In Hollywood, timing can be everything. Leave a hit show too early, and you risk being
seen as ungrateful or disloyal—but stick around too long, and you could end up being
typecast forever. These actors saw high ratings and pursued
their biggest showbiz dreams, only to discover just how fickle the spotlight can truly be. Mischa Barton Early in her acting career, Mischa Barton
was best known as the puking ghost in The Sixth Sense. But becoming Marissa Cooper for the teen dramedy
series The O.C. made her a household name. By the time the show's third season started
filming, Barton decided she'd had enough fun in the sun and ended her contract, which meant
her character was killed off the show. "I was, like, very much ready for closure
on the character and on the series." Unfortunately for Barton, she later became
a regular in box office bombs, direct-to-video films, mugshots, and small TV cameos. She was even voted off Dancing With The Stars. Moral of the story? Don't look a gift horse — especially one
as cute as Captain Oats — in the mouth. Katherine Heigl Her run as Dr. Izzie Stevens on Grey's Anatomy
put Katherine Heigl on top of the A-list. But that was before she publicly dissed and
dismissed the series. In 2008, she withdrew herself from the year's
Emmy nominations and told the press that she didn't deserve to be considered because the
season's writing material was unworthy. "Big mistake. Big. Huge." She ended up leaving the series in Season
6 and tried her best to become a big screen siren with films like Knocked Up and 27 Dresses. But box office bombs like One for the Money
and The Ugly Truth proved that she wasn't as hot to trot as she obviously thought. Even her attempt to jump back into television
failed to impress, as her 2015 show State of Affairs was cancelled after just one season. She probably should've abided by the doctor
rule to "do no harm" to her own career, huh? David Caruso After he bailed on NYPD Blue after just one
season in 1994, actor David Caruso pursued a movie career — which might have been great
if he'd actually picked good movies. Instead, Caruso's star status quickly faded
after he appeared in the twin 1995 bombs Jade and the aptly named Kiss Of Death. “Oh, I’ll give you a kiss alright. A kiss of death!” After enduring a dry spell, he returned to
TV and rebounded with a starring role in CSI: Miami. Sherry Stringfield In the '90s, one of TV's top actresses was
Sherry Stringfield. In 1993, she landed a role on the critically
acclaimed cop drama NYPD Blue, and she followed David Caruso's own exit. But instead of heading for the movies, Stringfield
joined the hit medical drama ER. After playing Dr. Susan Lewis on the show
for a little over two seasons, she walked away from that show, too, due to complaints
about the rigorous filming schedule. Leaving ER was difficult, though, and she
had to sign an agreement barring herself from working on TV for years to get out of her
contract. Stringfield found work in New York teaching
acting classes, later returned to ER for a spell, and starred in a few made-for-TV movies,
but she certainly hasn't had the same high-profile career as some of the series' other stars. Topher Grace After seven seasons of playing the lead role
of Eric Forman in That '70s Show, Topher Grace stepped away from the hit sitcom in 2005 to
pursue other options. "Hahaha!" At the time, it might've seemed like a good
idea because he'd scored a few leading film roles. But after he left, Grace had trouble finding
his footing. Even though he snagged roles in Spider-Man
3 and other films, he hasn't exactly enjoyed post-70s Show fame the way some of his other
co-stars have. “Right?” Lisa Bonet The Cosby Show was so popular in the late
'80s that Lisa Bonet's character Denise was given her own spinoff called A Different World,
which followed her on to college. The sitcom was a smash, finishing second in
the ratings in its first season — behind only The Cosby Show. But in 1988, Bonet surprisingly left her popular
show after becoming pregnant with her daughter Zoe Kravitz. Producers on the show were willing to write
her pregnancy into the show, but Bill Cosby rejected the idea. Rumor has it, Bonet and Cosby weren't on the
greatest terms after she starred in the sexually explicit movie Angel Heart and did a topless
photoshoot for Interview Magazine — so she walked away. Bonet has only worked sporadically afterward,
and has never quite been the marquee name she once was. Michael Moriarty After then-U.S. Attorney Janet Reno met with
him and producer Dick Wolf in an effort to limit television violence, actor Michael Moriarty
quit Law & Order in 1994. Moriarty felt that Reno's efforts were nothing
short of censorship and, when his co-stars refused to join his anti-legislation crusade,
he left the series and moved to Canada in protest. He has been able to snag some work as a Canuck
— including a role in Courage Under Fire and some made-for-TV movies, but he says the
big jobs are off-limits to him now because he's been blacklisted for speaking out against
the government. Joe Piscopo New Jersey native Joe Piscopo joined the cast
of Saturday Night Live in 1980 and became one of its biggest stars thanks to his uncanny
celebrity impersonations. “Should Frank sing a song? What do you think?” “Saw her dancing there, by the record machine. She could not have been more than 17.” Piscopo enjoyed major success at SNL but quit
in 1984 alongside co-star Eddie Murphy, who went on to flourish in the film industry. Piscopo, however, had no such luck. After a major role in the cult classic Johnny
Dangerously, Piscopo appeared in forgettable films such as Wise Guys, The House of God,
and Huck and the King of Hearts. Piscopo also followed in Murphy's footsteps
by releasing a music album and touring as a stand-up comedian, but he hardly enjoyed
the same good fortune as his former co-star. He only really returned to headlines when
he stepped into the political arena in 2016. Jeff Conaway You might remember Jeff Conaway as the greased
lightning ringleader Kenickie in Grease, but he also enjoyed success on the small screen
with Taxi. In what would prove to be a sadly ironic turn,
Conaway played struggling actor Bobby Wheeler and left the show in 1981 partly because he
thought his character made actors look bad. In the years after he left Taxi, Conaway couldn't
land a single movie role and his fantasy TV series Wizards and Warriors was canceled after
just three episodes. Conaway's career went downhill after that
and the actor, who struggled with addiction, died in 2011 at the age of 60. McLean Stevenson After playing Lieutenant Colonel Henry Blake
for two seasons, McLean Stevenson quit M*A*S*H in 1975, winning a Golden Globe and an Emmy
nomination for his efforts. Lured by the promise of bigger paydays, Stevenson
left to pursue starring ventures outside the show's ensemble cast…but it didn't work
out so well. His next four sitcoms, including The McLean
Stevenson Show, fizzled out and were generally panned by critics. Stevenson later admitted he regretted leaving
M*A*S*H, telling the Los Angeles Times in 1991: "The mistake was that I thought everybody
in America loved McLean Stevenson. That was not the case. Everybody loved Henry Blake." Thanks for watching! Click the Looper icon to subscribe to our
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