Robin Williams Ended His Career With A Flop Instead Of A Bang

Williams' last film was the comedy "Absolutely Anything," directed and co-written by Terry Jones of "Monty Python" fame. It stars Simon Pegg as a schoolteacher named Neil Clarke, who is given the power to accomplish anything instantly with a simple wave of his hand. His power is granted to him as a litmus test for humanity's worthiness by aliens who are planning to destroy the earth.

The aliens are voiced by Jones and fellow Python alums John Cleese, Michael Palin, Terry Gilliam, and Eric Idle (via IMDb). Williams voices Neil's dog Dennis, who convinces Neil to transfer his newly granted abilities to Dennis since his human caretaker is squandering or abusing his immense power. Needless to say, Neil fails his test, and it's left to Dennis to save the earth. Despite the clever premise and strong cast (which also featured Eddie Izzard, Rob Riggle, and Kate Beckinsale), "Absolutely Anything" made just over $7 million at the box office (via The Numbers) and earned just 20% approval from critics and 32% from audiences on Rotten Tomatoes. 

The movie was released in the United Kingdom about a year after Williams' death and didn't make its way to the United States until 2017 (via CNN). The trailer, available on YouTube, features the slogan, "With great power comes total irresponsibility," and shows Neil granting Dennis the power to speak, along with other misguided and/or selfish requests Neil makes that almost doom the world.