10 Most Cringe-Worthy Vanity Projects In Movie History

1. The Room

If there's one thing that all the other entries on this list have in common it's that the vanity projects were the product of established movie stars. The same can't be said for the hilariously dreadful The Room, written, produced, directed by and starring Tommy Wiseau. The fact that Wiseau had financed the movie out of his own pocket (to the inexplicable tune of $6 million) after being repeatedly rejected by agents speaks to his tenacity. The film itself, unfortunately, demonstrated that there was a very good reason no one in the industry wanted to take him on.

Ostensibly a melodrama about an honest, hard-working, loving man who is cheated on by his fiancee (with his best friend), it's hard not to see The Room as a wholesale representation of Wiseau's utterly misguided view of himself as a noble and honourable saint who falls victim to the shortcomings of humanity. It's only when reading The Distaster Artist by Greg Sestero (Wiseau's supporting actor, who plays Mark, the cheating best friend) that it becomes clear just how much of a misguided vanity project this truly was. It's also - through no intention on Wiseau's part - one of the greatest "so bad it's good" movies of all time, fully deserving of the cult following it has accrued since it's release. Vanity projects don't get much more unintentionally funny than The Room.

What other vanity projects have we missed from this list? Why not let us know in the comments below?