Hollywood A-Listers Who Got Their Big Break in Horror Films

Matthew McConaughey

In Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation (1995), Renée Zellweger wasn't the only rising star. McConaughey had already dived into Hollywood headfirst with Dazed and Confused two years earlier, but his acting chops were cemented with the unsettling role of Vilmer Slaughter in this sequel to the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Although McConaughey deviated from the genre to become a '90s and early '00s heartthrob, his roots will never be forgotten.

Michelle Williams

Michelle Williams broke into the scene with a relatively small role in Species, a 1995 sci-fi horror film that follows a motley crew of scientists and government agents on a mission to track down Sil, an alien-human hybrid, before she mates with a human male. Williams plays a younger version of Sil in the film. Only a few years later, Williams took on a larger part in Halloween H20: 20 Years Later (1998) alongside none other than Jamie Lee Curtis.

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The More You Know

  • During the filming of Star Trek (2009), Zachary Quinto could not manage to properly do the Vulcan salute. Eventually, J.J. Abrams had to glue his fingers together in order for Quinto to do it correctly.
  • Often derided as a mega-flop, Waterworld actually took home nearly $90m more in worldwide box office than its estimated budget.
  • Despite pulling in over $240m My Big Fat Greek Wedding never once topped the US box office chart.
  • Director Steven Spielberg made his first film for a merit badge
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Post originally appeared on Upbeat News.