12 Hollywood Celebrities Who Suddenly Vanished From Every TV Screen

It’s no secret that it’s extremely difficult to make it in Hollywood. However, any experienced actor will tell you that getting there is half the journey and that it’s much more difficult to stay in that competitive environment for a long time. Your career can disappear as fast as it came to be, and it can happen for no logical reason at all.

We at Bright Side decided to check on 12 talented actors who used to star in one movie after another yet can’t be seen on the big screen today.

Cameron Diaz

• The last movie she appeared in was Annie (2014).

Before 2014, Cameron Diaz would star in several high box office movies annually. In fact, ever since the release of The Mask, almost every director dreamt of getting this charming beauty in their projects. Over the 20 years of her intensive career, the actress had a chance to try herself in various flicks, from spy action movies (Charlie’s Angels) to historical dramas (Gangs of New York). Perhaps Diaz simply got tired of the movie industry and finally decided to take a break but then changed her mind and quit acting completely. The only thing left to do for the actress’s fans who haven’t seen her in new movies for 7 years is to hope that one fine day the actress will be offered a role she just couldn’t have said no to.

Freddie Prinze Jr.

• The last movie he appeared in was Jack and Jill vs. the World (2008)

At the end of the ’90s and the beginning of the 2000s, it seemed like Freddie Prinze Jr. was on every channel. I Know What You Did Last Summer, She’s All That, and Scooby-Doo are only a couple of flicks the actor starred in. But over time, Prinze started to act less and less, moved from big projects to TV series, and then shifted to voiceover work. Prinze’s last significant work was Jack and Jill vs. the World, which was released in 2008.

Zooey Deschanel

• The last movie she appeared in was The Driftless Area (2015).

When the romantic comedy, 500 Days of Summer, was released in 2009, it seemed that the actors in the main roles finally had their spot under the Hollywood sun. And while Joseph Gordon-Levitt is still building his acting career, his costar, Zooey Deschanel, had one that developed rather slowly. After her success in 2009, the actress acted in several more movies and TV projects (including the quite successful series, New Girl). Nowadays, she is mainly engaged in voiceover work.

Meg Ryan

• The last movie she appeared in was Ithaca (2015).

It seems like Meg Ryan appeared in every cult rom-com of the ’80s and ’90s. Her beauty and talent had a major impact on famous directors as well as millions of viewers all over the world. However, at the beginning of the ’00s, something went wrong in her career and the actress disappeared from almost everyone’s radar. Some people connect it with issues in her personal life, and others, with tiredness. Today, the actress appears only in supporting roles in movies and on TV. Ithaca, a military drama that came out in 2015, served as her last project. In it, Ryan served as director.

Jack Nicholson

• The last movie he appeared in was How Do You Know (2010).

Being somewhat of a living legend, Jack Nicholson is free to do pretty much anything he wants. If he no longer wants to act in movies (viewers enjoyed his last acting gig 11 years ago), all we’re left to do is put up with it. The actor didn’t announce that he quit officially, but after the success of the flick, How Do You Know, Nicholson didn’t agree to any new roles. There was buzz about him appearing in an American remake of the German movie, Toni Erdmann, but the actor changed his mind in 2018 and turned the offer down.

Lara Flynn Boyle

• The last movie she appeared in was Lucky Dog (2014).

It’s hard to watch talented actresses like Lara Flynn Boyle go from playing main roles to second-rate ones. In the ’90s, the American actress’s career was on the up and up: she was in 2 cult series (Twin Peaks and The Practice) and was nominated for an Emmy Award. She also played one of the main roles in the Men In Black II blockbuster. However, starting from the middle of the 2000s, Boyle’s career started to go downhill, and she was typically acting in low-budget movies. She hasn’t been seen in any new projects since 2014.

Chris Tucker

• The last movie he appeared in was Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk (2016).

After American comedian-actor Chris Tucker played the role of a narcissistic radio host in Luc Besson’s The Fifth Element, it became clear that a new star had appeared in Hollywood. Viewers were in awe of the comedian’s acting chops and soon Tucker was offered to play a part in the action movie, Rush Hour. This flick was such a box office hit that it was turned into a trilogy. At that moment, it seemed that Tucker would appear on our screens quite frequently.

However, after the release of the movie, Rush Hour 3, the actor appeared in only 2 movie projects: Silver Linings Playbook and Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk. According to the media, Tucker has changed his life priorities and started to choose his roles more carefully. The actor was so brilliant in The Fifth Element that all his faithful fans are left to do is hope that he’ll find a project suitable for him to showcase his talent in.

Shannyn Sossamon

• The last movie she appeared in was Sinister 2 (2015).

The American actress, Shannyn Sossamon, did something that few actors manage to do: she got famous right after playing her first role. It happened after she played in the adventure flick, A Knight’s Tale, in 2001. One year later, the romantic comedy, 40 Days and 40 Nights, which had just as big of a success as her first movie, was released. In it, Sossamon played Josh Hartnett’s love interest. However, the actress failed to sustain her following. Her filmography does contain many famous films, such as The Holiday, One Missed Call, and Doomsday, but they all were released more than 10 years ago. Since 2015, Sossamon hasn’t appeared in any new projects.

Mo’Nique

• The last movie she appeared in was Almost Christmas (2016).

According to the unwritten rules, when an actor or actress wins an Oscar, they start to receive endless offers to star in new films within the next few years. However, the American actress and comedian, Mo’Nique, who in 2009 collected statuettes of all the prestigious movie awards for her role in the movie, Precious, failed to have such a grandiose kick-off to her career. The actress continues to act but mainly in small projects.

Sally Field

• The last movie she appeared in was Hello, My Name Is Doris (2015).

It’s hard to picture the movie industry without an actress like Sally Field. Her career spanned over 5 decades. She has 2 Oscars and many other movie awards. One hour wouldn’t be enough time to list all the flicks she’s taken part in. However, within a recent couple of years, viewers were able to see Field’s acting more and more seldom. Norma Rae, Steel Magnolias, and Forrest Gump have stayed in the past; but we can recall the flick, Hello, My Name Is Doris, among her relatively new projects.

Tom Welling

• The last movie he appeared in was The Choice (2016).

Tom Welling achieved world fame thanks to the role of Clark Kent in the Smallville series. It seemed that the talented, handsome actor was perfect for the types of romantic comedies that were released quite frequently in the 2000s. But something went wrong. The actor only appeared in several famous flicks over the course of his career. Today, Welling mainly acts in TV series.

Matthew Fox

• The last movie he appeared in was Extinction (2015).

Matthew Fox debuted on the big screen in 1993 in the teenage comedy, My Boyfriend’s Back. However, he got true world fame only 10 years later after acting in the cult series, Lost. The actor even got nominated for a Golden Globe Award for his role of Jack Shephard. At that time, it seemed that Hollywood would do anything to hold onto such great talent. However, after taking part in several projects (including the commercially successful thriller, World War Z), Fox almost disappeared from the screen for good. Fox’s last work was a post-apocalyptic movie, Extinction, which was released in 2015.

Do you like to watch movies with the aforementioned actors in them? Whose big-screen comeback are you most excited to see?