Beverly Hills, 90213 

Down to his last dime, a hungry young actor walked into yet another tryout in 1990 desperate to get the part.  His agent had sent him to the reading, thinking he’d be perfect for the series – a new TV show coming out on FOX with a young cast called “Beverly Hills 90210.”  When the handsome teen’s turn comes up, he decides to play it cool and act really low key, not turning on his usual charm.  Bad decision on his part – or was it?  The casting director called this would-be TV star’s agent and berated the agent for wasting the director’s time.  “That kid was embarrassing!”  The director said the actor was too quiet, too soft-spoken, and would never make it on TV. 

As it turns out, there were bigger things in store for this young man:  Missing the part on “90210” opened the door for a one-line speaking role in the movie “Buffy the Vampire Slayer”, then as an extra in “Field of Dreams”, and an Oscar for creating the Best Original Screenplay with 1997’s “Good Will Hunting.”  By the time he scored a starring role in the movie “Armageddon”, Ben Affleck was a star.