15 Upcoming Movies That Will Probably Waste Awesome Actors
A glorified cameo for Karl Urban?
Almost every actor alive is guilty of taking a paycheck role at one point or another (unless you're Daniel Day-Lewis perhaps), a part they've done more for the moolah than artistic accomplishment.
Respected actors can often be lured into big-budget tentpoles with dumptrucks full of cash, where the studio merely wants a marquee name attached to the marketing in order to impress a certain seal of quality on the end product. The actor, most often than not, is probably just happy to take a swim in their newly-acquired giant pool of cash.
These 15 upcoming movies, whether they end up good or bad, seem unlikely to make the most of these terrific performers, exploiting their popularity with audiences but not fully capitalising on their involvement.
Maybe the material is an inherently awkward fit for the actors (but they're doing it anyway!), or perhaps there's simply a lack of trust-worthy pedigree behind the scenes, but either way, these actors' incredible skills are surely going to waste in these upcoming films...
15. Gary Oldman - The Hitman's Bodyguard
The Role: Vladislav Dukhovich, a ruthless Eastern European dictator who orders the murder of an assassin (Samuel L. Jackson) set to testify against him, all while a special protection agent (Ryan Reynolds) tries to keep the hitman alive.
Why He'll Be Wasted: This looks like a classically phoned-in, forgettable Gary Oldman role, like his recent appearances in Paranoia, Criminal, and several other films you probably haven't seen.
Oldman's even rocking a preposterously over-the-top, ambiguously Eastern European accent, which should at least be fun for a few laughs, but considering how versatile an actor the man is, his talents will be mostly squandered as a generic mustache-twirling baddie who sics his cronies on Jackson and Reynolds.
It's possible that Oldman's not even in the movie that much, especially as he's obviously taking third billing to the two comic leads and is really just a means to that end.