Ever gone from hating to loving an entertainer (and vice versa)?

Cafe Society
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The word probably shouldn’t be “hating”, but you get the point.

Has there ever been an entertainer that you had a strong dislike for that turned it around and made you a big fan?

I’m not talking about where they had a good performance that you grudgingly acknowledged as excellence, but rather over a period of time, they made you a true fan.

Two come to mind for me.

First was Johnny Depp. For years his presence in a film was a distraction or a reason to avoid the film altogether.

Even though he was good in one of my favorite films (Donnie Brasco), I tried to avoid Depp vehicles.

I even rolled my eyes at the success of Pirate of the Caribbean. Eventually, I watched it and was quite surprised at his performance. The film was good BECAUSE of Depp. He was equally impressive in Finding Neverland. Around this time, I saw Chocolat for the first time. By Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, he was one of the actors that I would give a second look at his film simply because he was in it.

I went from being a Depp hater to a Depp fan.

I also had the same experience with Jason Bateman. I HATED that guy in the 80’s. He was so smarmy. He was the sitcom bad guy in Silver Spoons. He was annoying in Valerie and pretty much everything he did annoyed the heck out of me. He was the Bizarrro World Michael J. Fox!

But when Arrested Development came out, I figured I’d give it a look. It was the kind of quirky show that I like. It had a lot of other cast members who slay me. I figured that maybe I could just tune out when he was the focus of attention.

Turns out, I like the adult Jason Bateman. When he is onscreen, I pay GREATER attention. Quite simply, he is the best actor on television. Then I saw his cameo in Dodgeball. In a movie full of great comedic actors, he stole the show.

Whatever Bateman does after Arrested Development uses the last of its nine lives I will follow Jason Bateman on to his net project.

Sadly, there is one solid example of where I was a big fan of someone and grew to dislike them. It is the actor that for much of my life was the answer to “Who is your favorite actor?”

Harrison Ford.

How could you not love Harrison Ford? He played TWO of the most memorable characters in the history of film! He is the star of my favorite movie of all time. He even had a third film franchise (Clancy). Even his non franchise films (Witness, Presumed Innocent, Fugitive and Working Girl) were excellent flicks.

But in his later life, he became WAY too Hollywood. The appeal of Ford was that he was this rugged Everyman who was annoyed with bullshit. Kind of like a tough Tom Hanks.

But somewhere around the mid to late 90’s, he became a Hollywood cliche. He started dyeing and blow drying his hair, got an earring, left his wife for a 20 something anorexic. Basically acting like a guy 1/3 his age. Sad. And he started picking crap films and phoning it in.

The guy hasn’t had a GREAT film since 1993 (Fugitive), a really good film since 1994 (Clear and Present Danger) or even a DECENT film since 1997 (Airforce One).

It has gotten so bad that I hope that they do NOT make Indy 4, because I don’t think Ford can be Indy anymore.

Any for you?

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I saw Hollywood Homicide on a bus in Spain last week…even dubbed it makes you want to take a bath with a toaster

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Katie Holmes… I largely dimissed her for a long time. Then I think it was after Wonderboys…I decided I actually really liked her. As a personality not neccessarily as an actress. I like her… man I sound spacey… I like her energy.

I ignore everything about her and Tom because it skeeves me out something fierce.
Heather Graham- I used to love her. LOVE HER like I love Julianne Moore and Lauren Ambrose. I thought she was one of the sexiest women alive. I liked her in every movie she was in… Then I started to read interviews with her… and she just seemed like kind of a shitty person. Just shallow and kind of bitchy. I now no longer really care for her. I might give her new tv show a chance.

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Marcia Wallace, “Carol” from The Bob Newhart Show. In my teens I had a crush on her for her tall skinny frizzy quirkiness (left picture). Years later I caught her with her middle-age-pounds on (right picture) and was aghast. “My Og,” I thought, “she’s turned into a gay man!”

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Jason Lee was probably my favorite actor until I found out (several years ago) that he was a scientologist. I don’t exactly hate the guy, but it’s hard for me to watch those scientologists on screen and believe the character instead of the person. I thought Jenna Elfman was pretty much the sexiest woman on the planet until I found out about her, and now I hardly find her attractive.

I used to like Jessica Alba but now I can’t stand her for the same reasons Push You Down doesn’t like Heather Graham.

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I’m having a hard time with Beck at the moment for the same reason.

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What? They got Beck too? Say it ain’t so!

Someone needs to tell Mr. Lee and Mr., um, Beck immediately that Scientology is for froot loops, and emphatically not for cool people. The guy who put out Mutations and Sea Change is NOT supposed to go trying to find himself via some spiritual Ponzi-scheme.

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Steve Martin. He was never all that good as a comediant (Dan Ayckroyd, for instance, was much better as “A Wild and Crazy Guy” than Martin was) and his early movies were all terrible. However, he started growing on me as he aged. I think the big change was an article about him saying that he wasn’t a comic; he was an actor portraying a comic. By Roxanne, I was looking forward to his performances.

Alas, some of his more recent films are smarmy unfunny comedies, but Shopgirl seems to have put him back on the right track.

Burt Lancaster. He was always too “on,” too overbearing, too cold. Then he did Atlantic City. Wow. He was also great in Local Hero.

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Have you seen him in The Spanish Prisoner? Not a comedy, and very good.

I admit to having the same issue with Beck. Scientology is not a nice religion, and it requires its adherents to spend thousands of dollars or more to learn more about it, compared to other churches which might pass a collection plate, request donations, etc.

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The thing about Steve Martin is you have to forgive him for his comedies (aka “paycheck movies”) and look to the smaller films he does in between.

As for scientologists, I am pretty tolerant of even freaky religions. I have never heard Jason Lee acting all creepy and pod people-esque so I can enjoy his work.

Until Cruise became creepy (which began LONG before this year), I enjoyed his work.

It is more about the behavior than his devotion to a religion.

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I think Steve Martin is capable of being funnier in more ways than nearly anyone. You just wouldn’t know it from most of his movies. I think his standup was very, very funny, he’s made a couple of really good movies, and as a playwright and author I think he’s also excellent. When I see he’s doing Cheaper By the Dozen 2, I try to pretend it’s a different guy, because :rolleyes:.

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Not to mention his INCREDIBLE turn as Oscar Host.

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Sarah Michelle Geller.

I actually started to like her when she was on the greatest television show ever, Swan’s Crossings.

I like the show so much that some friends of mine got me a Sidney doll. (her character) Then years later, during the run of Buffy, she is on Regis and a coworker and I go over to the studio to try and get her autograph. I bring the Sidney doll, (mint in box) There are about six other autograph seekers there. Her limo pulls out and promptly stops in traffic. There we are, trying to get an autograph, and she didn’t even look at us. She purposefully ignored the few people there that just wanted her autograph.

I couldn’t enjoy Buffy after that. Except when evil Willow was on the show.

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I think you mean that. Even if you didn’t, I liked him a lot. Although I don’t know if they’ll have him back unless Russell Crowe goes to jail or something. :wink:

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Gilbert Gottfried.

Having only experienced him as an annoying voice actor and bit player I was astounded when I watched The Aristocats to discover that he’s actually hilarious doing stand-up. My opinion of him did a complete 180.

Come to think of it, The Aristocats made me completely reassess my opinion of Bob Saget as well. Apparently he told blue jokes about Mary-Kate and Ashley in his stand-up act while Full House was on the air. :eek: And I’d written him off as this bland, boring non-entity … .

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Have to agree with Steve Martin…he went from a can’t-miss presence in movies to a must-miss. Also,

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I always thought Jack Nicholson was hideously ugly. Hard to even watch. Yet I’ve come to like him and his performances.

I found both John Travolta and Nicolas Cage unattractive and annoying, but have since come to like them, and think they’re actually kinda hunky, in their own way.

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Damn, hit submit too early.
Also, Chevy Chase. Loved him in Caddyshack, Fletch, etc…and then he just fell apart. Also seems to have fallen apart psychologically, but that’s another story.

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So you’re pissed that Buffy didn’t get out of her car in traffic to give you an autograph?

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For Love to hate or dislike:
Mel Gibson: Loved Mad Max, Lethal Weopon, Braveheart etc. He has completely lost me with his Jesus kick.
Chevy Chase: I used to think he was brilliant and funny, I grew out of it.

For Hate to Love:
I thought Mike Meyers was only occasionally funny on SNL, I loved most of his movies.
**Carol Kane **: I thought she killed Taxi, but since then I have found her a very funny and believable actress. Highlights are small roles in Scrooged and The Princess Bride. I also think she was beautiful in The World’s Greatest Lover
and other early roles.