10 Embarrassing Times Movie Actors Tried To Be Badass

10. Daniel Radcliffe - Imperium

There was no way a young Daniel Radcliffe could have turned down the lead role in the Harry Potter franchise. This was a part almost guaranteed to vault its actor to household name status, and the series duly became the most profitable in movie history. As the actor aged, he was never less than decent as the Boy Who Lived.

The problem with playing such a recognisable part, though, is you carry it for the rest of your days. Radcliffe has forged an estimable career since, but he’ll always be Potter, and while that’s fine for some of his lighter fare, when he’s playing an FBI agent investigating white supremacists, it’s more than a little jarring.

Imperium is by no means a great film, but one of its key drawbacks is the casting of Radcliffe. He does his level best but in no world can he convince as a tough, gritty fed going toe to toe with killer Nazis.

Ultimately the sight of Daniel Radcliffe with his furrowed brow and buzzcut looks less like an actor disappearing into a role and more like Harry Potter had gotten in with a bad crowd at university.