Matthew McConaughey

The American actor Matthew McConaughey became a household name when he landed the role of 'Wooderson' in the unforgettable teen comedy "Dazed and Confused." But while his subsequent appearances were commercially successful, this Texan hunk found it hard to get out of the rom-com circuit for many years.

One day, it all changed. McConaughey returned to the spotlight as a serious dramatic actor and was praised by critics and fans alike. His best works include season one of "True Detective" and the award-winning film "Dallas Buyers Club." Oh, and have we mentioned that he took his shirt off for "Magic Mike" in the meantime?

Dave Chapelle

Despite some controversial feuds involving the LGBTQIA+ community, the American stand-up comedian Dave Chapelle is widely regarded (including by himself) as one of comedy's ultimate GOATs. However, he almost went AWOL for good after refusing $50 million to produce a new season of the hit series "Chapelle's Show" and going on a spiritual retreat instead.

The popularity of Netflix specials eventually allowed him to make a striking return to action with a series of stand-up nights that left comedy fans with water in their mouths. Forget about the lost $50 million, too, as Chapelle's Netflix deal reportedly got him a total of $60 million in earnings!

Michael Keaton

In 2014, everybody thought that the American actor Michael Keaton was done. Sure, he was still loved fondly by fans for his popular '80s and '90s movie roles, which included appearances in productions as popular as "Night Shift," "Batman," and "Jackie Brown." But nobody expected what was coming next.

In one of the most surprising comebacks in Hollywood history, a seemingly done Keaton starred in the award-winning Alejandro Iñárritu masterpiece "Birdman." His performance was so convincing that his career was never the same. Not long after, he was cast to appear in movies as important as "Spotlight," "The Founder," and Marvel's "Morbius."

Rob Lowe

Rob Lowe is such a prolific actor that's crazy to think his career was almost over when a scandalous private tape of him was leaked to the public in 1988. At the time, the hunky small-screen superstar was still best known for being a member of the Brat Pack, a group of '80s teen stars that also included the likes of Demi Moore and Judd Nelson.

Luckily for all TV fans, Lowe made a striking comeback to action after landing the protagonist role in the Aaron Sorkin classic "The West Wing." From the late '90s onward, he continued to appear in successful projects.

Eddie Murphy

Some superstars stay away from the spotlight simply because they can't find work in relevant productions. But the American stand-up comedian/actor Eddie Murphy was deemed done by many people in the '00s due to back-to-back funny flicks that failed to convince the audience. With its dismal 4.1 rating on IMDb, "Norbit" is a classic example of an Eddie-Murphy flop.

But guess what? Instead of giving up and enjoying his many millions, Murphy worked hard to return to his top form. He ended up wowing comedy buffs again with the 2019 Blaxploitation-style biopic "Dolemite Is My Name," produced by Netflix.

Eminem

Released in 2000, "The Marshall Mathers LP" is considered to be Eminem's defining record, as well as one of the ultimate hip-hop masterpieces of the '00s. The beloved rapper continued to release successful albums throughout the '00s but ended up spending five years without a new work following 2013's "The Marshall Mathers LP 2."

When everybody thought Eminem was old news, the Missouri native returned with "Revival." Sure, the record wasn't exactly consensually beloved, but it was commercially successful and quickly followed by "Kamikaze" and "Music to Be Murdered By." In total, Eminem has sold more than 200 million records worldwide.

Vanessa Williams

As the first African-American woman to win the Miss America pageant (in 1983), the American actress Vanessa Williams seemed destined for greatness. However, a scandal involving a series of raunchy magazine photos forced her to give up the crown. Was it the end of Williams' career, though?

Not by any means. Instead of giving up, Williams worked hard to return to the spotlight and continued working until today. In recent years alone, the Emmy Award-nominated "Ugly Betty" star appeared in "Girls5eva," "Crossovers Live!," "Twenties," and the animated series "T.O.T.S." She's also a successful singer with nine studio albums.

John Krasinski

More than making a striking comeback, the American actor John Krasinski operated a 360-degree change in his acting career. He went from being a lovable rom-com star, best known for his work in the acclaimed sitcom "The Office," to becoming a bonafide action hero Hollywood casting agents just can't get enough of.

Now best known for his role in the TV series "Jack Ryan," the hunky Krasinski also starred in the action flick "13 Hours" and the popular horror movies "A Quiet Place" and "A Quiet Place Part II." More recently, viewers saw him do his thing in "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness."

Drew Barrymore

As one of the most outstanding child actresses Hollywood has ever seen, Drew Barrymore looked like she had the world in her hands. However, substance-related issues caused her to stop when she was a teenager. Everybody thought her golden days were gone, but Barrymore showed everyone the best was yet to come.

After overcoming her problems when she was a teenager, the prodigious "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial" star appeared in blockbusters such as "Charlie's Angels" and "50 First Dates" and continued to work steadily and successfully as an A-list actress, producer, and even director. She also hosts "The Drew Barrymore Show."

Sylvester Stallone

The American actor Sylvester Stallone was arguably the world's most famous action hero in the '70s and '80s, much due to his starring roles in the film series "Rocky" and "Rambo." However, his popularity faded over the years, leaving him with fewer relevant new jobs than he wanted.

It all changed in 2015, the year Stallone got the attention of the Oscars Academy once more after portraying an aging 'Rocky Balboa' in the Michael B. Jordan movie "Creed." Proving that true movie stars are never too old to make a comeback, Stallone is now starring in the gangster series "Tulsa King."

Winona Ryder

It's not like the American actress Winona Ryder has ever stopped working. However, she failed to be a part of a hit production for many years following her back-to-back blockbuster appearances in the '90s and early '00s, which included movies as beloved as "Edward Scissorhands," "Little Women," and "Girl, Interrupted."

But when everybody thought Ryder's glory days were over, she landed the role of 'Joyce Byers' in the hit Netflix series "Stranger Things." She's been getting increasingly attractive roles since she made her surprising return to viral productions, landing (among others) a part in the terrific David Simon miniseries "The Plot Against America."

Monica Lewinsky

Monica Lewinsky is such a famous woman that many people forget she's not supposed to be a public figure. She was just a White House intern that became the world's most famous woman for a while after being romantically involved with the then-serving President of the United States, Bill Clinton.

While the media's attention almost cost Lewinsky her mental health, she was strong enough to bounce back and live a regular life. She completed a degree in psychology and started working as an anti-cyberbullying activist. In recent years, her White House days were brilliantly documented in the TV series "American Crime Story: Impeachment."

Keanu Reeves

When "The Matrix" came out in 1999, it caused such a fuzz that it seemed overwhelmingly obvious that Keanu Reeves, the man behind 'Neo,' was cut out to be THE star of the '00s. Interestingly enough, that never happened, as Reeves ended up making a few bad choices and starring in a series of movies that performed poorly at the box office.

The Lebanon-born actor, however, was determined not to give up. Proving everyone he was more than just 'Neo,' he starred in the hit action flick "John Wick" in 2014, which was met enthusiastically by critics and fans alike.

Martha Stewart

Coming back to the spotlight after appearing in a few bad movies is one thing. Doing so after spending time in jail for insider trading is another. The small-screen legend Matha Stewart was deemed done by many once she ran into trouble with the law, but she made a surprising return after doing time.

She released new products, made it to reality shows such as "The Apprentice," and started making regular appearances on popular American talk shows. Little by little, she returned to being the Martha Stewart everybody knows and loves, producing and hosting shows such as "Martha Cooks" and "The Martha Stewart Podcast."

Robin Wright

In the late '80s and '90s, the American actress Robin Wright looked like she was on the right path to success. However, co-starring in the 1994 classic "Forrest Gump" was her biggest claim to fame for years. After being mainly relegated to secondary roles for many years, she rehashed her career by portraying 'Claire Underwood' in the hit political series "House of Cards."

She did such an excellent job in the TV series that Hollywood casting agents couldn't continue to ignore her. She's made it to many popular productions ever since, including the movies "Blade Runner 2049," "Zach Snyder's Justice League," and "Wonder Woman 1984."

Betty White

Without a doubt, an old-school entertainer, the late Betty White, worked in show business for a whopping seven decades. She was never away from the entertainment industry for too long. However, circa 2010, outlets such as New York Times and Oprah.com started making headlines referring to White's "big comeback."

While White herself once claimed she didn't understand why people thought she was coming back to a business she never left, it's a fact she became arguably more famous than ever after landing the role of 'Elka Ostrovsky' in the TV series "Ho* in Cleveland." In total, she appeared in more than 120 movies and series.

Christian Slater

The American actor Christian Slater is not to blame for his off years. An incredibly hardworking showbiz pro, he appeared in more than 130 TV series and movies over the years. However, the parts he got between the early '00s and 2015 were hardly as noticeable as the ones he landed in the '90s: movies such as "Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves," "True Romance," and "Very Bad Things."

It all changed with 2015's "Mr. Robot." The cult thriller got Slater on the map once more, helping him to revitalize a career that seemed to be going down a descending path.

Mel Gibson

Hollywood comebacks don't get any better than this! Even though the "Braveheart" idol, Mel Gibson, was once one of the biggest movie stars on the planet, a series of public blunders got him canceled by his fans and peers—yes, even in a time the word "canceled" was not thrown around nearly as much.

Against all odds, though, Gibson started operating a quiet comeback and made a return to action, both as a starring actor and well-funded director. He was swamped in 2022, starring in a whopping six new movies, including "Bandit," "On the Line," and "Father Stu" (also starring Mark Wahlberg).

Robert Downey Jr.

A famous up-and-coming actor during the '80s, Robert Downey Jr., spent the '90s dealing with substance-related issues. And while many superstars coping with the same problem manage to make a comeback, Downey Jr.'s was arguably the most impressive we have ever seen.

From almost-forgotten young actor to Hollywood A-lister, Downey Jr.'s "second life" in show business ended up being far more successful than his first one. Now one of the world's leading movie stars, he's mainly known for portraying the characters of 'Iron Man' and 'Sherlock Holmes' in many box-office toppers. In 2022, he produced "Sr.," a Netflix documentary about his father.

Ellen DeGeneres

The world was a very different place in the late '90s. While all romantic orientations are accepted in today's world (at least, in the West), people weren't so enlightened a few decades before. Take Ellen DeGeneres, for example, who lost her popular sitcom "Ellen" in 1997 just because she decided to come out as a gay woman.

Going through the horror of losing her job just because she wanted to live her truth didn't stop Ellen, though. Later, she landed the hit talk show that would define her career: "The Ellen DeGeneres Show," which ran successfully between 2003 and 2022.