10 Awful Movies That Wasted An A-List Cast

By Scott Campbell / July 8, 2020

There are so many variables involved when it comes to making movies, from the very first word of the script to the last name in the credits, but the most important for audiences is what happens on the screen, and a lot of that rests in the hands of the actors themselves.

Miscasting has the potential to sink an entire movie, and has done so on countless occasions in the past, because if the paying customers aren't buying it then you've already lost the battle. In some cases a strong ensemble can elevate poor material to somewhere far beyond what it deserves, but other times even a roster of A-list stars can't save something terrible from sinking.

Whether they've misjudged the material or simply signed on for a paycheck and decided to completely phone it in, an ill-judged performance can have a massive effect on the quality of a movie. And when there's a cast jam-packed with famous faces all failing to deliver, then nine times out of ten the final product ends up being doomed.

10. The Huntsman: Winter's War

During those ten minutes at the start of the last decade where dark and gritty fairy tale reboots were all the rage, Snow White and the Huntsman proved to be one of the bigger success stories, earning almost $400m at the box office.

The sequel on the other hand was an utter disaster, making over $200m less and being savaged by critics that called it out as the completely pointless and unnecessary endeavor that it was. What made it all the more galling was the sheer volume of talent that sleepwalked through the dismal follow-up.

Chris Hemsworth continued his steak of headlining bombs when outside the safety of the MCU, with Winter's War managing to waste three of the most talented actresses in the business for good measure in Jessica Chastain, Charlize Theron and Emily Blunt.

Even Liam Neeson was roped in as the narrator, but a vast increase in star power still couldn't save The Huntsman's second outing from disaster.