Damon Wayans is part of a big family. Several members of the Wayans family have had successful careers in entertainment. After being fired from Saturday Night Live, Wayans co-created In Living Color with his brother, Keenen. The upstart sketch show was a hit and Damon Wayans was the breakout star. He left the show to pursue a movie career. But his career on the big screen never gelled. Eventually, Wayans retreated to TV in the form of a safe sitcom. These days, Wayans is in danger of being eclipsed by his son, Damon Wayans Jr.
What the hell happened?
Wayans began doing stand-up in 1982. Two years later, he landed a minor but memorable role in action-comedy classic, Beverly Hills Cop. Wayans played the attendant at the fancy buffet who gives Eddie Murphy the bananas which he puts in the tailpipe.
Wayans’ role is small. It’s miniscule. But his first movie is arguably the best movie of his career.
In 1985, Wayans landed every comedic actor’s dream job. He was a featured player on Saturday Night Live. If you don’t remember Wayans on SNL it’s probably because he got himself fired after only seven episodes. During that time, Wayans grew increasingly frustrated feeling that his sketches were not given consideration. Tired of being a background player, he decided to deviate from the script in a sketch called Monopoly Man (pictured above). Instead of playing his part as written, Wayans improvised. He went showy and effeminate. Lorne Michaels fired Wayans after the show. According to Wayans:
What was I supposed to do? I was supposed to just be a cop. But I was frustrated, because I think Lorne Michaels thought he was protecting me by not putting me out there, letting me do my thing. So I started walking around wearing dark shades. When they asked me what was wrong, I said, “It’s too white in here, it hurts my eyes.” I was really on the verge of a nervous breakdown, or just taking a gun and killing everybody.
Fortunately, Wayans survived his SNL experience. In 1987, he appeared in minor roles in film and TV. He played a bodyguard in Robert Townsend’s satire, Hollywood Shuffle. Wayans’ brother Keenen had a larger supporting role. Damon Wayans also played a firefighter in the Steve Martin-Daryl Hannah comedy, Roxeanne.
Wayans also appeared on an episode of the TV show, A Different World. It was during the first season when the Cosby Show spin-off still starred Lisa Bonet. Marisa Tomei was also a regular that season. Keenen appeared in the episode in a larger role.
Wayans continued appear in small film and TV roles. In 1988, he played T-Bone in the LA gang drama, Colors.
Colors was directed by Dennis Hopper and starred Sean Penn and Robert Duvall.
Later that year, Wayans played a stand-up comedian in the drama, Punchline.
Tom Hanks starred as a stand-up comic struggling to break out. Sally Field played a housewife who decides she’d like to give stand-up a try. Reviews were mixed and the movie was a disappointment at the box office.
Wayans ended the year with a small part in his brother’s film, I’m Gonna Git You Sucka.
Keenen Ivory Wayans wrote, directed and starred in the blaxploitation satire. Reviews were mixed but the movie did well in relation to its small budget.
In 1989, Wayans played a furry alien in the musical sex comedy, Earth Girls Are Easy.
Earth Girls starred Geena Davis as a valley girl with a cheating fiancé. Then a space ship crashes in her swimming pool containing three horny aliens with brightly colored fur. The aliens were played by Jeff Goldblum, Jim Carrey and Wayans.
Reviews for Eath Girls Are Easy were mixed to positive. But the movie failed at the box office. It has gathered a cult following on video and is definitely worth checking out.
Also in 1989, Wayans’ stand-up comedy was spotlighted on the HBO series One Night Stand.
In 1990, Wayans and his brother Keenen created their own sketch comedy show for the Fox network. The show’s name, In Living Color, reflected the fact that the cast was predominantly black. The show was a family affair for the Wayans. Damon and Keenan were joined by siblings Kim, Shawn, and Marlon. The cast also included Wayans’ Earth Girls Are Easy co-star, Jim Carrey and David Allen Grier who had appeared in I’m Gonna Git You Sucka. Tommy Davidson was in the original cast and Jamie Foxx joined during the third season. Even the show’s dance troupe, the Fly Girls, contained future stars. Jennifer Lopez was a dance and Rosie Perez was the troupe’s choreographer.
In Living Color would launch several of its cast members to stardom. But Damon Wayans was the show’s first breakout star. His characters like Homey D. Clown, Blaine Edwards and Handi-Man were featured regularly. And his catch-phrases like “Homey don’y play dat” became part of the lexicon.
Despite the popularity of In Living Color, the Wayans were constantly at odds with the network. Fox was uncomfortable with some of the humor and frequently censored the show. Things came to a head when In Living Color produced a half-time special during the Super Bowl. During a Men on Film sketch, Wayans suggested that track runner Carl Lewis was gay much to Lewis’ chagrin.
Just to clarify, Fox was not running the Super Bowl that year. By airing In Living Color during the half time show, they managed to lure between 20 and 25 million viewers away from the CBS broadcast.
After two years of fighting with the network, Keenen stopped appearing in sketches on In Living Color in 1992. In the show’s fourth season, Keenen appeared only in the premiere episode although he remained on board as executive producer. Damon was the clear break-out star in the early seasons. After the third season, he left the show to focus on a movie career.
In 1990, just as In Living Color was taking off, Wayans did voice work on Look Who’s Talking Too. The first movie in the talking baby series had been a surprise hit for John Travolta and Kirstie Alley in 1989. It actually sparked a bit of a pre-Pulp Fiction come-back for Travolta and made it look like Alley might have a future in film post Cheers. But the quickie sequel the next year killed their career momentum.
In the real world, if a kid was as old as Mikey and still wasn’t talking, his parents would be worried. But this is a talking baby movie. So even though the baby is now a toddler, Bruce Willis still provides his internal monologue. For good measure, Roseanne Barr voiced Mikey’s half-sister. Wayans provided the voice for one of Mickey’s friends.
Richard Pryor was offered Wayans’ role but had to turn it down due to failing health. His voice actually did appear in an early trailer.
As with most sequels, there were diminishing returns. Reviews were universally negative. And while Look Who’s Talking Too made money, it was a disappointment.
In 1991, Wayans starred opposite Bruce Willis in the big budget action movie, The Last Boy Scout.
Willis starred as a disgraced former Secret Service agent investigating a scandal in the NFL. No, it has nothing to do with domestic violence. Nope, not head injuries. Not even the way the NFL refuses to pay cheerleaders a living wage. Or the way they cover up all of the above. In this case, the NFL is mixed up with the only group of people more corrupt than they are, politicians.
Wayans plays a former NFL quarterback who has been banned from the league due to gambling. Halle Berry appeared as his stripper ex-girlfriend who brings Willis and Wayans together for much quipping and explosions.
The Last Boy Scout was written by Shane Black, the writer of Lethal Weapon. Black’s script set off a bidding war. He was offered a record-breaking 2.25 million by Carolco for his spec script. But he decided to sell The Last Boyscout to Warner Brother instead for a mere $1.75 million dollars. This was still a record sum at the time. The record was broken 67 days later when Carolco bought Joe Eszterhas’ script for Basic Instinct.
Black took the lesser sum Warner Brothers offered for the chance to work with producer Joel Silver again. Silver had produced Lethal Weapon and Willis’ hit, Die Hard. Silver later claimed that making The Last Boy Scout was one of the three worst experiences of his life. Silver and Willis took control of the production over from director Tony Scott. Scott claimed that Silver and Willis re-wrote Black’s script and forced him to shoot scenes he hated under threat of being fired and losing his salary.
The movie received mostly negative reviews. Even in 1991, most critics were put off by the movie’s over-the-top misogyny (which is probably fitting for an action movie involving the NFL). Despite the star power involved, The Last Boy Scout grossed less than $60 million which makes it a box office disappointment.
In 1992, Wayans wrote and starred in the comedy, Mo Money.
Wayans played a con man trying to clean up his act. He takes a job in the mailroom of a credit card company where he falls for a co-worker played by Stacey Dash. Feeling that he needs money to impress dash, he uses his position in the company to commit identity theft. Wayans’ real-life brother, Marlon Wayans, played his on-screen brother and accomplice.
Originally, Kadeem Hardison was supposed to play Wayans’ partner in crime. But Wayans told Arsenio Hall that his mother told him to cast his younger brother instead.
Despite negative reviews, Mo Money opened at #1 at the box office. It ended up grossing $40 million dollars which was a decent take given the movie’s budget.
By 1994, Wayans had officially departed In Living Color and was committed to his movie career full-time. To that end, he wrote and starred in the super hero comedy, Blankman.
Wayans played a naive inventor who becomes a low-budget super hero after inventing bullet-proof clothes. David Alan Grier played his brother and reluctant sidekick. Robin Givens played a news anchor who both brothers fall for.
If you watched that trailer, you just saw all the funny parts of the movie.
Blankman received negative reviews and flopped at the box office. It didn’t even open in the top 10. Instead it was pushed into 11th place by Andre,a family movie about a seal. Blankman wasn’t just a bomb. With a gross of less than $8 million dollars it was a box office humiliation.
In 1995, Wayans co-wrote and starred in the military comedy, Major Payne.
Wayans played a career military man who is discharged from the marines. Unsure of how to live life as a civilian, he takes a job leading a local school’s JROTC program. His unorthodox approach includes the use of live grenades and real bullets.
Major Payne was a loose remake of the 1955 film The Private War of Major Benson which starred Charlton Heston.
Reviews were negative, bit Major Payne opened at #2 behind Outbreak which was in the third week of its run. It grossed just under $30 million in the US which isn’t great. But at least it wasn’t Blankman.
To promote Major Payne, Wayans returned to Saturday Night Live as a host. He reprised many of his popular characters from In Living Color.
1996 was basically Wayans’ last grasp at movie stardom. He appeared in three movies that year. The first was the sports comedy, Celtic Pride.
Wayans played a basketball star who is kidnapped by two crazed Celtics fans played by Dan Aykroyd and Daniel Stern.
Check out the billing on that trailer. Wayans got top billing over both Aykroyd and Stern. If you pay careful attention during the trailer, you can actually hear the last of Aykroyd’s talent slipping away. Believe it or not, Celtic Pride was actually written by future hit-meister Judd Apatow.
But Celtic Pride was not a hit. Reviews were terrible with many critics claiming the movie was offensive. It opened at #7 behind the Ricki Lake-Brendan Fraser dramedy, Mrs. Winterbourne. It’s final gross was below $10 million dollars.
Later that year, Wayans appeared in Reginald Hudlin’s boxing comedy, The Great White Hype.
Wayans played an undefeated boxing champion who is bored with his own fights. Samuel L. Jackson played a Don King-type promoter who decides to find a white opponent for Wayans to fight. Peter Berg played the white guy Jackson picks for the fight. The star-studded cast also included Jamie Foxx, Jeff Goldblum, Cheech Marin and Jon Lovitz.
The original script was written by Ron Shelton who is known for sports comedies like White Men Can’t Jump and Bull Durham. But Shelton distanced himself from the final film which was re-written by comedian, Tony Hendra.
The Great White Hype received negative reviews and opened in 5th place at the box office behind Primal Fear which was in the fifth week of its run. It ended up grossing just over $8 million dollars.
Wayans ended 1996 by starring opposite Adam Sandler in the action comedy, Bulletproof.
Sandler played a small time crook with mob connections. Wayans played an undercover cop who needs to escort Sandler across the country so he can testify against a gangster played by James Caan.
This was pre-Adam Sandler the Movie Star. So Wayans got top billing. Happy Gilmore actually came out that same year.
Director Ernest Dickerson was forced to recut the movie to receive a studio-demanded PG-13 rating. According to Dickerson:
I’d like to just erase that whole experience. You know, I’m proud of a lot of the films I’ve done, but there’s some situations that happened that in retrospect maybe I could have handled them a little differently if I had been a little smarter about it. But that’s all second-guessing. Bulletproof was a case where we shot an R-rated film and the studio made us cut it to PG-13. So Bulletproof is a big sore point with me because it’s the only time I’ve ever kicked a hole in an editing room wall. Because of the frustration of dealing with the studios and dealing with a producer who when the studio said “Jump!” he said “How high?” You make a movie with an R-rating, and then they tell you to cut it to PG-13. So it meant butchering performances, storylines, and really simplifying the film. The story is scripted by Lewis Colick, who is much deeper. It was about the responsibilities of friendship. The relationship that Damon Wayans had with Kristen Wilson was much stronger and all that was taken out. The movie was castrated.
Bulletproof received negative reviews. Although it opened at #1 at the box office, it ended up grossing less than its $25 million dollar budget. Sandler was nominated for a Razzie Award which he lost to Pauly Shore. Fortunately, he would win plenty more over the course of his strangely long and successful career.
In 1998, Wayans returned to TV with the Fox sitcom, Damon. You can hardly blame him, His movie career was a string of abject failures. David Alan Grier and Andrea Martin co-starred. The show ran from March-July airing thirteen episodes.
In 1999, Wayans started appearing in supporting roles in little movies you have probably never heard of. In Halem Aria, he played a street hustler who cons a talented but naive singer out of his life savings.
Later that year, Wayans appeared in the Jennifer Tilly comedy, Goosed. Tilly played a woman who believes it is her destiny to marry a doctor named Steve. So she throws herself at every doctor she meets named Steve. Wayans played one such doctor.
Joan Rivers and Robert Klein played Tilly’s parents. Antonio Sabato Jr., Vincent Spano, Thomas Haden Church and D.B. Sweeney played some of the other Steves.
In 2000, Wayans appeared in Spike Lee’s media satire, Bamboozled.
Wayans played an educated black man who works for a boorish white network executive. He is tasked with developing a TV show for black audiences. But all of his attempts to portray black characters in a positive light get shot down by Michael Rapaport’s character as Cosby clones. Unable to cope with the situation any longer, Wayans’ character decides to take drastic steps to get himself fired. Along with an assistant played by Jada Pinkett Smith, Wayans develops an offensive modern day minstrel show. Instead of getting Wayans fired, the show becomes a surprise hit.
Spike Lee is a smart guy with a lot on his mind. As a writer/director, he has a lot to say. But sometimes, he can be a frustrating filmmaker because he says too much. Bamboozled could have been a crisp satire like Network or even The Producers. But it turns into a Shakespearean drama in the third act with multiple characters dying violent deaths. Lee’s message is still there. But it gets muddled.
As a result, reviews were mixed. Not surprisingly, the movie was not a hit with audiences either. It grosses just over $2 million dollars. It opened in limited release and slowly expanded. At its widest, it was playing in 243 theaters.
In 2001, Wayans returned to TV with the ABC sitcom, My Wife and Kids.
Wayans played the father who may or may not know best. In the mold of the modern family sitcom, he usually didn’t. Tisha Campbell-Martin played his wife who is usually much smarter than her husband. It was basically the Wayans equivalent of According to Jim. Safe. Non-threatening. Everything In Living Color was not. However, unlike Damon, the show was a hit which ran for five seasons.
Personally, I find it somewhat sad to see a comedian like Wayans reduced to something with so little artistic value. However, his movie career had long since tanked. And comercially, My Wife and Kids is the most successful thing he has been associated with since In Living Color. People watched it. It’s still showing in syndication. So that’s got to count for something, right?
In 2003, while Wayans was still on My Wife and Kids, he returned to the big screen opposite Lisa Kudrow in the simply wretched romantic comedy, Marci X.
Kudrow played a spoiled princess who ends up in charge of a hip-hop record label. Wayans played her label’s most outrageous and controversial star. Hijinks ensue as worlds collide. At least in theory.
Did I mention that Marci X is wretched? Because it is. Chris Rock was offered Wayans’ role but turned it down. According to Rock, “It’s the worst script I’ve ever gotten… I’d have been happier getting an envelope full of anthrax.”
Critics and audiences felt the same way. The reviews trashed the film and it opened at an abysmal 17th place. It got beat by Charlies Angels 2 which had been open for 9 weeks and was playing in less than half as many theaters. So doing the math, in its 9th week of release, theaters showing the disappointing Charlie’s Angels sequel were more than twice as full as those showing Marci X the weekend it opened. Heck, it grossed less than Bamboozled and played in more than 5 times as many theaters. With a reported budget of $20 million, Marci X grossed a paltry 1.6 million.
In 2006, following the cancellation of My Wife and Kids, Wayans returned to raunchy sketch comedy with the Showtime series, The Underground. Wayans described the show as “In Living Color on steroids”. Since The Underground was on a pay-cable channel, censorship was not an issue. No subject was considered taboo. The show only lasted on season consisting of 11 episodes.
In 2008, Wayans returned to ABC with a sitcom pilot called Never Better. Wayans played a recovering alcoholic trying to be a better husband and father. It was based on a British show of the same name. Unfortunately, Never Better didn’t duplicate the success of My Wife and Kids. The pilot aired, but it was not picked up to series.
In 2011, Wayans did a guest spot on the ABC sitcom, Happy Endings. That show starred Eliza Coupe, Elisha Cuthbert and Damon Wayans’ son, Damon Wayans Jr. The father and son duo had worked together previously on My Wife and Kids and The Underground. As a child, Jr even appeared in Blankman. Today, the junior Damon Wayans is best known for the surprise hit, Let’s Be Cops. He’s also doing voice work in Disney’s Big Hero Six.
Wayans attempted another pilot in 2011. This time, it was a sports-themed comedy on CBS called Herd Mentality. The show didn’t get picked up. But Wayans did write a best-selling novel called Red Hats.
The book is about a suicidal senior citizen who finds friends in the Red Hat Society.
In 2013, Wayans was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes. He returned to stand-up comedy and dabbles in other ventures including app development. Wayans developed an app called Flick Dat:
Yeah, Homey the Clown developed an app for sharing business cards. Apparently, Homey DO play dat.
So what the hell happened?
It’s pretty easy to look at Wayans’ film career and call it a train wreck. He never starred in a movie that was popular with critics or audiences. Even at the peak of his popularity on In Living Color, Mo Money was merely a base hit. Most of Wayans’ movies were reviled by critics and flopped at the box office. At this point in the What the Hell Happened series, I don’t think I have written about anyone with a less successful movie career.
Where Wayans has been successful has been on TV. Both on In Living Color and My Wife and Kids. Two successful TV shows is no small accomplishment even if his movie career was a disaster. Some actors just work better on the small screen. It would appear Wayans is one of them.
Also, it probably didn’t help that Wayans picked scripts that Chris Rock compared to anthrax.
I was starting to wonder what the hell happened to “What the Hell Happened” since it had been so long since the last entry. Great to see you back at it. This was one of the more interesting ones for me because I’ve always thought of him as a big comedy star, but never stopped to think about his career. I liked him in In Living Color and knew he was starring in a lot of movies, but never stopped to realize that they weren’t successful and that I don’t think I’ve seen any of them (post ILC at least).… Read more »
Here’s the deal. The site traffic really picked up this summer. We had lots of people reading old articles that weren’t up to my current standards and it was embarrassing for me. Like when unexpected guests come by and the house is a mess. I kept trying to tidy up the old articles while writing new ones, but I could never get caught up. When Robin Williams died, I really had no choice but to go back and rework that article. Once I had committed to that, I decided I might as well keep on working on other articles. So… Read more »
I want to see that SNL skit with Randy Quaid!
Here you go, RB. Enjoy.
https://screen.yahoo.com/mr-monopoly-000000931.html
Having watched the video, firing Wayans seems an extreme reaction…
At the time, Quaid was a regular on the show. SNL was at a low point. They had hired a bunch of talented actors like Quaid, Anthony Michael Hall (yep, two Vacation cast members), Joan Cusack and Robert Downey Jr. But the show didn’t gel. Most of the cast got replaced the next season.
No kidding, I didn’t see anything in the video to warrant firing?? He hardly said anything at all, it was most a vehicle for Jon Lovitz.
Which is part of what he was rebelling against. They wouldn’t spotlight his sketches so he tried to steal the spotlight.
Michaels did extend an olive branch to Wayans. He let him perform stand-up on the final episode of the season. Unlike, say, Eddie Murphy, there’s no bad blood between them.
I distinctly remember when I was a kid around that time that the network was seriously considering cancelling SNL and replacing it with WWF wrestling. 12 year old me thought that would be great! Thankfully that didn’t happen and in 1986 the beginning of SNL’s golden age (the late 80s early 90s cast) was upon us with the hiring of the likes of Phil Hartman, Dana Carvey, Kevin Nealon, Dennis Miller (back when he was funny), etc.
Once Dana Carvey and Phil Hartman, etc arrived, SNL turned around. I agree it was a gold age. That was MY SNL.
Dennis Miller was actually on the cast in 85 along with Jon Lovitz. They were two of the only hold-overs from an immensely talented and immensely wasted cast. It’s a shame to see what Miller turned into. He used to be cool and funny. Now he’s just an angry rich white guy.
You forgot Nora Dunn, who was the only female holdover from the 1985-86 cast.
Dennis Miller: Not So Black and White:
http://splitsider.com/2013/07/dennis-miller-not-so-black-and-white/
https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/4c75vw/which_celebrities_killed_their_careers_in_a/d1g1mx7 I’m going to mix it up a bit and say Dennis Miller. Guy was culturally relevant for a good long while, and in the 90s ranked up there with George Carlin insofar as cultural satire was concerned. He was a friggin’ hero of mine in my highschool years. Compare “Dennis Miller Live” with John Stewart’s “Daily Show” format/style and you’ll find striking similarities. Post 9/11, Miller threw in his chips with the xenophobic warmongers and went all kinds of batshit. Overnight he decided that the jerkoffs he mocked as being incompetent, outdated thieves should have unquestionable authority to act… Read more »
Dennis Miller: Did he stop being funny? Was he ever funny to begin with? If so, wha’ happened? http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=19342475&postcount=1 I was watching Dennis Miller on Bill O’Reilly at the gym last night and remembering how I used to laugh at his material but now it’s sad. It’s not that he’s an outspoken conservative, it’s the fact that he’s just another bitter old fart and he spews out a bunch of sound-byte pregnant partisan douchebaggery that sounds so completely non-spontaneous and over-rehearsed it’s hard to believe the man has done live performances for decades. But I swear that I used to… Read more »
i dont know why hes in it hes a tv star known for that thats alll of people on this site should at least have movie hit patric had a hit with lost boys why is damon here
I reserve the right to include anyone I want to in the series for any reason. 😉 I don’t typically write up “TV actors”. But Wayans released enough movies that he doesn’t fit my definition of a TV actor despite the fact his greatest success came in TV. Sometimes, its a tough line to draw. There are shades of grey. To tell the truth, this article happened largely because readers requested it. One particular reader has been very persistently demanding this article since midsummer. And frankly, Wayans’ movie career was short enough that the article didn’t take as long to… Read more »
plus its not like the media made it seem he was rising star
Spike Lee kicked off the new millennium with an unsung triumph: http://www.avclub.com/article/spike-lee-kicked-new-millennium-unsung-triumph-210565 By A.A. Dowd Oct 16, 2014 11:00 AM Every day, Watch This offers staff recommendations inspired by a new movie coming out that week. This week: Birdman, as well as David Cronenberg’s upcoming Maps To The Stars, has us thinking back on other showbiz satires. Bamboozled (2000) Among great filmmakers, Spike Lee is uncommonly hit or miss: He seems capable of making both masterpieces (Do The Right Thing, his HBO Hurricane Katrina documentary When The Levees Broke) and steaming piles of cinematic garbage (She Hate Me, Miracle At… Read more »
Damon Wayans’ Mysterious Absence From ‘In Living Color’s TV Land Awards Tribute: http://www.lipstickalley.com/showthread.php?t=391894 Tonight, TV Land is airing the 10th Anniversary TV Land Awards where Fox’s In Living Color is recognized with the Groundbreaking Award. But you wouldn’t know from it that Damon Wayans was a part of the iconic sketch comedy series. There were two members of In Living Color‘s core cast who were no-shows at the TV Land Awards ceremony, which took place on April 14 in New York: Jamie Foxx and Damon Wayans. Foxx couldn’t attend because he has been in New Orleans filming Quentin Tarantino’s Django… Read more »
Comedian Lil Rel put Damon Wayans on blast for the cancellation of In Living Color remake:
http://www.lipstickalley.com/showthread.php?t=458688
Top 5/Bottom 5: Wayans Brothers’ Movies: http://www.film.com/movies/best-worst-wayans-brothers-movies When “A Haunted House” arrives in theaters this week, film fans will see a familiar face front and center in the horror genre send-up: Marlon Wayans, who famously launched the “Scary Movie” horror spoof franchise back in 2000. This time around, though, there’s one major difference: Marlon is flying solo, with his brothers Damon and Keenen Ivory and the rest of the Wayans nowhere to be seen. But is that a good thing or a bad thing? Your answer may depend entirely on which of their movies you’ve seen, because while the Wayans… Read more »
I really don’t know why Damon Wayans didn’t have a better film career (besides the obvious argument of him “picking bad scripts” and what not) after all of the promise that he showed on “In Living Color” (I’ve been trying to find an answer on line, but nothing satisfactory thus far). If I had to guess, I think part of Damon’s problem is that a good portion of his success had to do w/ working w/ his brother, Keenan on “In Living Color” and “I’m Gonna Git U Sucka” before that. This is not to say that Damon isn’t a… Read more »
I think you’re on to something there. Marlon was more successful at the box office. I think partially that is due to the fact that Marlon was more willing to play within the system. Damon made little movies he could control. Marlon would do big movies like GI Joe in which he was just a hired hand.
Marlon also proved he could handle dramatic roles with his role in Requiem For A Dream.
Part of the problem might be that most of the major roles Damon got just weren’t suited that well to his personality and talent. And those that did failed at the box office.
I also think that Hollywood and/or Damon himself overestimated his value as a box office star. Damon was considered the breakout star of “In Living Color” (I think that most people forget that looking at the success that Jim Carrey and Jamie Foxx would eventually enjoy), but the reality is that he was still part of a “collective” (if that makes sense). I guess what I mean is that a lot of his success was also his family’s success. As I said before, I think what in part hurt Damon is that he didn’t keep creative ties w/ his brother… Read more »
I always felt The Last Boy Scout was an underrated movie. In some ways, it was a movie that was out of place and out of time. It was hindered by being released both in the shadow of Hudson Hawk and at a time when the action movie tropes of the 80s were starting to seem passe to much of the moviegoing public. Also many people were starting to look at Bruce Willis as a has been, a relic of the 80s that was sticking around for a few more years. Pulp Fiction and a few other subsequent films would… Read more »
While Lebeau may be right that Beverly Hills Cop may be the best movie Wayans ever appeared in, it’s a miniscule role lasting less than a minute (“You go ahead, you take those bananas”). But I would say outside of that, the movie that best displayed his comedic talent was I’m Gonna Get You, Sucka. It was a supporting role, but he was absolutely hysterical in that in a way he never was once he made it to leading man status. With that film, and later with In Living Color, he was allowed to go over-the-top with his performances, think… Read more »
I can get behind that assessment. Wayans as a leading man always felt restrained and sedated. He should have gone all out like Jim Carrey did. Maybe then, he could have built on his In Living Color following.
Mo Money` Could Use A Good Deal More Comedy: http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1992-07-24/news/9203060594_1_mo-money-johnny-stewart-stacey-dash July 24, 1992 | By Dave Kehr, Movie critic. If you were the star and chief creative force behind one of the most popular comedy series on television, what would you do for your first movie as a major headliner? How about a violent, low-grade crime thriller in which the jokes disappear after the first 30 minutes and macho posturing, with fists, guns and speeding cars, takes over for the remainder of the running time? As perverse as that may seem, thats pretty much what Damon Wayans, star and creator… Read more »
In fairness, “Major Payne” and “Blankman” at least on the surface, seemed like attempts by Damon Wayans to play a more over-the-top or outlandish persona. I never thought about this until today while culling through old reviews of “Mo Money”, you can argue that Damon’s style of comedy (when out of the context of a sketch comedy and satirical show like “In Living Color”) can often come across as incredibly stereotypical and even mean-spirited. I don’t understand why Damon simply couldn’t have done a straight-up adaptation of the “Mo’ Money” (technically, the skit is called “The Homeboy Shopping Network”) skit… Read more »
MOVIE REVIEW : ‘Mo’ Money’ Overdoses on Blood, Guts: http://articles.latimes.com/1992-07-27/entertainment/ca-4235_1_damon-wayans July 27, 1992 | MICHAEL WILMINGTON “Mo’ Money” (citywide) is les’ funny. It’s a movie hybrid. Starting out as a sort of lower-class black “Sting,” it moves into a lackluster retread of “Strictly Business” and ends up grabbing at the last scraps of the “Lethal Weapon” knockoff sweepstakes. Written by and starring the chameleonic Damon Wayans, “Mo’ Money” has a promising start: A couple of Chicago street con artists (Damon and brother Marlon Wayans) stumble into a major scam, when Damon’s Johnny Stewart falls for credit-card company executive Amber Evans… Read more »
MO’ MONEY (1992): http://cinefilestv.blogspot.com/2014/02/mo-money-1992.html Directed By: Peter MacDonald Written By: Damon Wayans Cinematography By: Don Burgess Editor: Hubert de la Bouillerie Cast: Damon Wayans, Marlon Wayans, John Diehl, Stacey Dash, Joe Santos, Harry Lennix, Salli Richardson, Jackie Hoffman, Bernie Mac Trying to get his act together, a con artist gets a job in a credit card company. He falls in love with a fellow employee, he steals a couple of cards, everything is going great. But soon, the chief of security drags him into the big leagues of criminals… I remember seeing this film in he theater about 3 times.… Read more »
11 Actors Who (Hopefully) Killed Their Careers In 2014: http://whatculture.com/film/11-actors-hopefully-killed-careers-2014.php/3 Marlon Wayans In fairness, Marlon Wayans has only appeared in 4 films over the last 5 years, so it’s safe to say that his career is already pretty much circling the drain. His single movie role for 2014 was as the lead in spoof A Haunted House 2, the sequel to the critically-reviled box office hit from last year. Still, the law of diminishing returns was in full effect, for this limp sequel (critics gave it 8%) cooked up “only” $23.9 million, which while still turning a profit on the… Read more »
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I think we’re all just underestimating how significant a force ‘luck’ is in 90% of Hollywood and celebrity careers. The lady who played Janice on friends, was an ace away from being Monica, and whilst these things always seem obvious from this end, the fact is it could easily have gone another way. I think only the sublimely talented always make it; the rest live or die by luck, and work ethic.
I have a friend who really liked “My Wife and Kids”. Um, my favorive Damon Wayons film? “The Last Boy Scout” (minus the cool foolball angle, I like the buddy chemistry there).
The CineFiles Podcast: Episode 9: http://thisisinfamous.com/cinefiles-podcast-9/ A lot is discussed in Episode 9 of the CineFiles Podcast. Andre, Jeff and Eric offer their takes on the new Netflix series DAREDEVIL, the films A MOST VIOLENT YEAR, A STAR IS BORN, Chris Rock’s TOP FIVE, the wrestling documentary THE SHEIK, MY FAIR LADY and Cindy Crawford nakedness in FAIR GAME. And then there’s the news. Now… This particular episode was recorded the day before Patty Jenkins was announced to replace Michelle MacLaren as director of the upcoming WONDER WOMAN. Not only that, but bask in the irony over how Jenkins name… Read more »
The knowledge that many of the WTHH are being reworked gives me something to greatly look forward to, after football season is over, and if we have another winter like last year 🙂
Some of the old articles are as much as 50% new material. Especially if you haven’t read them since they were originally posted.
Walt Disney famously said that Disneyland would never be completed as long as there was imagination left in the world. The same can be said of WTHH articles.
Also, my life is slowing down, so I’m planning on getting a WTHH up in November. Finally done with rehearsal, girlfriend going to work on a cruise ship for 6 months, so I’ll have some time to get back on it. Thinking Adrien Brody and/or Keanu Reeves if I can help it.
I’d love to see you take on one of those guys. Or both! 😉
Someone definitely do Keanu!
I had not thought much about Damon’s film career, but I have been watching his In Living Color clips over the past couple years, and he is simply hilarious. “I’m Gonna Get You Sucka” is also a great movie that I got into soon after it came out. Wayans is also excellent in “Bamboozled,” a flawed but interesting movie.
It’s a pity. What he really needed to be in is more funny movies put out by his family.
I actually started researching Keanu about a year ago but put it on hold. Kind of waiting to see how John Whick does.
So many missed opportunities in Wayans career. Especially considering his family and friends. He’s still tight with Jim Carrey and yet they have never made a movie together.
Definitely agree about Bamboozled. Great potential. Messy execution.
After reading LeBeau’s description of Dan Aykroyd’s role/performance in “Celtic Pride” (“You can hear the last of Aykroyd’s talent slipping away!”), I’m awfully surprised that he, himself hasn’t gotten his own “What the Hell Happened to…” profile by now!
I think the main thing is that Aykroyd was never an A-list. He was always primarily an ensemble or supporting player. His few attempts at lead roles (Doctor Detroit) failed.
I don’t know if I quite agree. No argument that Aykroyd needed a partner. But he did manage to get movies like Dr. Detroit and The Couch Trip made. And his friendships with top-tier talent like Chase, Belushi and Murray gave him a lot of bargaining power. In the early to mid 80’s, I would argue that Aykroyd wielded the power of an A-lister. Without him, The Blues Brothers and Ghostbusters never would have happened. If Aykroyd wasn’t A-list, no way in hell would he have been able to write and direct something as atrocious as Nothing But Trouble. That… Read more »
…so I guess Lebeau just wrote WTHH to Dan Aykroyd in 2 paragraphs. 🙂
lol
That’s how the articles start. Then they expand. Just added Rene Zellweger’s thoughts on yesterday’s internet reaction to her plastic surgery. And the Sharon Stone article has more than doubled in size over the last few days.
I’ve been meaning to write up Danny Aykroyd for years now. But he has one of those long filmographies that always discourages me from choosing him. Damon Wayans had a nice, short movie career. I like those!
If Dan Aykroyd wasn’t A-list in the early to mid 80’s, he was close to it. Blues Brothers was the 10th biggest box office hit of 1980, Trading Places was the 4th biggest hit of 1983, and Ghostbusters was the 2nd biggest hit of 1984. Of course, there were a few non-hits sprinkled in between those hits too, and his biggest hits all had other big names involved too (John Belushi, Eddie Murphy, Bill Murray, Chevy Chase). Come to think of it, he worked with a lot of other SNL alumni during his peak years. Wise choice, as it turns… Read more »
I did not know that about Aykroyd and Fisher. I wonder how coked up they both were at the time?
There will be an Aykroyd article. And it will be better than Blues Brothers 2000.
I have to agree that Dan AAykroyd was A-list, especially since he had a foothold in the industry (For the record, I love “Dragnet”, even the goofy “City of Crime” rap).
I remember having a good time watching Dragnet at the theaters. I think I was just the right age for it.
Dragnet has not aged well. As a fan of both Aykroyd and Hanks, I will stop there. But Aykroyd paired up with Hanks for that film, further proof that Aykroyd instinctively knew he was at his best pairing up with strong co-stars that would help him carry the film (think John Belushi, Eddie Murphy, Bill Murray, Chevy Chase, John Candy). He was essentially an A-list actor, but he had ensemble instincts.
I haven’t watched Dragnet in years and I don’t want to. There’s nothing pulling me back to revisit it. I enjoyed it when I was a kid and wondered what the negative reviews were all about. I’m pretty sure if I watched it now, I would understand why it got poor reviews. I feel the same way about Spies Like Us.
10 Actors Hollywood Forgot About http://screenrant.com/actors-hollywood-forgot/?view=all DAN AYKROYD Dan Aykroyd is an anomaly. It seems as if you haven’t seen him in years, but when you look at his list of credits you realize you have; just not in the ways you’d think. He voiced Yogi Bear in the film of the same name in 2010, played a small role in 2012’s comedy The Campaign, had a part in Behind the Candelabra, Tammy, and Get on Up, and just this summer he was in Adam Sandler’s Pixels. It certainly sounds like he’s been busy, so why did Hollywood forget about… Read more »
I think that the issue with Dan Aykroyd is that his style of comedy can sometimes be very cerebral. What I mean is that it’s the type of stuff that you “either get or you don’t get”.
At it’s worse, it’s as if Aykroyd is the only one who is really “in on the joke”. With that being said, I don’t know if being a cerebral type of comedian is really flexible if the material he’s working with is admittedly terrible.
The now defunct website The Dissolve while covering 1987’s “Dragnet” on their list of “forgotten blockbusters” said it best when describing Dan Aykroyd: http://www.sitcomsonline.com/boards/showpost.php?p=4923339&postcount=11 Though perfectly cast as Joe Friday, Aykroyd was miscast as a proper movie star. He’s a chameleon, a character actor, and a writer, not a lead. That’s why Murray is revered to this day, while Aykroyd’s name tends to come up only in discussions of the long-fabled concluding entry in the Ghostbusters trilogy. As Dragnet illustrates, Aykroyd has never been afraid to reprise both his own triumphs and the triumphs of others. Yet the appropriately mocking… Read more »
Better than Blues Brothers 2000? That is aiming very low, my friend. Ha ha. What’s interesting is that Dan Aykroyd was nominated for an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for Driving Miss Daisy in 1989, and I had always assumed that he was the first SNL member ever to be nominated for an Oscar. Actually I was going to post that here, but I stopped and decided to double check that to make sure. Winds up, my assumption was wrong. It turns out Joan Cusack beat Aykroyd by one year: she was nominated for Best Supporting Actress for Working Girl… Read more »
I know exactly what you mean. Lots of ex SNL members didn’t get a chance to make an impression while they were on the show. Case in point, Damon Wayans (to bring things back around). There’s guys like Aykroyd and Chevy Chase who became famous on SNL and then went on to other things. And then there’s people like Cusack, Wayans and Robert Downey Jr that you can easily forget were ever castmembers.
SNL just has such a fascinating history. I look forward to exploring it in more detail.
Absolutely. I find SNL’s history very fascinating. Matter of fact I’ve been planning on buying the book Live From New York: The Complete, Uncensored History of Saturday Night Live for awhile, that I know of Eddie Murphy is the person to decline involvement, otherwise practically everyone to be involved in the show over the years participated. It’s definately on my shortlist of books to buy. By the way, I do have something that Aykroyd accomplished first as a SNL member: in late 1978, Aykroyd (along with John Belushi) released their first album together as the Blues Brothers, Briefcase Full Of… Read more »
BTW Lebeau I still plan to write that Jason Bateman article we discussed in email (for the A List series). But it’s going to have to wait until late November or early December to start. I think Bateman has slowly eased into A list actor and now director. If anyone is interested in collaborating let me know. Otherwise I can write it, but again, it won’t get started for several weeks. Once started it will be done within a week or two.
Great. As always, there’s no deadlines. Whenever you get to it is fine.
For any of you contributors, the A-list series is fair game. I’m pretty controlling of WTHH because it’s the site’s signature series. But you can do whatever you want in the A-list series.
The Mother Brain Files Underrated Actors Special: Damon Wayans: http://cosblog.cosmelentertainment.com/2014/10/28/the-mother-brain-files-underrated-actors-special-damon-wayans/ By Mother Brain The Wayans have been a household name for as long as I could remember. Back when the Fox network had just launched, my cousin and I would religiously watch The Simpsons and a sketch comedy show called In Living Color. The latter was groundbreaking for television as Saturday Night Live did not feature many black comedians in the period between Eddie Murphy’s departure and Chris Rock’s arrival. While series creator, Keenen Ivory Wayans, created opportunity for many future stars, its first breakout star would be his first… Read more »
my friend and i had a debate he think james caan reached a list i say he didnt he also think ralp fineas did
its funny u think bruce is a has been because during pulp fiction he was considerd the only banakbility actor out of them all it said in pulp fictions interviews producers only let quitnen cast travolta because they got bruce on board with it and felt safe the movie could make money he took a pay cut the die hard hits were still fresh on people so thats why he bankable
The Wayans are NOT funny! http://officialfan.proboards.com/thread/517370/wayans-funny Post by Sephiroth on 16 hours ago The thread that mentioned In Living Color motivated this one. Seriously, the Wayans family are not comedians. They are even less funny than John Cena’s poopy jokes. Keenan Ivory was the only one of the bunch with a shred of talent, and even then he is far more talented as a businessman and producer than as a comedian and performer. They all recycle the same, exhausted jokes over and over again. And if it weren’t for their willingness to dive down to the lowest depths of bad… Read more »
Younger, Sexier, Inherently Doomed Case File #25: Saturday Night Live’s 1985-1986 season: http://www.avclub.com/article/younger-sexier-inherently-doomed-case-file-25-isat-86139 There was a similar embarrassment of talent in front of the cameras as well. There’s a staggeringly odd sketch in the Francis Ford Coppola episode—covered in more detail below—involving a pair of cast members being brought onstage in suitcases with only their heads popping out. Every Not Ready For Prime Time Player onstage is either a former or future Academy Award nominee: The big galoot hauling his castmates onstage is Randy Quaid—who picked up a well-deserved Oscar nomination over a decade earlier for his heartbreaking performance in… Read more »
Iron Man and Farmer Ted review a book (sometime in 1986): http://www.hitfix.com/whats-alan-watching/saturday-night-live-at-40-the-snl-story-told-through-its-sketches/4 With a few exceptions over the years like Eddie Murphy and Andy Samberg, “SNL” has asked its actors to bend to the traditions and formula of the show, and not the other way around. For the most part, the formula has tended to make stars out of the most talented people in each cast. Every now and then, though, someone will spend a year or two in Studio 8H and never quite fit in, despite going on to do great things elsewhere. Nowhere is that challenge illustrated better… Read more »
Checking In On The Cast Of ‘In Living Color’ 25 Years Later:
http://uproxx.com/tv/2015/04/where-are-they-now-in-living-color/
Damon Wayans
After saying goodbye to Homey the Clown, Damon Wayans starred in slapstick comedies like Blankman and Major Payne and the ABC sitcom My Wife and Kids. Then, a few years went by where we didn’t see much of Damon except for a cameo with his son on Happy Endings. Earlier this year, returned with a stand-up set on The Tonight Show.
Bragging Rights: ‘In Living Color’:
http://grantland.com/hollywood-prospectus/bragging-rights-in-living-color/
Damon Wayans — A former SNL cast member and the creator of In Living Color’s best recurring character, Homey D. Clown, Wayans spent much of the mid-’90s balancing a stand-up career with reasonably successful films like Major Payne and Blankman, and then found sitcom success on My Wife and Kids, which he created and starred in.
22 Things You Might Not Know About ‘In Living Color’:
http://mentalfloss.com/article/62630/22-things-you-might-not-know-about-living-color
Damon Wayans Thinks Bill Cosby Rape Accusations Are A ‘Money Hustle’:
http://uproxx.com/media/2015/09/damon-wayans-bill-cosby-rape-accusations-money-hustle/
Oh man. That is unfortunate.
Damon Wayans On Bill Cosby…smh:
http://www.lipstickalley.com/showthread.php/921736-Damon-Wayans-On-Bill-Cosby-smh
40 Stars Who Vanished Without a Trace From Hollywood
http://newravel.com/20-stars-who-vanished-without-a-trace-from-hollywood/29/
Damon Wayans
While the career of his son Damon Wayans, Jr. may be on the rise, Damon Wayans, Sr. hasn’t had a single credit since 2011. And that may be set to continue, as he last hit the headlines in September 2015 for calling the Bill Cosby accusers “unrapeable.”