You can't keep these stars down! Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the most amazing celebrity comeback stories – even if those stars later faced further controversy or had setbacks.
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00:00 "And now, for the moment I've all been waiting for."
00:04 Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the most amazing celebrity
00:09 comeback stories, even if those stars later faced further controversy or had setbacks.
00:14 "Well you gotta have an opinion."
00:17 Number 30.
00:18 Elton John
00:19 It seemed there was no stopping Elton John in the 1970s.
00:23 "Hold me closer, Donna Dancer."
00:27 With massive sellers like Goodbye Yellow Brick Road and Captain Fantastic, he was the coolest
00:31 dude on Earth.
00:38 But by the late '70s, the pressures of worldwide fame had gotten to him, and he was dealing
00:42 with substance use disorder as well as an eating disorder.
00:46 According to him, his general lifestyle was over-the-top in a way that was unsustainable.
00:50 "I didn't confront the real problem in my life, that I was a drug addict.
00:55 I thought getting married would change all the unhappiness that the drug addiction brought
01:00 me."
01:01 Though he didn't ever completely fade, problems in his personal life seemingly affected his
01:05 musical career, and John didn't have a single Billboard Top Ten album in the 1980s.
01:10 Luckily, he stopped using substances at the turn of the '90s and enjoyed a prosperous
01:15 comeback, which was surely helped by The Lion King.
01:18 "Can you feel the love tonight?"
01:26 Number 29, Shania Twain.
01:28 You may be asking yourself, "Whatever happened to Shania Twain?"
01:31 "Let's go, girls."
01:34 This Canadian singer was everywhere in the mid-'90s, capturing hearts and ears with her
01:39 distinct blend of country and pop.
01:41 The Woman in Me was a huge hit, and 1997's Come on Over is the highest-selling album
01:46 ever by a female solo artist.
01:48 "You're still the one I kiss goodnight."
01:54 Legit it's in the Guinness World Records.
01:56 But she completely disappeared in the mid-2000s, having entered an indefinite hiatus.
02:01 It wasn't until much later that Twain revealed she had Lyme disease, and that it had left
02:05 her voice hoarse.
02:07 She underwent vocal rehabilitation and returned to mainstream prominence in 2012 with a Vegas
02:12 residency.
02:13 She has continued to build her career through things like albums, more residencies, and
02:17 tours.
02:18 "Lots about joy, lots about pain.
02:19 It's all about the giving and the will to walk away."
02:27 Number 28, Robin Wright.
02:29 The comeback of Robin Wright was so extensive and successful that some people may not know
02:34 about her earlier accomplishments.
02:35 Wright was a fairly big star in the '80s and early '90s, starring on the soap opera Santa
02:39 Barbara and appearing in all-time movies like The Princess Bride and Forrest Gump.
02:44 "I can't help it.
02:46 I love you."
02:48 "Forrest, you don't know what love is."
02:51 But then her career sort of just stalled, and most of the public attention centered
02:55 around her rocky marriage to Sean Penn.
02:57 Luckily, she eventually bounced back, and became arguably even more successful than
03:02 before.
03:03 Wright notably earned massive acclaim as Claire Underwood on House of Cards, earning six acting
03:08 Emmy nominations and becoming one of the highest-paid actresses on TV.
03:12 "Francis, I'm done with you."
03:18 Number 27, Eddie Murphy.
03:20 It doesn't get much bigger than Eddie Murphy, an undeniable legend.
03:24 Murphy enjoyed enormous success throughout the '80s and '90s, being one of the biggest
03:28 stars on the planet.
03:29 "Oh, thank you.
03:30 Look at this.
03:31 This is great.
03:32 Thank you, guys."
03:33 But that all collapsed in the late '90s and early 2000s, when he made a number of curious
03:36 career decisions.
03:38 There were certainly some gold nuggets in the mud — Hello, Shrek movies and Dream
03:41 Girls — but he wasn't the box office draw he once was, with many of his films underperforming
03:47 or even outright bombing.
03:48 Luckily, Murphy eventually rebounded with the critically acclaimed Dolomite Is My Name.
03:53 "I just want to say to all you Bahari brothers that I am ecstatic.
03:57 Anything y'all want me to do, man, whatever it takes to make this record go up the charts,
04:01 I'm ready to do it."
04:02 And his hosting of SNL in 2019 drew its biggest TV crowd in over 10 years and won him an Emmy.
04:09 We don't think he'll fall off anyone's radar again.
04:12 26.
04:13 Martha Stewart
04:14 For many celebrities, it's almost impossible to come back from a jail stint.
04:18 Back in 2004, businesswoman Martha Stewart was convicted in an insider trading case and
04:23 spent five months in prison.
04:24 "Stewart will have to steal herself for a life of bunk beds, shared showers, and toilets,
04:30 a rigid 6 a.m. wake-up bell, a daily prison job, and no privacy."
04:35 But it didn't take long for the comeback to begin.
04:38 Stewart basically got back to work the second her feet touched the parking lot, and her
04:41 company was again profitable by 2006, just two years after her initial conviction.
04:46 "One good thing about me, Dave, is that I don't have a long memory for bad things."
04:52 She also started The Martha Stewart Show the same year she was released, and it was nominated
04:56 for six Daytime Emmy Awards, including Best Host.
04:59 The strong work has only continued, and Stewart's resurgence will be taught in comeback school.
05:05 That's a thing, right?
05:06 "I want other women, especially women, to feel that they could also be on the cover
05:12 of Sports Illustrated issue."
05:13 25.
05:15 Ryan Reynolds
05:16 You wouldn't know it now, but Ryan Reynolds was struggling for a while there.
05:20 "And we had some good times.
05:25 Good times that I'll never forget."
05:27 His career throughout the 2000s and early 2010s wasn't all bad, but it was still plagued
05:31 by arguably mediocre rom-coms and box office bombs.
05:34 "Welcome to the honeycomb hideout.
05:36 How do you bankroll this operation?"
05:39 "I date a lot of older men."
05:41 By now, it's been well-established that his attempt at the Green Lantern was the stuff
05:46 of infamous movie legend.
05:48 "Now pay attention."
05:51 "Ahh!
05:52 Green!"
05:53 It wasn't until 2016 that Reynolds really turned his career around, and it was thanks
06:00 to a little superhero flick called Deadpool.
06:03 This role was basically tailor-made for the comedic actor, and his performance was widely
06:08 acclaimed.
06:09 "Fourth wall break inside a fourth wall break.
06:11 That's like 16 walls."
06:14 Grossing nearly $800 million, it made Reynolds a bona fide movie star, and he has never looked
06:20 back.
06:21 "Hey!
06:22 Don't scratch!
06:23 Just cleaning up the timelines."
06:26 24.
06:27 Rob Lowe
06:28 The '80s belonged to Rob Lowe.
06:31 The actor earned renown as a member of the Brat Pack, with roles in The Outsiders and
06:35 St. Elmo's Fire, among others.
06:37 "Geez, Soda.
06:38 Why's he always gotta be like that?"
06:40 "He's just got more worries than he used to."
06:43 But his career took a hit in 1988 when footage leaked showing him being intimate with two
06:48 people.
06:49 The woman was a teen, though she was above the age of consent in Georgia where the event
06:53 took place.
06:54 "I'd say I have nobody to blame but myself.
06:56 You know, I really don't."
06:57 It tarnished Lowe's reputation, and it would be a while before he regained true cultural
07:02 prominence.
07:03 But it was a factor in his choice to get started on the path towards recovery.
07:07 His comeback truly began in 1999 with an Emmy-nominated stint on the West Wing.
07:12 He'd later go on to star in beloved projects like Parks and Recreation.
07:17 "Hmmm."
07:18 "Auditing, bro!"
07:19 "Ha ha ha."
07:20 "Hmmm."
07:21 "Auditing, bro!"
07:22 "Ha ha ha."
07:23 23.
07:24 Mandy Moore
07:25 You couldn't escape Moore in the late '90s, early 2000s.
07:28 And why would you have wanted to?
07:29 She was a successful singer, with hit singles like "Candy" and the platinum-selling album
07:33 So Real.
07:34 She also made a splash on the big screen, notably appearing as Lana Thomas in The Princess
07:39 Diaries before landing the starring role in A Walk to Remember.
07:42 "It's a to-do list I have, except for my life."
07:45 "What, like getting a new personality?"
07:47 "Hmm, spend a year in the Peace Corps, make a medical discovery."
07:51 "That's ambitious."
07:52 Then she kinda disappeared.
07:54 Most of her music wasn't hitting and the movies grew increasingly obscure.
07:58 "I am filled with Christ's love!
08:00 God, you are just jealous of my success in the Lord."
08:03 But then, Disney made the inspired choice to cast Moore as Rapunzel, and the rest is
08:08 history.
08:09 "What do you want with my hair?
08:11 To cut it?"
08:12 "What?"
08:13 "Sell it?"
08:14 "Listen, the only thing I want to do with your hair is to get out of it.
08:19 Literally."
08:20 Tangled revived her career, and Moore did more voice acting work before killing it as
08:24 Rebecca Pearson on the massive NBC drama This Is Us.
08:28 She's also been releasing music.
08:30 22.
08:31 Mickey Rourke
08:32 Few actors come back from retirement with such pizzazz.
08:35 But then, Mickey Rourke isn't just any actor.
08:38 After a string of successful 80s films, Rourke fell upon hard times.
08:42 "I often think of the nights that we spent together.
08:44 I mean, that was a long time ago."
08:46 His movies were bombing and earning harsh reviews, directors were publicly calling him,
08:51 quote, "a nightmare to work with," and he earned a Razzie nomination for Desperate Hours
08:56 and Wild Orchid.
08:57 The relentless disappointment caused Rourke to essentially retire, and he briefly pursued
09:02 a career in professional boxing.
09:04 He'd come back to the silver screen in the '90s, but it wasn't until 2005 that he returned
09:08 to widespread prominence as Marv in Sin City.
09:11 "I haven't seen you like this in a while."
09:14 "You had a fight with some cops?"
09:16 "Didn't happen to kill any of them, did you?"
09:18 "Not that I know of.
09:20 But they know they've been in a fight, that's for damn sure."
09:23 He used this acclaimed role as a springboard into mainstream fare, and earned his first
09:27 Oscar nomination for 2008's The Wrestler.
09:30 "I'm the one who was supposed to make everything okay for everybody.
09:35 It just didn't work out like that."
09:40 21.
09:41 Christian Slater
09:42 Appearing in the likes of Heathers and Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves, Christian Slater
09:46 was a huge heartthrob in the late '80s into the '90s.
09:48 "I'm basically a pretty resourceful guy.
09:50 If I didn't really need it, I wouldn't ask.
09:52 I mean, if you want to say no, I'm fine."
09:57 However, a string of personal problems put his career on hold.
10:01 Slater dealt with various substance use and legal issues.
10:04 For instance, he was arrested in 1994 for attempting to bring a weapon onto a plane,
10:09 and he later spent time in jail for assaulting his then-girlfriend and a responding police
10:13 officer.
10:14 The work continued, but it was nothing to the caliber of his early '90s output.
10:18 That is, until he landed the role of Mr. Robot on the acclaimed thriller of the same name.
10:23 The role earned Slater much renown, and even his first Golden Globe.
10:27 "You think people out there are getting exactly what they deserve?
10:30 No.
10:31 They're getting paid over or under.
10:33 But someone in the chain always gets bamboozled."
10:36 20.
10:37 Dave Chappelle
10:38 In the early-mid-aughts, this comedian's career couldn't have been any bigger.
10:43 He was one of the most recognizable names in stand-up, and his comedy central series
10:47 Chappelle's Show was a massive success.
10:49 "If you're just joining us, black people got their reparations checks today, and in
10:53 short, all hell is broken loose."
10:55 He'd reportedly been offered a $50 million contract to keep the series going.
11:00 But the fame seemingly got to Chappelle, specifically the cultural impact of his show.
11:04 So at the height of his popularity, he abandoned production of Season 3 and went to South
11:08 Africa.
11:09 Between 2005 and 2013, his public appearances were sporadic at best.
11:13 "You know, when you're a guy that generates money, people have a vested interest in controlling."
11:19 His long-awaited return could have been a disaster, but he pulled it off with style,
11:24 winning an Emmy for an SNL hosting gig and signing a massive deal with Netflix.
11:28 However, Chappelle would go on to make several transphobic remarks that soured his comeback
11:33 for some fans.
11:34 "The article goes on to say I was booed off stage, which is also incorrect.
11:38 I was booed.
11:39 I did not leave."
11:43 19.
11:44 Betty White
11:45 What other late star who reached her age can claim comparable popularity with younger demographics?
11:51 "What a day.
11:52 One sad person after another."
11:54 "Rose, you work at grief counseling.
11:57 What do you expect, comedians?"
11:59 Betty White had a successful career spanning decades, including roles in popular television
12:03 series such as The Mary Tyler Moore Show and Golden Girls.
12:06 With time, her roles became not only less high-profile, but also fewer and farther between.
12:12 When most actors would have been happy to retire, however, Betty White began a whole
12:15 new phase of her career in the late aughts.
12:17 "Come on, man, you've been riding me all day."
12:20 "Mike, you're playing like Betty White out there."
12:21 "That's not what your girlfriend says."
12:23 "Baby!"
12:24 She appeared in sketches for Craig Ferguson and Jay Leno, but it was a 2009 Snickers campaign
12:28 that really connected White to a whole new generation.
12:30 "When I was younger, I was so concerned with how my muffin looked.
12:37 But as I got older, I started to think, 'To heck with it.
12:40 This is my muffin, and I don't care how it looks.'"
12:44 White hosted SNL at the record-breaking age of 88, establishing herself as a beloved comedic
12:49 figure anew.
12:51 18.
12:52 D'Angelo
12:54 Young listeners might not recognize the name, but in the mid-90s, D'Angelo was widely considered
12:59 the gold standard of R&B, and he's been a major influence on countless musicians in
13:03 the years since.
13:05 With his 1995 debut album Brown Sugar, he not only rocked the charts, but instantly
13:10 became a sex symbol.
13:12 His 2000 follow-up Voodoo seemingly solidified this reputation.
13:16 Then he just disappeared.
13:18 D'Angelo retreated from the public eye to deal with personal issues, including alcohol
13:22 use disorder.
13:23 Few artists can return after nearly a decade and a half and still feel relevant, but in
13:28 2014, he reclaimed his crown with Black Messiah, which was released to universal acclaim, and
13:34 earned him the Grammy for Best R&B Album.
13:37 17.
13:38 Kesha
13:39 After being robbed of her voice as both a woman and an artist, Kesha revealed an entirely
13:44 different side to herself.
13:45 She exploded onto the pop music scene with a feature on Flo Rida's Right Round before
13:49 landing hits of her own, including "Tick Tock."
13:52 However, her career was brought to a screeching halt in 2014 by a legal battle with producer
13:57 Dr. Luke, whom she accused of abuse, among other things.
14:01 Many artists would have given up, but Kesha found alternative ways to perform, and eventually
14:05 returned in 2017 with the widely celebrated Rainbow, a deeply personal album about empowerment.
14:11 She's since continued to release albums, settled the suit with Dr. Luke, and is working on
14:16 new music after leaving his label and changing her management.
14:20 16.
14:21 Eminem
14:22 There are few musicians who've had a bigger impact on popular music than Eminem.
14:27 His lyrics terrified parents, his personal style inspired countless imitators, and many
14:31 credit him with having made hip-hop more mainstream in Middle America.
14:34 "Come on, man, you gotta battle."
14:36 "See, I'm not you, dawg.
14:38 Look at me."
14:40 Oh, and he starred in a critically acclaimed semi-autobiographical film because, you know,
14:44 why not?
14:45 But in the mid-aughts, he was dealing with substance use, depression, and the death of
14:49 his best friend, Proof.
14:50 His comeback album Relapse was met with mixed reviews, but he's just kept marching forward,
14:55 repeatedly reasserting his dominance as both a hitmaker and one of the greatest rappers
14:59 to ever pick up a mic.
15:01 He's continued to take home Grammys, produce hit singles, and divide critics and fans alike.
15:07 15.
15:08 Jason Bateman
15:09 "Would you care to accompany me on an inspection tour of Old Faithful this weekend?
15:13 I'd very much enjoy visiting a scenic wonder with a scenic wonder."
15:17 A former adolescent star that earned roles in shows like Silver Spoons, Jason Bateman
15:21 went on to star in films like Teen Wolf 2.
15:28 But as the '90s progressed, the former teen idol's career stalled big time.
15:32 "I would like to call to the stand Franklin Delano Bliss."
15:38 Getting cast in the acclaimed sitcom Arrested Development in the 21st century changed all
15:43 that.
15:44 Bateman demonstrated that his talent had very definitely matured, and he capitalized on
15:48 the critical attention the show received by going on to garner laughs in huge comedies
15:52 like Horrible Bosses and lending his voice to Nick Wilde in 2016's Zootopia.
15:57 "Hey, carrots, you're gonna wake the baby.
15:59 I gotta get to work."
16:00 "This is important, sir."
16:01 He's also given his fair share of solid dramatic performances, like his work on the Netflix
16:05 series, Ozark.
16:07 14.
16:08 John Travolta
16:09 Quentin Tarantino sure knows how to revive careers, or start them.
16:13 John Travolta was a huge star in the 1970s, with the likes of Grease and Saturday Night
16:17 Fever bringing him both acclaim and popularity.
16:22 "Dancing, yeah.
16:25 Dancing, yeah."
16:27 But the '80s were a tough time for the actor, and while Look Who's Talking was a big hit
16:31 in 1989, this was more of an outlier than an example of continued dominance.
16:36 By 1994, he was regarded as a once-cool relic of the '70s.
16:40 "Man is an endangered species."
16:43 But then, he and Tarantino re-established what cool was with Pulp Fiction.
16:48 The role earned Travolta his second Oscar nomination, and put him back on the A-list.
16:52 "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna go home and have a heart attack."
16:57 13.
16:58 Demi Lovato
16:59 With their performances in the Camp Rock films and the Disney Channel series Sunny With a
17:03 Chance, Demi Lovato became a teen icon.
17:05 "You're gonna press play."
17:07 "Oh, right.
17:08 Sorry."
17:09 But what few people knew was that they'd been struggling with mental health issues and substance
17:13 use disorder for years.
17:15 Following an altercation with a dancer on tour, Lovato went to rehab, and nobody was
17:19 sure if their career would recover.
17:20 "Demi walks up onto the plane, and I turned around and Demi had punched her backup dancer
17:24 in the face."
17:25 But they not only returned with new music, they also addressed their struggles publicly,
17:30 becoming a role model.
17:31 They've continued to have ups and downs with substance use and mental health over the years,
17:35 but in speaking frankly about their journey, they've established themselves as an important
17:39 and hugely influential voice.
17:40 12.
17:41 Winona Ryder
17:42 In the late 80s and throughout the 90s, Winona Ryder was everywhere you looked.
17:47 "A woman so lovely and intelligent should not be walking the streets of London without
17:54 her gentleman."
17:55 "I know you, sir.
17:56 Are you acquainted with my husband?"
17:57 Beetlejuice, Bram Stoker's Dracula, and Girl, Interrupted are just a handful of the
18:10 high-profile movies in which she starred.
18:13 Following a shoplifting arrest in 2001, however, she stopped acting.
18:16 Rumors of substance use circulated.
18:19 Seemingly overnight, she went from one of the biggest pop culture icons of her generation
18:23 to a distant memory.
18:24 "What'd you do to get this role?
18:27 You always said you were such a frigid little girl."
18:32 It turns out she was clinically depressed at the time, and after taking a few years
18:36 to focus on her personal life, she slowly returned to work.
18:39 Ryder starred in small with indie movies, but they steadily got bigger.
18:43 "I got off early and...
18:45 Ta-da!
18:46 Woltergeist!
18:47 I thought I wasn't allowed to see it.
18:50 I changed my mind."
18:51 With her Golden Globe-nominated role in Stranger Things, she solidified her status as a comeback
18:56 queen.
18:57 11.
18:58 Drew Barrymore
18:59 When she appeared in E.T.
19:02 The Extra-Terrestrial, which held the record for highest-grossing film of all time for
19:06 11 years, Drew Barrymore absolutely stole the show.
19:09 "I taught him how to talk now.
19:12 He can talk now."
19:13 The adorable young actress went on to star in several other films until adolescence and
19:18 substance use disorder sidelined her career.
19:20 In the early '90s, she reminded the world how talented she was when she earned her second
19:25 Golden Globe nomination for Gun Crazy, and followed that up as Mistress Amy Fisher.
19:29 "You want me to blow on you, too?"
19:32 "That'd make you happy."
19:33 New opportunities then opened up for her, with her Scream cameo leading the way.
19:37 "What do you want?"
19:39 "To see what your insides look like."
19:43 With hits like The Wedding Singer and Charlie's Angels,
19:45 "And that's kicking your ass."
19:48 Barrymore became a huge star again, and followed these up with more roles, as well as her own
19:53 daytime talk show.
19:55 10.
19:56 Ellen DeGeneres
19:57 "It's a good job.
19:58 I like being a comedian.
19:59 The only bad thing about the job is that I have to fly everywhere I go, because, well,
20:04 because you won't come to me.
20:05 Actually, that's why."
20:06 In the '90s, stand-up comedian Ellen DeGeneres tried her hand as the lead in a sitcom, and
20:10 found herself in a big hit.
20:12 "Look, if you could just tell me if it's gonna be a while, I could wait right over
20:15 there.
20:16 There."
20:17 "Next!"
20:18 She achieved even greater fame when both she and the character she played came out as gay.
20:23 "For God's sake, Ellen, tell him you're gay."
20:28 But, a backlash soon developed, and her popularity faded.
20:33 In 2003, though, she had a double whammy.
20:36 She delighted audiences as the voice of Dory in the huge hit Finding Nemo,
20:40 "I forget things almost instantly.
20:41 It runs in my family.
20:42 Well, I mean, at least I think it does."
20:45 and simultaneously earned a devoted following as the host of her own talk show.
20:49 "I'm so pleased and so personally privileged to be able to officially dedicate Stage One,
20:56 which forevermore will be now known as the Ellen Stage."
21:02 Having hosted the Oscars, served as a cover girl, and contributed to numerous causes,
21:06 Ellen became a bigger star than ever.
21:08 However, it is worth noting that in 2020, she came under fire for a, quote, "toxic work
21:14 environment" on her show, which subsequently ended.
21:17 9.
21:18 Natasha Lyonne
21:19 During its heyday, American Pie made huge stars of its ensemble cast.
21:23 "Don't worry, I'll get her back soon enough."
21:25 "You think so?"
21:26 "Sure, she likes you."
21:28 Soon thereafter, Natasha Lyonne was appearing in everything from Kate and Leopold to Blade
21:32 Trinity.
21:33 "We need a new tactic."
21:34 "Like what?"
21:35 "A biological weapon."
21:37 However, substance use disorder led to difficulties.
21:40 In 2005, after a series of legal issues, she was hospitalized with a collapsed lung, a
21:45 heart infection, and more.
21:46 Few actors ever come back from such an extreme low.
21:49 But Lyonne not only got healthy and returned to acting, she has since delivered her best
21:54 work to date.
21:55 "You know, I don't believe in dictating the boundaries of a sentient being's existence.
22:00 For you, it's safety.
22:02 For me and Oatmeal, it's a prison."
22:04 She was an absolute scene-stealer as Nikki Nichols in Orange is the New Black, but Russian
22:09 Doll, which she co-created, co-wrote, and stars in, remains the crowning jewel of her
22:14 comeback to date.
22:15 "I can't remember the last time I ate, but then other things are just so clear, you know,
22:18 like they already happened and I'm doing them again.
22:21 I think I'm dead."
22:24 8.
22:25 Joaquin Phoenix
22:26 Only someone with the last name Phoenix can rise from the ashes not once, but twice.
22:31 "Well, I was just thinking, maybe I could stay with Dad for a while."
22:37 In 1989, Joaquin Phoenix, then credited as Leaf, retired from acting, despite his success
22:42 as a child star.
22:44 Then in 1995, two years after the death of his brother River Phoenix, Joaquin finally
22:48 returned to the screen.
22:50 By the early 2000s, he was a massive star.
22:53 "Passion, that can be a virtue when it drives us to excel."
22:58 The second half of the decade, however, saw his behavior become increasingly erratic,
23:02 and in 2008, he announced his retirement from acting.
23:06 Turns out it was all for a mockumentary, I'm Still Here, but the damage he did was real.
23:10 "Do your past failures bother you?"
23:12 "No."
23:13 "Do your past failures bother you?"
23:16 "No."
23:17 Thankfully, filmmakers recognized his enduring talent, and his post-hiatus career has been
23:21 defined almost exclusively by critically acclaimed performances, and an Oscar.
23:26 #7.
23:27 Michael Keaton
23:28 He was Beetlejuice.
23:30 He was Batman.
23:31 But by the early 2000s, he was essentially nowhere to be seen.
23:43 Michael Keaton never technically stopped working, it just seemed like no one was offering him
23:47 big roles anymore.
23:48 The critics continued to commend his performances, but nothing he did generated much interest
23:53 at the box office.
23:54 "How could you lie to me, Maggie?"
23:56 "Dad, I can explain, okay?"
23:57 "Your word used to mean something."
23:59 It's like Hollywood didn't know what to do with middle-aged Michael Keaton until he aged
24:03 into a more believably world-weary age bracket.
24:06 With 2014's Birdman, a film that was appropriately about an actor looking to make a comeback,
24:12 he returned with a vengeance.
24:13 "You know my lines too, huh?"
24:16 "Can we not get hung up on knowing lines?"
24:19 "Yeah, yeah, yeah."
24:20 "Can we just work on this, tear it apart?"
24:21 The performance earned him an Oscar nomination, and roles in Spotlight, The Founder, Spider-Man
24:26 Homecoming, and more soon followed.
24:29 #6.
24:30 Keanu Reeves
24:31 Nothing says "my career just got a new lease on life" like having your name combined with
24:35 the term "Renaissance."
24:36 "LAPD, there's a bomb on your boat!"
24:41 In the 90s, Keanu Reeves proved himself an unlikely action star who understated acting
24:46 style aside, is surprisingly versatile.
24:49 Point break and speed made him successful, before The Matrix launched him into the stratosphere.
24:55 "More fists fighting Neo."
25:01 Unfortunately, there's only one place to go from there, and the 2000s saw his star dulled
25:08 by forgettable films.
25:09 But he always remained likable, relatable, and down-to-earth.
25:13 And in the 2010s, he finally started getting the adoration he always deserved.
25:22 The John Wick franchise, a fourth Matrix movie, his epic role in Always Be My Maybe, the list
25:28 goes on.
25:29 Wherever you look, there's Keanu, giving us a reason to smile.
25:32 #5.
25:33 Mariah Carey
25:36 Every year, new artists make their presence known with hugely successful debut albums.
25:41 But how many artists can you name who can make waves this big with their tenth studio
25:46 album?
25:47 The world is quick to get bored with the same old pop stars.
25:50 By the mid-aughts, Mariah Carey's heyday felt like it was squarely in the rearview mirror.
25:56 With her 2005 album The Emancipation of Mimi, however, she made herself feel relevant, and
26:02 in a way that would carry her forward for years to come.
26:05 The beginning of the decade saw the singer-songwriter struggling on all fronts, professionally,
26:09 personally, financially, and with her health.
26:12 Glitter could have been the end, but she persevered and pulled off one of the most massive comebacks
26:18 in music history.
26:20 #4.
26:21 Britney Spears
26:22 One of the biggest pop stars of the late '90s, Britney Spears was unstoppable.
26:26 In fact, her first single is one of the best-selling tunes of all time.
26:31 She even dominated the Super Bowl halftime show in 2001.
26:34 Then, about halfway through the noughties, things started to go awry.
26:38 And dealing with her mental health, she became fodder for the tabloids.
26:41 "You have to realize that we're people, and that we just need privacy, and we need our
26:48 respect.
26:49 And those are things that you have to have as a human."
26:53 She made a small comeback in 2007 with Blackout, but personal issues troubled her until 2008's
26:58 Womanizer and Circus.
27:00 By 2012, she had again taken the world by storm, with Forbes naming her the year's highest-paid
27:06 female musician.
27:07 Still, she was under a harmful conservatorship.
27:10 It was terminated in 2021, paving the way for her to live her life on her terms.
27:15 #3.
27:16 Neil Patrick Harris
27:17 "Excuse me, excuse me.
27:19 I, Ted Mosby, am a jerk to women."
27:24 For many years, most people didn't know the name Neil Patrick Harris.
27:27 If he popped up on our screens, the only name we thought of was Doogie Howser, the teenage
27:33 Dr. Harris played early in his career.
27:34 "You're gonna kill him.
27:35 And you don't give a crap."
27:37 "Dr. Howser, you will behave."
27:39 "Don't talk to me like you're my father.
27:42 You're not."
27:43 Harris seemed to fade away after the show came to an end.
27:45 That is, until he appeared in the Harold and Kumar series as a self-aware version of himself.
27:50 "So, uh, so I gotta ask you, Neil, uh, did you ever get it on with Wando off the set?"
27:56 "Dude, I humped every piece of ass ever on that show."
27:59 Taking that momentum to move on in Star and How I Met Your Mother, Harris became the show's
28:02 breakout star.
28:03 "You're the one for me."
28:11 He's since kept the momentum going with award show hosting gigs, high-profile movie roles,
28:16 a Netflix series, and his critically acclaimed stage work.
28:20 "And as anyone in the theater knows, after a grand entrance, the audience is supposed
28:25 to applaud."
28:26 Number 2.
28:27 Matthew McConaughey
28:29 We love the Keanu sauce, but the McConaughey sauce happened first, and was arguably even
28:34 bigger.
28:35 Looking back now, it's almost hard to remember what McConaughey's career used to look like.
28:39 "What if I take it to your restaurant?"
28:41 "Are you gonna pretend to own it?"
28:43 "No.
28:44 All the restaurants I own are in Europe."
28:46 For those of you who need a refresher, it was almost exclusively rom-coms.
28:51 And that's a genre you sadly tend to age out of eventually.
28:54 By the 2000s, they all just started to blur together.
28:57 Then, suddenly, McConaughey just stopped saying yes to the rom-coms.
29:00 "Look at me.
29:01 What do you see?
29:02 Huh?
29:03 The goddamn rodeo's what you see."
29:05 Laying the groundwork with The Lincoln Lawyer and Mudd, McConaughey blew audiences away
29:09 in 2013 with Dallas Buyers Club, earning himself an Academy Award in the process.
29:15 "Stop it!"
29:16 "No."
29:17 "No!
29:18 Dr. Mann, there's a 50/50 chance you're gonna kill yourself!"
29:21 "Those are the best thoughts I've had in years."
29:26 He followed it up with True Detective and Interstellar among other notable roles, and
29:32 in doing so, fundamentally altered and saved his career.
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29:51 1.
29:53 Robert Downey Jr.
29:59 When he started out, Robert Downey Jr. was heralded as one of the best actors of his
30:03 generation.
30:04 His Oscar-nominated role in Chaplain and arresting performance in Natural Born Killers demonstrated
30:09 his impressive range.
30:19 But the actor's publicized substance use problems made him too risky for producers, and his
30:23 star faded in the '90s.
30:25 "Drugs land the troubled actor in prison."
30:28 Eventually, Downey pulled off a historic comeback in the 2000s, reminding everyone of his versatility
30:34 and skill with Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Zodiac, and more.
30:37 "And let's bring it up to 2.5.
30:39 3, 2, 1."
30:42 His performance as Tony Stark in Iron Man in the Marvel Cinematic Universe has solidified
30:46 him as an icon of the big screen.
30:49 Despite saying nothing of his Oscar-winning work in Oppenheimer, needless to say, he is
30:53 once again regarded as one of the greats.
31:02 Which story did you find the most uplifting?
31:04 Let us know in the comments below.
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31:18 Thanks for watching!
31:28 (gentle music)