9 Major Actors Who Just Made 5 Bad Films In A Row

The dry spell: Never Grow Old, River Runs Red, Distorted, Singularity, Blood Money

It's a sad day when the inimitable Lloyd Dobler is reduced to for-hire tripe, but such is the age with live in. John Cusack once defined a generation of awkward 80s teens, defying expectations and owning up to the girl of his dreams with a lovable earnest. Afraid of getting typecast, Cusack quickly looked for work outside of teen drama/comedy and made a reputable splash starring in The Grifters with Stephen Frears.

Frears and Cusack reteamed in 2000 for High Fidelity, a film that rebukes many of the tripes Cusack spent a career embodying. But beyond a major role in a David Cronenberg film (Maps to the Stars) and the odd good performance, he's spent his recent years keeping Cage company in dreck - occasionally in the same film like Arsenal or The Frozen Ground.

Even pairing him with material and co-stars with which he's had success - such as Stephen King and Samuel L. Jackson in 1408, fail to retain that winning combination in Cell. For a film about evil cell phones, the phrase "phoning it in" is sadly apropos.

Still, even in crap, Cusack is often the best part of the film. Blood Money, arguably the best film on his current poor streak, finds him as a bumbling criminal chasing teenagers through the forest, often clumsily tripping or apologizing for shooting at them. These sets were probably a lot of fun to be a part of.

It's just a shame we weren't there for it.