Shaquille O’Neal ruined his Hollywood career with $1 million fail Kazaam in 1996

Adit Pujari | 24/09/2022
Shaquille O'Neal ruined his Hollywood career with $1 million fail Kazaam in 1996

Shaquille O’Neal is a widely popular TV personality, however, his second film Kazaam in 1996 was a major box-office flop.

Shaquille O’Neal may very well be one of the most successful superstars of the 90s and 2000s. His unbound success at basketball coupled with his natural charisma opened up a lot of avenues for Diesel.

Unlike other stars who take up opportunities after their careers are over, O’Neal turned to acting very early on in his career. His popularity was seen by Hollywood as a certain source of revenue.

In 1994, while Shaq was still with the Orlando Magic, the 7’1″ center appeared in a sports drama film titled Blue Chips.

Only 22, the Lakers legend appeared alongside Penny Hardway in a movie that touched upon illegal payments to college athletes. Back then, the community severely frowned upon this, and the movie held relevance.

However, it failed to perform at the box office and made only $26.7 million worldwide.

O’Neal, though, was unfazed by the failure of his acting debut. And in 1996, he decided to appear in another Hollywood production. This time, it wasn’t a sports drama.

Also read: Scottie Pippen’s “controlling behavior” and $5.5 million loss led to ex-wife Larsa leaving him

Shaquille O’Neal faced yet another failure with Kazaam

Shaq came to NBA hungry for victory. Despite his early failures, what kept him going was his determination. The determination that he could win not today or tomorrow but someday soon. To him, failure is merely another step toward success.

So, when Blue Chip failed to make any impact, Shaquille O’Neal wasn’t going to stop. So, O’Neal accepted the role of a genie in Kazaam.

A typical genie story mixed with hints of modern advancement, Kazaam was the recreation of an age-old story. Shaq’s role as the genie was iconic.

Although, iconic is not always successful, or good. Kazaam and O’Neal’s role in the film were both cursed from the get-go.

For one, the writing and direction of the movie were terrible. The movie failed to leave any impact on its audience. Coupled with cliche plot lines and abhorrent acting, it was no surprise when the film tanked at the box office.

Kazaam had a budget of $20 million. And despite Shaquille O’Neal playing a lead character, it made only $19 million worldwide.

Shaquille O’Neal received an impressive $7 million for it. He’s continued to make films since and has acted in commercial successes such as Grown Ups, Uncle Drew, and Scary Movie 4.

Also read: Why Michael Jordan didn’t have a ‘bad game’ for 183 consecutive games?

Post Edited By: Adit Pujari
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Adit Pujari

Adit Pujari is an NBA Journalist and Strategist at The SportsRush. He formerly worked as a debate and writing trainer. An avid fan of Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers, Adit began following the league in 2007. With the Lakers and Boston Celtics rivalry ripe, he found himself hooked to the sport immediately. After 15 years of religiously following the league, he decided to use his knowledge base as a sports writer in 2021. Since then, he has worked as an NBA writer, led a team of MLB writers, and has now joined The SportsRush. In his spare time, Adit loves playing pickup games and exploring hidden Himalayan trails.

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