10 More Actors Who Refused To Promote Their Own Movies
Once the film wrapped, these actors were done.
A film actor's job isn't just to give the best performance possible - they're obligated to sell the movie.
After production wraps, the Hollywood A-listers need to use their star power to ensure they get butts in seats. Whether the actor enjoyed the experience or not doesn't matter. Whether they think the movie is trash is irrelevant. They are paid to show up at the red carpet, go on chat shows and give interviews to let everyone know that their latest piece of work is amazing (even if they know it isn't).
But there are times where the performers flat-out refuse to promote their art. Some of them were so unhappy with how a film turned out, they didn't attend the premiere or give a single interview.
However, there are occasions where these boycotts have nothing to do with the film's quality. Christopher Plummer, Burt Reynolds, and Kevin Spacey went out of their way not to promote their work, even when the films were hailed as masterpieces. Whatever the reason, these ten actors didn't want to have anything to do with one of their own movies.
10. Kevin Spacey - Se7en
Kevin Spacey became a Hollywood star after winning a Best Actor Academy Award for his phenomenal performance in The Usual Suspects. That same year, he was cast in David Fincher's thriller, Se7en, as the main villain, John Doe. Since he was a big name, the producers intended to give Spacey top-billing. Even though the actor only appears in the last ten minutes, plastering Spacey's name on the posters was guaranteed to help Se7en sell a lot more tickets.
However, Spacey didn't want anyone to know he was in the movie in order to keep the killer's identity a secret. To ensure no one found out, Spacey's face wasn't on the poster, his name doesn't appear on the opening credits, and he didn't market Se7en in any way.
The producers originally baulked at the idea of Spacey not promoting the film, believing it could hurt the movie's chances at the box office. Thankfully, it all worked out for the best. Se7en went on to make ten times its budget and is now hailed as one of Fincher's finest movies and among the best thrillers ever made.