10 Filmmakers Who Blamed Actors For Failed Movies

4. Paul Kaye Blamed A "Narcissistic" Edward Norton - American History X

This is an especially interesting case of "failure," because for most intents and purposes, 1998 crime drama American History X was a success, scoring strong critical acclaim and earning Edward Norton a Best Actor Oscar nomination, despite a fairly tepid box office.

Yet director Tony Kaye was extremely dissatisfied with the film's theatrical release, as New Line Cinema requested extensive re-edits and ultimately released a version co-edited by Norton himself.

Kaye unsuccessfully attempted to have his name removed from the movie and even spent $100,000 of his own money taking out dozens of full-page ads in trade newspapers disparaging Norton and producer John Morrissey.

Kaye publicly called Norton a "a narcissistic dilettante" and accused him of butchering his film in the editing room.

The grand irony, of course, is that Norton's performance is by far the most-praised aspect of the film and his career skyrocketed as a result, while Kaye's difficult rep has seen him struggle to secure major work ever since.