You know how it goes. You’re watching a film, possibly with friends if you have them, and an actor pops up. “Oooh him! What was he in?” Debates begin, IMDb is consulted. You find out that this actor was in quite a few films a couple of years ago, and was almost in Massive Moviestar territory, until seemingly it all went wrong. “What happened?” you wonder. We at Best for Film wonder also. Here’s our Top 10 Movie Stars that it Never Quite Happened For.

Robert Redford’s latest directorial exploit stars James McAvoy and Robin Wright (quondam Robin Wright Penn) in a sepia-tinted legal drama about the distinctly witch-hunty trials which followed the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. You may need a short nap in the middle, but The Conspirator‘s beetle-browed intensity is more than made up for with a slew of well-judged performances in a supremely atmospheric setting.