TV Success = Failure?

[IrishCanadian25]

DeVito and Lloyd had already done "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" by the time they starred in sitcoms, so I'd argue they were already big box office stars. Certainly those roles were far bigger and better than Aniston's role in the original "Leprechaun."

So Will Smith is #1 by far.

Robin Williams I'll say is #2.

I have Aniston 3rd.

Leo DeCaprio was on, I think, one season. Had Kirk Cameron turned the trick, then ok, but Leo wasn't a major sitcom star, he was a supporting character.

Jim Carey doesn't count because he did sketch comedy, as Klown pointed out. If you went by that criteria, then it'd be a thread of old SNL stars who became movie stars.

I stand by my answer of Craig T. Nelson as an honorable mention for Coach and into such films as "Devils Advocate" and "The Family Stone."

Great call on Johnny Depp with 21 Jump Street, though he's already done Nightmare on Elm Street at that point, no?

 

[X]

DeVito and Lloyd had already done "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" by the time they starred in sitcoms, so I'd argue they were already big box office stars. Certainly those roles were far bigger and better than Aniston's role in the original "Leprechaun."

Ehhh, that's a bit of a stretch IC25, DeVito and Lloyd were NOT "big box office stars" at all. They had small roles in that film, DEFINITELY smaller than Aniston's role in the original Leprechaun. Aniston starred in the original Leprechaun, Devito & Lloyd weren't the main characters in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.

Great call on Johnny Depp with 21 Jump Street, though he's already done Nightmare on Elm Street at that point, no?

Yep. But if Depp doesn't count, why should Aniston? Aniston already had starred in a movie that has to date spawned 5 sequels. If Depp doesn't count, neither should Aniston.

 

[IrishCanadian25]

Ehhh, that's a bit of a stretch IC25, DeVito and Lloyd were NOT "big box office stars" at all. They had small roles in that film, DEFINITELY smaller than Aniston's role in the original Leprechaun. Aniston starred in the original Leprechaun, Devito & Lloyd weren't the main characters in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.

So you're saying that brilliant performances in supporting roles in an Academy Award winning picture such as "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" is secondary to Jennifer Aniston's forced performance in the abysmal horror / comedy "Leprechaun?" Do I need to question your taste in film, X?

Yep. But if Depp doesn't count, why should Aniston? Aniston already had starred in a movie that has to date spawned 5 sequels. If Depp doesn't count, neither should Aniston.

Point taken, Depp qualifies.

 

[Dysturbed]

21 jump street wasn't a sitcom in any sense though so in the context of this thread he wouldn't count at all. If the thread was about people first making it big on tv and then in movies in general then he'd be up high on the list.



edit:

DeVito and Lloyd had already done "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" by the time they starred in sitcoms, so I'd argue they were already big box office stars.

I stand by my answer of Craig T. Nelson as an honorable mention for Coach and into such films as "Devils Advocate" and "The Family Stone."

That is a fair point about Devito and Lloyd if not for the fact that you contradicted it in a sense by mentioning Craig T. Nelson a couple of times. Why would they be excluded based on having had some success prior to their sitcom yet Craig T. Nelson is on the list despite the fact that he was known for Poltergeist one and two and Private Benjamin and was also in over ten other movies (mostly small roles in those ones however) before Coach even began production? That doesn't mean that Craig T Nelson was a "big box office star" but he was definitely a successful actor with a nice body of work before Coach. I do agree that after being on the show though he got even more recognition.

Plus we need to keep in mind that he said "please point out to me a major actor in one sitcom that has gone on to more success than Jennifer Aniston."

He never said that they couldn't have had a few roles prior to the sitcom, he just said that based on the sitcom they were able to go onto more success.

Another example could be Jamie Foxx who despite having already been on in Living Color, was the star of The Jamie Foxx show for 5 or 6 years before moving onto quite a successful career.

 

[X]

So you're saying that brilliant performances in supporting roles in an Academy Award winning picture such as "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" is secondary to Jennifer Aniston's forced performance in the abysmal horror / comedy "Leprechaun?" Do I need to question your taste in film, X?

Yes, they are. We're talking about box-office here, right? Well the star a film is more responsible for it's box office performance than it's supporting characters, that's a fact. We're not talking about the quality of the films in question, because terrible films make tons of money all the time and amazing films aren't seen by 99% of people all the time. Leprechaun, like it or not, spawned an entire franchise, one that is still making money. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest is one of my favorite movies IC, but to dismiss Devito & Lloyd for a couple of supporting character roles in a film that was not about them in any way is kind of ridiculous.

Jennifer Aniston...she's not a bad actress. Her performance in The Good Girl was great, as was that entire film. Apart from that though, nothing she's done in her movie career comes to mind. She's starred in shitty romantic comedies for the most part.

 

[Dysturbed]

^^^

I agree with most of your post but the following point isn't fully accurate.

Yes, they are. We're talking about box-office here, right? Well the star a film is more responsible for it's box office performance than it's supporting characters, that's a fact.
.

Then it's a fact that Warwick Davis, who received lead billing in Leprachaun is more responsible than Jennifer Aniston for that movie's performance. It's safe to even argue that the character or the Leprechaun, moreso than Warwick Davis is responsible for the movie's performance.

I certainly agree that the lead actor in a movie is more responsible than the supporting roles but there are plenty of instances, especially with horror movies where the concept of a movie is the strong selling point and transcends it's lead star. I don't think that too many people will believe that a then mostly unknown actress was a strong selling point/responsible for a cheap movie to easily make money. I don't think that too many people will believe that Jennifer Aniston's involvement has anything to do with there being sequels. I think that you are exaggerating the responsibility that she had. That's not to say that someone like Jamie Lee Curtis wasn't probably partially responsible for the success of Halloween but we're of course talking about an example where the lead actress being responsible doesn't really mean much.

I don't dislike Shia Labeouf like a lot of people do but when Transformers one came out do you think that people flocked to the movie and made it a success based on him as opposed to the concept, effects, nostalgia, etc? That in no way means that his role in it was irrelevant or not more important than those of the other actors, but even then the responsibility weighs beyond the lead. "That's a fact." Where horror is concerned do you think that people go see the many Friday 13th movies because the person who was first billed in the original one is responsible for the fact that there have been so many sequels any more than the costars were?

 

[FromTheSouth]

So Will Smith is #1 by far.

Robin Williams I'll say is #2.

I have Aniston 3rd.

I would put Will Smith at number one, by not by a wide margin. I would put John Travolta at number 2. He had had small roles, most notably in a TV movie, The Boy in the Bubble, before starring in Welcome Back Kotter. He then parlayed that success into iconic roles in Saturday Night Fever and Grease. Smith's box office total and average were higher, but where would Travolta be if movie tickets were $8 in 1978? I would still place Smith first, but he has never quite escaped being The Fresh Prince, where Travolta is recognized as a movie star first, and then, "Hey, wasn't he on some TV show with that poker player?"

Robin Williams third, for sure. If we're expanding past sitcoms, then Johnny Depp would be fourth. I would place Jennifer Aniston fifth, just ahead of Tim Allen and Craig T. Nelson. Nelson's work in The Devil's Advocate is top notch, as was everyone's in that movie.

There is no shame on being on that list, as countless TV stars have failed miserably in movies.

 

[Dysturbed]

^^^^

I agree with your list for the most part but would probably put Tom Hanks at 2 or possibly 1 and move everyone else down a notch. (I'd also take out Depp unless like you said the list would go beyond sitcoms). I often heave heard Tom Hanks reference Bosom Buddies as one of the starting points of his career even though it only lasted for a few seasons so I think that it's fair to consider that as his main starting point. After that show ended is when Splash came out. If sitcom actors turned director are included though like Ron Howard and Rob Reiner then I'd add them in somewhere.

Another one that I thought of who would be on a lower part of any list is Martin Lawrence as some of hispost sitcom movies have been hits and even with him having plenty of bombs, he still is successful overall. Like I mentioned before Jamie Foxx should possibly be pretty high too though his sitcom probably isn't considered what really propelled him.

 

[FromTheSouth]

I forgot Tom Hanks. I would rank him between Travolta and Williams.

I also forgot Martin Lawrence, but to be fair, he had a fairly signifigant role in houseparty before Martin.

Another actress to consider would be Queen Latifah. She wasn't in movies before Living Single, at least not beyond a cameo. Her acting ability was a complete surprise on that show, and she parlayed it into a very successful movie career.

 

[Dysturbed]

^^^That's an excellent one and I think that first female listed that wasn't Jennifer Aniston.

Edit: From one standpoint she had found more success than Aniston based on the Oscar nomination but based on many factors I’d still say Aniston is more successful than her. Regardless, she is one of the rare females to go onto post sitcom recognition in the acting department. Another female that has found a large amount of success is Ellen. I know that she was a standup comedian for years prior to her show but her role on the show, as well as her decision to reveal her sexuality made her very popular which of course eventually lead to such things as hosting the Emmys and having a very successful talk show. I realize that her success is not movie based but she still went onto a grander scale of success after the sitcom.

 

[Turd Ferguson]

How about some guy named Leonardo DiCaprio?

DiCaprio started off on Growing Pains. Sure, the show was dying by the time he was brought on as a homeless teen that was adopted by the Seavers, but he was still there for the final season. Without that role, who knows what would have came of DiCaprio?

Since then, he went on to gain momentum in supporting roles (and a Best Supporting Actor nomination for What's Eating Gilbert Grape) before starring in Romeo and Juliet, and then he only went on to star in the highest grossing movie of all time in Titanic. After The Man in the Iron Mask, he pretty much took a 4 year hiatus, coming back strong with excellent back to back performances in Gangs of New York and Catch Me If You Can. From there: The Aviator (Best Actor Nomination), The Departed, Blood Diamond (another Best Actor nomination), Body of Lies, and Revolutionary Road. The only clunker: Body of Lies. Shutter Island and Inception look pretty amazing too. He's Martin Scorcese's go to leading man, which is a pretty high honor to say the least.

DiCaprio, when it's all said and done years from now, is going to be looked at as one of the biggest, if not THE biggest actor of this generation. And it all started off with Growing Pains. Aniston's career is a joke compared to his.

 

[Dysturbed]

^^^I was one person to mention him a couple of times but since the thread is about major sitcom stars that move onto successful careers as opposed to sitcom stars in general, guys like Dicaprio don't fit the thread's criteria. If critieria was changed George Clooney having popular recurring roles on shows like The Facts Of Life and Roseanne to start his career could put him high on any list despite the fact that ER truly launched his career.

In the 70's Billy Crystal spent a few seasons starting his acting career as a prominent character on a show called "Soap" so he should probably be included somewhere on a list based on the fact that back in the day he had plenty of success and that he still makes movies. The show may not fit the label of one of the "biggest" sitcoms from a certain standpoint but the fact that it was known for having one of the first gay characters on television and being one of the first sitcoms to tackle certain subjects, it's pretty influential in it's own right and should count for something imo. I myself never have seen it.

I don't recall if anyone mentioned Tim Allen who of course was known more for Home Improvement as launching his career than anything from before it.

Overall, getting back to Jennifer Aniston she is definitely very successful and has an extremely steady post Friends career making films even if a lot of them aren't huge successes. She is often in the news because of her fame and even produces so she's definitely a huge star. However I think that most of the people listed in this thread that had their most initial mainstream success from sitcoms to then move onto acting careers, directing careers, hosting big events, branching out into things like music, having steady and popular tv careers on other sitcoms or talk shows, and other things are actually more successful than her based on the overall success, relevance to the industry, and so on. Still, success can mean many things and involve many factors and one person's films may make more than anothers due to things like inflation yet anothers may be more acclaimed, popular, etc so it's always going to be a debatable thing. There are just too many factors to make it anything but opinion based and I'm glad that IC25 made this thread cause I've enjoyed reading everyone's opinions and sharing mine. I will add that that the fact that Jennifer Aniston is a woman and it seems like more men find success post sitcom than women makes her very admirable and hopefully other women can follow in her footsteps.

 

[Leeds Guy]

So I wanted to discuss why actors and actresses from successful TV shows cannot recreate their success elsewhere. I think a big example of this is Friends. Since Friends the majority of the main cast hasnt really had any success elsewhere, Courtney Cox has had a failed TV show, she has had a few guest spots in shows such as Scrubs but hasnt really done anything since Friends, Jennifer Aniston (who many picked to have a really successful film career) has been in a few films but nothing really groundbreaking. Matt Le Blanc failed in his spin off and now isnt really doing anything, Matthew Perry and Lisa Kudrow has not done anything noteworthy since Friends. The only person who could say he has achieved since Friends is David Schwimmer and only really because he has gone into Directing.

So I found myself asking why has this happened and started thinking about other TV shows where cast members haven't really done anything else. I started thinking about Buffy and Angel. Now the big stars Sarah Michelle Geller, David Boreanaz and Alyson Hannigan went on to do other things. Boreanaz went on to do Bones, SMG went on to do The Grudge films and Hannigan does How I Met Your Mother but the rest didnt do anything when I thought people like J August Richards and Nicholas Brendon would have done something else noticable, we hardly even hear about them nowadays. Perhaps you have in America but in the UK we haven't heard a single thing from them.

I then looked towards the future careers from Todays successful shows. When Two and A Half Men ends I think Charlie Sheen will return to movies but I fear we wont see Jon Cryer, Ryan Stiles and Conchetta Farrell again in anything as good. Angus Jones has a big career ahead of him and has his age on his side. From CSI will George Eads and Eric Szmanda go on to anything or just fall into obscurity after it ends.

I'm not saying people who start in TV shows doesnt get success. From Arrested Development Jason Bateman,Micheal Cera and Will Arnet have been in successful films. Ashton Kutcher, Topher Grace and Mila Kunis have had success since That 70's Show, I often think to myself why can they do it but stars with just as much talent from Friends cannot? To find the answer I thought about maybe its the pressure of coming off the back of hugelly successful TV show and that we as fans are now expecting too much of them. I then thought maybe they just dont need to because they have made more than enough on the hit show. Anyways its just been something I have been pondering and I thought I'd get your opinions on. I'm sure you lot will have more examples of successful and failed TV actors.

 

[Cena's Little Helper]

Television stars have about a 50/50 chance to translate their success on the small screen to the big screen. For every Kirk Cameron, David Caruso, and Jimmy Smits, there's also a Johnny Depp, George Clooney, and Will Smith. Personally, I think it's all about the roles you choose. Going for roles in summer eye candy never hurts. Save the roles in films geared specifically towards teenagers or adults until you have a few supporting roles in blockbusters under your belt.

 

[Dysturbed]

This post is long but I had a lot to say. I'd double post but I know that's frowned upon.

, Courtney Cox has had a failed TV show, she has had a few guest spots in shows such as Scrubs but hasnt really done anything since Friends,

She currently has a successful show called Cougar Town on ABC. She’s also going to be in more Scream movies though her role in there of course came from when she was still on Friends.

I thought people like J August Richards and Nicholas Brendon would have done something else noticable, we hardly even hear about them nowadays. Perhaps you have in America but in the UK we haven't heard a single thing from them.

J August Richards is part of the main cast of a show called Raising the Bar which is going to be entering a third season soon. I don’t watch it myself and it isn’t neessarly “noticeable” since it doesn't get too much attention, but it’s still employment. Nicholas Brendan has a recurring role on Criminal Minds though it’s nothing noteworthy.

I fear we wont see Jon Cryer, Ryan Stiles and Conchetta Farrell again in anything as good.

I agree that it may not be “as good” but I’m pretty sure that all three of those people will have some sort of decent career ahead of them even if it’s less noteworthy. After all Jon Cryer may have had several failed shows before Two And A Half men but he has been in a lot since the mid 80’s while Ryan Stiles is now on his second successful sitcom in the last decade or so. Conchetta Farrell has been in a lot as a character actress so even if her next roles aren’t of the same level I’m sure that she’ll always be finding available roles of some sort.

Realistically continued success doesn’t really happen as often as it seems even with movie stars that have never been famous from television. It may seem like a lot when we look at how many famous actors/actresses exist but but it’s really not. Supposedly thousands (at least hundreds) of people go to Hollywood each year (or casting calls) in hope of finding fame and as we know only a small percentage achieve it. An even smaller percentage seem to sustain it. It’s the nature of the beast so to speak.

I definitely see your viewpoint and agree that it’s surprising when some people don’t continue with their momentum, but there aren’t too many shows where a majority of the cast goes on to find an equal or greater form of success than on the specific show that initially defined their career the most. My favorite show is Lost for example and I don't forsee too many people being in anything "noteworthy" once the show ends.

I'm sure you lot will have more examples of successful and failed TV actors.

The following is an interesting thread from this forum that is on a similar wavelength that I believe you posted in once or twice. It provides examples of tv stars who have gone onto find success after television, though most of them are from 80's shows or before.

http://forums.wrestlezone.com/showthread.php?t=70549

I'm not saying people who start in TV shows doesnt get success. From Arrested Development Jason Bateman,Micheal Cera and Will Arnet have been in successful films. Ashton Kutcher, Topher Grace and Mila Kunis have had success since That 70's Show, I often think to myself why can they do it but stars with just as much talent from Friends cannot? I often think to myself why can they do it but stars with just as much talent from Friends cannot?

In your opinion do you think that most people saw the movies that those people made after their shows ended
because they specifically happened to be in them or because the movie itself is appealing? For example one of Mila Kunis’s recent movie successes was Forgetting Sarah Marshall. While some people may have seen it specifically for her, or Kristen Bell, Jason Segal, or even the Apatow name attached, I think that it’s safe to assume that the overall package of actors and the plot and hype helped sell people on most movies. That can apply with the others that you mentioned as well and their respective movies or tv appearances. I realize that there are plenty of exceptions. For example Matthew Perry was recently in the movie 17 again which was a success and in that case I do believe that the inclusion of Zac Efron brought upon a lot of the success for the movie. Regardless Matthew Perry was in a successful film

Therefore I think that it often has to do more with the body of work that each actor chooses or is provided with moreso than the actor/actress themselves. I don’t think that there are too many people that will blindly watch anything that a particular actor is involved with or too many actors that receive such treatment from the masses. Someone may check out another show that an actor they like is in but if they’re not entertained enough to stick with it, then they probably aren’t going to. Look at Jennifer Aniston. Over the last few years she has been in successful movies The Break Up and Marley and Me. I don’t doubt that a lot of people saw both of those movies specifically because she was in them but I also don’t doubt that even more people saw them because they thought that the plots would be entertaining.She’s extremely famous regardless but what will it take for her to be an even higher tier movie star...I’m guessing movies that more people have interest in based on the overall package.

Look at Kelsi Grammer. He spent I think 18 years playing the same character between two shows and since then has had two failed sitcoms. (His most recent one was cancelled today). That doesn't mean that people that liked him on Cheers and Frasier don't like him now in general but there's something about his recent shows that weren't appealing enough for them to last. It could be the character. It could be the writing. It could be the timeslot, it could be that he's so identified with one character that people can't see him as anyone else. It could be a lot of things. Whatever it is, he is still successful, but his success overall isn't going to even be near what it was before if he isn't involved with something that enough people find appealing. That can apply to all 6 of the cast members from Friends. That's why Courtney Cox's last show didn't make it to a third season wheras her current one (still only in it's first) very well may.

 

[Tastycles]

Going back to Sitcom stars that made it in movies, Bruce Willis has got to be up there. I don't think he did anything at all before he starred in Moonlighting. He then went from that series which was basically a romantic comedy straight into the action deep end with Die Hard and completely reinvented himself. I don't think there is anyone who has had such a significant shift in roles so quickly, and he definitely has made more in movies than Aniston ever did.

 

[Dysturbed]

Going back to Sitcom stars that made it in movies, Bruce Willis has got to be up there. I don't think he did anything at all before he starred in Moonlighting. He then went from that series which was basically a romantic comedy straight into the action deep end with Die Hard and completely reinvented himself. I don't think there is anyone who has had such a significant shift in roles so quickly, and he definitely has made more in movies than Aniston ever did.

Moonlighting had humerous interractions and had romantic comedy elements like you said but it wasn't considered to be a sitcom. It was "dramedy" like Desperate Housewives, Ally Mcbeal, Weeds, and Scrubs, and even Six Feet Under and shows like that are today. It was considered one of the earlier shows of that nature to my knoweldge, but never a sitcom. If it was then Bruce Willis would definitely be amongst the prime examples.