Some of our younger readers might not remember this, but in the early 1990s, was objectively the biggest thing in Hollywood. The impressive streak of Field of Dreams, Dances With Wolves, JFK, Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, and cemented Costner's place as one of the most bankable box office draws of his generation. The fact that Costner wrote, directed, and starred in Wolves -- which went on to win several Oscars, including Best Picture -- had many industry scribes drawing comparisons to a young Orson Welles.
But even the brightest stars can be eclipsed by a string of historic flops, and by the end of the decade, Costner's name was synonymous with "box office poison." 1995's Waterworld and 1997's The Postman -- both written, directed by, and starring Costner -- were such colossal (and colossally expensive) failures that they combined to make Costner a sort of industry-wide punchline. Many who had praised his talents just a year or two earlier were now blasting the ambitious auteur for his hubris.
The man who had so recently been described as Hollywood's greatest success story was now considered hopelessly washed up in his early forties. But Costner didn't give up, and while the roles may have gotten smaller (Superman's dad in Man of Steel, the protagonists' boss in Hidden Figures) the work remained steady. Finally, in 2012, Costner struck career gold in the most unexpected of places -- on television.
He won his first Emmy for his work in the limited series . The show announced.