10 TV Sitcom Stars Who Couldn't Break The Movies
Small screen success doesn't always translate to big screen glory.
The small screen gets a lot more respect than it once did, but for a time, it was nothing more than a means to an end. Actors paid their dues on a show, gained some recognition, then made the jump to the movies at their earliest convenience, never to return.
It’s not nearly as easy as it seems, however. Indeed there are only a handful of actors who have truly made the jump, shifted their public perception from a TV performer to a film star. This is particularly true for sitcom actors, who can become so well associated with a beloved character that they become one with their onscreen personality.
Nowadays of course TV is as good and well regarded as the movies, if not better, but there remain actors who want to transition to the bright lights of Hollywood, only to find that it’s not so easy. For every Woody Harrelson, there’s a Kramer.
These stars found great success providing the world with laughs, but that big leap to the next level just wasn’t forthcoming. Bad luck, or just doing their job too well, they’re doomed to remain in sitcom purgatory.
10. Frankie Muniz
As a result of fewer repeats than other shows of its era and a lack of streaming presence, Malcolm In The Middle remains a criminally underrated show. The family sitcom took a stark look at class in the early 21st century, and if anything has become more relevant over time.
The performances were all great - Bryan Cranston has obviously gone on to big things, but Frankie Muniz, as the titular brainiac, was the perfect anchor, an assured, funny, never annoying child actor’s performance. He seemed primed for big things, and for a short while was Hollywood’s go-to teen.
That window isn’t open for long, though, and after none of his starring roles - Agent Cody Banks, Big Fat Liar, the seldom-seen Racing Stripes - really took off, soon he was aged out. The Zach Efron era had begun.
Muniz seemed to lose interest in Hollywood following this - his passion is motor racing, of all things - but if better movie projects had come his way, who knows what might have happened. He was a rare talent who deserved (but maybe didn’t want) a longer screen career.