If youโre staying in bed to avoid a bout of bad luck on Friday the 13th, M-Net Movies is here to tell you that youโre not alone in your worries about luck, superstition and curses.
Weโve brought you a list of actors who (with the exception of one) probably lock the doors and bar the windows whenever Friday the 13th rolls around. Distract yourself from this bleakย day by tuning into M-Net Movies, and peruse our list to learn that sometimes even bad luck can be good.
The Bad Decision-Makers
1. Molly Ringwald
Itโs a story with no end: the great roles actors turned down. Eightiesโ darling Molly Ringwald, uncomfortable with the content of Pretty Woman, turned down the role of Vivien. Considering its eventual star became the highest-paid actress in Hollywood in the โ90s and later won an Oscar, weโre not sure it was Mollyโs best move.
2. Mickey Rourke
If we were living in an alternate universe, weโd have watched John Travolta as Forrest Gump, Hugh Jackman as Bond, Tom Selleck as Indiana Jones, Will Smith as Neo, Sean Connery as Gandalf and Jim Carrey as Captain Jack Sparrow. These actors all turned down these iconic roles. Mickey Rourke joined their ranks, turning down the role of Butch in Pulp Fiction, which ultimately went to Bruce Willis. Unlike Ringwald, this โ80s hunk had better luck later in life, making a comeback in the 21st century and even receiving an Oscar nomination in 2009.โ
The Bad Luck Club
3. Henry Cavill
On the flip side, we have the actors who wanted the ultimate roles, but didnโt get them. Henry Cavill was one such man, losing the part of Twilightโs Edward to Robert Pattinson, Batman to Christian Bale and Superman to Brandon Routh. Years later he nabbed the latter role nevertheless, but at the time his bad luck led Empire magazineย to call the actor โthe most unlucky man in Hollywood.โ
4. Liam Hemsworth
Itโs never easy when you donโt land the role you want, but at least Liam kept it in the family when he lostย Thor to his older brother, Chris. Unfortunately he also failed to cinch a part in The Expendables and (spoiler alert!), when he was eventually cast in the sequel, it was only to be killed off in the beginning. On the bright side, he has the whole Hunger Games franchise under his belt.
The Money Problem
5. Nicolas Cage
From trading arms and swapping faces to raising babies and adapting books, you never know what to expect form Nic Cageโs next role. Itโs as unpredictable to guess what will happen to his money. Cage is quite the spendthrift; burning through $100 million during the turn of the century, and ultimately owing the IRS $13 million.
6. Lena Headey
Game of Thronesโ Cersei wasnโt living a queenly life back in 2012, when she divorced husband Peter Loughran. She petitioned for half of the their tax return, just to be able to cover living expenses and support her son. Considering she stars in one of the biggest shows on TV, and makes movies in between, it raises questions about womenโs salaries in Hollywood โ as Patricia Arquette highlighted when she won her Oscar.
The Charmed Ones
7. Colin Farrell
Do you have a rabbitโs foot hanging from your rearview mirror, or a horseshoe hanging on your wall? Youโre not alone. The Irish actor has a lucky beltย heโs spent thousands having repaired.
8. Cameron Diaz
The blonde beauty wears a horseshoe necklaceโฆapparently to prevent the effects of ageing. It seems to be working so far!
9. Benicio del Toro
The Oscar winner wears a ring with a wooden centre so that he can โknock on woodโ whenever he needs a bit of luck.
The Superstitious Ones
10. Jennifer Aniston
Averting fate in another form is Jennifer Aniston. Before flying she always steps onto the plane with her right foot first, and taps the outside of the plane.
11. Christian Bale
Although Christian Bale goes to extremes when preparing for roles, he doesnโt apply it to fate. The Oscar-winning, Batman-starring actor merrily admits, โI walk under ladders, I do all that stuff. I do it on purpose. I like provoking superstitions.โ
The Cursed
12. Jim Carrey
If you thought Leonardo DiCaprio's Oscar luck was rough, youโve got to feel even sorrier for Jim Carrey. Despite magnificent performances and several awards for his work in The Truman Show, Man on the Moon and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, the Academy has never even nominated him.ย
13. Oscar Winners
Carrey might have to count himself lucky, because winning the coveted golden statuette may just have afforded more bad luck. For years there have been claims of anย โOscar curseโ, leading actorsโ careers to spiral downwards after winning.ย Professed victimsย are Cuba Gooding Jr, Adrien Brody, Marcia Gay Harden, Renee Zellweger, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Helen Hunt and Mira Sorvino. Seen them around lately? Besides Hardenโs new role in Code Black, weโre wondering what happened to the rest.