Ashton Kutcher

One of that select group of actors whose pop culture fame—especially his tabloid fame–exceeds their actual movie stardom, Ashton Kutcher (birthname: Christopher Ashton Kutcher), perhaps found his ideal film role as Steve Jobs in the 2013 Joshua Michael Stern film, Jobs, in which he portrayed a man, not unlike Kutcher: a guy who had grown up with a love (acting, modeling) but who had developed into something else (high-tech entrepreneur).

It’s a measure of Ashton Kutcher’s strange film career that he was a co-star or star in 17 films between 2000 and 2013 and has had only one regular role in a film since—B.J. Novak’s mystery-comedy, Vengeance, in 2022. In many ways, Ashton Kutcher was one of the hottest Hollywood faces for one decade, starting with his breakout starring role in Dude, Where’s My Car? (2000), followed by director Steve Miner’s Western Texas Rangers (2001), with James Van Der Beek and Alfred Molina.

Kutcher’s métier was the rom-com, a genre he appeared to own from 2003–Shawn Levy’s Just Married, with Brittany Murphy; David Zucker’s My Boss’s Daughter, with Tara Reid and Terence Stamp; and another Shawn Levy film, the remake of Cheaper by the Dozen, with Steve Martin–until 2011, including Ivan Reitman’s No Strings Attached, with Natalie Portman, and Garry Marshall’s ensemble rom-com, New Year’s Eve, with Kutcher playing opposite Zac Efron and Lea Michele.

Other Ashton Kutcher rom-coms during this period include Kevin Rodney Sullivan’s Guess Who (2005), with Bernie Mac and Zoe Saldana; Nigel Cole’s A Lot Like Love (2005), with Amanda Peet; Tom Vaughan’s What Happens in Vegas (2008), with Cameron Diaz; David Mackenzie’s Spread (2009) produced by Kutcher and co-starring Anne Heche; and another Garry Marshall ensemble comedy, Valentine’s Day (2010), with Jessica Alba, George Lopez, and Jennifer Garner.

Kutcher made less of an impact with his dramas, including The Butterfly Effect (2004), with Amy Smart; Emilio Estevez’s film Portrait of Bobby Kennedy, Bobby (2006), with an all-star lineup including Elijah Wood, Harry Belafonte, Lindsay Lohan, Sharon Stone, Demi Moore, and Anthony Hopkins; Andrew Davis’ The Guardian (2006), with Kevin Costner; and director David Hollander’s adaptation of the Rick Moody story, Personal Effects (2009), with Michelle Pfeiffer. Kutcher is part of the cast of director-star James Franco’s The Long Home (date to be announced) and co-stars with Reese Witherspoon Aline McKenna’s rom-com, Your Place or Mine (date to be announced).