OldBoy

Seeing the Spike Scream Awards, i can't help think that Robert Downey Jr. has one of the best career resurgences in some time. He's certainly had some great movies in the past, but we all know his troubles and i think he has certainly rectified the wrongs and is enjoying a stellar bio of late. I've absolutely loved Wonder Boys, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and just about everything he has done both large and small.

Years ago I would have said John Travolta after Pulp Fiction, but he's faded and RDJ just oozes personality and truly making the most of his second life, and i think here to stay. Who doesn't love a good turnaround story??

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So who do you think has had the best resurrection of a career?

Sonic

Martin Lawrence

Robert Downey JR

Jean Claude Van Damme

All these guys got out of a drug habit problem and has done much better in their careers.

clckworang

Reading the thread title, my brain immediately went to John Travolta, but Robert Downey Jr. is probably a better answer.

Shannon Nutt

What did Downey Jr. resurge from, though? I think he just decided to do "big" movies instead of character pieces. His drug problems really didn't limit his work (other than the time he was "away", of course) or his "hireability". It was more a choice on his part than him not being able to find work.

I submit Sylvester Stallone to the conversation.

nando820

I approve this thread

Solid Snake

Didn't studios have issues w/ him on the fact that it was a bitch to insure him at the end of his...not so popular stage?

Drexl

It was a few years ago, but Jackie Earle Haley was out of the business entirely for 13 years, and was pretty obscure for a while before that. Then in 2006 he came out of nowhere with a role in All the King's Men and an Oscar nomination for Little Children, and has been working in big projects ever since.

Nick Danger

George Burns. When he made The Sunshine Boys and Oh, God in the mid-70s, his previous gig had been a 50's sitcom.

Ash Ketchum

A '60s sitcom--"Wendy and Me," with Connie Stevens.

And before THE SUNSHINE BOYS (1975) his previous film had been HONOLULU (1939) - 36 years earlier. And this year, THE SUNSHINE BOYS is 36 years old.

Mr. Cinema

Mickey Rourke

PenguinJoe

Sylvester Stallone hasn't really had a career resurrection yet. He's just doing his old movies over again mostly Rocky, Rambo. The Expendables was okay.

Robert Downey, Jr. and Charlie Sheen had great career ressurections Sheen kinda went back to hos old ways though. Old habits die hard i guess.

Until 30 Rock Alec Baldwin was on a slide as well as David Duchovny before Californication.

PenguinJoe

BTW, I read that Marlon Brando's career was completely in the shitter before The Godfather.

OldBoy

Baldwin is a pretty good one, but Duchovny has always been around with movies and not too too long away with X-Files.

TomOpus

Paul Reubens

PopcornTreeCt

devilshalo

Tho the resurrection was really for his Pee Wee Herman character. Thank god for nostalgia.

PenguinJoe

Jason Bateman had a pretty good return as well.

wd40cloud

Is this a subliminal typo?

onebyone

He was the first one that came to mind. He wasn't in small movies, he was delivering pizzas and driving limos before his comeback. That's a step beyond.

Paul1957

Dennis Hopper

TheBigDave

There are a couple stars that were big in the 80's, forgotten in the 90's, then came back in the 00's

Drew Barrymore
Patrick Dempsey
Paula Abdul
Kiefer Sutherland

Mondo Kane

Lots of good mentions.

Travolta's resurrection was insane.
Sometime during 1995 (I forget which movie it was that I went to see) but I DO remember seeing 3 trailers IN A ROW starring him (Broken Arrow,Get Shorty,White Man's Burden) As the 3rd trailer was playing, I actually began to think it was all a joke!

And although he haven't seen him much lately, it was nice to see Burt Reynolds again (Thanks to Boogie Nights) Oscar nomination to boot.

It seems if you were an 80's heartthrob/hunk, you sure got top work in the 2000's:

Kiefer
Johnny Depp
Charlie
Dempsey
Rob Lowe
Jon Cryer
Jason Bateman
James Spader

iggystar

Hot dog!!!!!!!!!! I came here to comment, but I loss all train of thought with that second picture of RDJ. Sweet heavens, that's an amazing shot.

wishbone

The thread title really should have been "Best career resurrection other than Robert Downey, Jr."



Leslie Nielsen pretty much had a second career in comedy after his role in Airplane!

majorjoe23

I wouldn't say Barrymore was forgotten in the 90s. By boys on the side in 95 she was prominently featured in big movies.