Hollywood is always on the hunt for the next big thing, and if it can’t find one, it “makes” one. That goes for movie genres, visual trends, and even celebrities themselves. These 10 Hollywood actors were given the spotlight, the roles, and the marketing, but for one reason or another, audiences just didn’t connect.
20. Liam Hemsworth
Liam Hemsworth landed in Hollywood at 19, chasing the same dream his brothers already made look easy. You probably met him in The Last Song back in 2010, then watched him dodge aliens in Independence Day: Resurgence and survive teens with bows in The Hunger Games run from 2012 to 2015. While Chris Hemsworth gets the internet’s group hug, Liam gets side-eyes. Replacing Henry Cavill on Netflix’s The Witcher probably didn’t help him either. Neither did the public autopsy of his marriage to Miley Cyrus.
19. Daisy Ridley
Daisy Ridley was launched into Hollywood and fame in 2015 when she stepped on screen as Rey, and the internet decided her life would explode. Funny thing. It didn’t. She told Stylist in December 2017, “I found the hardest thing was everyone saying, ‘Your life’s going to change.’ So many people were telling me this thing was going to happen, then the thing happened and that didn’t happen.”
Before Star Wars: The Force Awakens, she trained at a performing arts boarding school, stacked BBC bit parts, and waited. After it, she dealt with health issues, online pile-ons, and weird expectations. You’ve seen the post-Jedi dip. Cleaner. Magpie. The Marsh King’s Daughter. Hollywood wanted a mold. She didn’t fit.
18. Theo James
For years, Theo James sat in that awkward zone where you knew his face but maybe not his range. Early on, Hollywood parked him as the brooding romantic type, starting in 2014’s Divergent, a franchise that arrived a bit too late to steal thunder from The Hunger Games. He did the intense stare thing well. Then came smarter choices. Eddie in The Gentlemen felt sharp and slippery. Cameron in The White Lotus? Uncomfortable in the best way. Pair that momentum with working under Osgood Perkins on The Monkey, and suddenly James looks less like a heartthrob and more like a risk-taker. Hollywood keeps trying to make him the next big star. It just hasn’t happened yet.
17. Joseph Gordon-Levitt
For a stretch, Joseph Gordon-Levitt felt unavoidable. In 2012, he showed up as Robin in The Dark Knight Rises and swapped faces with Bruce Willis in Looper. Same year. Same guy. You probably still link him to Inception or 500 Days of Summer, yet the résumé runs deeper. He started young with A River Runs Through It, hit sitcom gold on 3rd Rock from the Sun, then rode an indie-friendly wave into the late 2000s. The momentum slowed. Sin City: A Dame to Kill For, The Walk, and Snowden struggled to land, while Comrade Detective vanished after one season. Hollywood notices patterns. They’ve stopped trying to make him a huge lead.
16. Miles Teller
Miles Teller didn’t arrive quietly. At 23, he landed his first feature, Rabbit Hole, after Nicole Kidman picked him herself. A few years later, Whiplash turned him into a stress test for audiences. Fame hit fast. Interviews hit harder. Some went bad. The reputation stuck. Then 2022 happened. Top Gun: Maverick reminded people why he mattered. In between, he popped up as the groom in Taylor Swift’s “I Bet You Think About Me,” directed by Blake Lively and backed by Chris Stapleton. Fifteen years in, peaks, crashes, Fant4stic scars. But Hollywood just hasn’t managed to convince audiences that he has lead star power yet.
15. Chris O’Donnell
Chris O’Donnell was Hollywood’s polite attempt at a ’90s movie star. He played Robin, turned down Men in Black, and starred in forgettable hits like The Chamber and Vertical Limit. He wasn’t bad—just beige. Still, that Batman Forever laundry scene? He acted it 100%. Respect where it’s due, Robin. Unfortunately, he never quite reached the top.
14. Orlando Jones
Orlando Jones owned the early 2000s—Evolution, Double Take, The Replacements—then vanished faster than an alien under shampoo. He popped back as Anansi in American Gods and Gregory’s dad on Abbott Elementary, reminding everyone he’s still got it. Seriously, watch Evolution. It’s weird, funny, and way better than you remember.
13. Jai Courtney
Stop trying to make Jai Courtney happen, Hollywood. It’s not gonna happen. Divergent. Insurgent. Terminator Genisys. I, Frankenstein. A Good Day to Die Hard. Suicide Squad. He’s basically the Sam Worthington of the 2010s—sold as the next big thing, but every movie proved he wasn’t. Big franchises, zero spark.
12. Alex Pettyfer
Alex Pettyfer had the looks, the roles, and the ego—just not the career to back it up. After Magic Mike, where he and Channing Tatum reportedly couldn’t stand each other, his reputation tanked. Hollywood forgives divas with box office clout, not newcomers with attitude. Turns out charm matters more than abs.
11. Noah Centineo
Noah Centineo’s rise and fall happened faster than a Netflix autoplay. He went from “next Zac Efron” to “wait, is he still acting?” after milking the same charming-guy routine in too many forgettable rom-coms. To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before worked, but the rest? Not so much. He’s still young, though—never say never.
10. Jon Heder
Following Napoleon Dynamite, Hollywood tried to turn Heder into a mainstream comedy icon with movies like Blades of Glory and The Benchwarmers. Instead, Heder was a better fit for smaller indie roles and TV appearances.
9. Charlie Hunnam
Hunnam’s breakthrough performance as Jax Teller in Sons of Anarchy convinced the industry he was destined to become a leading man. However, the lukewarm reception of his roles in Pacific Rim and King Arthur: Legend of the Sword changed everyone’s minds..
8. Cara Delevingne
Supermodel-turned-actress Cara Delevingne exploded into popularity with Paper Towns, which led to her starring roles in Suicide Squad and Valerian – neither of which proved to be box office successes. She’s since found herself more comfortable working on TV, where she’s doing some excellent work in shows like Carnival Row.
7. Armie Hammer
With the fame and the looks to thrive in Hollywood, Hammer’s career got derailed at its highest point following a series of disturbing allegations and box office bombs that stopped his meteoric rise.
6. Josh Hartnett
The Pearl Harbor star proved he had top-billing potential, and we suddenly saw him everywhere, from Hollywood Homicide to Sin City. Still, Hartnett remains a fantastic support actor, as he shows in Nolan’s Oppenheimer, where he plays Ernest Lawrence.
5. Alex Pettyfer
Despite reinventing his career multiple times, Pettyfer never became as big as Hollywood would have wanted. After his roles in Stormbreaker and I Am Number Four, the actor distanced himself from YA narratives and went straight for Magic Mike, after which his acting career lost steam.
4. Clive Owen
Children of Men positioned Owen at a high level, opening doors to more action-heavy roles. But when movies like Shoot ‘Em Up underperformed at the box office, the silver screen actor quietly moved to television instead.
3. Taylor Kitsch
The breakout success of Friday Night Lights launched Taylor Kitsch straight to the big screen. Unfortunately, it also landed him in back-to-back flops like John Carter and Battleship, which seriously hurt his shot at becoming a top-tier leading man.
2. Sam Worthington
Avatar should’ve made Sam Worthington a household name, but his subdued screen presence didn’t quite stick with audiences. Much like Jake Sully, Worthington’s leading career stayed in Pandora, where we’ll see him again in Avatar: Fire and Ash.
1. Taylor Lautner
From teenage heartthrob to action star, Lautner was poised to become a versatile powerhouse, rivaling even the biggest names in the biz. Unfortunately, his role as a teenage werewolf with an aversion to wearing shirts stuck with him, even when he wanted to pursue more serious roles.
