Future Nominees for the Norma Desmond Palazzo for Retired Actors

Cafe Society
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As a flip-side of this thread, what superstars (faded or un at the moment) do you believe will one day be forgotten (if very rich) has beens trying to make a comeb… ahem… return in a new silent version of Salome (or maybe not, just the forgotten category)?

Some exemplification: all actors will be remembered by somebody (Eve and the Mafia never forget): film buffs, old movie enthusiasts, etc… Tab Hunter, Troy Donahue, Gina Lollabrigida, etc., are all technically remembered, but your average teenaged movie-goer and your average Ma & Pa Movie Gallery probably only know them as vaguely familiar names, while their contemporaries like Gable, Grant and Hepburn are far more vivid in the collective knowledgebase.

(Burt Reynolds is one of several who could be argued to be in the superstar or the Desmond category.)

The other thread discusses who will be the Gables and the Hepburns- who do you think will be the Hunters and the Tufts?

My nominees:

Tom Cruise- this may just be wishful thinking, but I honestly think that as prettier faces and, more importantly, bigger assured openings start to peep up over the next few years (he’ll be in his 50s w/in the decade- as Warren Beatty can tell you, there’s a difference in “looking really good” and “looking really good… for an older guy”) I think he’ll fade. He doesn’t have phenomenal talent to fall back on, he’s never majorly “stretched”, and while many his films have been blockbusters, box office alone doesn’t equal longevity (Independence Day was the year’s biggest hit just around the bend ago and even featured current #1 box office draw Will Smith, but now it’s on late night cable and already dated and forgotten). Few Cruise movies have really been original enough to really make a mark (Rainman being one that I think will outlive the others) and his recent Scienjinks have already sent his personal popularity south a bit. I think by 2020 he’ll be “the guy who used to be big…” (and still lives in a 30,000 square foot mansion but doesn’t laugh as much when asked to play a TV detective).

Tobey Maguire- a cute face and a great bod (in a city that lacks for neither) but only so-so talent. There’s nothing about him really charismatic or impressive enough to hold out, and today’s Spiderman 2 is tomorrow’s Batman & Robin. I think he’ll be a Donahue.

Ben Affleck- already letting the tag lapse on the Isotta Fraschini. He may revive his career by going to supporting roles, but currently his ego and accountants won’t let him.

Kim Basinger- she has beauty, talent and an Oscar, but I just don’t see her lasting. Kathleen Turner will have competition for those A&E History of Sex voiceovers within the decade.

Your pics?

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I have to disagree about Tom Cruise, not because I think he’s a talented actor, but that he’s been such a high-profile figure for so long. I agree he will eventually drift down to B-list, then C-list, then below, due to aging & generally flaky behavior though. But he will continue to be around, if for no other reason than that he will refuse to go away.
Some previously red hot folks that I believe have already begun to fade away -

Rupert Everett - You are only allowed to go so far as an openly-gay movie actor in Hollywood.

Jennifer Aniston - Who cares about her when you can slap Angelina Jolie’s mug on your trash tabloid?

Wynona Ryder - If she was going to make a comeback after the shoplifting incident, she’d have done it by now.

Jude Law - Just never successfully made the leap from scene-stealing sideman to “box office draw.”

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I’d just like to argue that Burt Reynolds has successfully avoided the Norma Desmond category by making a twilight comeback in some impressive and very acclaimed supporting roles. He’s one of the few who’ve managed to make the transition from superstar-leading-man to character-actor-with-something-extra without having his ego take massive blunt force trauma.

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Good call, jayjay.

Reynolds in Boogie Nights was nothing short of fantastic. Certainly worth his Oscar nod.

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Adam Sandler – his dumb little boy act has grown waaaayyyy too tired and his attempts to stretch – though interesting – did nothing at the box office. He really doesn’t seem to have much to fall back on and will eventually be as relevant to audiences as the Ritz Brothers are today.

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I’d like to nominate Martin Lawrence for oblivion. The sooner, the better.

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I agree. Let’s send along Eddie Murphy and Chris Tucker with him.