Weve ripped into annoying concert goers and rock stars in recent months, but irritating behavior extends way outside of the rock universe. In fact, Hollywood actors are just as annoying. Often times, they are significantly more annoying. They do all kinds of things that piss us off. Heres ten of them.
10 Most Annoying Rock Star Behaviors
1. Going Family Friendly
Theres absolutely nothing wrong with a good family film. Some of the greatest movies of all-time from The Wizard of Oz to Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory were aimed directly at children. Still, sometimes one-time edgy actors start churning out family friendly schlock to soften their image and pad their wallets. Eddie Murphy surely knew that Dr. Dolittle 2 was a shitty movie. He just didnt give care as long as the check cleared. Imagine if he poured the time and energy he put into Dr. Doolittle into a new stand-up tour and film. It would have been difficult and potentially calamitous, but at least he would have challenged himself. Likewise, surely Ice Cube could have found a better project than Are We Done Yet?. Were not saying great actors and rappers shouldnt make family movies. They just shouldnt make bad ones.
2. Becoming A Scientologist
This is a sensitive one, because its not cool to judge someone based on their religion. Also, many actors are born intoScientology, and it seems unfair to judge them for that. That said, anyone who has read Lawrence Wrights new book Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief knows just how many horrible things the Church of Scientology has done to women, children and anyone they deem a suppressive person. You can probably say that about many other religions, but only Scientology would have made John Travolta think that Battlefield Earth was a worthy project. Beyond the simple fact that its one of the worst movies ever, its also a two-hour Scientology recruitment film.
Leah Remini recently quit the church of Scientology amid reports she was blacklisted after questioning the churchs leadership. Tom Cruise is unlikely to ever follow her example, but if he does, many of his fans will be overjoyed. Its hard to argue its been a positive thing for his career.
10 Most Annoying Concert Behaviors
3. Getting Too Political
Actors should be encouraged to speak their mind on any subject close to their hearts, but sometimes they go so far in a political direction that its hard to ever look at them in the same way. Take Clint Eastwood. Hes one of the greatest actors and directors of the past sixty years. But in the course of a few minutes at the 2012 Republican National Convention, he seriously damaged his reputation by speaking to an empty chair and pretended that President Obama was sitting in it. It was so over the top and embarrassing that even the Romney campaign was horrified. Imagine how the rest of us felt.
This isnt only a problem with Republicans. Countless liberals fly around the country in their private jets and lecture people about reducing their carbon footprint. The public sees right through the hypocrisy, and the more they talk down to us, the harder it becomes to enjoy their movies. Were NOT saying shut up and act, but we are saying practice what you preach and stay away from the Republican National Convention.
4. Only Doing Blockbusters
Its hard to turn down $20 million. Actors like Johnny Depp and Will Smith can get even more than that for a huge blockbuster, especially if they get a percent of the worldwide gross. Its easy to understand why they swing for the fences every time, but all too often they fall short and were left watching dreck likeThe Lone Ranger or After Earth. These are talented actors. Back in the mid-1990s, Johnny Depp was willing to make a great film like Ed Wood, and Will Smith took a role in the art house flick Six Degrees of Separation. They must get scripts like those on their desks all the time, but they turn them down in favor of yet another Men In Black or Pirates of the Caribbean.
Both should learn from Bruce Willis. Hes happy to sign onto to TheExpendables 2 and Red 2, but he maintains his credibility by agreeing to smaller paychecks for the chance to appear in things like Moonrise Kingdom. Thats why hes still a big star while most his 1980s action flick peers are now punchlines. Its important to balance your projects between big and small. If only Will Smith realized this. Remember, this is the guy who turned down the lead in Django Unchained because he didnt feel that Django was the lead role. Its the ultimate proof that his ego is out of control. Maybe hes feeling a little humble after his newest movie bombed, but hes probably just plotting how to maximize his money on Men In Black 4.
5. Blaming Everything On Exhaustion
Sometimes its hard to wake up in the morning, let alone drag our asses to the office and work all day. Day-to-day life isexhausting. As we all know, 99.9% of the time movie stars cite exhaustion, they are lying. Theyre usually on drugs, booze or trying to bounce back from some insane, racist meltdown. That looks bad in a press release, so suddenly theyre exhausted. Its an insult to our intelligence. Do you know what weve never done? Go the hospital or check into a rehab center. Its never even entered our heads, yet actors seem to blame most of their hospital and rehab vistas on exhaustion. Having private jets, millions of dollars and personal assistants must be so incredibly draining.
6. Churning Out Way Too Many Movies
Remember when a new movie with Al Pacino, Robert De Niro or Dustin Hoffman was an event? You walked into the theater pretty confident you were seeing something special. What the hell happened? Did Robert De Niro really think that New Years Eve, Little Fockers and Red Lightswere good projects? Hes released twelve movies in the past three years. Whats the rush? Al Pacino doesnt work quite at that pace, but in the 2000s he did give us S1m0ne, Gigli and Jack and Jill. We can thank Dustin Hoffman for Perfume: The Story of a Murderer, Mr. Magoriums Wonder Emporiumand, once again, Little Fockers. Guys, if the script sucks, dont take the movie. You used to be good at selecting the right projects. What happened? Mark Wahlberg, youre getting into this territory now, too. Slow it down. Pick your projects slowly, and do whatever you can to get out of your contract for Transformers 4. Seriously, what were you thinking when you agreed to that one?
7. Casting Your Real-Life Children
Not to pick on Will Smith, but right now hes emblematic of whats wrong with Hollywood. Youd think hed realize that early fame has destroyed many childhoods, but that doesnt seem to be the case. Before his kids were out of middle school, they were recording bubblegum rap songs and appearing alongside him in movies. After Earthwas created by Smith largely as a vehicle to showcase his teenage son Jaden. He was so blinded by the desire to turn Jaden into a superstar that he didnt realize the movie sucked. Matthew Weiner was so blinded by love for his son Marten that he couldnt understand why so manyMad Menfans found him creepy. (He finally seemed cool in his last appearance, though.) Theres a simple lesson here: dont cast your kids. You have no idea how much their presence warps your creative judgement.
8. Destroying A Sacred Franchise With Horrid Sequels
John McClane, Indiana Jones and The Terminator are three of the greatest characters in film history. The first three Indiana Jones and Die Hard movies are pretty amazing, even if the second one in each case is a little weak. The Terminator had two near-flawless movies. Then everyone got greedy and reckless. That last Die Hard sucked on a truly historic level. The last two Terminator movies were embarrassing to everyone involved, and the last Indiana Jones while not quiteas bad as many felt was still a huge disappointment. We know the money is huge (and you go into these things with mostly good intentions), but please stop destroying our favorite franchises. Everyone should draw inspiration from Bill Murray. Not only did he leave the blockbusters behind many years ago, hes single-handedly saving the world from having to sit throughGhostbusters 3.This has frustrated his co-stars and fans to no end, but he knows the truth. If only Bruce Willis, Harrison Ford and Arnold Schwarzenegger were so bold. But we know were talking to a brick wall here there are new Terminator movies in the works right now, and at least one moreDie Hardis inevitable.
9. Turning Off The Funny
Some comedians have the dramatic range to excel in serious dramas. Not to keep mentioning Bill Murray, but. . . take Bill Murray. If hed pulled a Chevy Chase and refused to leave his tiny comedic box, we would have missed out on so many great performances. That said, some comedians should stick to comedy. Jim Carreys best movies are things like Dumb & Dumber and Ace Ventura: Pet Detective. His worst movies are uber-serious flicks like The Number 23 and The Majestic. Yes, hes amazing in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, but that has comedic elements and its genuinely weird. Thankfully, hes finally doing Dumb and Dumber Tonow.
10. Suffering From The Delusion Theyre Rock Stars
This one is a major, major problem that only seems to be getting worse as the years go by. Jeff Bridges is one of the greatest actors of our time. But hes about to launch a West Coast tour with his band The Abiders. The music isnt terrible, but if he wasnt Jeff Bridges, he wouldnt be able to draw ten people to his shows. Hes hardly alone. Bruce Willis, Johnny Depp, Kevin Costner, Keanu Reeves and many others have also convinced themselves they are rock stars. They arent. All of them are talented actors. That should be enough. To be fair, it works both ways. Bob Dylans musical talent is undeniable, but it sure didnt make his 2003 movie Masked & Anonymousanything other than an embarrassing vanity project. Of course, he was able to snag Jeff Bridges, John Goodman, Mickey Rourke, Jessica Lange, Luke Wilson and Angela Bassett into the film.