Being a big fish in a small pond can be intoxicating, but it can also be a motivator to move on up to the big leagues. Ever since the dawn of television, actors have started out on the small screen only to find their thirst for big screen Hollywood too deep to quench with the weekly serial.
We all know the success stories. Tom Hanks was on Bosom Buddies. George Clooney was a goofy handyman on The Facts of Life as well as his E.R. rotations. John Ritter, Alan Alda, Sally Field. Goldie Hawn, they all turned early TV notoriety into movie careers filled with critical acclaim and awards.
What about those TV personalities that seem so lustrous in our living room but fall apart under the 40 foot scrutiny of the local cineplex? Hollywood is littered with the bitter realization that you’ve hit your ceiling in television. I know, poor babies right? But it’s got to be quite an ego shock to be James Van Der Beek, star of Dawson’s Creek, and fail so hard with Texas Rangers.
Friends will go down as one of the most successful shows of all time, but not all the cast members have been as lucky as Jennifer Aniston in their move to film. Mostly, I’m thinking about Matt LeBlanc and his vehicle movies like the horrific Lost in Space remake and something called Lookin’ Italian. The worst was Ed, about a monkey and baseball and currently in IMDB’s illustrious “Bottom 100.” Thankfully Matt figured out his place in the pecking order and has been relaxing on easy street with his Friends money ever since Joey got canned.
It might be unfair to call Tom Selleck a big screen failure when he’s been in a number of moderately successful films, but it is the one that got away that begs the question. He had Raiders of the Lost Ark in his palm when Magnum P.I. got picked up and his contractional obligation to the show kept him from one of the biggest and most beloved franchises in cinema. Tom’s TV career is enviable, but that still has to sting a little.
Elizabeth Berkeley was Jessie on Saved by the Bell, and then she was Nomi in Showgirls. A film so jaw dropping bad, it has reached cult status for its awfulness.
The biggest and most memorable movie fail easily belongs to one David Caruso. In 1994, after receiving a Golden Globe for his role as Detective Kelly on NYPD Blue, Caruso had a very public departure from the show’s second season after only 4 episodes. He spoke openly about how he could make more money in the movies and basically alluding to how NYPD Blue was holding him back. He went on to star in Kiss of Death and Jade, two of the most forgettable crime dramas ever released and soon came crawling back to television where he’s found his groove this century with C.S.I. Miami.
Of course, TV isn’t as far a drop off from the big screen as it used to be. HBO and Showtime etc. have pulled in big time actors for years now. Laurence Fishbourne took the chance to jump on board C.S.I. not because the dude can’t get work, but because he recognized a chance to be involved with good writing and flex his acting muscle. In that way, TV is now akin to proving your chops in the theater.
Whether it’s getting on a long running TV show or landing lottery gold with a blockbuster movie, actors will continue to reach for success and immortality. Some will cement their legendary status, while others will be funny trivia questions down the pub on a Tuesday night. No matter what the result, we’ll always have Showgirls.
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