# Why did that actor/actress do this movie? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 7, 2011, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-that-actor-actress-do-this-movie/573844 "2011-03-07T21:48:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-that-actor-actress-do-this-movie/573844/21 "2011-03-08T01:55:38Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > I’ve heard she really likes beavers. I tip my hat! ---
**Author:** ![sco3tt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@sco3tt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sco3tt)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-that-actor-actress-do-this-movie/573844/22 "2011-03-08T02:34:47Z")
> [@Ibn\_Warraq](#): > > Well mentioning Michael Caine in _Jaws 4: The Revenge_ is like shooting fish in a barrel and he has freely admitted he did it for the money. I have never seen _Jaws 4_, but by all accounts it is terrible. However, I have read the Michael Caine quote you alluded to, and it is awesome. ---
**Author:** ![installLSC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/54ee81/32.png) [@installLSC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/installLSC)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-that-actor-actress-do-this-movie/573844/23 "2011-03-08T03:26:19Z")
When “The Brave One” came out in theaters, Entertainment Weekly did an extensive interview. In it Foster admitted one of the big reasons she did it was that at her age it’s harder to find quality roles for women. She even said her agent told her the movie wasn’t perfect but that she wouldn’t find many roles if she insists on the perfect situation. ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-that-actor-actress-do-this-movie/573844/24 "2011-03-08T06:15:32Z")
> [@installLSC](#): > > When “The Brave One” came out in theaters, Entertainment Weekly did an extensive interview. In it Foster admitted one of the big reasons she did it was that at her age it’s harder to find quality roles for women. She even said her agent told her the movie wasn’t perfect but that she wouldn’t find many roles if she insists on the perfect situation. Which is crap as she’s a pretty powerful figure in Hollywood and, as shown with The Brave One, she can make a role for a woman appear if she wants to. ---
**Author:** ![Argent\_Towers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e8c25b/32.png) [@Argent\_Towers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Argent_Towers)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-that-actor-actress-do-this-movie/573844/25 "2011-03-08T06:20:41Z")
[Jon Voight vs. Dog](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hywK7SsqE8Y) wins the thread. ---
**Author:** ![Starving\_Artist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@Starving\_Artist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Starving_Artist)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 6:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-that-actor-actress-do-this-movie/573844/26 "2011-03-08T06:38:53Z")
> [@Ibn\_Warraq](#): > > Well mentioning Michael Caine in _Jaws 4: The Revenge_ is like shooting fish in a barrel and he has freely admitted he did it for the money. I believe the exact quote was, _“I have never seen it, but by all accounts it is terrible. However, I have seen the house that it built, and it is terrific.”_ ---
**Author:** ![maplekiwi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a4c791/32.png) [@maplekiwi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/maplekiwi)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 8:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-that-actor-actress-do-this-movie/573844/27 "2011-03-08T08:12:08Z")
Colin Firth must have done What a Girl Wants for the money. Amanda Byne was adorable but the movie was boring & cliched (sp) I haven’t seen teh St Trinian movies but they have had bad reviews too. ---
**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:** [March 8, 2011, 9:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-that-actor-actress-do-this-movie/573844/28 "2011-03-08T09:03:29Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > If the OP thinks the answer to the question is anything other than “the money,” then they are living in Cloud Cuckoo-Land. That’s the reason for just about anything in Hollywood. That’s a dirty lie! Drugs also play a major role. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 9:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-that-actor-actress-do-this-movie/573844/29 "2011-03-08T09:57:59Z")
> [@maplekiwi](#): > > Colin Firth must have done What a Girl Wants for the money. Amanda Byne was adorable but the movie was boring & cliched (sp) I haven’t seen teh St Trinian movies but they have had bad reviews too. I wouldn’t expect a critic to like the St Trinian movies, but the one I watched was technicolor, in-your-face, popcorn fun; one of those which look like the people making it were having lots of fun on the job. Angsty folk should not even look at their iMDB files, as the allergical reaction may lead to hospital stays. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 10:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-that-actor-actress-do-this-movie/573844/30 "2011-03-08T10:47:47Z")
Michael Caine is very honest about why he makes movies. He has said something like “I take any reasonable role I can get. About half of them will be fairly decent films. About one in five of them will be pretty good. One in fifty of them will win me an Oscar.” ---
**Author:** ![kombatminipig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b5ac83/32.png) [@kombatminipig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kombatminipig)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-that-actor-actress-do-this-movie/573844/31 "2011-03-08T12:08:51Z")
I would say that Raúl Juliá’s final [performance](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Street_Fighter_(film)) wasn’t really the apex of his career. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-that-actor-actress-do-this-movie/573844/32 "2011-03-08T13:12:17Z")
Donald Sutherland did a lot of flicks for what seems to be the money. I’ve been dragged twice to films chosen by friends simply because Sutherland was in them, and they were awful. In the movie **Gas** he doesn’t even appear with any of the other leads, convincing me that he filmed his scenes away from everyone else, and maybe all in one day. Michael Caine has, indeed, appeared in plenty of clunkers. Laurence Olivier made it pretty clear near the end of his life that he was trying to set aside money for family, which explains his appearances in \*The Jazz Singer, A Little Romance, \* and probably _Clash of the Titans_. ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-that-actor-actress-do-this-movie/573844/33 "2011-03-08T13:32:57Z")
> [@kombatminipig](#): > > I would say that Raúl Juliá’s final [performance](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Street_Fighter_(film)) wasn’t really the apex of his career. Apparently, he knew he was dying, and took that role for a final payday that allowed him time with his kids, who were also big fans of Street Fighter. ---
**Author:** ![Sakuma\_Drops](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/50afbb/32.png) [@Sakuma\_Drops](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sakuma_Drops)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-that-actor-actress-do-this-movie/573844/34 "2011-03-08T13:40:28Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > That’s a dirty lie! > > Drugs also play a major role. Sad but true. From what I’ve heard this was Richard Pryor’s rationale for doing crap like _Superman 3_. ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-that-actor-actress-do-this-movie/573844/35 "2011-03-08T14:36:14Z")
> [@kombatminipig](#): > > I would say that Raúl Juliá’s final [performance](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Street_Fighter_(film)) wasn’t really the apex of his career. It’s amazing to watch Street Fighter and realize what a different level Raul Julia was working on compared to the rest of the cast. For as stupid as it was, this line was delivered so perfectly that it almost redeems the whole thing: [QUOTE=Raul AWESOME Julia] _“For you, the day Bison graced your village was the most important day of your life. But for me, it was Tuesday.”_ [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/GlhOUyy4wbs/hqdefault.jpg "Bison remembers Tuesday") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GlhOUyy4wbs) [/QUOTE] ---
**Author:** ![joebuck20](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/74df32/32.png) [@joebuck20](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joebuck20)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-that-actor-actress-do-this-movie/573844/36 "2011-03-08T15:53:04Z")
Wasn’t Peter O’Toole in the Hallmark Channel Thomas Kincaide movie? Yeah, I think he’s a prime candidate to win this thread. Anyway, speaking of Michael Caine, check him out in “On Deadly Ground,” a Steven Seagal clunker from the early 90s that also happens to be one of my favorite “so bad it’s good” movies. It’s a worth a viewing if for no other reason than to see him chew the scenery as a corrupt, Indian jacket wearing, bolo tie sporting oilman. ---
**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:** [March 8, 2011, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-that-actor-actress-do-this-movie/573844/37 "2011-03-08T16:00:54Z")
> [@joebuck20](#): > > Wasn’t Peter O’Toole in the Hallmark Channel Thomas Kincaide movie? Yeah, I think he’s a prime candidate to win this thread. He was. My wife insisted on watching it because it starred Jared Padalecki (one of the co-stars of _Supernatural_, her favorite show) as Kincaide. Gads, that was awful. Even O’Toole couldn’t redeem it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-that-actor-actress-do-this-movie/573844.md?page=1)