7 Actors Whose Film Careers Went Downhill After Winning An Oscar

7. Kevin Spacey

Oscar Wins: Best Supporting Actor, The Usual Suspects, 1996; Best Actor, American Beauty, 1999 Kevin Spacey was one of the best actors of the '90s. If you were to list your top ten movies from that decade, there's a good chance Kevin Spacey appeared in one of those films. He instantly brought an ounce of respectability to each movie he appeared in and elevated lesser films such as Outbreak and The Negotiator. What made him such a remarkable talent was his ability to handle both comedy and drama with zero difficulty. He could play a nasty villain, but was still interesting when he was the "good guy." Once he won his second Oscar though, the great movie roles stopped coming. He started appearing in mediocre films such as Pay It Forward, K-PAX, and The Life of David Gale. Even when he appeared as Lex Luthor in Superman Returns, it felt disappointing. His performances in the 2000s are a clear step below his work in the '90s and there does not seem to be a clear reason for the drop in quality. Of course, Kevin Spacey has since been able to redeem himself with his incredible performance as Frank Underwood in Netflix's House of Cards series. But he always seemed like an actor who was made for the big screen. Here's hoping his acclaimed performance on the show will lead to better movie roles in the future.