8 Actors Whose Careers Flopped After Leaving The MCU

6. Michael Rooker

Yondu Death Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol 2
Marvel Studios

A big part of the reason why Michael Rooker had an MCU career in the first place was because his friend (director James Gunn) hired him to work on Guardians Of The Galaxy, but that doesn't detract from the man's talent - or his great performance - one tiny bit.

Rooker was excellent as Yondu, Peter Quill's short-tempered adoptive father. His sharp line delivery and intimidating, yet warm presence made him a standout character in a movie that was full of standout characters, and his larger role in Vol. 2 smartly fleshed him out in unexpected ways.

But after Vol. 2 launched, Camp Rooker went very, very quiet.

With Yondu meeting a heroic end after saving Peter Quill's life, it's unlikely we'll ever see him in the MCU again, particularly as Marvel already gets hate from fans for constantly reversing/faking character deaths. And, at the moment, he only has two small films on the horizon (Bolden and A Good Man Is Hard To Find), and there's no telling if they'll get a wide theatrical release, or if they'll be any good if they do.

And for someone as enjoyable to watch as Rooker is, that's a crying shame.

Contributor
Contributor

Danny has been with WhatCulture for almost nine years, and is currently Doctor Who Editor and WhoCulture Channel Manager, overseeing all of WhatCulture's Whoniverse coverage. He has been writing and video editing for 10+ years, and first got a taste for content creation after making his own Doctor Who trailers and uploading them to YouTube (they're admittedly a bit rusty by today's standards). If you need someone to recite every Doctor Who episode in order or to tell you about the making of 1988's Remembrance of the Daleks, Danny is the person to ask.