# Is Jack Black's career tanking? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 30, 2011, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jack-blacks-career-tanking/569488 "2011-01-30T05:01:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Shawn\_K\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c67d28/32.png) [@Shawn\_K\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shawn_K_1)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2011, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jack-blacks-career-tanking/569488/21 "2011-01-30T18:16:14Z")
> [@Simplicio](#): > > I liked him in King Kong, which is the only non-comedy I’ve heard of him doing. I think he should do more of that, as the “funny guy” in films that aren’t comedies. > > Agree his current shtick has probably taken him about as far as its going to. Pretty sure he was in “Enemy of the State” with Will Smith and “The Jackal” with Bruce Willis as well for more serious roles albeit supporting roles rather than lead roles. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2011, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jack-blacks-career-tanking/569488/22 "2011-01-30T18:33:56Z")
Tanking now or not, Jack’s career has been pretty decent. Beyond the films and music, he’s married into a good family (The Hadens), has a beautiful wife and a couple of kids. Fame and fortune can disappear overnight, but I imagine he’s doing alright. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2011, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jack-blacks-career-tanking/569488/23 "2011-01-30T21:00:05Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > _Kung Fu Panda_ doesn’t count, because voice-over work doesn’t count. After all, anyone looking at the box office receipts from the last \*Shrek \*movie might be led to think that Eddie Murphy and Mike Myers still have careers. Careers doing voice over work can be pretty lucrative careers. And quality does count. Black was perfectly cast in “Kung Fu Panda.” Some of the voice work in that movie really stood out - Black and Dustin Hoffman, especially. Some, like Angelina Jolie and Jackie Chan, could have been replaced by any one of a thousand cheaper actors. Someday, they’re going to realize that a few star names is enough for an animated feature and you don’t need to pay big bucks for the seventh biggest role. ---
**Author:** ![Superhal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Superhal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superhal)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2011, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jack-blacks-career-tanking/569488/24 "2011-01-30T21:01:43Z")
To tank you have to start from a higher point. He’s sucked since the beginning. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2011, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jack-blacks-career-tanking/569488/25 "2011-01-30T21:10:49Z")
I thought he was great fun in _School of Rock_. What he really needs for a career revival is a role as the sidekick in a big-budget buddy-cop or spy caper movie. Something like Tom Arnold’s role in _True Lies_, or Eddie Murphy in _48 Hours_. He’s a natural scene-stealer, but he needs to be taken in small doses. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2011, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jack-blacks-career-tanking/569488/26 "2011-01-30T21:29:56Z")
He was in Neverending Story 3 back in 1994. I don’t think you can _get_ any lower than that. ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2011, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jack-blacks-career-tanking/569488/27 "2011-01-30T22:58:44Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > I don’t think he sucked in _Tropic Thunder_ because I feel he was well cast in the role. I need to dig up a cite, but wasn’t Black a last minute replacement for Owen Wilson in Tropic Thunder due to Wilson’s suicide attempt right before filming? ---
**Author:** ![joebuck20](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/74df32/32.png) [@joebuck20](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joebuck20)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2011, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jack-blacks-career-tanking/569488/28 "2011-01-30T23:11:46Z")
> [@Shawn\_K\_1](#): > > Pretty sure he was in “Enemy of the State” with Will Smith and “The Jackal” with Bruce Willis as well for more serious roles albeit supporting roles rather than lead roles. Looking at his IMDB page, he was indeed in those movies. I’m surprised to see he was also in “Demolition Man” and that he played a skinhead on an episode of “Life Goes On.” ---
**Author:** ![pepperlandgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f17d59/32.png) [@pepperlandgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pepperlandgirl)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2011, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jack-blacks-career-tanking/569488/29 "2011-01-30T23:33:06Z")
> [@Bob Ducca](#): > > I need to dig up a cite, but wasn’t Black a last minute replacement for Owen Wilson in Tropic Thunder due to Wilson’s suicide attempt right before filming? I’m pretty sure that Matthew McConaughey replaced Owen Wilson. Didn’t it feel like his performance was basically him playing Owen Wilson playing Ben Stiller’s only friend? Ah, thanks to Google [I even found proof](http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=3&sqi=2&ved=0CCgQFjAC&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.moviefone.com%2F2007%2F09%2F19%2Fmatthew-mcconaughey-replaces-owen-wilson-in-tropic-thunder%2F&ei=_PRFTY6PHcTdgQfovqi5AQ&usg=AFQjCNGpiEt1_6YcbXR8ugrHKShmsuZbjw) ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2011, 7:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jack-blacks-career-tanking/569488/30 "2011-01-31T07:36:06Z")
Black was the only redeeming feature of Never Ending Story III. Well, unless you were planning on MST3King it. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2011, 9:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jack-blacks-career-tanking/569488/31 "2011-01-31T09:19:14Z")
> [@Bosstone](#): > > He was in Neverending Story 3 back in 1994. I don’t think you can _get_ any lower than that. He was also Sean Penn’s brother in **Dead Man Walking** , though I don’t recall him having any dialogue. And he was in a scene deleted from **True Romance**. ---
**Author:** ![smoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@smoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smoke)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2011, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jack-blacks-career-tanking/569488/32 "2011-01-31T19:03:49Z")
He’s been in a ton of stuff. I didn’t notice it mentioned here yet, but those of you who recall being aware of Tenacious D before they released their album aren’t mistaken. The D had a short-lived HBO(?) series before any of that happened. It was hilarious at the time, but less-so if you saw if after you had heard their album. The whole point of the show was that they were a struggling 2 piece act with delusions of grandeur. The songs were often set to Monkees-style music videos, and often tied into the plot of the episode. The songs are so much funnier in context, though I won’t vouch for how it may have aged. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2011, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jack-blacks-career-tanking/569488/33 "2011-01-31T19:20:23Z")
> [@smoke](#): > > The D had a short-lived HBO(?) series before any of that happened. It was indeed HBO. It used to run right before _Mr. Show_. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2011, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jack-blacks-career-tanking/569488/34 "2011-01-31T19:24:35Z")
With the exception of Kung Fu Panda, every movie in which I have ever seen Jack Black has made me want to shoot him in the face with a cannon. ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2011, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jack-blacks-career-tanking/569488/35 "2011-01-31T19:32:52Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > With the exception of Kung Fu Panda, every movie in which I have ever seen Jack Black has made me want to shoot him in the face with a cannon. You should watch this then (NSFW): [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tzFnY1c1PQg](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tzFnY1c1PQg) ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2011, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jack-blacks-career-tanking/569488/36 "2011-01-31T19:46:29Z")
He was on Howard Stern a couple years ago and they talked about Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny, and how he finally got enough clout in Hollywood to write and release it and then it bombed terribly. Black admitted that this was personally devestating, and even after a couple years he was still hurting from it. I suppose that movie tanking was the end of his writing career, and also used up much of his career equity. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2011, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jack-blacks-career-tanking/569488/37 "2011-01-31T20:13:59Z")
> [@It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](#): > > Another problem for Jack is that he now has competition in the “idiot man-child” realm from Zach Galifianakis. Sometimes in my head I actually get them confused. ---
**Author:** ![pancakes3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ba9def/32.png) [@pancakes3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pancakes3)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2011, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jack-blacks-career-tanking/569488/38 "2011-01-31T20:44:55Z")
i like him about as much as i like jim carey pre-eternal sunshine and i don’t think he’s got the chops to pull off eternal sunshine like jimbo did. i’ll put it this way, i’d rather watch any adam sandler movie ahead of any one of jack blacks. yes, that means 8 crazy nights over Shallow Hal. (note: tropic thunder is not a “jack black” movie.) ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2011, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jack-blacks-career-tanking/569488/39 "2011-01-31T20:47:12Z")
His voiceover work in Kung Fu Panda was real good. But sadly, his acting chops hit their high point here and have gone downhill since. Spoilered - NSFW: [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LOrRWw07F7k](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LOrRWw07F7k) ---
**Author:** ![Capitaine\_Zombie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e95f7d/32.png) [@Capitaine\_Zombie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capitaine_Zombie)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2011, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jack-blacks-career-tanking/569488/40 "2011-01-31T20:57:36Z")
> [@Argent\_Towers](#): > > Jack Black is, in some ways, a one trick pony. Yes, he sucked in _Tropic Thunder_. > > He might be interesting to watch in a serious movie about an overweight, dorky guy with an over-the-top obnoxious persona to compensate for some kind of loneliness inside. > > Oddly enough, if Black were to take on a serious fitness regimen and lose 60 or so pounds, he would be able to reinvent his career in the Ryan Reynolds direction, as Black, despite being overweight and generally unkempt, is actually quite handsome in the traditional sense,\* possessing a nearly-perfect “averaged” face. Average as in extremely harmonious facial proportions\*, not as in “average looking.” His facial looks have been compared to Emile Hirsch. You need to lay off the _Skadi_ site. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jack-blacks-career-tanking/569488.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jack-blacks-career-tanking/569488.md?page=3)