failed/962621/17 "2022-04-10T18:29:03Z")
Compared to Duane “The Rock” Johnson–Hulk Hogan’s movie career failed. Cite: _Santa with Muscles_ and _Mr Nanny_ Hogan’s attempted rap career was not much better: [Hulk Hogan- I Want to Be a Hulkamaniac - YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kOs00cFFzIM) And then there was his attempt at an Italian restaurant: > **[The Opening of Hulk Hogan’s Pastamania Restaurant at the Mall of America...](https://retroist.com/hulk-hogans-pastamania-restaurant-at-the-mall-of-america-1995/)** > > On Labor Day of 1995, Hulk Hogan opened his Pastamania Restaurant at the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota. Just a few months before this opening I made my first visit to this gigantic mall… ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2022, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/entertainers-who-got-out-of-their-lane-and-failed/962621/18 "2022-04-10T18:31:04Z")
Emeril Lagasse. Successful as a TV chef, but he was awful when he was tapped to star in a sitcom. > **[Emeril (TV series)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emeril_(TV_series))** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > > Emeril is an American sitcom television series created by Linda Bloodworth-Thomason, starring Emeril Lagasse as himself. It aired on Tuesday nights on NBC from September 25, 2001, to December 11, 2001, from 8:00-8:30 EST. A total of 10 half-hour episodes were produced over one season, but only 7 aired. > Having lost her development deal at CBS, Linda Bloodworth-Thomason sought to build a show around TV chef Emeril Lagasse. ABC passed on the show, e... ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2022, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/entertainers-who-got-out-of-their-lane-and-failed/962621/19 "2022-04-10T18:35:37Z")
In 1991, when he was a reasonably well-regarded action movie star, and not seen as a weirdo, Steven Seagal worked with some entrepreneurs to opened a restaurant, under his own name, in downtown Chicago. It failed within months. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2022, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/entertainers-who-got-out-of-their-lane-and-failed/962621/20 "2022-04-10T18:37:02Z")
Kevin Costner had initial success as a director with “Dances With Wolves”, then came the back to back stinkers “Waterworld” and “The Postman” (Costner didn’t direct Waterworld but he was a producer, and I think he used his Hollywood clout to get it made). > [@kenobi\_65](#): > > In 1991, when he was a reasonably well-regarded action movie star, and not seen as a weirdo, Steven Seagal worked with some entrepreneurs to opened a restaurant, under his own name, in downtown Chicago In the same vein, I predict a future failure for Eminem’s restaurant “Mom’s Spaghetti”. A take-out only restaurant, whose existence is completely based on a song lyric, that only serves spaghetti? After the initial curiosity of the gimmick wears off I can’t see it having much staying power. Although, it’s got 4.5 stars on Google after 761 reviews, so maybe it’s the best damn spaghetti ever. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/entertainers-who-got-out-of-their-lane-and-failed/962621.md?page=2)