25 actors who quit or were fired from hit film franchises early on

25 actors who quit or were fired from hit film franchises early on

Since the rise of Marvel movies in the 2000s, we’ve been living in the age of the cinematic universe. Sequels continue to dominate the box office, and the franchise is king. Without counting remakes, six of the 10 highest-grossing films of 2025 are continuations of previously existing IP. We can lament the fact that it’s increasingly difficult for original stories to break through, let alone get made in the first place. Alternatively, we can appreciate that many major franchises still produce solidly entertaining films.

Franchises are also led by stars we’ve come to know and love over the course of years, if not decades. “Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning” was a fitting coda to almost 30 years of Tom Cruise’s Et