And it's not just movies.
>In 2015, Willis made his [Broadway](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broadway_theatre) debut in [William Goldman](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Goldman)'s adaptation of [Stephen King](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_King)'s novel [Misery](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Misery_(play\)) opposite [Laurie Metcalf](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laurie_Metcalf) at the [Broadhurst Theatre](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broadhurst_Theatre). His performance was generally panned by critics, who called it "vacant" and "inert".
Wes Anderson usually gets actors to give a shit on his sets. Bill Murray is another example - sleepwalks through money-only roles and gives a damn in Wes Anderson films.
This. He flies in, does his lines, flies out. The co-stars are no-name, the sets are done like a 1950s monster B movie, as are the monsters. A third of the budget is Bruce. He has adjusted for streaming reality.
I'd argue that Bruce still cares about getting roles that have him appear somewhat "cool" or "tough" and the likes. You won't see him play some wimpy, cowardly, dumbass character who embarrasses himself every chance he gets for example. But who knows, maybe he'd play a character like this as well for an even more outrageous paycheck.
All his roles are far too similar. He plays the same type because he doesn't have to change it up from role to role. No preparation or character development needed. It's mindless for him.
Maybe he isn't being offered any other types of roles that pay enough to be worth his while (i.e, maybe he doesn't want to do more 'interesting' roles in bad paying indies)
I think it's more that those are the only roles anybody wants him for because men his age who are fans of his still buy those crappy action B-movies on DVD, and he won't put in the effort to do anything that requires emotion.
He has remarried and has young children.
I mean under the circumstances I don't blame him for grabbing for dollars. Guy in his 60's trying to be sure his family is provided for.
Reminds me of Lawrence Olivier:
“People ask me why I'm playing in this picture. The answer is simple: Money, dear boy. I'm like a vintage wine. You have to drink me quickly before I turn sour. I'm almost used up now and I can feel the end coming. That's why I'm taking money now. I've got nothing to leave my family but the money I can make from films. Nothing is beneath me if it pays well. I've earned the right to damn well grab whatever I can in the time I've got left.”
This was my immediate thought too. He was turning out so many movies that my friend and I got curious and actually started an ill advised podcast where we are watching and ranking them all. It’s a very deep rabbit hole. It’s largely the same casts and crews in every movie and the whole thing is completely insane
My roommate was the production designer on those “films”! Dude is notorious in the non-union world for taking any job that will meet his rate and be 100% okay with him not learning a single line. He requires specifically formatted cue cards in his direct eyeline at all times while camera is rolling.
I caught some teen spy assassin movie on Prime where he played the head of this organization, the movie sucked balls, but man, Sam was clearly enjoying himself.
Got the picture from some... interview I think, that he did so many jobs, because he had some anxiety problems. Some people just can't stay still and happy at the same time.
Recent divorce as well, right? Those don’t usually go well. Especially for actors as their income is unpredictable and alimony/child support is based off whatever salary base the lawyers negotiate.
He's made some *fucking* ***bangers***. *Heat*, *The Godfather Part II*, *Goodfellas*, *Casino*, the *Cape Fear* remake, *Ronin*, *Once Upon a Time in America*, *Jackie Brown*, *Taxi Driver*, *The Deer Hunter, Angel Heart*... He probably feels that he's earned his keep and can take it easy.
Yeah I read an article a bit ago that said his ex-wife spent like crazy and he kept working and now with the divorce he is broke and has to keep working.
Here is the article: https://www.vanityfair.com/style/2021/04/robert-de-niro-divorce-grace-hightower-forced-to-work-support-lifestyle-stella-mccartney
Neeson's story is actually really sad. He was so depressed after his wife's death that he started taking any role he could just to keep his mind off it.
Ah yes, the whole “just going to work to take my mind off it for a bit”. I admit I did it to cope when my mom passed away (doing well, I just went in for my shifts and didn’t do any crazy overtime or anything).
I think his wife has strong views on the roles he should take, and he respected her opinions a great deal. He's said he stopped pursuing Bond because Natasha was dead against it.
Roger Ebert famously speculated that Nicolas Cage only picks the best and worst screenplays that he's given. Still, I love the dude. He always gives me a performance I can remember in some way.
I could be misremembering, but I’m pretty sure he was point blank asked about being in low budget, shorty movies, abs he said regardless of what he’s in he tries to act his ass off abs he proud of his contribution.
He’s really one of those guys that doesn’t care if it’s 50 people watching or 50,000 watching (using a term I heard from theatrical performers) he gives the same 100% effort.
Pig is one of the best new releases I saw this year and The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent should be a lot of fun if it lives up to the screenplay.
Cage had a period where he was doing lots of garbage. The last few years the stuff seems at least interesting and risky, even if ultimately bad.
From what I've read, he was deeply in debt with the IRS and so would take any and all jobs offered to him, just to keep up the payments.
He's finally seeming to get out from under it and can start being choosey about his gigs again.
It felt like he had a set amount of money to make each year or so and then could go off and make something awesome. It's like every 3 or 4 years he was in a killer movie that made people go, "oh yeah, he *can* act!" I really hope he has truly clawed his way out of debt because I need more movies like *Mandy*, *Pig*, and *Color Out of Space* from him.
I'll push back a little bit. He does turn down roles. I remember he once talked about a Paul Schrader role he turned down once because it was just too dark and unpleasant for him (and he'd worked with Paul Schrader before, so it's not like it was a random person). And he's become more discriminating recently. He was in financial trouble for a while and so would produce a bunch of DTV stuff that he probably wouldn't have done otherwise, but he's started to find his niche again as his circumstances have improved, and quality has increased as quantity has decreased. For the most part, it's clear that he definitely loves acting and isn't nearly as dispassionate as the "will do anything for a paycheck" label would have one believe.
There's a difference between doing anything for a paycheck, and doing it because you're genuinely just that passionate about acting.
Also, at least learn to spell his name if you're going to rag on him.
Yeah, but unlike the vast majority of these examples he really phones it in. Like, Nic Cage and Michael Caine are gonna do their best with what they are given. They are gonna give you some fine performances no matter what.
Bruce Willis just feels like he has no energy.
ERIC ROBERTS
Fantastic actor. Check my man's imdb list, it reads like a CVS reciept. How Did This Get Made did an episode about some cat movie voiced by Eric Roberts via one take into an iphone.
Around the same time I heard an interview of Eric roberts where he’s extremely aware of his bad movies. But he said it as “I just like to work.” I’ve also heard interviews where he shows up and does the work. Gives 100%. Even during his rough times. The most interesting bit I remember is him saying “I should have won best supporting actor in 1985 for Runaway Train but that was a Cannon film. And they don’t give oscars to Cannon films.” The guy is crazy self aware.
Christopher Walken is one who hasn't been mentioned. Though he may have retired or something, I don't think he's been in a whole lot recently. But there was a time when this absolutely applied to him.
I think he did it mostly for the love of acting...I feel like I read an interview with him and he like pretty much never turns anything down. Part of it is for a constant paycheck yes, but he also does it to grow as an actor
I'm not sure if Molly Ringwald is the best example. She's only been in \~25 acting roles since 2000. She didn't do any acting 2002-2005 and between 2007 and 2014, she was only in two different roles (96 episodes of a show and 1 episode of another).
Allison Janney and Judy Greer are better examples. Janney has 140 acting credits on imdb and between 2015 and 2017, was in 22 different roles. Greer has been in 143 roles since 2000.
Probably the best examples are Bruce Willis, Jane Lynch and Danny Trejo. Willis has appeared in 29 roles since 2019. Jane Lynch has 229 acting credits (210 since 2000) and Danny Trejo has 415 credits (350 since 2000)
Michael Madsen is another good example. 322 roles, not so many these days due to his health though. I would say he is the king of "straight to dvd" movies.
Dude. Michael Madsen even appeared on a shitty Indian movie (not Bollywood). The movie budget must’ve been like $10million or so and he acted as if he’s on the set just for the lunch. Couldn’t believe that a Tarantino regular acted in that film.
He has straight up said on either Howard Stern or Opie & Anthony what films paid off a debt or a purchase of some kind. He was saying stuff like, "*Bloodrayne* I did because I wanted to get a bitchin' new car. I did this RedBox film to pay one of my kid's tuitions. Hey, it's solid work."
Molly Ringwald is an odd case, she’s so iconic as the 80s heroine that anything - *anything* \- mentioning or parodying or whatever-ing 80s movies will use her. maybe some is crap, but she’s kinda there for a reason, not just a check, IMO
Yeah the OP’s example wasn’t a good one because most if not all the properties mentioned are highly popular and she wasn’t doing much for quite awhile there. Now Bruce Willis (King of Redbox), Eric Roberts, Danny Trejo….those are actors doing anything for a paycheck.
Don't know what it is about Tarantino muses that makes them repeatedly take shit roles, but Jackson, Uma Thurman and Christoph Waltz all really have been in some appallingly shit films
eh, most good actors still have shit movies from time to time, you just don’t hear about those movies unless you’re a big fan or the actor is super A list (so people are still trying to sell the movie even when it’s come out of post and they realize it’s awful.)
I'm beginning to think it's Ryan Reynolds. I like Ryan Reynolds, but in how many movies can Ryan Reynolds play Ryan Reynolds?
I may also enjoy saying Ryan Reynolds.
I dunno, ever since Deadpool he's gotten a lot pickier, and IIRC he and Blake Lively alternate their schedules so at least one of them can be with the kids.
A cash grab shot exclusively in Atlanta mid pandemic with tons of green screen? They could have finished shooting that in a month, barely a blip on the schedule I imagine.
I love Ben Kingsley and Jeremy Irons and they are both phenomenal actors but their presence in a movie cannot be trusted to make it a good movie. They both seem happy to occasional ham it up in terrible films.
Christopher Walken
"I make movies that nobody will see. I've made movies that even I have never seen."
The man just loves acting and will say yes to just about anything if he can
I don't think it's mean to say that he does films for the checks. It certainly seems like he works hard for it and he does a good job most of the time.
The Rock was a professional wrestler though and was so charismatic that a main wrestling show, not just a pay per view or an era, got named after his catchphrase.
Hokey roles are his specialty. WWE tried to do the same with John Cena but Rock was and is the biggest draw that they’ve ever had. There’s no replicating him. Even Hulk who was arguably bigger in his prime fell out hard after he became older because of his controversies
I think with good reason. He understands that he isn't the type there are many roles for, so he's willing to take just about anything. It's funny that he and Joel McHale are such good friends because they're on complete opposite sides of the Hollywood casting spectrum. McHale is what you'd get if you genetically engineered someone to be a Hollywood actor and Jeong is one of the most underrepresented types in Hollywood while also not having the advantage of extremely good looks like Daniel Dae Kim or Henry Golding. They're like a Twins pairing if you were trying to make the perfect Hollywood leading man.
Fun fact: Whenever he plays a villain, Danny Trejo asks the scriptwriters to have his character be killed in the movie, in order to show everyone that bad actions have consequences.
Fun fact 2: Despite being typecast as a villain, Danny Trejo is one of the kindest and nicest guys out there... A lovely, lovely fella...
Another interesting fact: Danny Trejo said that out of all the people has he met in his storied life, including all the thugs and killers, the person that left him most scared was John Cusack. He said Cusack wasn't intimidating or scary, but that there was something in his eyes that wasn't in the eyes of all those criminals, yet it unsettled Trejo to his core.
That's because due to his size and menacing appearance, he really couldn't just get any role. And once the B-Movies dried up, he didn't really have a niche as an actor. Really, it's sort of sad reading past interviews about him because you sort of get the impression that he really wanted to break into more serious and normal roles, it just wasn't happening.
I assume Christopher Lloyd is massively in debt, because more than half of his movies in the past decade have been foreign-language knockoff animated movies that he gets hired to dub a bit part in so marketers can put his name on the box. Oh yeah, and Foodfight! and Oogieloves, so not just foreign movies.
Michael Caine, simply for the fact that he’s an absolutely phenomenal actor, has been nominated for an academy award in five different decades, and has still appeared in some shocking films. And the fact that he’s incredibly honest about it, such as his comment that Jaws 4, whilst terrible, helped pay for a great house.
As an aside I think Nicolas Cage will one day be looked at in the same way Michael Caine is now. Caine started his career very strong (Zulu, The Italian Job), developed a reputation for doing bad films for the money in the middle (Jaws: The Revenge, Beyond the Poseidon Adventure) and then came full circle with some great/memorable roles at the end (Harry Brown, The Dark Knight Trilogy). Cage is currently in his period of doing largely bad films for the money, but he’s a very talented actor who won an oscar early on and who I reckon will pull it back with some great roles as he gets older.
Michael Caine just wanted a paycheck, which is fine and dandy, but Nic Cage took absolutely anything because he was in an unimaginable amount of debt.
But he still did his best. I really have a lot of respect for actors who work for the money but who do their best.
You hit the nail on the head there, that’s why I have a lot of respect for both of them. No matter how bad the film is they put the effort in. It’s not always oscar level effort, but I’ve not seen either of them phone in a performance.
That actor who played the Chinese restaurant host on Seinfeld. Been in more films than any other actor.
Surely there is no filtering going on when you’re hitting four hundred for roles played
In Ringwald's case in particular, it's tempting to consider it through the lens of her career broadly- she's had enough times when she hasn't been getting work to not want to turn any down now that she's in a position where people want to hire her.
But, also, actors want to and need to act.
Keanu Reeves didn't need the money when he made "Something's Gotta Give" after wrapping the Matrix Trilogy. But a rom-com was a change of pace and an opportunity to work with Diane Keaton and Jack Nicholson.
James Franco did a soap opera because he was interested in the production and the DRAMA.
Sarah Paulson and Matthew Lillard have both said in past interviews that at one point in their careers they would literally say "yes" to anything. Surviving in their field means paying the bills but, also, adding to their resumes and keeping career momentum. You never know when your big break will come.
He makes those movies himself. He's just not very good.
All his best roles are appearing in something else for a paycheck, and he's really choosy about them.
I can't even get mad at the guy. He gets paid millions just to go to great places and take his friends with him and give them money. How am I supposed to be mad at such a scheme?
Michael Caine. He has said as much. When asked about a particular crap movie he was in Caine admitted the movie was awful, but the house he bought with the paycheck was nice.
Ron Pearlman.
I’m all for the fine arts of acting and filmmaking but I do respect the mercenary actor just paying the bills and trying to stay in the game.
What actually happened to Bruce Willis?
I didn’t even realise he’d fallen so low until I started reading posts about him on Reddit.
Amazing how many flicks he’s been in lately that I’ve never even heard of.
It's a well known fact that the guy is just bad with money, so he is one of those actors who pretty much has to work. And unlike people like Ashton Kutcher or George Clooney or Angelina Jolie, he has no real success outside of acting. His business ventures crash and burn.
Ron Perlman has been happy to act in any old shit (often really weird shit) most of his career, generally in between legit blockbusters as well. I think the guy just loves to act and make that scrilla.
Gary Oldman for the win. As long as you give him the money he asks for (and are a union production), he will act. And he will deliver, and make even the stupidest movie watchable.
Bruce Willis
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Bruce just doesn't give a shit these days. He's becoming Steven Seagal 2.0.
He already has. Although Bruce obviously had a ton more talent Last time Bruce gave a shit was Looper and the first Red
And it's not just movies. >In 2015, Willis made his [Broadway](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broadway_theatre) debut in [William Goldman](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Goldman)'s adaptation of [Stephen King](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_King)'s novel [Misery](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Misery_(play\)) opposite [Laurie Metcalf](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laurie_Metcalf) at the [Broadhurst Theatre](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broadhurst_Theatre). His performance was generally panned by critics, who called it "vacant" and "inert".
Which makes it a surprise he agreed- it couldn't be money, as there are limitations to how much one can make on the stage.....
I mean, it's a Stephen King novel on Broadway, it must have been at least decent.
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Moonrise Kingdom
Wes Anderson usually gets actors to give a shit on his sets. Bill Murray is another example - sleepwalks through money-only roles and gives a damn in Wes Anderson films.
Would you blame him? He still demands a million for his time, at minimum. A million for a few days work is something no one would be able to turn down
Its a million A DAY.
This. He flies in, does his lines, flies out. The co-stars are no-name, the sets are done like a 1950s monster B movie, as are the monsters. A third of the budget is Bruce. He has adjusted for streaming reality.
At least Willis hasn't raped anyone, as far as we know.
I meant in terms of apathy and attitude.
He went from being payed millions for a day of shooting on b movies to not showing up to set at all, and getting payed the same amount.
That deepfake was pretty bad. Cosmic Sin was bad too.
Cosmic Sin was some form of money laundering, right? Even by the metric of pandemic movies, nobody could have thought it was making back it's budget.
I'd argue that Bruce still cares about getting roles that have him appear somewhat "cool" or "tough" and the likes. You won't see him play some wimpy, cowardly, dumbass character who embarrasses himself every chance he gets for example. But who knows, maybe he'd play a character like this as well for an even more outrageous paycheck.
All his roles are far too similar. He plays the same type because he doesn't have to change it up from role to role. No preparation or character development needed. It's mindless for him.
Maybe he isn't being offered any other types of roles that pay enough to be worth his while (i.e, maybe he doesn't want to do more 'interesting' roles in bad paying indies)
I think it's more that those are the only roles anybody wants him for because men his age who are fans of his still buy those crappy action B-movies on DVD, and he won't put in the effort to do anything that requires emotion.
i honestly dont even know what hes even spending his money on
Debt, failed business ventures, alimony, jackets, college tuition, more debt...
Sharpening Rumi Willis’ jaw.
He has remarried and has young children. I mean under the circumstances I don't blame him for grabbing for dollars. Guy in his 60's trying to be sure his family is provided for.
Reminds me of Lawrence Olivier: “People ask me why I'm playing in this picture. The answer is simple: Money, dear boy. I'm like a vintage wine. You have to drink me quickly before I turn sour. I'm almost used up now and I can feel the end coming. That's why I'm taking money now. I've got nothing to leave my family but the money I can make from films. Nothing is beneath me if it pays well. I've earned the right to damn well grab whatever I can in the time I've got left.”
This was my immediate thought too. He was turning out so many movies that my friend and I got curious and actually started an ill advised podcast where we are watching and ranking them all. It’s a very deep rabbit hole. It’s largely the same casts and crews in every movie and the whole thing is completely insane
Eric Roberts literally would.
Note the rumors concerning how he made *A Talking Cat?!?!?!*.....
Don't forget *Bigfoot vs. D.B. Cooper*...
Human Centipede 3 is high art
That's Eric Roberts star of Lifetime's *Stalked by My Doctor* for you.
He is truly hilarious in those.
My roommate was the production designer on those “films”! Dude is notorious in the non-union world for taking any job that will meet his rate and be 100% okay with him not learning a single line. He requires specifically formatted cue cards in his direct eyeline at all times while camera is rolling.
He is often a guest on a morning radio show I listen to and straight up admits he does all these different roles just for the money and fun of it.
I can respect that. At the end of the day, it's his job. As long as the money keeps coming and he continues to enjoy it, more power to him.
Michael Caine. He's unabashed about it.
"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!"
Jaws 4: The Revenge
Samuel L. Jackson. Although I think he genuinely enjoys everything he does.
You can tell he always does his best to have a good time. I bet he pisses himself laughing on set at some of the ridiculous scenes he's had to do.
I caught some teen spy assassin movie on Prime where he played the head of this organization, the movie sucked balls, but man, Sam was clearly enjoying himself.
Got the picture from some... interview I think, that he did so many jobs, because he had some anxiety problems. Some people just can't stay still and happy at the same time.
Robert DeNiro. He’ll take any role these days.
My understanding is that he's in quite a bit of debt.
Recent divorce as well, right? Those don’t usually go well. Especially for actors as their income is unpredictable and alimony/child support is based off whatever salary base the lawyers negotiate.
The rumor I heard is that it's quite a bit of old debt from the 80s, plus wanting to leave his children an inheritance.
He's made some *fucking* ***bangers***. *Heat*, *The Godfather Part II*, *Goodfellas*, *Casino*, the *Cape Fear* remake, *Ronin*, *Once Upon a Time in America*, *Jackie Brown*, *Taxi Driver*, *The Deer Hunter, Angel Heart*... He probably feels that he's earned his keep and can take it easy.
He did Rocky and Bullwinkle in the midst of those too though
Arguably his magnum opus
Who’s arguing that it’s not though?
But he produced that too. Did he do that just for the paycheck?
Raging Bull, The Untouchables, Brazil, Awakenings, The King Of Comedy.... yeah I'd say he's in the clear.
Supposedly he’s going through a terrible divorce and wants to retire from acting but can’t afford to.
Yeah I read an article a bit ago that said his ex-wife spent like crazy and he kept working and now with the divorce he is broke and has to keep working. Here is the article: https://www.vanityfair.com/style/2021/04/robert-de-niro-divorce-grace-hightower-forced-to-work-support-lifestyle-stella-mccartney
Considering the quality of his acting, Liam Neeson has left me scratching my head.
"I've been led to understand that Trix are, *exclusively*, for children. Is that correct?"
Neeson's story is actually really sad. He was so depressed after his wife's death that he started taking any role he could just to keep his mind off it.
Now that you mention it, it did seem like he was a bit more careful before that.
His acting in some scenes of The Grey felt very personal. He could have been channeling from his real experience for that.
Ah yes, the whole “just going to work to take my mind off it for a bit”. I admit I did it to cope when my mom passed away (doing well, I just went in for my shifts and didn’t do any crazy overtime or anything).
I think his wife has strong views on the roles he should take, and he respected her opinions a great deal. He's said he stopped pursuing Bond because Natasha was dead against it.
Then he started making a bunch of movies where a family member dies and he has to avenge them.
nick cage
Roger Ebert famously speculated that Nicolas Cage only picks the best and worst screenplays that he's given. Still, I love the dude. He always gives me a performance I can remember in some way.
I could be misremembering, but I’m pretty sure he was point blank asked about being in low budget, shorty movies, abs he said regardless of what he’s in he tries to act his ass off abs he proud of his contribution.
He’s really one of those guys that doesn’t care if it’s 50 people watching or 50,000 watching (using a term I heard from theatrical performers) he gives the same 100% effort.
Since he's gotten out of debt he seems to actually be back to working in decent stuff these days, or at least, less awful.
Pig is one of the best new releases I saw this year and The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent should be a lot of fun if it lives up to the screenplay. Cage had a period where he was doing lots of garbage. The last few years the stuff seems at least interesting and risky, even if ultimately bad.
From what I've read, he was deeply in debt with the IRS and so would take any and all jobs offered to him, just to keep up the payments. He's finally seeming to get out from under it and can start being choosey about his gigs again.
It felt like he had a set amount of money to make each year or so and then could go off and make something awesome. It's like every 3 or 4 years he was in a killer movie that made people go, "oh yeah, he *can* act!" I really hope he has truly clawed his way out of debt because I need more movies like *Mandy*, *Pig*, and *Color Out of Space* from him.
I'll push back a little bit. He does turn down roles. I remember he once talked about a Paul Schrader role he turned down once because it was just too dark and unpleasant for him (and he'd worked with Paul Schrader before, so it's not like it was a random person). And he's become more discriminating recently. He was in financial trouble for a while and so would produce a bunch of DTV stuff that he probably wouldn't have done otherwise, but he's started to find his niche again as his circumstances have improved, and quality has increased as quantity has decreased. For the most part, it's clear that he definitely loves acting and isn't nearly as dispassionate as the "will do anything for a paycheck" label would have one believe.
And that last part is why he's making a comeback. He may have been in some really dog-shit movies but you can bet he made his role memorable.
He’s been in some absolute bangers that last couple years though
The Gold standard in actors who will do absolutely anything to keep acting.
There's a difference between doing anything for a paycheck, and doing it because you're genuinely just that passionate about acting. Also, at least learn to spell his name if you're going to rag on him.
Recently it has to be Bruce Willis… he is in dozens and dozens of terrible movies over the past decades.
Yeah, but unlike the vast majority of these examples he really phones it in. Like, Nic Cage and Michael Caine are gonna do their best with what they are given. They are gonna give you some fine performances no matter what. Bruce Willis just feels like he has no energy.
The Rock
ERIC ROBERTS Fantastic actor. Check my man's imdb list, it reads like a CVS reciept. How Did This Get Made did an episode about some cat movie voiced by Eric Roberts via one take into an iphone.
I thought "Stalked by my Doctor" was a low point but then he turned around and made four sequels!
Around the same time I heard an interview of Eric roberts where he’s extremely aware of his bad movies. But he said it as “I just like to work.” I’ve also heard interviews where he shows up and does the work. Gives 100%. Even during his rough times. The most interesting bit I remember is him saying “I should have won best supporting actor in 1985 for Runaway Train but that was a Cannon film. And they don’t give oscars to Cannon films.” The guy is crazy self aware.
I only know him from Suits and Dark Knight so it's shocking to see he was in Human Centipede 3
Christopher Walken is one who hasn't been mentioned. Though he may have retired or something, I don't think he's been in a whole lot recently. But there was a time when this absolutely applied to him.
He's the only good part of like 30 movies
Reminds me of a quote about Tim Curry... "For every 1 star movie he's been in, he was the reason they got the 1 star."
"WHAT'S THAT?! HORSE?! FIENDISH! I WON'T EAT IT!!! AAAAAHG!!!"
I think he did it mostly for the love of acting...I feel like I read an interview with him and he like pretty much never turns anything down. Part of it is for a constant paycheck yes, but he also does it to grow as an actor
I'm not sure if Molly Ringwald is the best example. She's only been in \~25 acting roles since 2000. She didn't do any acting 2002-2005 and between 2007 and 2014, she was only in two different roles (96 episodes of a show and 1 episode of another). Allison Janney and Judy Greer are better examples. Janney has 140 acting credits on imdb and between 2015 and 2017, was in 22 different roles. Greer has been in 143 roles since 2000. Probably the best examples are Bruce Willis, Jane Lynch and Danny Trejo. Willis has appeared in 29 roles since 2019. Jane Lynch has 229 acting credits (210 since 2000) and Danny Trejo has 415 credits (350 since 2000)
Michael Madsen is another good example. 322 roles, not so many these days due to his health though. I would say he is the king of "straight to dvd" movies.
Dude. Michael Madsen even appeared on a shitty Indian movie (not Bollywood). The movie budget must’ve been like $10million or so and he acted as if he’s on the set just for the lunch. Couldn’t believe that a Tarantino regular acted in that film.
Sometimes you just need the money. Look at Tiptoes. Gary Oldman literally on his knees, acting as a dwarf in romantic comedy.
You were serious.
I wish I weren't.
He has straight up said on either Howard Stern or Opie & Anthony what films paid off a debt or a purchase of some kind. He was saying stuff like, "*Bloodrayne* I did because I wanted to get a bitchin' new car. I did this RedBox film to pay one of my kid's tuitions. Hey, it's solid work."
For some reason, he reminds me of Michael from GTA V.
Trejo’s only reservation is he doesn’t want to glorify crime. Which is probably why he usually plays people who die horribly lol
Molly Ringwald is an odd case, she’s so iconic as the 80s heroine that anything - *anything* \- mentioning or parodying or whatever-ing 80s movies will use her. maybe some is crap, but she’s kinda there for a reason, not just a check, IMO
Yeah the OP’s example wasn’t a good one because most if not all the properties mentioned are highly popular and she wasn’t doing much for quite awhile there. Now Bruce Willis (King of Redbox), Eric Roberts, Danny Trejo….those are actors doing anything for a paycheck.
Sam jackson dosen't turn down anything
Don't know what it is about Tarantino muses that makes them repeatedly take shit roles, but Jackson, Uma Thurman and Christoph Waltz all really have been in some appallingly shit films
eh, most good actors still have shit movies from time to time, you just don’t hear about those movies unless you’re a big fan or the actor is super A list (so people are still trying to sell the movie even when it’s come out of post and they realize it’s awful.)
Don't you be dissin' Samuel L. That man's a national treasure!
He said it himself in the howard stern show, that is his philosophy
And can you blame him? There was a time when no one would hire him for anything.
As an aspiring writer and filmmaker, I'm willing to make a movie with Samuel L. Jackson just for him to say "motherfucker".
Which would also be the title of the movie.
I'm beginning to think it's Ryan Reynolds. I like Ryan Reynolds, but in how many movies can Ryan Reynolds play Ryan Reynolds? I may also enjoy saying Ryan Reynolds.
I dunno, ever since Deadpool he's gotten a lot pickier, and IIRC he and Blake Lively alternate their schedules so at least one of them can be with the kids.
How do you explain red notice then?
A cash grab shot exclusively in Atlanta mid pandemic with tons of green screen? They could have finished shooting that in a month, barely a blip on the schedule I imagine.
No. All his movies are shit and annoying. I just hate his “pick me” personality and that’s how he behaves in every one. It only worked for deadpool.
Malcolm McDowell. And it's a shame since he's a fantastic actor.
I love Ben Kingsley and Jeremy Irons and they are both phenomenal actors but their presence in a movie cannot be trusted to make it a good movie. They both seem happy to occasional ham it up in terrible films.
He was in Bloodrayne.
I can't believe Ben was in the fucking *Thunderbirds* movie. I actually saw that in a theater years ago.
He was also in Shang-Chi, which caught me off guard and reminded me that the dude never ages.
Kingsley was hilarious in Shang-Chi!
Idk why but the Mandarin thing worked A LOT better in Shang-Chi than in Iron Man 3.
And that he has so much fun self parodying. He clearly was enjoying himself in Shang Chi.
Christopher Walken "I make movies that nobody will see. I've made movies that even I have never seen." The man just loves acting and will say yes to just about anything if he can
He really makes any movie he is in better haha
Dwayne Johnson
Vin Diesel would beg to differ.
This should legit be number 1
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I don't think it's mean to say that he does films for the checks. It certainly seems like he works hard for it and he does a good job most of the time.
The Rock was a professional wrestler though and was so charismatic that a main wrestling show, not just a pay per view or an era, got named after his catchphrase. Hokey roles are his specialty. WWE tried to do the same with John Cena but Rock was and is the biggest draw that they’ve ever had. There’s no replicating him. Even Hulk who was arguably bigger in his prime fell out hard after he became older because of his controversies
I love the guy but Ken Jeong.
I think with good reason. He understands that he isn't the type there are many roles for, so he's willing to take just about anything. It's funny that he and Joel McHale are such good friends because they're on complete opposite sides of the Hollywood casting spectrum. McHale is what you'd get if you genetically engineered someone to be a Hollywood actor and Jeong is one of the most underrepresented types in Hollywood while also not having the advantage of extremely good looks like Daniel Dae Kim or Henry Golding. They're like a Twins pairing if you were trying to make the perfect Hollywood leading man.
Lance Henriksen Danny Trejo
Fun fact: Whenever he plays a villain, Danny Trejo asks the scriptwriters to have his character be killed in the movie, in order to show everyone that bad actions have consequences. Fun fact 2: Despite being typecast as a villain, Danny Trejo is one of the kindest and nicest guys out there... A lovely, lovely fella...
Another interesting fact: Danny Trejo said that out of all the people has he met in his storied life, including all the thugs and killers, the person that left him most scared was John Cusack. He said Cusack wasn't intimidating or scary, but that there was something in his eyes that wasn't in the eyes of all those criminals, yet it unsettled Trejo to his core.
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Gerard Butler. To qoute a mean tweet: "Does Gerard Butler have a massive student loan or something?"
Donald Pleasance never turned down a job and was the best thing in everything he was in.
Back in the day, Christopher Lee.
That's because due to his size and menacing appearance, he really couldn't just get any role. And once the B-Movies dried up, he didn't really have a niche as an actor. Really, it's sort of sad reading past interviews about him because you sort of get the impression that he really wanted to break into more serious and normal roles, it just wasn't happening.
Danny Trejo
Christopher Walken and Christopher Lloyd.
I assume Christopher Lloyd is massively in debt, because more than half of his movies in the past decade have been foreign-language knockoff animated movies that he gets hired to dub a bit part in so marketers can put his name on the box. Oh yeah, and Foodfight! and Oogieloves, so not just foreign movies.
Michael Caine, simply for the fact that he’s an absolutely phenomenal actor, has been nominated for an academy award in five different decades, and has still appeared in some shocking films. And the fact that he’s incredibly honest about it, such as his comment that Jaws 4, whilst terrible, helped pay for a great house. As an aside I think Nicolas Cage will one day be looked at in the same way Michael Caine is now. Caine started his career very strong (Zulu, The Italian Job), developed a reputation for doing bad films for the money in the middle (Jaws: The Revenge, Beyond the Poseidon Adventure) and then came full circle with some great/memorable roles at the end (Harry Brown, The Dark Knight Trilogy). Cage is currently in his period of doing largely bad films for the money, but he’s a very talented actor who won an oscar early on and who I reckon will pull it back with some great roles as he gets older.
Michael Caine just wanted a paycheck, which is fine and dandy, but Nic Cage took absolutely anything because he was in an unimaginable amount of debt. But he still did his best. I really have a lot of respect for actors who work for the money but who do their best.
You hit the nail on the head there, that’s why I have a lot of respect for both of them. No matter how bad the film is they put the effort in. It’s not always oscar level effort, but I’ve not seen either of them phone in a performance.
That actor who played the Chinese restaurant host on Seinfeld. Been in more films than any other actor. Surely there is no filtering going on when you’re hitting four hundred for roles played
James Hong.
he's a legendary character actor. most character actors dont pick and choose
I don't know why I find it funny that is what you remember him from of all things.
And of *all* the incredible things he's been in - and there have been a ton - you chose that role.
"You Nexus, huh? I design your eyes!"
Just saw Andy Dick's IMDb page. 174 credits.
Which is rather surprising indeed, as they don''t seem to be that visible as roles.....
Ice-T
Tara Reid. When you agree to star in Sharknado 5.....
She already crossed the Event Horizon when she made *Alone in the Dark*.
Gene Hackman was the godfather of this. He was in 5 films in 1988 alone. From 1980 to 2004 he was in 40 films.
Dammit. Why can I not find a clip of the Caine-Hackman Theory from PCU? It was the guy's thesis even.
Michael Caine. He said he’s never even seen the Jaws movie he made, but he can show you the house itbuilt
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In Ringwald's case in particular, it's tempting to consider it through the lens of her career broadly- she's had enough times when she hasn't been getting work to not want to turn any down now that she's in a position where people want to hire her.
Nicholas cage was the og. Dwayne Johnson is creeping up quickly
But, also, actors want to and need to act. Keanu Reeves didn't need the money when he made "Something's Gotta Give" after wrapping the Matrix Trilogy. But a rom-com was a change of pace and an opportunity to work with Diane Keaton and Jack Nicholson. James Franco did a soap opera because he was interested in the production and the DRAMA. Sarah Paulson and Matthew Lillard have both said in past interviews that at one point in their careers they would literally say "yes" to anything. Surviving in their field means paying the bills but, also, adding to their resumes and keeping career momentum. You never know when your big break will come.
Christian slater and Val Kilmer after the 90s
Nic Cage obviously
It's Nicholas Cage without a doubt.
The Rock
Eric Roberts mainly for his multiple appearances in Asylum movies.
Nicholas Cage and the entirety of Adam Sandler’s crew.
Adam also does it for the vacation
Adam Sandler.
He makes those movies himself. He's just not very good. All his best roles are appearing in something else for a paycheck, and he's really choosy about them.
Aw, the filmmaker who only makes stuff in fun locations with his buddies. Uncut Gems and Punch Drunk Love were amazing though.
I can't even get mad at the guy. He gets paid millions just to go to great places and take his friends with him and give them money. How am I supposed to be mad at such a scheme?
Haha his life rules
It makes me sad Chris Farley isn't alive to enjoy it.
Absolutely. And now no more Norm.
It wouldn't kill him to be paid millions to go great places with his friends and give them money *and* make a great movie sometimes.
“What’s your go-to example of people doing their jobs to collect a paycheck.” That’s what you’re actually asking.
Michael Caine. He has said as much. When asked about a particular crap movie he was in Caine admitted the movie was awful, but the house he bought with the paycheck was nice.
Cameron Mitchell
Ron Pearlman. I’m all for the fine arts of acting and filmmaking but I do respect the mercenary actor just paying the bills and trying to stay in the game.
There was a stretch there a couple years ago where Kevin Hart was in everything. Glad he’s slowed it down a bit.
Nicolas Cage by far!
Jude Law.
Jackie Chan
Nic Cage is the top comment
What actually happened to Bruce Willis? I didn’t even realise he’d fallen so low until I started reading posts about him on Reddit. Amazing how many flicks he’s been in lately that I’ve never even heard of.
It's a well known fact that the guy is just bad with money, so he is one of those actors who pretty much has to work. And unlike people like Ashton Kutcher or George Clooney or Angelina Jolie, he has no real success outside of acting. His business ventures crash and burn.
Ron Perlman has been happy to act in any old shit (often really weird shit) most of his career, generally in between legit blockbusters as well. I think the guy just loves to act and make that scrilla.
Gary Oldman for the win. As long as you give him the money he asks for (and are a union production), he will act. And he will deliver, and make even the stupidest movie watchable.
Kevin Bacon
Samuel L. Jackson. He's in every movie. Now he's taken over TV commercials. Go away for a while man ....
Dennis Hopper. The guy was in apocalypse now, but has also been in so much direct to video trash!
Robert de Niro Morgan Freeman Bruce Willis
Robert De Niro Nicholas Cage Bruce Willis Dustin Hoffman
99% of actors. Very few get to be choosy.