Former "A" list actors, now making "B" movies
by jefaud | created - 28 Nov 2011 | updated - 20 Jun 2020 | PublicThese actors used to be in the Hollywood blockbusters, now they're either choosing or stuck making straight to video or made for TV movies. Who did I forget?
1. Bruce Willis
Actor | Die Hard
Actor and musician Bruce Willis is well known for playing wisecracking or hard-edged characters, often in spectacular action films. Collectively, he has appeared in films that have grossed in excess of $2.5 billion USD.
Walter Bruce Willis was born on March 19, 1955, in Idar-Oberstein, West Germany,...
Setup, Catch .44, The Cold Light of Day, Fire with Fire, The Prince, Vice. If you haven't watched all 6 of the above movies, please do not leave comments. I believe if someone is willing to pay Bruce Willis 1 million dollars for one day's work. He will allow you to put him on the cover of the artwork no matter how bad the movie is. They know that faithful (former) fans like me will spend the money to purchase the new Bruce Willis movie only to be duped once again into giving hard earned money to their false advertising. Shame on you Bruce Willis for not having more pride in yourself. Ladies and Gentlemen, Bruce is for sale to anyone that has 1 million dollars a day. Screw the fans. What happened to you, Mr. Willis? That crap that you pulled with Stallone and Expendables 3 was ridiculous. You refused to work for 4 days for 3 million dollars???...but then give yourself to the above listed straight to DVD movies. Why? Your fans don't understand! In my opinion, you deserved to be replace by the better actor/movie star, Harrison Ford. Then you showed up to host SNL the next week to remind us how down to earth and lovable that you are. It was typical Hollywood propaganda. Your people trying to save your reputation. Only a child wouldn't be able to see the blatant attempt at damage control. I am just trying to understand, are you trying to sabotage your own career? While I am rambling, what was the deal with Good Day to Die Hard? Did you even read the script? Terrible terrible terrible sequel for a Die Hard movie.
2. John Cusack
Actor | Grosse Pointe Blank
John Cusack is, like most of his characters, an unconventional hero. Wary of fame and repelled by formulaic Hollywood fare, he has built a successful career playing underdogs and odd men out--all the while avoiding the media spotlight. John was born in Evanston, Illinois, to an Irish-American ...
My man, the likeable "every man". Now, straight to video.
3. Nicolas Cage
Actor | Face/Off
Nicolas Cage was born Nicolas Kim Coppola in Long Beach, California, the son of comparative literature professor August Coppola (whose brother is director Francis Ford Coppola) and dancer/choreographer Joy Vogelsang. He is of Italian (father) and Polish and German (mother) descent. Cage changed his...
Who would have thought that Nicolas Cage would take a page out of the Steven Seagal playbook. 6 straight to video movies a year, all of them sub-par.
4. Christian Slater
Actor | Very Bad Things
Christian Michael Leonard Slater was born on August 18, 1969 in New York City, to Michael Hawkins, a well-known soap actor, and Mary Jo Slater (née Lawton), a casting agent. Christian started in show business early, appearing on the soap opera The Edge of Night (1956) in 1976 at the age of 7. He ...
He made some great movies. Now straight to video.
5. Val Kilmer
Actor | The Doors
Val Kilmer was born in Los Angeles, California, to Gladys Swanette (Ekstadt) and Eugene Dorris Kilmer, who was a real estate developer and aerospace equipment distributor. His mother, born in Indiana, was from a Swedish family, and his father was from Texas. Val studied at Hollywood's ...
Has a foot in both worlds.
6. Cuba Gooding Jr.
Actor | Jerry Maguire
Cuba Gooding Jr. was born on January 2, 1968, in The Bronx, New York. His mother, Shirley (Sullivan), was a backup singer for The Sweethearts. His father, Cuba Gooding, was the lead vocalist for the R&B group The Main Ingredient, which had a hit with the song "Everybody Plays The Fool". His ...
Acadamy award winning actor now making straight to video action flicks
7. Steven Seagal
Actor | On Deadly Ground
Steven Frederic Seagal was born in Lansing, Michigan, to Patricia Anne (Fisher), a medical technician, and Samuel Seagal, a high school math teacher. His paternal grandparents were Russian Jewish immigrants, and his mother had English, German, and distant Irish and Dutch, ancestry. The enigmatic ...
Started strong and now is making like 5 straight to video flicks a year. I saw one (Submerged) that he didn't even take the time to dub his own voice into the final project. Talk about phoning it in. I think that when he made the "politically correct" On Deadly Ground that he alienated his core demographic, then they walked away. (just a theory)
8. Dolph Lundgren
Actor | Rocky IV
Dolph Lundgren was born as Hans Lundgren in Stockholm, Sweden, to Sigrid Birgitta (Tjerneld), a language teacher, and Karl Johan Hugo Lundgren, an engineer and economist for the Swedish government. He lived in Stockholm until the age of 13, when he moved in with his grandparents in Nyland, ...
View to a Kill, Rocky IV, Universal Soldier, then 20 straight to video action flicks. "Missionary Man" almost made me walk away forever.
9. Jean-Claude Van Damme
Actor | Double Impact
Van Damme was born Jean-Claude Camille François Van Varenberg in Berchem-Sainte-Agathe, Brussels, Belgium, to Eliana and Eugène Van Varenberg, an accountant. "The Muscles from Brussels" started martial arts at the age of eleven. His father introduced him to martial arts when he saw his son was ...
The sad thing is he still thinks that he is an, "A" list actor. When Stallone calls you to star in a major motion picture "Blockbuster" and you refuse because you haven't read the script...you are out of touch with reality!
10. Wesley Snipes
Actor | Blade
Wesley Trent Snipes was born in Orlando, Florida, to Marian (Long), a teacher's assistant, and SMSGT Wesley Rudolph Snipes, an aircraft engineer. He grew up on the streets of the South Bronx in New York City, where he very early decided that dance and the theatre were to be his career. He attended ...
Can you see the card board sign saying, "will make bad movie to pay tax bill"
11. Danny Glover
Actor | Lethal Weapon
Actor, producer and humanitarian Danny Glover has been a commanding presence on screen, stage and television for more than 35 years.
Glover was born in San Francisco, California, to Carrie (Hunley) and James Glover, postal workers who were also active in civil rights. Glover trained at the Black ...
I never thought that his acting ability actually warranted him ever being on the "A" list.
12. Lou Diamond Phillips
Actor | Courage Under Fire
Louis Diamond Phillips is an American actor and film director. His breakthrough came when he starred as Ritchie Valens in the biographical drama film La Bamba (1987). For Stand and Deliver (1988), Phillips was nominated for a Golden Globe Award and won an Independent Spirit Award. Phillips made his...
I never really got why he actually made the "A" list to begin with. I guess with the success of LaBamba and Young Guns.
13. Gary Busey
Actor | The Buddy Holly Story
A blond-haired, fair-complexioned actor with a toothy grin and capable of an unsettling glint in his eyes, Gary Busey was born in Goose Creek, Texas, and was raised in Oklahoma. He is the son of Sadie Virginia (Arnett), a homemaker, and Delmar Lloyd Busey, a construction design manager. He has ...
I think that he just went crazy. Too bad. Probably had something to do with that horrible accident that he was in. Brain damage, maybe?
14. Christopher Lambert
Actor | Highlander
Though born in Great Neck, Long Island, Christopher Lambert's family left the US when he was only two years old. His father was a United Nations diplomat assigned to Switzerland and, as a result, Chris was educated at private boarding schools in Geneva. Inspired through his having appeared in a ...
Never really a fan. Looks like Tom Jane's look alike dad.
15. Lorenzo Lamas
Actor | Body Rock
Lorenzo Fernando Lamas was born in Santa Monica, California, the son of actors Arlene Dahl and Fernando Lamas. His father was Argentinian and his mother was American, of Norwegian descent. Lorenzo was raised in Pacific Palisades, California. In 1968, his family moved to New York. He attended ...
This guy made direct to video B movies for so long, I'm not even sure if he is still acting. The last time I saw him, he was a judge on some reality TV show. I may be mistaken, but he may have never been on any "A'' list.
16. C. Thomas Howell
Actor | The Outsiders
After an eye-catching performance in the teen coming-of-age epic The Outsiders (1983), ex-child rodeo star C. Thomas Howell was a promising young actor in the mid-1980s.
Christopher Thomas Howell was born in Los Angeles to Candice (Webb) and Chris Howell (a professional bull rider turned stuntman). ...
Remember when He was the biggest actor on, "The Outsiders" along with Ralph Macchio & Lief Garrett and supporting actors were Patrick Swayze, Emilo Estevez, Matt Dillion, Tom Cruise, Rob Lowe and Diane Lane?
17. Billy Zane
Actor | Titanic
William George Zane, better known as Billy Zane, was born on February 24, 1966 in Chicago, Illinois, to Thalia (Colovos) and William Zane, both of Greek ancestry. His parents were amateur actors and managed a medical technical school. Billy has an older sister, actress and singer Lisa Zane. Billy ...
This guy became a "Phantom" in A list movies.
18. Michael Biehn
Actor | Aliens
Michael Connell Biehn was born on July 31, 1956 in Anniston, Alabama, to Marcia (Connell) and Don Biehn, a lawyer. He grew up in Lincoln, Nebraska, and at age 14 moved with his family to Lake Havasu, Arizona, where he won a drama scholarship to the University of Arizona. He left prematurely two ...
There are a lot of actors that will be in any movie if you have the cash. Lately Bruce Willis is one of those actors. Michael Biehn is also one of those actors. Some mainstream, some B.
19. Vinnie Jones
Actor | Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels
Vincent Peter Jones was born on January 5, 1965 in Watford, England. He first came to public notice as a professional footballer, playing in the English Football League. Noted as one of football's hard men, he leaped to fame when a photographer, at a match, snapped him "marking" Newcastle United's ...
Briefly an "A" list actor. Now, mainly direct to video.
20. Tom Berenger
Actor | Platoon
Born in Chicago, Oscar nominee and Golden Globe and Emmy Award winner Tom Berenger was born Thomas Michael Moore and raised in a working class Roman Catholic family of Irish descent. His father was a printer for the Chicago Sun-Times. Tom attended the University of Missouri to study journalism. ...
C'mon Sniper 7! (I made this list about a decade ago...as of 2020, there are 8 “Sniper” movies. The original plus 7 sequels”. I was just KIDDING!
21. Jeff Fahey
Actor | Lost
Jeff Fahey was born in Olean, New York, one of 13 children of Jane (Gallagher) and Francis Thomas Fahey, who worked in a clothing store. He is of Irish descent. His family moved to Buffalo when he was 10, where he attended Father Baker's High School. After graduation in 1972 he traveled around the ...
The name you know. The face that you haven't seen...in a long time.
22. Michael Madsen
Actor | Reservoir Dogs
Michael Madsen is an enigmatic force in the entertainment industry, widely regarded as one of the most intense and compelling actors of our time. With an electrifying presence both on and off the screen, Madsen has captivated audiences worldwide with his mesmerizing performances, making an ...
This guy always had B Movie written all over him. B movies plus Tarantino movies.
23. Ray Liotta
Actor | Narc
Intense was the word for Ray Liotta. He specialized in psychopathic characters who hide behind a cultivated charm. Even in his nice-guy roles in Field of Dreams (1989) and Operation Dumbo Drop (1995), you get the impression that something is smoldering inside of him. He was born in Newark, New ...
Was actually in THE Bee Movie.
24. Treat Williams
Actor | Deep Rising
Richard Treat Williams was born in Stamford, Connecticut, to Marian (Andrew), who dealt in antiques, and Richard Norman Williams, a corporate executive. At the age of three, his family moved to Rowayton, Connecticut. Educated at prep-school, he first made a serious commitment to his craft during ...
What can I say about this guy. Seems like a nice enough guy.
25. Casper Van Dien
Actor | Starship Troopers
Casper Van Dien's breakthrough role was as the lead in Paul Verhoeven's sci-fi film Starship Troopers (1997). Still one of the most talked about films of 1997 that has one of the largest cult followings in film history. He was also in Tim Burton's critically acclaimed film Sleepy Hollow (1999), as ...
I think that like a lot of actors on this list, Casper is just a struggling actor looking for work and will star in any movie if you have the $$$$$$.
26. D.B. Sweeney
Actor | The Cutting Edge
D.B. Sweeney is from Shoreham, Long Island. He got his start in the New York theatre with appearances in many productions including a run on Broadway in "The Caine Mutiny Court Martial". He was selected by Francis Ford Coppola to star in the Vietnam era drama Gardens of Stone (1987). This began a ...
Was he an, "A" list actor?
27. Paul Sorvino
Actor | Repo! The Genetic Opera
Tall, dark and imposing American actor Paul Sorvino made a solid career of portraying authority figures.
He was born in Brooklyn, New York City. His mother, Angela (Renzi), was a piano teacher, of Italian descent. His father, Ford Sorvino, was an Italian immigrant who worked in a robe factory as a ...
Sad. Very talented.
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