# Why did Burt Reynolds lose his popularity in the 80s so suddenly? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 8, 2007, 8:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-burt-reynolds-lose-his-popularity-in-the-80s-so-suddenly/403205 "2007-05-08T08:09:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Hildo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bbce88/32.png) [@Johnny\_Hildo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Hildo)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2007, 8:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-burt-reynolds-lose-his-popularity-in-the-80s-so-suddenly/403205/1 "2007-05-08T08:09:56Z")
He was the hottest shit ever. Then he got seriously injured on the set of the movie _City Heat_ and didn’t turn up again for two years, where he was instantly persona non grata with the fans. As I was born a bit too young to figure this out, I gotta ask…why did this happen? ---
**Author:** ![Sublight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@Sublight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sublight)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2007, 8:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-burt-reynolds-lose-his-popularity-in-the-80s-so-suddenly/403205/2 "2007-05-08T08:47:32Z")
This is all just speculation (the 80’s were my teenage years), but I think it was a combination of alcohol abuse and typecasting that cost him his popularity with studios, plus a string of repetitious, low-quality movies that dimmed his appeal to fans. **Smokey & the Bandit, Smokey & the Bandit II, Cannonball Run, Cannonball Run II, Hooper** and **Stroker Ace** pretty much all cast him, to varying extents, as “the charmingly self-destructive, drunken womanizing good ol’ boy”, which may not have been too far from the real him. From what I’ve heard (no cites), he had an extensive entourage of drinking buddies whom he tried to involve in all his films around this time, which probably didn’t endear him to studios and more probably contributed to poor career decisions on Burt’s part. The style of films that were making money also changed: endless car chases and mass brawls set to country music went out of style, which took away the only genre Reynolds’ had going for him at the time. Clint Eastwood’s string of wandering brawler movies (Any Which Way But Loose, Any Which Way You Can, etc.) petered out around the same time, and he might have ended up in the same boat as Reynolds if his Dirty Harry character hadn’t continued to be popular through the 80’s. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2007, 10:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-burt-reynolds-lose-his-popularity-in-the-80s-so-suddenly/403205/3 "2007-05-08T10:53:23Z")
As I recall the story being told, Burt was injured in such a way that it was painful to eat. He lost a lot of weight and there were rumors that he had aids. This diminished his popularity amoungst the good ol’ boys. ---
**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:** [May 8, 2007, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-burt-reynolds-lose-his-popularity-in-the-80s-so-suddenly/403205/4 "2007-05-08T13:10:29Z")
Bad movies. He made a bunch of interchangeable cop films that were not particularly successful or interesting. The films didn’t deliver entertainment, even for his fan base, so people stopped coming. ---
**Author:** ![jali](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ecae2f/32.png) [@jali](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jali)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2007, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-burt-reynolds-lose-his-popularity-in-the-80s-so-suddenly/403205/5 "2007-05-08T13:11:30Z")
I’m glad he got the “Man-law” commercials. ---
**Author:** ![BMalion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e274bd/32.png) [@BMalion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BMalion)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2007, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-burt-reynolds-lose-his-popularity-in-the-80s-so-suddenly/403205/6 "2007-05-08T13:16:48Z")
Everyone was collectively jealous that he had Lonnie Anderson. ---
**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:** [May 8, 2007, 1:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-burt-reynolds-lose-his-popularity-in-the-80s-so-suddenly/403205/7 "2007-05-08T13:19:52Z")
A rare example of a man getting too old to play his typical roles. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2007, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-burt-reynolds-lose-his-popularity-in-the-80s-so-suddenly/403205/8 "2007-05-08T13:26:07Z")
His arm was in the way in the Cosmo spread. ---
**Author:** ![scotandrsn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a4c791/32.png) [@scotandrsn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scotandrsn)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2007, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-burt-reynolds-lose-his-popularity-in-the-80s-so-suddenly/403205/9 "2007-05-08T13:48:56Z")
A combination of the above plus his appearances in the films Paternity and The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. ---
**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2007, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-burt-reynolds-lose-his-popularity-in-the-80s-so-suddenly/403205/10 "2007-05-08T14:02:58Z")
I always thought it was people’s tastes abrubtly swinging away from what was popular in the 70s. In the 80s people suddenly remembered the 70s as being incredibly cheesey (disco, cannonball run, etc.) and wanted to seperate themselves from it. They left behind some big names like Burt Reynolds, John Travolta, Jane Fonda, etc. and dropped them like a bad habit. 70s stuff wasn’t considered “hip” again until well into the 90s. ---
**Author:** ![middleman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9a140/32.png) [@middleman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/middleman)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2007, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-burt-reynolds-lose-his-popularity-in-the-80s-so-suddenly/403205/11 "2007-05-08T14:14:35Z")
I think studio heads saw the opportunity to dump him. From what I understand (weak cite: E!:THS) Burt fell into that “Life is too short” category of difficult stars. Kind of like a certain star who jumped on a couch and yelled at Matt Lauer. ---
**Author:** ![wolf\_meister](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolf_meister/32/15202_2.png) [@wolf\_meister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolf_meister)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2007, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-burt-reynolds-lose-his-popularity-in-the-80s-so-suddenly/403205/12 "2007-05-08T14:53:12Z")
A sign Burt’s popularity was waning was in an episode “Police Squad” (1982). Remember it was a whacky show so this sketch may seem a little strange. The lab technician is testing a pistol by firing it into a row of videocassettes of Barbara Walters’ interviews. He then says “The bullet _completey destroys_ the Burt Reynolds’ interview”. It seems to me that even though this was the early 1980’s Burt was beginning to be perceived as a joke. If nothing else, it was a funny sketch (and TV show for that matter). ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2007, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-burt-reynolds-lose-his-popularity-in-the-80s-so-suddenly/403205/13 "2007-05-08T14:57:32Z")
He got too old to continue his movie type. He was a tough guy who suddenly was a wrinkled geezer that weighed about 30 lbs. ---
**Author:** ![middleman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9a140/32.png) [@middleman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/middleman)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2007, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-burt-reynolds-lose-his-popularity-in-the-80s-so-suddenly/403205/14 "2007-05-08T15:08:57Z")
[QUOTE=wolf\_meister] A sign Burt’s popularity was waning was in an episode “Police Squad” (1982). Remember it was a whacky show so this sketch may seem a little strange. The lab technician is testing a pistol by firing it into a row of videocassettes of Barbara Walters’ interviews. He then says “The bullet _completey destroys_ the Burt Reynolds’ interview”. It seems to me that even though this was the early 1980’s Burt was beginning to be perceived as a joke. If nothing else, it was a funny sketch (and TV show for that matter). [/QUOTE] Unlike William Shatner, his ego probably wouldn’t let him exploit that joke to take his career to new heights. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2007, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-burt-reynolds-lose-his-popularity-in-the-80s-so-suddenly/403205/15 "2007-05-08T15:15:32Z")
Reynolds let himself get typecast into a certain genre of movie - the good-old-boy action/comedy - and then that genre lost its popularity. In the nineties, he regained some popularity via his series _Evening Shade_ (which lasted five seasons) but then he lost it again by going through a really bitter divorce. ---
**Author:** ![Turek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/turek/32/18782_2.png) [@Turek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Turek)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2007, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-burt-reynolds-lose-his-popularity-in-the-80s-so-suddenly/403205/16 "2007-05-08T15:17:23Z")
Don’t forget, he did have a moderately successful TV show, [Evening Shade](http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0098790/), that ran from 90-94. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2007, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-burt-reynolds-lose-his-popularity-in-the-80s-so-suddenly/403205/17 "2007-05-08T15:39:22Z")
[QUOTE=BobLibDem] His arm was in the way in the Cosmo spread. [/QUOTE] Of everything but his bear suit. ---
**Author:** ![plnnr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@plnnr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/plnnr)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2007, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-burt-reynolds-lose-his-popularity-in-the-80s-so-suddenly/403205/18 "2007-05-08T15:39:50Z")
Not to mention that he underwent some really bad plastic surgery sometime during those years. He’s almost unrecognizable. ---
**Author:** ![Ceejaytee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ceejaytee/32/2956_2.png) [@Ceejaytee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ceejaytee)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2007, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-burt-reynolds-lose-his-popularity-in-the-80s-so-suddenly/403205/19 "2007-05-08T16:10:06Z")
[QUOTE=Khadaji] As I recall the story being told, Burt was injured in such a way that it was painful to eat. He lost a lot of weight and there were rumors that he had aids. This diminished his popularity amoungst the good ol’ boys. [/QUOTE] It happened during filming of [City Heat](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0087062/), which came out in 1984. He talks about it with Larry King [here](http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0002/23/lkl.00.html) (short excerpt): > [@](#): > > KING: Time goes so fast. A couple of areas, other areas we have to cover. Those rumors – you were on this show during the height of the AIDS rumors. Burt Reynolds has AIDS. I never even heard that you were involved in such a problem. > > REYNOLDS: Well… > > KING: What – that was because… > > REYNOLDS: … it’s nothing to smile over. > > KING: How did that happen? > > REYNOLDS: It happened because I had – I had done a stunt in a picture that – where – a not too bright guy – he wasn’t a stuntman, but he was – he was playing a part. And he said: “I can do this. Just pick up a chair and hit me.” And he picked up the wrong one. He didn’t pick up the balsa wood chair. He picked the… > > KING: Wooden… > > REYNOLDS: … iron – a wooden chair. And it hit me right here on the temporal mandible (ph) – this cracked like an eggshell. And it ruined I think probably what could have been a good movie, because I just got thinner because I couldn’t eat and I couldn’t talk very well. I couldn’t get my jaw open. My bite got totally lopsided. And I suffered for it. > > And at the time it was when they were trying desperately to segregate the AIDS people, because they thought if they sneezed, you’d get a (UNINTELLIGIBLE). And if ever in the world I felt like I could say I know what it’s like to be put into true prejudice, that was the time. > > KING: People wouldn’t touch you? > > REYNOLDS: Wouldn’t touch you. Wouldn’t… > > KING: I remember you told me your makeup man wouldn’t put makeup on you. > > REYNOLDS: Refused, refused to put makeup on me. I went to a dentist. He said: “I’m sorry. I can’t touch you.” > > It was amazing. And the fact that all I had to do was go on Carson’s show and have a blood test and they would have said it’s not true – it wouldn’t have mattered, because it was too good. It was – it was a rather famous heterosexual, you know? It was – Charlie Bronson wasn’t losing weight. It was me. I weighed 120. ---
**Author:** ![el\_nombre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9dc877/32.png) [@el\_nombre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/el_nombre)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2007, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-burt-reynolds-lose-his-popularity-in-the-80s-so-suddenly/403205/20 "2007-05-08T16:40:16Z")
He also has the notorius reputation of being very difficult to work with, Russell Crowe style. That can hurt your career more than anything. I remember a story about how he hated Boogie Nights and told everyone it was a mistake to take that role and during filming all he did was complain. Then he gets an Oscar nomination and all of a sudden he’s proud of it. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-burt-reynolds-lose-his-popularity-in-the-80s-so-suddenly/403205.md?page=2)