Nothing closes the chasm between an actor and their audience like a romantic comedy.
It is always in a good, relatable rom-com that moviegoers find their own selves come alive on screen.
Honestly, is it even true love if a guy doesn’t lift a boombox up to you?
Rom-coms are not every actor’s cup of tea.
It’s just there or not."
Ready for a nostalgia overdose?
Meg Ryan
Meg Ryan was the undisputed queen of classic rom-coms.
And then, she simply vanished.
Turns out, the fame got to her.
She told The New York Times Magazine, “I was burned out.
The sensational tabloid coverage of heron-set romance with Russell Crowein the early aughts didn’t help either.
The 2004 drama “Against the Ropes” was Ryan’s last major film before she took a break.
She said later, “It was exactly what I wanted to be doing.”
There was also an awakening to sexism in the industry.
Her focus shifted to television films and episodic appearances in shows like “Arrested Development.”
In 2016, Zellweger felt it was time to be back on the playing field.
Fans have further reason to rejoice since Zellweger is fullyinto the idea of reprising her beloved Bridget role.
In the process, he perhaps distanced himself too much from the limelight.
Amanda Bynes
Amanda Bynes' cherubic charismawas a fixture in the romantic comedies of the aughts.
She was quite aware of her star power, especially in the way it catered to her younger audiences.
In 2010, the teen idol bowed off the stage.
Bynes' life took a troubled turn after that.
In 2013, her strained mental health prompted her parents to seek a conservatorship.
She was diagnosed as bipolar and manic-depressive and eventually embraced sobriety.
In the thick of her fame, she was consistently ranked byForbesas one of the highest-paid female actors.
“Annie” in 2014 marked her final film appearance before she quit the screen for good.
Jennifer Grey
Nobody puts Baby in a corner.
Except maybe Baby herself.
For Grey, it was a clear career highlight, drawing in her first and only Golden Globe nomination.
Grey never touched that peak again, gradually fading from prominence.
It was a conscious decision, she toldPeople.
That’s a lie.
I banished myself.”
All through her youth, Grey lived hard and fast, admitting to growing up almost too quickly.
Her surgeries cost Grey her identity in Hollywood, she claimed.
She had actually set off in search of some normalcy.
“I think it was important to me to have a normal life.
I don’t know that you’re able to have a normal life.
It was a sweet idea, and I tried super hard.”
During her interlude of sorts, MacDowell focused on raising her children.
An exhibit: “When I buy a new book, I read the last page first.
That way, in case I die before I finish, I know how it ends.”
As the generation echoed their newfound glamorous vocabulary ugh, as if!
Silverstone buckled under the sudden fame, widespread sexualization, and hurtful patronization.
“Clueless” left her … clueless.
None of her successive films worked as well, too.
Bit by bit, she wrangled herself free from the screen and explored greener pastures.
I found my passion for writing books on healing and health," she told The Hollywood Reporter.
Michael Schoeffling
Millennial rom-com fans will forever dote on Jake Ryan as their enduring teen crush.
His real-life counterpart Michael Schoeffling, meanwhile, was only destined to be a one-hit-wonder.
AsThe Washington Postexhaustively observed, lovesick fans desperately ached for their Jake to come.
Except, Schoeffling isn’t around to bask in the film’s legacy.
He appeared in a few unremarkable films throughout the ’80s before making himself obscure.
His “24” co-star and screen veteran Kiefer Sutherland was apparently responsible for it.
“Kiefer was the most unprofessional dude in the world … " Prinze revealed toABC News.
“I just wanted to quit the business after that.
So, I just sort of stopped.”
“After taking a long break, I wanted to be creative again,” he toldThe Hollywood Reporter.
Well, no surprises there!
Rachael Leigh Cook
She’s still all that.
Here was an actor who gave visibility to every awkward, introverted, quirky girl watching her.
“In retrospect, was I equipped to navigate the industry?
Zero percent,” she toldThe New York Timesabout her days as a young star.
