When Steven Seagal predicted the future of his career: “I’m thoroughly expecting to end up in the gutter”
Steven Seagal isn’t much of an actor these days, but he has his hand in a bit of everything; he’s a faded movie star, a figure of left-wing fun, a former lawman, a close friend of Vladimir Putin, and the worst musician in recorded history.
When you write a song that includes the lyric “Me want the poonani”, then you know something has gone horribly wrong, such that he now fills a very Icarus-like space in the current culture as a cautionary tale about what happens when you fly too close to the sun.
However, it didn’t used to be like this because, at one point, Seagal was the most in-demand name in action cinema. His breakthrough role in 1988’s Above the Law led to a raft of hits that breathed new life into the martial arts: whether he was in a city, a forest, on a boat, or anywhere else, he brought a kickass, high-octane style of screen presence that scratched a very particular itch.
As the old saying goes, what goes up must come down, and prior to his fall from grace, Seagal seemed perfectly comfortable with the idea of losing his star status. In an interview with Parade magazine, the master of aikido revealed that he had a vision of his future, and it wasn’t particularly bright.
“I’m thoroughly expecting to end up in the gutter, to no longer be the star that people think I am right now,” he announced, “And that’s OK. You can take away the money and the fame… I could walk away from Hollywood tomorrow and not look back… I’m a lucky man, but I don’t take what I have for granted.”
Seagal made these comments in 1994, which coincided with the release of his one and only directorial effort, On Deadly Ground. He was still enjoying the fruits of his success, but the sun was beginning to set on his superstardom. As the quality of his films got worse and worse, peaking (or rather troughing) with the hideous Ja Rule vehicle (remember Ja Rule?) Half Past Dead, the public became less and less interested in paying their hard-earned cash to see them. This is when Seagal found solace in the world of direct-to-DVD, a realm he has occupied ever since.
It’s not just Seagal’s professional output that has turned people against him, but his various legal issues range from the outlandish to the downright reprehensible.
He’s been accused multiple times of sexual harassment, as well as human trafficking and engaging in relationships with minors, to the point where he’s become a living punchline in Hollywood, the go-to example of a washed-up star who deserves every bit of the misfortune he’s suffered.
Hearing Seagal talk about his downfall years before it happened is equal parts fascinating, hilarious, and tragic. His realisation that he was destined for “the gutter” prompts more questions than answers about why he was so sure of it, and whether he could have stopped continuing to be a giant asshole anyway? We may never know.
