While there have been plenty of disappointing, messy sci-fi movies over the years, it can feel even more tragic when there’s a truly fantastic performance buried amid a lackluster film. As a genre, it can be easy to get things wrong in science fiction, as overblown budgets, terrible CGI, poor storytelling, or misguided adaptations frustrate and annoy viewers and can even have damaging effects on beloved franchises. Yet, just because a movie is messy, that doesn’t mean that everything about it is bad, and some all-time great actors have done some of their best work in divisive films.

The best sci-fi movies of all time are often elevated by great performances, and there are just as many examples of fantastic actors doing great work in films that weren’t as acclaimed. While not every film mentioned here was a total disaster, and plenty of them have their supporters or have even been reappraised as cult favorites, they were also far from perfect and had a lot of issues with them. Sadly, none of these fantastic performances could save these messy movies.

8

Dennis Hopper As The Deacon

Waterworld (1995)

Nobody played a wildman better than Dennis Hopper, a Hollywood star who always gave an interesting performance even in bad movies. One prime example of this was as the Deacon in the notorious box office flop Waterworld, the once most expensive movie of all time that was unable to recoup its budget during its theatrical release. As a second-rate Mad Max rip-off set in a dystopian world where rising sea levels have swallowed almost all of the Earth, although Waterworld has become a cult favorite, it was definitely a very messy film.

While Waterworld can be criticized for being a little bit all over the place, it was an ambitious and noble failure that was packed with great performances. Kevin Costner was compelling as the Mariner, but like so many times before, it was Hopper who truly stole the show. With his signature eyepatch, the Deacon’s aesthetics alone were iconic, and the actor captured the real menace of the Soul-Keeper of the Deez and the leader of the Smokers. It’s a testament to Hopper’s unique talent for playing unhinged villains that he fit right into this dystopian landscape.

7

Scarlett Johansson As Major Mira Killian / Motoko Kusanagi

Ghost in the Shell (2017)

The live-action remake of Ghost in the Shell was doomed from the start for the simple reason that it was totally unnecessary. As a manga adaptation of the original work by Masamune Shirow, Ghost in the Shell already had a perfect anime retelling that ranked among the most impressive pieces of Japanese animation ever made. Add to this the casting of Scarlett Johansson, and you’ve got a film that was already courting controversy for whitewashing before it was even released.

The truth is that Ghost in the Shell was a messy adaptation that couldn’t be saved by cool visuals or a truly compelling central performance by Johansson. While every sequence in the film was a sight to behold, it was also overladen with American superhero tropes that made viewers wish they were just watching the far superior and more philosophically rich 1995 anime. Johansson did everything she could with the material she was given, but it was just never going to stack up against an undisputed, beloved classic.

6

Michael Fᴀssbender As David

Prometheus (2012)

While many were skeptical of the proposition of Ridley Scott returning to the Alien franchise for the prequel Prometheus, it was impossible not to get excited at the proposition of at last outlining the backstory of the Xenomorph’s origins. The result was a messy and divisive movie that raised more questions than it answered. However, amid the messy storytelling and confused ideology, Michael Fᴀssbender stood out, delivering an extraordinary performance as the android David.

David was the Weyland Corporation’s spacecraft butler and maintenance technician, who monitored humanity’s voyage toward the Engineers, whom Peter Weyland believed would provide insight into the origins of mankind. As an artificial intelligence that develops his own ego, insecurities, jealousy, and envy, Fᴀssbender captured David’s transition from humble servant to embittered villain as he began to believe himself superior to humans. While there were plenty of issues at the heart of Prometheus, anyone who’s seen it will know that Fᴀssbender gave a fantastic performance.

5

Hugh Jackman As Vincent Moore

Chappie (2015)

The South African filmmaker Neill Blomkamp followed up interesting sci-fi movies like District 9 and Elysium with Chappie, the story of a law enforcement robot captured and taught by gangsters portrayed by the band Die Antwoord. While the uneven social satire of its story, paired with a message about the misuse of artificial intelligence, was somewhat messy, one performance that stood out was Hugh Jackman’s as the deranged former soldier-turned-robotics engineer, Vincent Moore.

This erratic and over-the-top performance was unlike anything else seen from Jackman and stood out as a great example of him being let loose to run wild with a movie role. Jackman was clearly relishing playing against type and embracing his villainous side in a way that felt simultaneously chaotic and genuinely threatening. While Chappie received poor reviews from critics, Jackman was rightfully praised for his energetic commitment and unhinged characterization.

4

Jennifer Lawrence As Aurora Lane

Pᴀssengers (2016)

The premise of Pᴀssengers was fascinating, and with a bit of restructuring, this sci-fi romance could have been a truly great movie. However, poor characterization and some questionable ethics meant that this story about two pᴀssengers prematurely awakening on a spacecraft traveling to a colony 120 years from Earth was an uneven drama that never quite reached its potential. As a two-hander with Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence, it must be said that Lawrence gave an incredible performance as a young woman slowly uncovering the truth that her lone travelling companion was far more manipulative than she first thought.

Pᴀssengers saw Pratt’s character prematurely wake up Lawrence’s Aurora Lane because he wanted companionship, and without doing so, he would be isolated for the rest of his life. Lawrence captured the complexities of learning that the one person you had to communicate with was also the one who had doomed you. However, the problem with Pᴀssengers was that it attempted to be part romance, part thriller, and part survival story all at once without fully committing to any of them.

3

Nicolas Cage As John Koestler

Knowing (2009)

Nicolas Cage is truly among the most fascinating actors of modern times, consistently delivering interesting performances, even in subpar movies. This was definitely the case with Knowing, the sci-fi thriller that featured Cage as an MIT astrophysics professor whose daughter discovers a strange paper in a time capsule filled with dates, death tolls, and geographical coordinates of major disasters over the past 50 years. With the details of catastrophic events yet to unfold, Cage delivers a typically intense performance as John Koestler becomes increasingly erratic in his quest to convince the world that a disaster is imminent.

While Knowing received terrible reviews for its absurd plot and over-the-top, self-serious execution, Cage was doing excellent work as a man increasingly unraveling as doomsday approaches. One notable admirer of Knowing was the famed film critic Roger Ebert, who praised Cage’s edgy performance and spoke in favor of the movie when few others would. While I wouldn’t go as far as Ebert’s ᴀssertion that it’s among the best sci-fi films he’s ever seen, I will say Cage’s performance helped elevate this messy movie from being a total disaster.

2

Thomas Haden Church As Flint Marko / Sandman

Spider-Man 3 (2007)

While Spider-Man 3 has since garnered considerable retrospective praise, and its hilarious depiction of an emo Peter Parker has been endlessly meme’d, this doesn’t change the fact that it was a very messy movie. Despite having plenty of great ideas at its core, the film felt overstuffed, and with three major villains, it sadly lacked the streamlined focus that great superhero movies require. As a movie trying to juggle Harry Osborne’s The New Goblin, Venom, and Flint Marko as Sandman, the narrative was just far more complicated than it needed to be.

However, one aspect of Spider-Man 3 that often gets overlooked is just how great Thomas Haden Church was as Sandman and how his story arc felt akin to all-time great depictions of sympathetic creatures, such as Frankenstein’s monster. Before accidentally being bound with sand and gaining shapeshifting powers, Flint was a low-level criminal and the one responsible for killing Uncle Ben. With this fascinating backstory, Church’s performance was one of deep emotional depth, and the scene when Peter Parker forgave him was among the greatest in the entire franchise.

1

Adam Driver As Kylo Ren

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019)

The Star Wars sequel trilogy was a whirlwind of a film-viewing experience, as it started off with the crowd-pleasing The Force Awakens, divided fans with The Last Jedi, and crashed and burned in The Rise of Skywalker. While the trilogy has its supporters, it’s clear that Disney shifted gears in the middle and, in an effort to appease disappointed viewers, ended up with a disappointing conclusion that cast a dark shadow over the entire franchise. With so many contentious aspects to The Rise of Skywalker, not even Adam Driver’s exceptional performance as Kylo Ren could save it.

With an emotional intensity and sheer physicality, The Rise of Skywalker showcased Kylo Ren’s inner turmoil and eventual redemption as he accepted his heritage as Ben Solo, the son of Leia Organa and Han Solo. Through a clever character arc that felt like a subversion of Kylo’s grandfather Anakin Skywalker’s transformation into Darth Vader, Driver brought depth and pathos to the character. Sadly, none of this could make up for the frantic pacing of The Rise of Skywalker, meaning it’s been remembered as an underwhelming conclusion to this sci-fi trilogy.

Source: Roger Ebert