7 Movie Stars Who Flopped On TV

The screen was too small to hold 'em...

Time was movie stars would grumble about being on TV, seeing it as the silver-screen's poor relation. That view's changed radically in recent years. In the previous century the presence of a film actor on the small screen meant their career wasn't going so well. Now the two mediums are blurred in terms of who appears in what. Decamping to telly didn't do some of them any favours. You'd be surprised at the quality of performer TV chewed up and spat out. For example, the Sixties screen icon who didn't cut the mustard in peoples' front rooms, or the action star whose straight-to-DVD movie reputation couldn't help him repeat the trick for an episodic format. Using lucky number seven as a perverse measurement, let's look at some weighty names who failed to tip the scales on the tube, either back then or in the current marketplace. They did all sorts, from solving crimes to breeding horses. But it wasn't enough to keep those idiots glued to their glowing lanterns...

Contributor
Contributor

I am a journalist and comedian who enjoys American movies of the 70s, Amicus horror compendiums, Doctor Who, Twin Peaks, Naomi Watts and sitting down. My short fiction has been published as part of the Iris Wildthyme range from Obverse Books.