Which actors are box office poison but keep getting roles?

[MazeRunner]

Is it safe to say Ryan Gosling, Michael Fassbender, and Dane DeHaan have been added to the "box office poison" list this year?

[Creed]

DeHaan is understandable, but actors don't kill movies. People see movies for what they are and not for the actors (except Dicaprio), but to answer our question, Taylor Kitsch is one.

[thecooldud]

I agree that actors are largely irrelevant these days, bar maybe a handful of exceptions. There's maybe 3 actors around atm that tend to make me interested even if it's not something I'd likely to be bothered about otherwise - Arnie (not that he does much these days), Emma Watson and probably Karen Gillan.
Beyond that I don't much really take much notice of individual actors these days.

[235to1]

Taylor kitsch, Idris Elba, Kate Beckinsale, Naomi Watts, lily Collins, Annette Bening

[Cremildo]

Fassy.

[yellowjacket1]

Sean Penn

From 2017 forward... Jennifer Lawrence (foot in mouth syndrome killed her own box office potential)

[Moviefan2k4]

I don't pay enough attention to specific actors on a regular basis, to have a constructive comment on this. Most of the films I watch now are either fantasy blockbusters, or the occasional new Christmas fare.

[GLaDOS]

I tend to judge the film based on its overall technical and narrative merits rather than who's star billing, but it's sad to see Michael Fassbender billed as box office poison. He's phenomenal.

[Creed]

Originally Posted by GLaDOS

I tend to judge the film based on its overall technical and narrative merits rather than who's star billing, but it's sad to see Michael Fassbender billed as box office poison. He's phenomenal.

Same. I LOVE Fassbender, so it's a shame he's seen that way (no pun intended).

[civiclx]

You guys can certainly go deeper on this subject than I tend to think that people go see movies for the story and not the actors in them like creed said. I do think that certain actors can put people in seats like say Tom Cruise or Matt Damon. TakeApart mentioned Dane. Is he even well known enough for people to say, "oh I don't want to go see a film with Dane DeHaan in it"?
I can see who's starring in a film having a little to do with the success but not that much. Again, I think it comes down to just a well-crafted and interesting story selling tickets.

[Mystic]

Mel Gibson
Tom Cruise
Keanu Reeves

Although they aren't box office poison in the literal sense of this thread, I can't stomach Gibson/Cruise/Reeves anymore...

[civiclx]

Originally Posted by Mystic

Mel Gibson
Tom Cruise
Keanu Reeves

Although they aren't box office poison in the literal sense of this thread, I can't stomach Gibson/Cruise/Reeves anymore...

I was thinking of Mel when I was typing my answer. I mentioned Tom for getting people in the theater but I was also thinking now that he's bounced back from the Oprah/Matt Lauer thing. I think a person's personal life can turn people off. People might say I'm not going to see a Mel Gibson film ever again because of his views but other than that...

[Region_unlocked]

Originally Posted by Moviefan2k4

I don't pay enough attention to specific actors on a regular basis, to have a constructive comment on this. Most of the films I watch now are either fantasy blockbusters, or the occasional new Christmas fare.

Thanks for dropping by then I suppose.

[imsounoriginal]

Better question: what actor/actress is truly a movie star? Who guarantees a #1 opening and a good return-on-investment regardless of what the movie's about? Answer: DiCaprio.

The others aren't necessarily doing anything wrong. They're just... not DiCaprio. The "movie star" system is dead. You can't just slap anyone onto a poster and expect the movie to make money, even formerly reliable people like Tom Cruise, Will Smith, Denzel Washington, Tom Hank, etc. It just doesn't work that way anymore.

[shinobipopcorn]

Originally Posted by civiclx

I was thinking of Mel when I was typing my answer. I mentioned Tom for getting people in the theater but I was also thinking now that he's bounced back from the Oprah/Matt Lauer thing. I think a person's personal life can turn people off. People might say I'm not going to see a Mel Gibson film ever again because of his views but other than that...

I'll watch Mel Gibson movies (particularly older ones), but I'm still going to think "what happened with him?" as I'm doing it.

[ben6543]

Originally Posted by yellowjacket1

Sean Penn

From 2017 forward... Jennifer Lawrence (foot in mouth syndrome killed her own box office potential)

you shouldn't have said that. That one member whose head is so far up J Law's butt will have something to say

[thecalm_7]

Just my opinion but here’s a few
-Adam Sandler
-Kevin James
-Melissa McCarthy


I’ve never been one to say ‘I’m not going to see x movie because of x actor’ but lately, those 3 keep me out of their movies. I just can’t do it. I don’t care about life choices, political views, out there ideology, etc. I just can’t see how they get work and how they fill theatres in my area.

[Region_unlocked]

I'm going to third Taylor Kitsch. He's a bloody bee filled horse mate. He's not even a terrible actor, he's just terrible at picking projects. Same with Michael Fassbender at the moment. We KNOW he's great, but he's been in at least 3 duds lately (to be fair though he was at least the best part of X-Men Apocalypse). This guy's seemingly on his last legs, but Sam Worthington is just the worst and he kept popping up in everything for a while. He's not completely gone though, recently seen playing "Australian man struggling through an American accent" in that recent Unibomber mini-series, so I guess he still counts.

[Mystic]

Originally Posted by civiclx

I was thinking of Mel when I was typing my answer. I mentioned Tom for getting people in the theater but I was also thinking now that he's bounced back from the Oprah/Matt Lauer thing. I think a person's personal life can turn people off. People might say I'm not going to see a Mel Gibson film ever again because of his views but other than that...

I lost interest in Gibson's films after the "Road Warrior" and "The Year of Living Dangerously" in the 1980s, and sure, his views are a turn-off, but there's something about Gibson that drives me away from anything he's involved in.

As for Cruise, I just don't see what the man's appeal is in relation to drawing people to his films. I'd say it's a pretty safe bet that the box office turd that was "The Mummy" (2017) has possibly gone a long way towards derailing Universal's Dark Universe franchise. I'm a fan of the classic Universal horror films, and Cruise's involvement in the "Mummy" kept me away from the film.

As for Reeves, there's nothing appealing about an actor with all the charisma of a tree stump.

[civiclx]

Originally Posted by ben6543

you shouldn't have said that. That one member whose head is so far up J Law's butt will have something to say

I don't think I saw the original quote but when I was reading your post, I read it as J. Lo. Ahhh, JLF is a good dude