It’s no surprise thatHollywoodis a difficult industry to make it big in. After all, reports say only 2% of actors are able to actually make a living out of it. Especially with the entire world tracking every move, it’s a lot of added pressure on the shoulders of those in the spotlight.So it’s expected for slip-ups to happen — sometimes so major that they cost a rising actor their entire career. Whether or not the blame lies on the celebrity, these incidents often get blown up and cause the public to turn against them.Here are 25 actors who were about to make it big in Hollywood before something happened to change the entire trajectory of their lifeThis post may includeaffiliate links.

It’s no surprise thatHollywoodis a difficult industry to make it big in. After all, reports say only 2% of actors are able to actually make a living out of it. Especially with the entire world tracking every move, it’s a lot of added pressure on the shoulders of those in the spotlight.

So it’s expected for slip-ups to happen — sometimes so major that they cost a rising actor their entire career. Whether or not the blame lies on the celebrity, these incidents often get blown up and cause the public to turn against them.

Here are 25 actors who were about to make it big in Hollywood before something happened to change the entire trajectory of their life

This post may includeaffiliate links.

Actor in a formal suit and actor in adventurous attire, highlighting careers affected before success.

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Timing was just not on Jennifer Grey’s side.TheNew Yorknative got a nose job after not getting any more movie roles despite the success ofDirty Dancing. And while she was able to land a role in the movieWind, halfway throughout filming, she noticed white cartilage poking through at her nose tip.She went under the knife again but looked noticeably different.“Overnight I lost my identity and my career,” she said.

Woman in floral dress at event and younger woman with curly hair in striped top, showcasing actors' careers before they hit big.

Young male actor in formal attire and casual wear outdoors; careers crushed before big break.

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Starring inEmpire, Jussie Smollett was on the way to make a name for himself. And in early 2019, the entire world seemed to be on his side after he experienced a hate crime in Chicago.But his grave was of his own making.Police investigators later found out Smollett had staged the entire attack and released the two men who had been accused of attacking the actor. He was subsequently fired fromEmpire.Charges were filed against the now 42-year-old for making a false police report and wasting police resources. A 2021 trial found him guilty of five out of the six counts he’d been charged with, and he was sentenced to county jail for 150 days.

Two images of an actor whose career was impacted, wearing casual and formal outfits.

Odds seemed to be stacked against Eliza Dushku when she worked on the set of CBS’Bull. At first, she was only a recurring character in season 1 of the show — set to be a regular in the upcoming seasons — until she accused co-star Michael Weatherly of sexual harassment.According toVariety, when Weatherly was made aware of the allegation, he texted the head of CBS Studios, and she was fired the next day.“I was told that the role would be a six-year commitment to play a smart, strong leading lady, a confident high-powered lawyer meant to counterbalance the existing male lead, and that the role had been written specifically with me in mind,” Dushku said.“However, in my first week on my new job I found myself the brunt of crude, sexualized and lewd verbal assaults. I suffered near constant sexual harassment from my co-star. This was beyond anything I had experienced in my 30-year career.”

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Bright things seemed to be on the way for this pro wrestler turned actress as she starred inThe Mandalorianas the widely-loved Cara Dune. But in early 2021, Carano posted a photo on social media, saying how being a Republican at the time felt like being a Jew during the World War II.The backlash was immediate, and encouraged fans to dig up more problematic behavior, such as the time she vocalized her annoyance at wearing face masks and claiming voter fraud in 2020.Lucasfilm then fired her and wrote her off the show.“Her social media posts denigrating people based on their cultural and religious identities are abhorrent and unacceptable,” said a representative of the film production company.

Actor pictured in two settings: at a Fan Expo and in a sci-fi costume, related to crushed acting careers.

Grey’s Anatomywas — and still is — the talk of the town, and Isaiah Washington had all the tools under his belt to make it big… until he was fired from the show after using a homophobic slur on set.The actor claimed it wasn’t a direct attack at anyone, though sources claim it may have been aimed at his co-star T.R. Knight, who is gay.A verbal fight between Washington and male leadPatrick Dempseyis what allegedly led to the slur being uttered

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Two images side-by-side featuring actors with careers impacted before success.

A man in a colorful jacket holding a microphone and in another scene with curly hair and mustache.

Two actors whose careers were crushed; one posing at an event, the other holding a microphone in a colorful outfit.

Things were going great with Emile Hirsch when he starred inInto the Wildand its success was undeniable. His career didn’t exactly skyrocket after what should have been his breakout role, however. After being involved in a few other small projects, Hirsch assaulted a female Paramount executive at Sundance in 2015, as perBBC.She told police Hirsch had, “choked me up, threw me across the table, and I felt the front of my throat hit the back of my throat,” calling the whole incident “insanely painful and absolutely terrifying.”Hirsch pled guilty to charges of assault and spent 15 days in jail, later revealing that he didn’t remember what had happened as he was binge drinking. In the years that followed, he never quite landed a role that brought in the success asInto the Wilddid.

Actor in a beige jacket beside a younger version, representing careers crushed before success.

Even The Flash isn’t quick enough to escape the downfall of Ezra Miller’s career.Just as their name was starting to get big, a number of controversies started popping up, including accusations of grooming, assault, burglary, and abuse. They were also arrested multiple times.Miller’s soloThe Flashmovie was released but did not do as well as their team had hoped. As of now, they don’t appear to have any upcoming projects.

Two images of an actor whose career faced obstacles before success; dressed in a white suit left, casual attire right.

Two images of an actress: one on a red carpet, another in a scene from a movie, symbolizing careers crushed before success.

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Friday Night Lightshelped launchTaylor Kitschinto stardom and secured his huge role in bothJohn CarterandBattleship.These, however, flopped in the box office, and his trajectory was led askew.“I’m very proud ofJohn Carter,” Kitsch stated. “Box office doesn’t validate me as a person, or as an actor.”His presence in future smaller projects, however, may be the key to making it big again.

Actor in casual attire and football uniform; careers halted before hitting it big.

Actor in casual and formal settings symbolizing careers halted before success.

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Actor in red gown at event and in medical attire, representing actors whose careers were crushed early.

Cas Anvar’s role inThe Expansehelped him “skyrocket” to fame, as said on his website, which later led him to a recurring role onHow to Get Away With Murder.But that all screeched to a halt in 2020 when he was accused of harassment and sexual misconduct — both of which he denied. He was fired fromThe Expanseand has only appeared in two projects since then.

Actor in a light blue suit at an Amazon Studios event, and in a dark, futuristic setting, depicting a career transition.

Augustus Waters was hiding things of his own when his career was skyrocketing.Having starred in both theDivergentfilms andThe Fault in Our Stars, Ansel Elgort won over so many hearts in the years of 2014-2016. In 2020, however, he was accused of sexually assaulting a 17-year-old in 2014, when the actor was 20 years old.This was the catalyst to more women coming forward to share their bad experiences with Elgort.The actor did respond to the claims and denied them, saying, “I have never and would never assault anyone,” claiming that his relationship with the first person to come forward had been consensual.Although he did star inWest Side Story, his disappearance from Hollywood was a stark contrast from how he began.

Two actors who had promising careers, one speaking on stage, another wearing earbuds and leaning on a table with a toy car.

TheGleestar was on the rise in the early 2010s appearing as Ryder Lynn on the musical show and winning the hearts of many. He then participated in projects such asSupergirlandThe Edge of Seventeen— until his ex-wife Melissa Benoist accused him of domestic abuse.Jenner admitted to the allegations, and accused Benoist right back, but the damage done to his career was irreversible. Since then, he hasn’t been able to find success in bigger, well-known roles.

Actor in a navy shirt at a premiere and performing on stage; careers disrupted before gaining fame.

As a superhero on the beloved showThe Flash, Hartley Sawyer was on the way to great fame until his old racist, misogynistic, and homophobic tweets resurfaced in 2020. Multiple tweets involved assaulting women.He was immediately fired from the hit show and though the actor tried to apologize on Instagram, the damage had already been done.“My words, irrelevant of being meant with an intent of humor, were hurtful, and unacceptable. I am ashamed I was capable of these really horrible attempts to get attention at that time. I regret them deeply. This was not acceptable behavior. These were words I threw out at the time with no thought or recognition of the harm my words could do, and now have done today,” he said.

Actor in suit and tie on left; patterned shirt on right, representing a career crushed before hitting it big.

Momentum was building for Jason Mitchell when he was part of films such asKeanuandKong: Skull Islandalong with the Netflix movieDesperados.But things stopped when he was fired after allegations of misconduct for his behavior on set. While he denied any claims made against him, his agency dropped him subsequently.“If I did do anything, say anything, make anybody feel any kind of way, you have my deepest apologies, like honestly, my deepest apologies because that was never my intention to make anybody feel any sort of way,” he said. “I definitely never put my hands on somebody or anything like that.”He was arrested in 2020 after being found with firearms and illicit substances, which Mitchell’s representative called a “misunderstanding.”There are a few additional projects of his that are in development — so maybe there’s a chance of a comeback for this particular actor.

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Two actors featured; one smiling in a leather jacket and cap, the other in a dramatic scene. Careers nearly hit it big.

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