When bad movies happen to good actors our belief in a higher power is shaken; we dare to doubt the efficacy of beauty products; and the phenomenon of Paris Hilton begins to make sense. Yes folks, these thespian deities are fallible and a hefty pay-cheque has as much influence on artistic integrity as that little gold man.

At some point — put it down to delusions of grandeur — most A-list actors feel the need to don the cloak of a superhero. Now, while some are unquestionably proficient in spandex (Hugh Jackman, Christian Bale, Robert Downey Jr. and Brandon Routh come to mind), others should never have revealed their true identities.

Catwoman.

Need we say more? Not really, but it is so much fun we can't resist. Halle Berry, fresh from her Oscar win for 'Monster's Ball', inexplicably felt the need to prove the obvious — she looks good wielding a whip in a dominatrix outfit. The fact that she would be going up against a product-enhanced Sharon Stone should have been warning enough to Berry to stick to weather malfunctions in the mutant-rich world of X-Men.

Another Oscar-winner who should have known better is our very own Charlize Theron, because while 'Aeon Flux' is infinitely better than that feline travesty, it still belongs in the trash can of cinematic superhero history.

'Electra' is proof that even when she is doing what she does best (kicking ass), Jennifer Garner has some way to go before she bags her own Oscar. Perhaps it's the curse of the Electra character or perhaps it's because he should never act in the same film as one of his Jennifers ('Gigli' anyone?), but either way Ben Affleck should hope that critics turn a blind eye to the pathologically boring 'Daredevil'.

Nicholas Cage almost cracked a mention for his portrayal of the soulless burning skeleton in 'Ghost Rider', but his recent portfolio is so littered with celluloid debris that we found it difficult to classify the Oscar winners as a 'good actor'.

Superhero-villain-henchman

And then there are those actors who are just so darn cool that they are the superhero, villain and the villain's henchmen all rolled into one. And the embodiment of this superhero-villain-henchman is, of course, Samuel L Jackson.

While Mr Jackson has proved beyond a doubt that he can act, he has also been far too prolific to escape the inevitable dud. For the most part, we adore his foul-mouthed bad-asses. For the most part.

'Snakes on a Plane' is such a festering turd of a movie that the only explanation for Jackson's involvement is that he was (a) showered in pheromone laced petals that made him act crazy, (b) has shares in a CGI company, (c) offered royalties for his use of the word 'motherf@#*ing'.

Godfathers no more

A different brand of badass, Al Pacino and Robert de Niro are also highly esteemed actors. Both are Academy Award winners, both acted in the 'Godfather' trilogy, and both have made some dubious choices in their old age. De Niro has taken to playing caricatures of himself (most notably in 'The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle'), while Pacino has opposed the principle of aging gracefully by appearing in the clichéd '88 Minutes' with a ridiculous hairstyle and a supporting cast a quarter his age.

And they are not alone. Anthony Hopkins went from giving audiences nightmares as Hannibal Lector to lulling them to sleep with his almost comatose performance in 'Bad Company'. Tommy Lee Jones was just another grumpy old man in the cheerleader comedy thriller 'Man of the House' and John Travolta let religious enthusiasm cloud his judgment when he appeared in the appalling 'Battlefield Earth' based on the sci-fi by Scientology leader L. Ron Hubbard.

While vampire roles have been almost as popular as those of superheroes, few can imagine what Sir Ben Kingsley was thinking when he signed up for the blood-sucking role in 'BloodRayne' — a fest of blood, gore and nudity which by comparison makes Hugh Jackman's film-of-shame 'Van Helsing' palatable.

Show me the money!

Age, it would seem, is not the only criteria for making poor career decisions. Nicole Kidman, whose work in arty films has garnered much respect, made the fatal error of going back to the mainstream in the magic-less 'Bewitched'. While twitching her nose will do little to erase the memory of this film, a few dark and twisty roles should do the trick.

Edward Norton is almost irreproachable in his choice of roles. Almost. Who could forget that big purple rhino? No, not Barney. Smoochy. He took on the role of Smoochy in a film called 'Death to Smoochy'. A film which is so overwhelmingly bad, it makes that annoying dinosaur look good.

Before we wrap up this little homage to mediocrity, it is necessary to mention two more actors: Kevin Costner and George Clooney. Yes, yes, we agree, Kevin Costner is awful. But he did win an Oscar once for his work on 'Dances with Wolves' and besides which, if we don't mention him, we can't mention the worst 'most expensive' film of all time — 'Waterworld'.

While Costner's portrayal of a fishy Mad Max in a world covered in water was...well… to be expected, George Clooney has proved time and again that he can act. So why, oh why, did he inflict upon the world the monstrosity that is 'Batman and Robin'?

Sadism, boredom, poverty? Take your pick, but our money is on the pay-cheque.