Actors/Actresses who you thought would become big stars but never did

Bridget Fonda
Had a decent run there for awhile, but now seems to have faded away.

Rebecca Gayheart
Thought she was the best thing about Urban Legend, but aside from running over people, what has she done lately?

Rachael Leigh Cook
Once upon a time she was all that, but her career seems to have gone in the toilet with one crummy movie after another.

Skeet Ulrich
Whatever happened to this guy?

Scott Wolf
From Party of Five to White Squall to...Everwood?

Mark Hamil.......although he seems to be doing okay I suppose.

Jan Michael Vincent

When Scream was big he said he never wanted to be an actor. Said in interviews he would ride it though a few films, makes some dough and do what he really wanted to do in life.

Why I remember that interview is beyond me.

Maura Tierney

John Leguizamo
Frank Whaley

Terrence D. Howard

After seeing him in The Best Man, I thought he would get some leading-man status afterwards. Has only been stuck to supporting roles since then (Besides TV's King of the World, on which one could say he was miscast) maybe the upcoming Ray might be his second chance to get noticed.

After seeing John Carpenter's They Live I was sure that MEG FOSTER would be a major star - she reminded me in many ways of Lauren Bacall.

But it never happened ...

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001236/

Last time I checked she is one of 3 major characters on ER. After Wyle leaves she may be at the forefront. That is a big deal. Unless of course you were hoping she would turn into a movie star.

Television. She was a regular for a while on Dead Like Me, and more recently she appeared on nip/tuck.

Always kinda rooted for Jason Patric to achieve the A-list status of the likes of Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt. Liked his work in "Rush", "Geronimo", "The Beast", "Sleepers", "The Journey of August King", and I even enjoyed "Speed 2".

Ditto Aidan Quinn. Would like to seem him in more "big" movies. Really enjoyed his work in "Legends of the Fall" and "Michael Collins".

Wouldn't have minded at all if Jeremy Irons had a more prestigious filmography.

Also a big favorite is Liam Neeson. Had a nice run in the mid-90's with "Schindler's List", "Rob Roy", "Michael Collins", and "Les Miserables". I sincerely wish that the upcoming "Kinsey" get Neeson back in the spotlight.

I understand the above have all had respectable careers but I feel they've fallen short of the long-term A-list status (such as Hanks, Gibson, Denzel, etc.) I'd hoped for them.

There's too much Maura Tierny on ER, especially when her "mother" and/or "brother" are on. My wife and I have been calling it "The Abby Show" for a couple years.

Unfortunately she was a regular on Dead Like Me for only the first five episodes.

I miss Betty.

I always thought Matthew McConaughey would go on to big things.

Then maybe what should've be included with this thread to began with is a standardize definition of "big star". Cause obviously this is the problem we have here, my definition isn't matching up with yours.

Annabeth Gish.

I saw her in Mystic Pizza. She's done a few movie roles since, and also a bunch of made-for-TV stuff, but didn't hit the big-time.

To me, a "big star" is someone the average person on the street would know by name (not a perfect definition, of course).

Jude Law - it's like he did that one movie with Ethan Hawk and then disappeared off the face of the earth. It's as though he's not in every single movie coming out over the next 2 years or something.

Meredith Salenger.
She was kind of high profile in the late 80s, starring in movies like The Kiss. Dream a Little Dream, The Journey of Natty Gann, A Night in the Life of Jimmy Reardon, among others. She is startlingly beautiful, one of the few actresses that I would label breath-taking. Plus, she is a decent actress and always had a certain freshness. I always thought she was on her way to huge stardom, but it hasn't yet happened.

I prefer Daisy. Well, second season Daisy where she has her own character and lines (instead of Betty's lines with a few blowjob comments thrown in).

Don't give up on Mr. McConaughey just yet.

I could live with both.

- Moira Kelly and D.B. Sweeney

After THE CUTTING EDGE, I figured it was only a matter of time before these two became stars, but neither could ever find that breakout role. Now they seem relegated to TV work.

- Mia Sara

Made a big impression in FERRIS BUELLER then starred opposite Tom Cruise in LEGEND, but never did much of note after that. I knew her career was over when she played second fiddle to Jean Claude Van Damme in TIMECOP.

- Cynthia Gibb

Starred in a bunch of 80s flicks (YOUNGBLOOD, JACK'S BACK, MODERN GIRLS, SHORT CIRCUIT 2) then had a short-lived TV series and portrayed Karen Carpenter before disappearing in the TV wasteland. Her career also seemed to tank after starring in a Jean Claude Van Damme movie.

- Rosanna Arquette

Another casualty of the Van Damme syndrome.

- David Keith

A good actor who had a brief fling with leading man status (LORDS OF DISCIPLINE, WHITE OF THE EYE) but never really caught on. Now he's relegated to small roles in crap like RAISE YOUR VOICE.

- Matthew Modine

Started off great with MARRIED TO THE MOB, but I don't think anybody could take him seriously after CUTTHROAT ISLAND.