I Miss Movie Stars

[Sgt_Kickaxe]

I've always been a movie buff and many moons ago I ran a small fan site for a handful of movie stars from a specific country. I had their permission, it was back when Netscape dominated. I gave it up when the studios started demanding payments for free publicity, movie poster use etc, even if the actors were cool with their pictures and interviews being freely shared.

One thing has really changed in the movie industry since then, and that's the movie star, or deletion of them if you will.

I can't say Rambo without an old fogey knowing that's a Stallone movie. I can't say Alien without fans knowing that's a Sigourney Weaver movie. Top Gun? Yeah, that's a Tom Cruise movie, etc. They don't make movies where the actor is the star anymore.

I recently watched Black Adam. Anthony Mackie did a great job with his character but Anthony Mackie isn't a movie star, The Falcon is a movie star.

Your favorite movies wouldn't get made today. As Anthony Mackie himself recently said, movies today are made for 16 year old's and for Chinese profits. Actors get roles but cannot become the star, their characters get all the glory, it's far more profitable for the studio to have replaceable actors.

We have few remaining movie stars, all replaced with consumable product, so if a movie comes along that is memorable because of the acting and the story they carry, and it's not filled with obvious social ideology, give it a chance. We had actual humans as idols once upon a time.

[tangor]

I miss movie stars who were entertainers, not political activists.

Times change, of course, and we can change as well. :)

The stars in the heavens are not as bright as they once where.

[ronin]

I'd say Dwayne Johnson is a movie star. I know him better than I know any of his characters.

I'd say the same of Kate Winslet.

And Leonardo DiCaprio.

And Ana de Armas.

And Ewan McGregor

And Scarlett Johansson

And Colin Farrell

And Rachel Weisz

And Robert Pattinson

And Penelope Cruz

And Matt Damon

And Natalie Portman

And Ben Affleck

And Frances McDormand

And Keanu Reeves

And Helena Bonham Carter

[tangor]

Different generations.... :)

John Wayne
Kirk Douglas
Maureen O'Sullivan
...

[ronin]

Sure, but I thought the original point was not that we no longer have an older generation of movie stars, but that we no longer have movie stars at all (?)

[tangor]

We have "stars" (they tell us so, quite frequently) but we no longer have the "movie idols" that once existed.

The OP's point was the film/creative was more important than the actors. And I agree with that, mostly.

[londrum]

happily it won't be long before they're making new movies with famous film stars who are already dead.
i remember watching Rogue One and the best moment was when they recreated Carrie Fisher. It was the same in the Mandalorian when they recreated a young Luke Hamill. They did it with that guy who played Tarkin as well
I think Bruce Willis has already sold the rights to his image or something like that, before he had to retire

[tangor]

Luke's father (James Earl Jones) has sold his voice off, and spent many many hours of reading this that and the other for a company to then cut/paste new scripts/stories using his voice. Pretty soon we won't need people. (sigh)

[Martin Potter]

If I live long enough to own a real AI of my own, then I won't need Hollywood. On the other hand ...

Pretty soon we won't need people.

A few weeks ago a copy of Super Intelligence by Nick Bostrom (revised, 2017) fell into my hands. (This edition has extensive footnotes and bibliography.) Haven't had to a chance to read it yet, but it looks scary. Guess I had better read it before "Pretty soon".