Colin Perkins
The Quick 10: 10 Actors Who Hated Their Own Films
by Colin Perkins - January 20, 2012 - 11:47 AM

q10

When actors have a movie out, it’s customary that they publicize the film by saying nice things about it. David Cross recently took a different approach. When it came to describing his new film Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked, the veteran comedian — better known for Mr. Show and Arrested Development — went on Conan and called the film a “big commercial for Carnival Cruise Lines” and told people not to go see it.

Here are 10 other actors who starred in films they weren’t crazy about.

1. Sylvester Stallone, Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot. Sly doesn’t pull any punches when it comes to his film career. Despite co-starring with the delightful Estelle Getty as the titular violence-prone mother, Stallone knows just how bad the film was:

“I made some truly awful movies. Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot was the worst. If you ever want someone to confess to murder, just make him or her sit through that film. They will confess to anything after 15 minutes.”

2. Alec Guinness, Star Wars. By the time he played Obi-Wan Kenobi in 1977’s Star Wars: A New Hope, Guinness had already appeared in cinematic classics like The Bridge on the River Kwai, Great Expectations and Lawrence of Arabia. During production, Guinness is reported to have said the following:

“Apart from the money, I regret having embarked on the film. I like them well enough, but it’s not an acting job, the dialogue – which is lamentable – keeps being changed and only slightly improved, and I find myself old and out of touch with the young.”

The insane amount of fame he won for the role as the wise old Jedi master took him somewhat by surprise and, ultimately, annoyed him. In his autobiography A Positively Final Appearance: A Journal, Guinness recalls a time he encountered an autograph-seeking fan who boasted to him about having watched Star Wars more than 100 times. In response, Guinness agreed to provide the boy an autograph under the condition that he promise never to watch the film again.

3. George Clooney, Batman & Robin. Sure, Batman & Robin made money. But by every other imaginable measure, the film was a complete failure, and a nightmare to the vast majority of the Caped Crusader’s most fervent fanatics. Star George Clooney recognized what a stinker he helped create and once plainly stated, “I think we might have killed the franchise.”

4. Bob Hoskins, Super Mario Brothers. He was in Who Framed Roger Rabbit?. As far as I’m concerned, Bob Hoskins is forgiven for Super Mario Bros. Hoskins, though, doesn’t seem to be able to forgive himself. Last year the Guardian spoke with the veteran actor about his career and he summed up his feelings rather succinctly:

What is the worst job you’ve done?
Super Mario Brothers.

What has been your biggest disappointment?
Super Mario Brothers.

If you could edit your past, what would you change?
I wouldn’t do Super Mario Brothers.

5. Katherine Heigl, Knocked Up. Judd Apatow’s unplanned pregnancy comedy was a huge hit and helped cement her status as a bankable film actress. After the film’s release, however, Heigl didn’t have all good things to say. In fact, what she specifically said about it was that the film was:

“…A little sexist. It paints the women as shrews, as humorless and uptight, and it paints the men as lovable, goofy, fun-loving guys.”

Those comments are probably a big contributor to the fact that her name is absent from the film’s quasi sequel/spinoff slated for release later this year.

6. Bill Cosby, Leonard Part 6. You’d think a film that features Cosby riding away from a dangerous situation on the back of an ostrich would be great, right? Not exactly. Cosby himself disliked the film so much that he told people they’d be throwing their money away to go see it. That’s probably why the $24 million production made back just under $5 Million at the box office and won a Razzie for Worst Actor, Worst Screenplay and Worst Picture.

7. Charlize Theron, Reindeer Games. The 2000 action film Reindeer Games starred Ben Affleck, Gary Sinese and Charlize Theron and was directed by John Frankenheimer. But it all somehow failed to come together. In the end the film lost a lot of money and compiled a wealth of negative reviews – including one from its star actress who simply said, “Reindeer Games was not a good movie.”

8. Mark Wahlberg, The Happening. Mark Wahlberg doesn’t exactly seem like a guy who lives his life afraid of trees. But that is the odd position M. Night Shyamalan’s 2008 film The Happening put him in. Wahlberg, as it turns out, doesn’t look back too fondly on the film. He went on record during a press conference for The Fighter when he described a conversation with a fellow actor:

“We had actually had the luxury of having lunch before to talk about another movie and it was a bad movie that I did. She dodged the bullet. And then I was still able to … I don’t want to tell you what movie … alright “The Happening.” F*** it. It is what it is. F***ing trees, man. The plants. F*** it. You can’t blame me for not wanting to try to play a science teacher. At least I wasn’t playing a cop or a crook.”

9. John Cusack, Better Off Dead
John Cusack reportedly hated his cult 80s comedy so much that he walked out of the screening and later told the film’s director Steve Holland that Better Off Dead was “the worst thing I have ever seen” and he would “never trust you as a director again.”

10. Christopher Plummer, The Sound of Music. The Sound of Music is considered a classic and has delighted many generations of fans. But, the film’s own lead actor, Christopher Plummer isn’t ready to sing its praises. Mr. Von Trapp himself declined to participate in a 2005 film reunion and, according to one acquaintance, has referred to the film as The Sound of Mucus.

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Comments (64)

  1. I understand that Peter Sellers hated _Murder by Death_ and didn’t want to have anything to do with it after it was filmed.

    posted by Rebecca on 1-20-2012 at 11:55 am

  2. Huh. I was expecting to see Robert Pattinson in reference to the Twilight films.

    posted by Amelia on 1-20-2012 at 11:57 am

  3. I get that Alec Guiness was the only known actor at the time, and I appreciate the fact that he was a good actor in a film that was not a good vehicle for good actors.

    But for god’s sake dude, do you really think you’re going to be remembered 100 years from now for your role in Ladykillers? If Ladykillers is even still around (great movie, by the way), it will only because you are in it…because you were in Star Wars.

    The same goes for you too, Liam Neeson!

    posted by Lola on 1-20-2012 at 12:01 pm

  4. I love this! When actors come out to admit they didn’t like work they were involved with…it’s much more admirable that listening to them pretend they loved everything they did. However, it is sometimes surprising which projects they choose to hate.

    posted by Katie Rose on 1-20-2012 at 12:04 pm

  5. If I recall correctly, Ed Norton hated “American History X” so much that he refused to do any publicity for the film when it was released.

    posted by James H on 1-20-2012 at 12:07 pm

  6. Christopher Plummer should have more perspective. After all, he was also in Starcrash.

    posted by Nathan Shumate on 1-20-2012 at 12:10 pm

  7. You forgot Sean Penn with FAST TIMES AT RIDGEMONT HIGH. Don’t ever call him Spicoli!!

    posted by Lyda on 1-20-2012 at 12:12 pm

  8. You should have included Eddie Murphy for The Adventures of Pluto Nash. Then again, everyone hated that movie.

    posted by Reckoner on 1-20-2012 at 12:23 pm

  9. I find it hard to believe Christopher Plummer hated Sound of Music so much. He did show up for a cast reunion on Oprah back in 2010.

    posted by Ket on 1-20-2012 at 12:28 pm

  10. How can Sly limit himself to that one movie when he has so many choices. Rhinestone, Over the Top and Tango and Cash were equally lamentable.

    posted by Beedub on 1-20-2012 at 12:32 pm

  11. @Lola – exactly!! I had no idea who Alec Guiness was before Star Wars (granted, I was 7 years old). Over the years I have seen Ladykillers and Bridge Over the River Kwai and wile they are great films, I’d never associate Kenob…..Alec Guiness with them. Full disclosure, I am a Star Wars geek.

    I’ve heard Steve Martin never mentions or wants to discuss The Jerk. I don’t know why, besides Bowfinger it’s his best film.

    posted by Baldric on 1-20-2012 at 12:39 pm

  12. Despite hating the movies, I’ll bet that every one of these people still cashed their paycheck.

    -”BB”-

    posted by Bicycle Bill on 1-20-2012 at 12:46 pm

  13. I love John Cusack and Better Off Dead. Yes, it’s silly, but it’s supposed to be! “I want my two dollars.”

    posted by RLS on 1-20-2012 at 12:52 pm

  14. Katherine Heigl is such a hypocrite. Every role she’s taken since Knocked Up has been a stereotype.

    posted by Craig on 1-20-2012 at 1:01 pm

  15. The best line of Zombieland came when Bill Murray is mortally wounded and asked if he had any regrets. He responds with, “Garfield, maybe.”

    It is interesting that Cusack made that comment. Better Off Dead was released in 1985. One Crazy Summer was released in 1986. Same director (Savage Steve Holland). Pretty much the same plot. I would like to know the rest of the story and what changed his mind.

    posted by Brian on 1-20-2012 at 1:39 pm

  16. John Cusack must have changed his mind about “Better Off Dead,” because he starred in another film by the same director – “One Crazy Summer” – a couple of years later.

    (And remember: if you’re making faces at someone and someone slaps you on the back, you’ll stay that way forever!)

    posted by Damian P. on 1-20-2012 at 1:49 pm

  17. @Craig. I thought the exact same thing. She cant complain that the movie shows women in a bad light, every role she does is the exact same stereotype, a bitch. If you cant tell I really dislike her roles.

    posted by Alex on 1-20-2012 at 1:50 pm

  18. Honourable mention to Halle Berry for turning up in person to collect her Worst Actress Razzie for Catwoman, and thanking Warner Brothers for “putting [her] in a piece of shit godawful movie!”

    posted by SDGlyph on 1-20-2012 at 1:54 pm

  19. I like “Genuine Class”, he was also in Dr. Zhivago.

    @ Lola -Liam Neeson will be remembered for Star Wars and not “Schindler’s List”? (Maybe if the prequel was as good as the original trilogy) I just think there’s a difference. But who knows, maybe I’m wrong.

    Christopher Plummer was in the reunion with Julie Andrews on the 40th Anniversary DVD. Said he hated working with all the kids… But then I think he simply has a different sense of humor.

    posted by Nerak on 1-20-2012 at 2:03 pm

  20. Michael Caine on Jaws 4:
    “I have never seen the film, but by all accounts it was terrible. However I have seen the house that it built, and it is terrific.”

    posted by xtopherp on 1-20-2012 at 2:25 pm

  21. @Brian & @Damian P:

    The link in the John Cusack entry talks a little bit about that. Apparently Cucack was already under contract to do One Crazy Summer so he had to finish that film.

    posted by Colin Perkins on 1-20-2012 at 2:31 pm

  22. I’m not an enormous fan of Katherine Heigl, but I certainly do find it interesting that every other celebrity on this list, a man, got away with straight up calling his own movie a piece of shit, but she was blasted to pieces in the media for making a legitimate social critique of hers. That’s effed up.

    (Come on, the main woman character in Knocked Up HAD NEVER HEARD OF BACK TO THE FUTURE. Right then I rolled my eyes and said, “This moron director has never spoken to a real woman in his life.”)

    posted by Roo on 1-20-2012 at 2:51 pm

  23. Funny, I thought Charlize Theron liked getting topless (T-O-P-L-E-S-S for all you Ronnie Mund fans) in all of her movies…

    posted by Matty14 on 1-20-2012 at 2:54 pm

  24. @Matty14

    “When you get up here you’ll do it”

    “Scoresman gotta tattoo”

    posted by MG on 1-20-2012 at 3:39 pm

  25. @Roo: No one’s blasting Heigl for criticizing her role in Knocked Up. I’m criticizing her for complaining about the role, and then continuing to accept similar roles in every movie she’s made since. Don’t assume sexism is at play just because a woman is being criticized.

    posted by Craig on 1-20-2012 at 4:05 pm

  26. I’ve heard that Julia Roberts hated Mary Reilly, where she was the title character who was the new housemaid and love interest of Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde played by John Malkovich.

    posted by Anna on 1-20-2012 at 4:19 pm

  27. I have a lot of fond memories of Better Off Dead from my high school days. Could it be Cusack takes himself far too seriously?

    Wow…I am stunned that I kind of agree
    with Katherine Heigl about something.

    posted by dagnabbit on 1-20-2012 at 4:25 pm

  28. “Better Off Dead” is one of my favorite 80′s comedy movies. Just under “Sixteen Candles”, “Weird Science” & “Planes,Trains & Automobiles”. John Hughes was the man.

    posted by Chad on 1-20-2012 at 4:33 pm

  29. Christopher Plumber may have hated The Sound of Music, however, Julie Andrews reportedly hated working with ol’ Chris, due to his appallingly bad breath which made their close-up scenes intolerable.

    posted by aufrex on 1-20-2012 at 4:48 pm

  30. Do more! I was expecting Robert Pattinson to be on here.

    posted by Cynthia on 1-20-2012 at 5:52 pm

  31. I get that Katherine Heigel would think that about the female characters of Knocked Up. But, first off…didn’t she read the script before she made the movie? I’ve heard about her not liking the movie a lot and always wondered that. But also, I do sort of agree that in tv and movies, it’s 99% of the time the guys that can act like the baffoons as the women watch with scorn…or you have fat ugly men married to hotties. But the fact that she says this about the movie makes her no better than her character. JUST LAUGH…IT’S FUNNY!

    posted by LIZ on 1-20-2012 at 6:13 pm

  32. Reindeer Games was filmed in my hometown, so I dragged all my friends to see it.

    That was an embarrassing outing.

    It was still mildly entertaining to know that the Casino in the film is actually the Elks Lodge where we had my prom and where I took some of my provincial exams.

    They still have the tacky neon lights on the building, too.

    posted by Jacquilynne on 1-20-2012 at 6:27 pm

  33. Everyone involved in The Happening should be ashamed of it, especially Shaymalan IMO.

    I’ve also heard that Tom Hanks hates Joe vs the Volcano so much that he denies making it at all. Maybe that’s just a rumor though. I like that movie.

    posted by Laura on 1-20-2012 at 6:52 pm

  34. Misha Collins hates Karla.

    ‘Don’t watch the movie. I keep on saying that at conventions and sales of the movie have gone up. Folks, stop watching Karla. Don’t buy it, don’t rent it, it’s a crappy movie and it’s not uplifting, so stop watching it.’

    Playing the character Paul really affected him, too.

    I’d watched it ages ago before I really became a big fan of Collins, so I didn’t remember much of it. Recently rewatched it – wish I hadn’t. It’s not fun to watch an actor you like get that dark.

    posted by pluto on 1-20-2012 at 7:47 pm

  35. I like Breckin Meyer’s Twitter bio:

    “Hi Twitter. I’m Breckin. Um…sorry about that whole Garfield thing.”

    posted by Mimi on 1-20-2012 at 9:04 pm

  36. Edward Norton only did the Italian Job because he had signed a three-movie deal with Paramount, not because he wanted to. You can tell by the acting job in that movie that he didn’t want to be there.

    posted by tango november whisky on 1-20-2012 at 9:16 pm

  37. I’d like to meet the cast member who liked being in Batman & Robin.

    posted by Laurel on 1-20-2012 at 9:18 pm

  38. I remember reading that Bruce Willis only did the 4th Die Hard movie because he wanted to do another movie and the studio would greenlight his project if he did another Die Hard.

    posted by Wayne Stevens on 1-20-2012 at 9:26 pm

  39. The one I thought would be on here is Christian Bale, who despises the 1992 Disney musical Newsies, in which he starred. Personally, I don’t see how anyone can hate that movie, unless you don’t fast-forward through the Ann-Margret songs. Then it would be unbearable.
    Rooney Mara also received some bad press on this front recently, where she was misquoted as saying she hated her L&O role. Whether she disliked the gig or disliked the person she played seems to be under debate.

    posted by Emma on 1-20-2012 at 10:58 pm

  40. Funny John Cusack, that you swore you’d never trust your friend Steve as a director again when only one year later you made One Crazy Summer directed by ohhhhh! Steve Holland!

    posted by Liz on 1-20-2012 at 11:07 pm

  41. I’d heard that Stallone said about “Stop or My Mom Will Shoot” that it’s probably the worst film ever made, including movies made on other planets by aliens.

    Also, on “Super Mario Brothers,” Hoskins and John Leguizamo pretty much drank their way through the movie shoot. Leguizamo told a story in his book about one of the directors disliking an extra’s costume so much, he poured scalding hot coffee on him. (Hoskins also claimed that the directing duo that started the film acted so arrogantly, their own agent threw them off set.)

    Later on, Dennis Hopper’s son asked him why he had appeared in the movie. He claimed it was so that he could buy him shoes; his son responded that he didn’t need shoes that much.

    -”BB”- – I’m sure you’ve had a job you hated doing. Did you refuse to cash the paycheck on that?

    James H – Edward Norton helped to re-edit “American History X,” so he probably doesn’t hate it too much. Director Tony Kaye, on the other hand, was so displeased he tried to sue the studio for half a billion dollars and wanted his credit changed to “Humpty Dumpty.” (He’s apparently kind of strange.)

    Pluto – Part of his regret might also be that the movie is based on a series of murders that are still kind of an open wound in Canada. Also, the director was reportedly not sensitive about the whole deal.

    Mimi – Don’t forget Bill Murray, who claims he only signed on because he thought it was written by one of the Coen brothers. (Now that would make an interesting “Garfield” movie.)

    posted by Sillstaw on 1-20-2012 at 11:21 pm

  42. Emma – Reportedly, the reason Christian Bale doesn’t like “Newsies” is because he wasn’t told it was a musical when he was cast in it. He apparently doesn’t care for musicals.

    posted by Sillstaw on 1-20-2012 at 11:22 pm

  43. Baldric – I follow Steve Martin on twitter. I Know he’s mentioned The Jerk at least once. Said you can hear the snap of the ukulele breaking when he and Bernadette Peters stand up at the end of “Tonight You Belong To Me.”
    Beautiful songs and fun facts are my raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens.

    posted by Val on 1-20-2012 at 11:30 pm

  44. A few more:

    Burt Reynolds hated Boogie Nights so much that he fired his manager for getting him the part. Then he was nominated for an Oscar for his role in it – the only nomination of his career.

    Marlon Brando despised The Freshman and vowed to retire from acting after finishing it, saying he was sorry to have ended his career with such “a stinker.” It went on to be probably the most highly regarded and well-liked movie of his later career.

    Halle Berry was not wild about the first X-Men movie and went on record complaining about having been “reduced” to having to appear in such crud. She went on to star in two sequels.

    Probably doesn’t really qualify, but the only way Charlton Heston would agree to make Beneath the Planet of the Apes was for the producers to promise to destroy the world at the end of it, under the mistaken belief that would mean no further sequels. So he obviously wanted nothing more to do with the Apes (until his cameo in the dreadful Tim Burton version), but I don’t think he was ever on record as hating either of the two he made in the original series.

    posted by Brad on 1-21-2012 at 12:09 am

  45. “I’m sure you’ve had a job you hated doing. Did you refuse to cash the paycheck on that?”

    Yes, I’ve had several jobs I’ve hated doing (such as a substitute janitor for a temp agency), and yes, I still cashed the checks.

    What I was pointing out is that even though these jobs are long gone, and what I was doing had little or no significance in the long run, I still did the best job I was capable of on them, and I didn’t bad-mouth the company that employed me.

    Kinda like Thumper’s mom reminded him in “Bambi” — “If you can’t say something nice, don’t say nothing at all.” It’s still a good rule to live by.

    -”BB”-

    posted by Bicycle Bill on 1-21-2012 at 1:59 am

  46. @Laurel – probably the guy that played Bane. His face was covered by a mask the whole movie, so he can claim anonymity very easily.

    posted by MatthewZD on 1-21-2012 at 8:39 am

  47. I think I read in “Burton on Burton” (about Tim Burton) that Alec Baldwin was a total grouch during the making of “Beetlejuice”. Geena Davis was a total sport, though, and gave everybody gifts at the end of the shoot.

    posted by bean_shadow on 1-21-2012 at 9:26 am

  48. Thanks Sillstaw – Maybe I confused Tony Kaye’s reaction with Ed Norton.

    posted by James H on 1-21-2012 at 11:51 am

  49. I really really dislike Katherine Heigl. It seems her peers have a hard time saying anything nice about her. So she said she hated the movie because it portrayed her exactly as she is, probably. What about “The truth about love”? She had the exact same character in that movie.

    posted by Lee on 1-21-2012 at 1:22 pm

  50. The fact that people only think of Sir Alec in relation to Star Wars (and not say Kind Hearts and Coronets) makes me embarrassed for them more than anything else. Just like Sir Lawrence Olivier is just Superman’s father, right?

    posted by Edward on 1-21-2012 at 1:26 pm

  51. Hard to believe #10: Christopher Plummer, the man who gleefully portrayed a one-eyed Shakespeare-quoting Klingon.

    posted by m0lissa on 1-21-2012 at 2:53 pm

  52. Didn’t Marlon Brando play Superman’s father? It’s been a long time since I saw the movie, but I remember reading that he got paid four million for it, which was a LOT of money for a small role in those days.

    posted by Catseye on 1-21-2012 at 3:03 pm

  53. I have never understood why John Cusack dislikes “Better Off Dead”. It’s definitely in my top five all time funniest films. (If he’s going to hate one, “One Crazy Summer” was a bigger stinker!)

    posted by David L on 1-21-2012 at 3:15 pm

  54. Lawrence Olivier played Zues in Clash of the Titans. Marlon Brandon was Superman’s dad. Jeebus I am a nerd.

    posted by DvusRai on 1-21-2012 at 7:06 pm

  55. I remember hearing that Brad Pitt hated working on The Devil’s Own so much that he called in sick, more than once. The director responded, one day, by sending an ambulance to his apartment.

    posted by Padzilla on 1-21-2012 at 9:22 pm

  56. David Cross is doing all of his interviews lately promoting his tv show and trash talking his experience working on Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked. How he was humiliated and encouraging his fans not to see it. it’s pretty hilarious.

    posted by emilykate on 1-22-2012 at 12:09 pm

  57. Sean Penn hated “Shanghai Surprise.” When a writer tried to interview him about it several years ago, he received a polite note stating (I’m paraphrasing), “Sorry. I made a vow to myself never to discuss that movie for the rest of my life.”

    posted by Doug on 1-22-2012 at 9:24 pm

  58. On the “Better Off Dead” front, I’ve heard before that there was a falling out with the director during the filming of “One Crazy Summer” and Cusack’s retaliation for that was not promoting “BOD”. It always seemed it was more of a personal issue between the two of them than an issue with the movie.

    posted by Lacey on 1-23-2012 at 9:55 am

  59. I seem to remember reading that Christopher Plummer was the only person out of those eligible that turned down residuals for Sound of Music. Which, of course, is probably what caused him to play a one eyed Klingon. :)

    posted by Andy on 1-23-2012 at 11:35 am

  60. I remember seeing an interview with Chevy Chase saying his favorite movie he did was “Caddyshack” and his least favorite was “Caddyshack 2″

    posted by Dave on 1-23-2012 at 11:50 am

  61. The candor and perspective on the part of Stallone, Hoskins, Clooney and Cosby give me new-found respect for all of them.

    posted by Brian on 1-23-2012 at 12:54 pm

  62. Ironic that Katherine Heigl would be so shrew-like in complaining about stereotyping women as shrews. Ironic because it’s a reversal of expectations?

    posted by staticage002 on 1-23-2012 at 1:08 pm

  63. So, Katherine, playing women who are not complete until they find “the one” through cute and ridiculous circumstances is somehow better? I mean 27 dresses…come on, now!

    I bet she said that when she thought she’d have her choice of scripts after leaving Grey’s Anatomy.. now she’ll take whatever they give her…

    posted by Kelly on 1-24-2012 at 3:36 pm

  64. As far as I am aware, Harrison Ford still hates “Blade Runner” and Ridley Scott for “fucking it up”.

    posted by Rasmus Keldorff on 1-25-2012 at 3:38 am

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