Big Ego, Big Budget, Big Disaster
Leonard Part 6 (1987)
Inducted 2017
Stars didn't get any bigger than Bill Cosby in the '80s. He was riding high with the number one show on television, singlehandedly saving the NBC television network. Decades before his arrogance would become common knowledge, Bill Cosby sought to parlay his fame into a film career. Lucky for him, he was a valued spokesman for Coca-Cola, the same Coca-Cola that had just bought Columbia Pictures.
Cosby chose a comedy action film to be his starring vehicle. Leonard Part 6 was supposed to be a big budget summer tent pole that would brighten Cosby's star, make millions for Columbia and promote Coca-Cola. Cosby took the project under his wing: co-writing, co-producing and starring in the picture. When things went south, however, Bill Cosby wouldn't go down with the ship. He blamed everyone else for the picture- Columbia Pictures, the other writers, Coca Cola. It would be the beginning of the end for the teflon Cos.
