2. Jeremy Renner SWAT
Everyone remembers SWAT as the film which started the decline of Colin Farrell's first action star career that is, until he tried to make a fist of it again (unsuccessfully) in Total Recall. Between this, Alexander, Miami Vice and Daredevil coincidentally starring Affleck the pre-In Bruges Farrell really looked like he was on his last legs career-wise. Yet also starring in this film was Jeremy Renner, taking the reins as the films secondary antagonist Brian Gamble. Gamble was Farrell's ex-partner, who he sold out to keep his place on the force. It's an interesting set-up, but handicapped by a mediocre script, Renner couldn't really do much with the role but glower a bit and occasionally punch a wall. These days, SWAT tends to be viewed with smirking embarrassment it's bad, but it's managed to step into the so-bad-it's-good category. Yet regardless of all the ironic enjoyment, you wouldn't expect it to enhance anyone's career, and it duly lived down to that expectation. Farrell began scraping the barrel after this point, co-stars Michelle Rodriguez and Samuel L. Jackson took their typecast shtick elsewhere and everyone else's careers sort of... froze, not least of all Renner's, who found himself having to neglect straight-out action for subtler character work. Of course, what eventually followed was The Hurt Locker and The Town, paving the way for him to pick up Hawkeye's bow and proving you can't keep a good scowl down.