In the early part of the 2000s, Terrence Howard was on the cusp of major stardom. He’d been around since the mid-nineties, stealing scenes in movies like Dead Presidents, Mr. Holland’s Opus and The Best Man (which spawned a legit franchise). But, it was his role in Paul Haggis’ Oscar-winner Crash that led to many saying he would be the next great actor of his generation. His role in the Sundance break-out Hustle & Flow was a sensation that nabbed him a (well-deserved) Oscar nomination, and he followed it up with excellent character work in Four Brothers, The Brave One, Get Rich or Die Tryin’, and more. But, his role as James Rhodes in Iron Man promised big things to come.
At the time, no one knew the film would kick off the MCU, and he was well-positioned, with his character slated to become War Machine in the sequel. Yet, when Iron Man 2 came out in 2010, he was replaced by Don Cheadle. What happened? The accounts differ, but the consensus is that Howard was asked to take a significant pay cut to continue in the role, and he refused. Since then, Howard has maintained that losing the part harmed his career in a significant way. That said, he went on to arguably his greatest success as an actor in 2015 when he signed on to play the lead in Empire, a TV show that became a cult sensation and made him a household name. But, gossip and Howard’s own bizarre antics seemed to follow him around. Most recently, he was back in the limelight thanks to his continuing role in The Best Man franchise, but following the release of the limited series, The Best Man: The Final Chapters, he announced that he was officially retiring as an actor.
So what happened to Terrence Howard? How does one of the most promising actors of his generation end up virtually retired at only 54? In this episode of What Happened to this Celebrity, which is written (with Mathew Plale), narrated and produced by Taylor James Johnson, and edited by Kier Gomes, we take a look at Howard’s life and legacy. Do you think Terrence Howard is due a comeback and perhaps an apology from Marvel? Let us know in the comments!