Donning the cape and tights to play a big screen superhero was often seen as career suicide for actors. This idea is mined to brilliant effect in Alejandro González Iñárritu's Birdman, with a former comic book star looking to relaunch his career with an ambitious Broadway play.


Adding extra spice to Birdman is the casting of Michael Keaton, himself a former Batman whose post-tights career has been somewhat hit and miss. This film, however, is a stunning reminder of just how good an actor Keaton is and proof that careers don't end when on-screen superpowers fade away.

Digital Spy takes a look at 20 ex-superhero stars to see how they fared after leaving an iconic comic book role behind.

20. Billy Zane

The suave American actor looked set for big things in the '90s thanks to impressive roles in Dead Calm and Tombstone, but his time in the purple Phantom costume ended up being a box office misfire.

Following on from The Phantom, Zane forged his own luck in Titanic as Rose's slimy fiancé Cal Hockley. Despite James Cameron's epic becoming the then-highest grossing film ever, it failed to provide a springboard for Zane. His recent work includes The Scorpion King 3, Leprechaun's Revenge and the upcoming Zombie Killers: Elephant's Graveyard.

19. Wesley Snipes

After leaving the role of Marvel's vampire hunter in Blade: Trinity, Snipes has largely been off the radar due to his three-year prison sentence for tax evasion.

Nevertheless, Snipes still managed to appear in the underrated Brooklyn's Finest and a part in last year's The Expendables 3 suggests there might still be more to come from him as a big screen action hero.

18. Chris O'Donnell

A hot property in the early '90s, O'Donnell shared the screen with Al Pacino for the screen icon's Oscar-winning Scent of a Woman and led Disney's lavish Three Musketeers movie.

He allegedly beat out Leonardo DiCaprio and Christian Bale for the role of Robin in Batman Forever, and after reprising the part in the much-maligned Batman & Robin he headlined The Bachelor and Vertical Limit. Since then O'Donnell has been more successful on the small screen - for the last six years he's been appearing in NCIS: Los Angeles.

17. Brandon Routh

Plucked from relative obscurity to step into Christopher Reeve's shoes for Superman Returns, Brandon Routh looked destined for big things thanks to his under-appreciated turn as Kal-El.

Sadly, Bryan Singer's franchise relaunch wasn't embraced by Man of Steel fans or the wider cinemagoing public and this marked Routh's only outing as Superman. A part in Scott Pilgrim vs the World followed, as did notable guest spots on TV. He's now back in the limelight with comic book fans thanks to his well-received turn as Ray Palmer (aka Atom) on Arrow.

16. Val Kilmer

Val Kilmer was something of a hot property when he took over the role of the Dark Knight from Michael Keaton in 1995's Batman Forever. He only played Batman once, but after departing the role he never quite managed to build any post-superhero momentum.

The Island of Dr Moreau, The Saint and At First Sight, all released in quick succession, didn't quite hit the target. Kilmer has, however, been impressive of late in supporting roles (Palo Alto) and a part in Terrence Malick's upcoming untitled project hints that he still has much to offer.

15. Ioan Gruffudd

Once tipped to play James Bond, Welsh actor Ioan Gruffudd has mainly been a presence on the small screen since waving goodbye to Fantastic Four's Reed Richards.

He's currently the lead on ABC's Forever, playing a 200-year-old man who's cursed with immortality. He'll soon be back on the big screen with a role in Dwayne Johnson's disaster epic San Andreas.

14. Christopher Reeve

The daddy of superhero movies, Christopher Reeve's brilliant portrayal of Clark Kent in the '70s Superman set a standard that arguably hasn't been surpassed. Reeve never quite managed to escape the Man of Steel's shadow, but he did seek out top high calibre directors that led to impressive supporting roles - The Remains of the Day (with James Ivory), Deathtrap (Sidney Lumet) and Speechless (Ron Howard) were particular highlights.

Reeve's tragic horse riding accident meant that in later life activism took precedent over acting, but before he passed away he'd embraced his Superman legacy with a memorable guest role in Smallville.

13. Michael Chiklis

Chiklis's legendary status is secure thanks to his role as The Shield's hard-as-nails cop Vic Mackey, a role he continued with for a year after his final outing as Fantastic Four's Thing.

Post-Ben Grimm movie fans haven't really seen much of Chiklis, although he's been a familiar face on the small screen thanks to recent roles in Sons of Anarchy and American Horror Story.

12. Eric Bana

Remember that five-year stretch when Eric Bana was in every movie? Despite appearing in Black Hawk Down, Troy, Munich and Hulk, Bana never quite managed to propel himself onto the A-list.

His recent roles have been in lower profile fare such as Deliver Us from Evil and Deadfall, but a return to his comedy roots (Bana began his career as a stand-up) with Ricky Gervais's Special Correspondents this year could put him back on the map.

11. Jessica Alba

The triple-whammy of Dark Angel, Sin City and Fantastic Four set Jessica Alba on the path to stardom. After Sue Storm Alba shifted focus from acting to her family and business interests, but has still cropped up in diverse fare ranging from The Killer Inside Me to Little Fockers.

Alba is still an ever-present on glossy magazine covers, suggesting that she doesn't need a superhero part to keep a high profile.

10. Jennifer Garner

JJ Abrams's spy show Alias propelled Jennifer Garner to stardom and for a time she was being touted as the next Julia Roberts.

Garner was one of the standouts in the uneven Daredevil, but the spinoff movie Elektra bombed at the box office. Though she might not be a go-to name for lead roles, Garner has still featured in critic-pleasing dramas Juno and Dallas Buyers Club and continues to crop up in good supporting roles.

9. Ryan Reynolds

After faltering with comic book movies Blade: Trinity and X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Green Lantern was supposed to be the role to cement him as a big-time movie star. It wasn't to be. The film didn't catch on and Reynolds has struggled to find a part to successfully harness his wise-cracking skills.

He'll get a fourth shot at superhero stardom in 2016 when he reprises his role as X-Men Origins's "Merc with a Mouth" Deadpool.

8. Halle Berry

Halle Berry bagged an Oscar for her blistering performance in 2001's Monster's Ball, which led to her toplining Warner Bros's Catwoman spinoff movie in 2004. This proved to be the biggest superhero disaster since Batman & Robin, but Berry managed to survive her Razzie-winning role thanks to impressive work in the underseen Things We Lost in the Fire.

Berry's post-Catwoman parts seem to swing between the sublime (Cloud Atlas) and the ridiculous (Movie 43), but her big budget TV comeback Extant shows she still has currency as a leading lady.

7. Tobey Maguire

Tobey Maguire's Spider-Man success has afforded him the opportunity to be a bit pickier with his post-spandex career choices.

When he has taken on a role it's usually been to good effect. He slimmed down and brought intensity to Brothers, provided steady narration for The Great Gatsby and plays chess champion Bobby Fischer in the upcoming Pawn Sacrifice. Maguire also has his hand in producing, with credits for Rock of Ages and hotly-tipped YA adaptation The Fifth Wave.

6 Edward Norton

A squabble with Marvel meant that Edward Norton's tenure as Bruce Banner was short-lived. The Incredible Hulk upped the action from its more thoughtful Ang Lee-directed predecessor, but its box office clout was still lacking and Mark Ruffalo took over the role for The Avengers. Norton may not be at the level of his Fight Club heyday, but he was excellent in Wes Anderson's Moonrise Kingdom and Grand Budapest Hotel.

Like superhero refugee Michael Keaton, Norton is among the cast for Birdman, riffing on his reputation as a spiky, difficult performer. It's a strong performance that's thrown him into the conversation for this year's Best Supporting Actor Oscar. We wouldn't be surprised if he made the cut.

5. Chris Evans

Chris Evans is a curious case. Perhaps the most impressive star of the original Fantastic Four quartet, Evans continued to dabble in comic book movies after leaving the Marvel franchise (The Losers, Scott Pilgrim), but never managed to land a big box office hit. He returned to superheroics (after much to-ing and fro-ing) with Captain America: The First Avenger and the ongoing success of Marvel gave him the chance to star in Joon-ho Bong's Snowpiercer.

Evans has admitted that once his Captain America deal runs out he'll likely retire from acting and move into directing. Right now he's in a strong position, but he could go even better and find filmmaking success ala Ben Affleck.

4. Michael Keaton

As the lead of the first superhero franchise that truly went seismic, Michael Keaton had his pick of roles in the early '90s. Results were mixed, with the excellent Pacific Heights sitting alongside the saccharine My Life.

A revival was briefly threatened thanks to Jackie Brown and Out of Sight, but that fizzled after the disastrous Jack Frost. Slowly but surely Keaton has been climbing back to the top - he was a scene stealer in comedy The Other Guys, brought nuance to an antagonistic role in RoboCop and cemented his comeback with Birdman.

Playing on his role as a former caped crusader, Alejandro González Iñárritu's film played to Keaton's strengths as an intense, dynamic performer. We wouldn't be shocked if he scoops the Best Actor Academy Award next month.

3. Christian Bale

Bale shed his child star tag thanks to his dark turn in American Psycho, but he never really took off as a movie star until Christopher Nolan's Batman Begins. An Oscar win for The Fighter came between The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises, with further acclaim arriving post-Batman thanks to American Hustle and Out of the Furnace.

Bale's name is still top of every big Hollywood director's casting wishlist. He led the recent Exodus: Gods and Kings for Ridley Scott and was heavily courted for the Steve Jobs biopic. Next up he'll reunite with Terrence Malick for a pair of interconnected films, starting with Knight of Cups later this year.

2. Ben Affleck

When it comes to rollercoaster movie careers, nobody's had more ups and downs than Ben Affleck. After collecting a screenwriting Oscar in 1998 with Matt Damon for Good Will Hunting, Affleck was ushered into a succession of high profile roles with mixed results. Daredevil very much falls into the "miss" category of that Affleck era.

Ironically, his career rehabilitation started with his role as Superman TV actor George Reeves in Hollywoodland before his directorial debut Gone Baby Gone marked him out as a filmmaker of some talent. Behind the camera Affleck has only gotten better - The Town and Argo both bagged multiple awards nominations, with the latter scooping Best Picture in 2013. As he observed in his BAFTA victory speech in 2013, film careers can have a "second act". Affleck will do the superhero dance all over again in 2016, playing the Dark Knight in Batman v Superman.

1. George Clooney


There really was only one choice to top this list. George Clooney's turn as Bruce Wayne in 1997's Batman & Robin was a franchise-killing disaster. It could've turned him into a throwaway pub quiz answer, but instead he rebounded with a string of critically acclaimed roles in Out of Sight, Three Kings and O Brother, Where Art Thou?

An Oscar win followed for Syriana, and behind the camera he had a hand in Good Night, and Good Luck (as writer/director) and Best Picture winner Argo (as producer). Not bad for a man who regularly beats himself up over those rubber nipples!