10 Actors Whose Careers TANKED After Winning Oscars

Mo'Nique's turn in Precious as a monstrously abusive mother is one of the all-time great "Where the hell did that come from!?" performances - all the more so given that it nabbed her the Best Supporting Actress Oscar in 2010.

Prior to starring in the film, Mo'Nique was primarily known as a stand-up comedian and had appeared in a glut of critically mauled comedies, including Soul Plane, Hair Show, and Phat Girlz.

Yet despite winning universal acclaim for her performance in Precious, Mo'Nique's acting career failed to flourish, with her having appeared in just six films in the 15 years since, a single one of which, Bessie, made much of a dent with critics.

Mo'Nique herself has spoken about her low acting profile, claiming that she was effectively blackballed from the industry by Precious director Lee Daniels and producers Oprah Winfrey and Tyler Perry, because she refused to take part in additional promotional duties for the film without being paid.

That Mo'Nique won the Oscar while skipping the usual circus of voter glad-handing is all the more a testament to the impact of her performance, even if her acting career likely suffered as a result.

She largely works back in stand-up comedy today, though even that wasn't without its hiccups, as in 2019 Mo'Nique sued Netflix for making a lowball offer for a proposed comedy special, which she deemed discriminatory. The suit was settled out of court.