On the surface, making it big in Hollywood is a dream come true. There's fame, fortune, and all the perks of being a somebody around town. But being a successful Hollywood actor is still a job that requires putting in a lot of time and energy, and the business can be unforgiving.
One wrong move and your career could be toast. For these actors, even the glamour and glitz of Tinseltown just wasn't enough to justify sticking around for the long haul, so they quit while they were ahead. Here are some stars who have basically disappeared. Joe Pesci If you grew up in the '90s, then there's a pretty good chance that you know Joe Pesci from his role as one of the main villains in the holiday classic Home Alone. But if you're also a fan of great cinema, then you'll also know that Pesci was a scene stealer who collaborated with legendary director Martin Scorsese on such classic films as Raging Bull, Goodfellas, and Casino. "I see you, you muddaf-----." Pesci also proved himself as a strong leading man with his command performance in My Cousin Vinny. His career was the kind most actors only get to dream about, but Pesci couldn't have cared less about the trappings of fame, and in 1999, he walked away. The reasons for Pesci's early retirement are murky. While it initially seemed like he decided to pursue a career in music, a look back at Pesci's interviews over the years show a man who wasn't entirely feeling Hollywood and seemed apathetic about his successful film career. Pesci has popped up in a small handful of films over the past 20 years (and he made an odd appearance in a Snickers commercial), but the actor seems reluctant to relive his glory days. In fact, he's probably the only person alive who has no problem telling off Martin Scorsese. "So far all he keeps saying is 'go f--- yourself'' However, he and frequent co-star Robert DeNiro will be re-teaming with Scorsese for another round of nefarious fun in The Irishman, so perhaps that will mark a new era in his career. Meg Ryan She became America's sweetheart and the "queen of romantic comedies" with such hits such as When Harry Met Sally, Sleepless in Seattle, and You've Got Mail. She also proved her dramatic mettle in films like Courage Under Fire and the smoldering hit City of Angels. But at the turn of the millennium, Ryan became the focus of intense tabloid scrutiny when reports began surfacing that she was having an affair with her Proof of Life co-star Russell Crowe. While Ryan continued to work sporadically in Hollywood, her roles were never the same after the gossip, and even so, she waited eight years to address the scandal in a 2008 interview with InStyle. According to Ryan, the affair definitely happened, and even though it affected her public image, she described it as liberating after years of allegedly being cheated on by her husband at the time, Dennis Quaid. With her side of the story finally out there, Ryan attempted to bounce back with The Women, a film about a cheated-on spouse, but audiences and critics were lukewarm on the project. Since then, Ryan has mostly ditched Hollywood for New York, where she's focused on her children and navigating the pitfalls of love with rocker John Mellencamp. However, she has appeared in a few scattered small screen features since then, and she may be staging a comeback soon with a new comedy series on the rise, so stay tuned. Mike Myers For a while, it seemed like former Saturday Night Live alum Mike Myers was the king of the comedy world. After the blockbuster success of the Wayne's World movies and the Austin Powers franchise, there was no way Myers' Hollywood star could shine any brighter. But then he became Shrek on top of everything else. Myers was unstoppable … until he wasn't.
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Author Brian StevensonBrian is author of this blog. He is a researcher of career development, he knows a lot about career building and whats to share his experience with readers. Archives
April 2019
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