'Armageddon', if you can believe it, turned 20 this week.

The disaster epic was a box-office smash on its release in 1998, rocketing to a box office of $553 million during its run and gifting the world with Aerosmith's 'Don't Wanna Miss A Thing' - as well as one of the best behind-the-scenes stories involving Ben Affleck trying to figure out why miners were being sent to outer space instead of astronauts.

So, what's everyone been up to in the interim?

 

Bruce Willis - "Harry Stamper"

To say that Bruce Willis' career has taken a nosedive is an understatement, quite frankly. We covered it in a previous article, but here's the takeout points - Bruce Willis hasn't really had a hit since 2012's 'Moonrise Kingdom' and 'Looper'. In fact, he's starred in progressively poorer films since then. 'Glass', the upcoming sequel to 'Unbreakable' and 'Split', will hopefully correct the downward trend. Back in '98, however? Willis was on fire. He had this, 'The Fifth Element' and would star in 'The Sixth Sense' a year later. What happened?

 

Ben Affleck - "A.J. Frost"

Really, you have to listen to the commentary from Ben Affleck about 'Armageddon' as it's easily one of the best out there. Affleck's career took a few meandering turns after 'Armageddon' - less said about 'Gigli', the better - but he's since branched off into directing, having gotten behind the camera for heist thriller 'The Town' and the adaptation of Dennis Lehane's 'Live By Night' and 'Gone Baby Gone'. Oh, he also starred in a small indie film called 'Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice' and its follow-up, 'Justice League'.

 

Liv Tyler - "Grace Stamper"

Shortly after 'Armageddon', Tyler went to work on 'Lord Of The Rings', where she played the central character Arwen. She reunited with her 'Armageddon' co-star Ben Affleck in the pretty awful 'Jersey Girl' in 2004, but has since then kept her work primarily to indie films like 'Robot & Frank' and 'The Strangers'. Most recently, she turned up in HBO's adaptation of 'The Leftovers'.

 

Billy Bob Thornton - "Dan Truman"

Billy Bob Thornton has one of those careers that can't be easily defined by one genre or role. By all accounts, he was something of an odd-man-out in 'Armageddon', as he hadn't done anything even remotely close to a blockbuster before or since. Thornton's shifted more into prestige television roles, turning up in the first season of 'Fargo' as Lorne Malvo, a terrifying hitman who ripples through the sleepy town.

 

 

Steve Buscemi - "Rockhound"

Like Billy Bob Thornton, Steve Buscemi was another odd choice for this as he's not exactly known for taking blockbusters roles such as this. Arguably the closest he ever came to a blockbuster was John Carpenter's 'Escape From L.A.', but that was... well, pretty bad. Since 'Armageddon', Buscemi's been pretty busy - having turned up in everything from 'The Sopranos' to '30 Rock' and even 'Portlandia' in a cameo or two. He most recently shared an ensemble in the excellent political comedy 'The Death Of Stalin'.

 

Peter Stormare - "Lev Andropov"

Having had some time to think about it, the only realise we can think of as to why Stromare and Buscemi were on this was because JJ Abrams - who wrote 'Armageddon' - was a huge fan of 'Fargo' and wanted to reunite these two. Stormare had a small role in office favourite 'John Wick: Chapter Two', and has turned up in the TV adaptation of 'Get Shorty' with Roscommon's own Chris O'Dowd, and more recently, as Czernobog in 'American Gods'.

 

Michael Clarke Duncan - "Bear"

The physical, recognisable presence of Michael Clarke Duncan in any movie - not just 'Armageddon' - has been sadly missed since his passing in 2012. Duncan's first major role was on 'Armageddon', and his friendship with Bruce Willis led him to being recommended for arguably his most recognisable role - that of John Coffey in 'The Green Mile'. Duncan passed away from a heart-attack in 2012 at the age of 54.