Artistic integrity is a funny thing. It can take a lifetime to build, but less than 30 seconds to destroy. The late, great Bill Hicks once said the following when talking about the dangers of celebrities endorsing all manner of products:
"Here's the deal folks. You do a commercial and you're off the artistic roll call forever and that goes for everyone. End of story. You're another corporate f*cking shill, you're another whore at the capitalist gang-bang. And if you do a commercial, there's a price on your head... everything you say, every word out of your mouth, is suspect..."
As we're all sitting at home burning our energy bills to stay warm this winter in the grip of a financial recession that just won't go away, no one would begrudge an older actor who has fallen on hard times trying to make a quick buck - we're looking at you, Kevin Bacon. Damn that Bernie Madoff. But when you're an Oscar-winning actor or actress, with the earning capacity to make millions of dollars for a couple of months work, selling out and promoting some piece of sh*t product no one wants or needs is crossing the line of 'Financial Security' and veering straight into 'Unadulterated Greed' territory. It doesn't have to be this way, of course. It's a choice these actors consciously make. After all, Oscar winner Daniel Day-Lewis hasn't endorsed any products and is one of the finest actors of his generation. But the actors on this list seem to be cut from a different cloth. Join us for a look at 10 actors and actresses who reached the pinnacle of their profession and then sold their artistic integrity for 30 pieces of silver... and a free car (probably).