9 Famous Comedians Who Were Brutally Unfunny In Movies

4. Kevin James

As the chubby caricature of every lazy husband since Fred Flintstone, Kevin James proved himself a capable enough sitcom star. Sure, he was leagues away from a John Goodman or Jackie Gleason, but he was at least as funny as Jim Belushi. What most people don't realize is that James was actually a dynamite stand-up comic before landing his gig on King of Queens. Seriously, go back and watch his Comedy Central special, Sweat the Small Stuff, and try picturing that guy stinking up the place in a family-friendly, live-action movie about talking animals. Zookeeper and Paul Blart are simply examples of the pitfalls of making a PG film with a dynamic comedian. Very few stand-ups are capable of making that transition, even with sitcom experience. But the worst of James' filmography involve his good bro, Adam Sandler. I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry is a tired series of gay panic jokes that essentially boil down to "I love boobies, you guys!" There's not an actual joke in the entire script, which makes it pretty hard for an actor to get laughs. The Grown Ups movies aren't much better, but at least James gets to use some of his famous physicality to fill in the large silences between smarmy, unfunny dialogue.