Hollywood’s one-hit wonders
There may or may not be one-hit wonders at the Academy Awards party on Sunday night. But the possibility exists almost every year. Indeed, the one-and-done list includes many names. Bob Thompson looks at some of the most notable stars who fizzled after th
TATUM O’NEAL (Paper Moon, 1974 Oscars)
Her future looked bright. At 10, Tatum O’Neal was the youngest Oscar-winner to take home a trophy. But then the bottom fell out. The daughter of Ryan O’Neal (who was Paper Moon’s headliner) recovered briefly with a co-starring part in The Bad News Bears three years after charming the Oscar crowd.
But she eventually became a Tinseltown cautionary tale of too much too soon. A recent reality show stretch could be considered a comeback of sorts. Some might remember her on Dancing With the Stars and the short-lived father-daughter reunion, Ryan and Tatum: The O’Neals.
CUBA GOODING JR. (Jerry Maguire, 1997 Oscars)
Cuba ‘show me the money’ Gooding Jr. was a popular winner at the Academy Awards in 1997. Unfortunately, he went from somebody to watch to ‘where did he go?’ after a series of unfortunate choices. That included a bunch of direct-to-DVD productions from 2008 to 2013.
The good news is this: The former breakdancer and Boyz n the Hood actor finds himself with a second life thanks to recent co-starring film performances in The Butler and Selma, and his Emmy-nominated portrayal of O.J. Simpson in The People v. O.J. Simpson.
MIRA SORVINO (Mighty Aphrodite, 1996 Oscars)
Those were the days. She was escorted to the Oscars by wunderkind filmmaker Quentin Tarantino. And her father-actor Paul Sorvino (he played mafia kingpin Paulie in Goodfellas) gushed about how proud he was after she picked up the statue for her hooker with a heart of gold in Woody Allen’s film.
The following year Sorvino earned an Emmy nod for her Marilyn Monroe in HBO’s Norma Jean & Marilyn. Trouble was not many of her projects afterward lived up to great expectations.
ADRIEN BRODY (The Pianist, 2003 Oscars)
Brody might be forever recalled as the Oscar winner who lip-locked with a surprised Halle Berry before accepting his best actor award. Before the kiss, though, viewers at home and in the glitzy audience were trying to figure out how he beat out Jack Nicholson (About Schmidt) and Daniel DayLewis (Gangs of New York).
Post Oscars the actor had a few hits (2005’s King Kong and 2014’s The Grand Budapest Hotel) but also had lots of misses. Though he did win an Emmy Award in 2014 for his portrayal of Houdini in a TV miniseries.
JENNIFER HUDSON (Dreamgirls, 2007 Oscars)
In 2004, Hudson was a popular finalist on the third season of American Idol. Her Dreamgirls role of Effie White was her moment to shine, and she even overshadowed Beyoncé in the picture. Following up on the Dreamgirls momentum, Hudson had featured roles in Sex and the City and The Secret Life of Bees.
Instead of acting, however, she chose the path of least resistance to focus on her singing career and as a spokesperson for Weight Watchers which she resigned from in 2015. Last year, she won praise for her Motormouth Maybelle portrayal in TV’s Hairspray Live! but Dreamgirls it was not.
Honourable mentions:
Roberto Benigni — the Italian writer, director and actor who shocked everyone at the 1999 Oscars when he scooped up a best actor award for his role in the concentration camp comedydrama Life is Beautiful. Frenchman Jean Dujardin did the same unexpected thing with his best actor triumph — a black-and-white silent movie performance from 2012’s The Artist. Some other members of the club are Timothy Hutton (Ordinary People, 1980), Marlee Matlin (Children of a Lesser God, 1986) and Anna Paquin (The Piano, 1993).