15 Actors Who Trashed Their Own Movies
12. Marlon Brando - The Freshman (1990)
Rumour has it Marlon Brando was so good an actor he would purposefully sandbag his own features just to spice up the competition.
That’s a lie, but you wouldn’t have guessed otherwise after the two-time Academy Award-winner gave quotes to the Toronto Globe and Mail (h/t New York Times) on the final day of shooting the 1990 release:
“It's horrible. It's going to be a flop, but after this I'm retiring. I'm so fed up. This picture, except for the Canadian crew, was an extremely unpleasant experience. I wish I hadn't finished with a stinker.”
Brando was wrong on both accounts. The Freshman was a critical and commercial success, while he received high plaudits for his role and would go on to feature in another six films over the next 11 years.
You know you’re good when even you can’t turn your own film into a failure.