Star Treks: Christian Bale

"Reign of Fire" (2002)

Bale followed "Psycho" with supporting roles as a villain in the Samuel L. Jackson-starring remake of "Shaft" and the guy who loses Penélope Cruz to the dubious charms of Nicolas Cage's bad Italian accent in the disastrous adaptation of acclaimed novel "Captain Corelli's Mandolin."

With Hollywood clearly catching on to his talent, Bale accepted a lead role in this expensive action fantasy about a post-apocalyptic England overrun by dragons. But things didn't turn out well. Bale mostly kept his head down while co-star Matthew McConaughey chewed dragon-sized holes through the scenary. And the movie, perhaps unsurprisingly, flopped.