10 Awesome Actors Who Totally Lost Their Momentum

A sad reminder of the careers that could have continued to thrive.

Anne Hathaway
Universal/Aviron

Sometimes actors fall off the grid, and sometimes it's easy to see why. Scandals, box-office failures, generally just not having the audience appeal they used to have...

And while those things ring true for a lot of the actors featured on this list, it's still a darned shame. It's always sad to see a talented actor's career turn sour, and you have to hope something good comes along for them soon. But for now, it's time to commiserate the loss of movie stardom that could have brought us absolute gems in the Hollywood space.

10. Michael Fassbender

Anne Hathaway
Curzon Artificial Eye

Possibly the saddest case of an actor losing their momentum, Michael Fassbender at one point in time truly seemed to have it all: He was a fantastic Magneto in a popular and successful reboot of X-Men; an indie darling starring in three Steve McQueen films between 2008 and 2013, the third of which – 12 Years A Slave – earned him an Oscar nomination; Prometheus was a huge hit despite its mixed critical response; he was Oscar-nominated for Steve Jobs.

Then X-Men: Apocalypse wasn’t great. Dark Phoenix doesn’t seem to inspire the excitement the X-Men franchise used to. His serious dramas became serious small indies with mediocre reviews that few people saw. Assassin’s Creed was a bomb. Alien: Covenant was mixed and his character moments became jokes. His once red hot streak is now colder than the incomprehensibly laughable The Snowman.

His upcoming slate is all but bare, apart from playing the lead in the upcoming Kung Fury 2. Here’s hoping he can get it back on track because he’s a truly fantastic actor.

Contributor

Chances are I’m watching a movie or replaying Mass Effect rather than doing anything productive.