2022 has proven to be a year full of great comeback stories in the film and television industries. Some notable examples include Hayden Christensen's acclaimed performance in Obi-Wan Kenobi, Brendan Fraser's Oscar-nominated performance in The Whale, and Ke Huy Quan's Oscar-nominated performance in Everything Everywhere All at Once.
For reasons stemming from early retirement, low-profile roles, box office bombs, or streaks of critically panned films, many great actors are in desperate need of a comeback. The entertainment industry is in a much better place when these stars are at the top of their game.
10 Sean Penn
The son of director Leo Penn and actor Eileen Ryan, Sean Penn was born to be an entertainer. A two-time Academy Award winner, Penn is also one of only two actors in history to have won Best Actor at the Cannes Film Festival, Venice Film Festival, and Berlin International Film Festival.
However, in recent years, Penn has become more well-known for his outrageous political stunts, such as interviewing "El Chapo" rather than his acting career. Besides his recent minor role in the film Licorice Pizza, Penn has not appeared in a noteworthy film since 2011, when he starred in both This Must Be the Place and The Tree of Life.
9 Jodie Foster
Beginning her career as a child star, Jodie Foster first gained notoriety for her performances in the Martin Scorsese films Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore and Taxi Driver, the latter of which she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. She was only twelve years old at the time the film was shot. Foster would go on to become one of the premier actors of the 1980s and 1990s, earning two Oscars for Best Actress.
Since the start of the 2010s, Foster has only appeared in a handful of roles; none, however, have matched the stature of her prime. Foster has mainly focused her attention on directing, having worked on television shows such as Black Mirror, Orange is the New Black, and House of Cards.
8 Naomi Watts
Throughout the 2000s and early 2010s, Naomi Watts was one of Hollywood's greatest actors. She starred in commercial hits such as The Ring, King Kong, and The Impossible and art house masterpieces such as Mulholland Drive, 21 Grams, Eastern Promises, and Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance).
Watts has continued to work in film and television, amassing twenty-three credits since 2015, although the vast majority have either been box office failures or critically panned. Watts's last film roles of prominence occurred in 2014 when she appeared in While We're Young, St. Vincent, and Birdman.
7 Hilary Swank
After commencing her career with minor television roles, Hilary Swank had her breakthrough performance in Boys Don't Cry, which earned her an Academy Award for Best Actress. A few years later, Swank won her second Academy Award for Best Actress for her gut-wrenching performance in Clint Eastwood's Million Dollar Baby.
Swank's rapid successes were followed by a string of films hammered by critics, causing Swank to fall out of favor with Hollywood executives. In the mid-2010s, Swank took a hiatus from acting to care for her ailing father. At only forty-eight years old, Swank is long overdue for a career-resurrecting performance.
6 Jennifer Lawrence
By the time Jennifer Lawrence was twenty-five years old, she was already a four-time Academy Award-nominated actress with one win for her Best Actress role in Silver Linings Playbook. Lawrence completely dominated the early 2010s, eventually becoming the world's highest-paid female actor in 2015 and 2016.
After a historic start to her career, Lawrence's hot streak quickly cooled down following a mixture of several poorly received films and box office bombs. Lawrence took a brief break from acting following the dismal performance of X-Men: Dark Phoenix. Hopefully, Lawrence can rebound and return to her Oscar-winning form as soon as possible.
5 Gong Li
Gong Li burst onto the film scene in a series of internationally acclaimed collaborations with renowned Chinese auteur Zhang Yimou during the late 1980s and 1990s. In the 2000s, Li teamed up with Wong Kar-wai for 2046 and Eros while starring in several high-profile Hollywood films such as Memoirs of a Geisha and Miami Vice.
Since her critically praised performance in 2014's Coming Home, Li has only appeared in four films. All signs pointed to Disney's live-action remake of Mulan as the spark plug for Li's comeback. However, Mulan's reputation was destroyed by a multitude of controversies and distribution issues related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
4 Michael Fassbender
A two-time Academy Award nominee, Michael Fassbender emerged as one of the world's top actors after his acclaimed performances in films such as Hunger, Inglorious Basterds, 12 Years a Slave, and Steve Jobs. Fassbender also achieved mainstream success after landing the role of Magneto in the X-Men franchise.
Fassbender's body of work since 2016 consists of mainly negatively reviewed films, particularly Assassin's Creed, The Snowman, and X-Men: Dark Phoenix, which were all butchered by critics. Starting in 2017, Fassbender shifted his career focus towards auto racing, resulting in only one film credit for Fassbender since 2018.
3 Johnny Depp
Labeled the heir apparent to Marlon Brando, Johnny Depp made his reputation as a brilliant actor in the independent movement of the 1990s. At the turn of the century, Depp moved away from independent cinema and became one of the biggest blockbuster stars of all time. At the height of his success, Depp was the highest-paid actor in the world.
Depp's career began to spiral downward in the early 2010s. However, his celebrated performance in Black Mass seemed like it could be the beginning of a comeback. This proved not to be the case, as Depp's turbulent personal life has resulted in the actor becoming a shell of his former self. Sadly, Depp's career parallels the tumultuous life of his mentor Brando.
2 Maggie Cheung
Maggie Cheung began her film career in comedies during the 1980s before transitioning to dramatic roles, which catapulted her to becoming one of Hong Kong's biggest stars. Cheung is perhaps best known for her collaborations with Wong Kar-wai, which include the films As Tears Go By, Days of Being Wild, Ashes of Time, and In the Mood for Love.
In 2004, at the pinnacle of her career, Cheung walked away from acting and has not had a starring role since her award-winning performance in Clean. Just like Greta Garbo, who retired from acting at the age of 35 to live a secluded life, Cheung abandoned fame, choosing instead to live a life outside the public consciousness.
1 Daniel Day-Lewis
Deemed the "World's Greatest Actor" by Time magazine, Daniel Day-Lewis is best known for the legendary stories behind his dedication to method acting, which involves staying in character throughout the production. Lewis is the only actor in history to win three Academy Awards for Best Actor for his performances in My Left Foot, There Will Be Blood, and Lincoln.
Lewis was notoriously selective throughout his career with his film roles, appearing in only six films between 1998 and 2017. After his lauded performance in Phantom Thread, Lewis decided to retire from acting. In 1997, Lewis also retired from acting and pursued a career as a shoe cobbler in Italy. Ideally, this current retirement is also temporary.