Not only was Aeon Flux a complete flop, but an accident on-set almost ended Charlize Theron’s career.

Often times, we hear about celebs turning down huge roles. Take Emma Watson, who turned down La La Land, or Uma Thurman, who missed out on a franchise worth billions in the Lord of the Rings. Sandra Bullock was also guilty for passing on The Matrix, getting offered Keanu Reeves’ lead role.RELATED -Mark Wahlberg Turned Down An Oscar-Nominated Film Because Of His PriestHowever, would is underlooked, is the roles that actors end up taking, and completely regretting. This is inevitable, and even the best actors can’t possibly maintain a polished resume. That was the case for Charlize Theron, who was coming off the performance of her career thanks to Monster. However, just a year after the Oscar win, Theron tanked back to the bottom, thanks to her role in Aeon Flux.We’ll take a look back at how it all went down, and how a serious injury in the failed film almost ended Theron’s career.

Charlize Theron Won An Oscar For Best Actress In The Film Monster

The 2003 film Monster had a tiny budget of $1.5 million. Nonetheless, it managed to turn a profit of $64 million, while receiving stellar reviews from the likes of Rotten Tomatoes, earning an approval rating of 81%.

The role also got Charlize Theron an Oscar in 2004 for Best Actress. Theron still has fond memories of the moment, though her Oscar speech wasn’t the easiest to pull off, especially when talking about her mom.

She recalled the special moment alongside People, “I knew that I couldn’t look at her [during the Monster speech] because if I looked at her, I wouldn’t be able to get through it.”

“And then I thought if I save it for last … there will be some build up so I’ll have enough time to get off stage before it really happened, and I was just a mess.”

Theron thanked her mom at the end of her Oscar speech. She said in the final moments, “And my mom. You’ve sacrificed so much for me to be able to live here and make my dreams come true and there are no words to describe how much I love you. And I’m not gonna cry. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!”

Theron was feeling the ultimate high of her career, however, just a year later, things fell apart thanks to a regrettable role.

Aeon Flux Was A Complete Disaster For Charlize Theron And Everyone Involved

charlize theron at the world premiere of “aeon flux” (2005) pic.twitter.com/6glDUkhOvT — best of charlize theron (@badpostcharlize) October 4, 2021

The sci/fi, action thriller turned out to be a complete bust, both in reviews and at the box office. The film brought in $52 million, off a budget of $62 million. The reviews were worse, with Rotten Tomatoes giving the film a 9% approval rating…

Theron admitted years after the fact that she wasn’t sold on the plot of Aeon Flux, instead, she really wanted to work with the film’s director, Karyn Kusama.

She revealed with Variety, “When ‘Aeon Flux’ came to me, I thought that could be something. I was never completely sold on the entire concept, but I really loved [director] Karyn Kusama’s movie [‘Girlfight’]. So I threw myself into that with the belief that she’s a great filmmaker.”

Theron would reveal when she was offered action scripts, she was either behind a computer or the wife in the role, which inclined her to say yes, that much more.

However, she learned soon after, that wasn’t the best idea.

“And then we f—d it all up,” she says with a laugh. “I just don’t think we really knew how to execute it. And it’s disappointing, but it happens. I’ve been in this business long enough to know that you cannot get it right every time.”

Not only was the film a bust, but it was also very dangerous, potentially ending Theron’s career and putting her health in jeopardy.

Charlize Theron Almost Ended Her Career In Aeon Flux After A Failed Stunt

As if trying to perform a handspring backflip isn’t hard enough, Theron attempted to do so with platform shoes and the wrong attire. The result, Theron landing on her neck and almost injuring her spinal cord. She recalled the scary incident.

“What happened on Aeon Flux was a very unfortunate accident, and it was very severe. I was a centimeter away from being completely paralyzed for the rest of my life. It definitely woke me up to, ‘Okay, you have to be prepared.’ It was nobody’s fault, but it was just a freak accident.”

Clearly, the film was a mess in all aspects.