Hollywood Hype Machine: Difference between revisions
→Examples that didn't hold up (try to keep to the particularly glaring examples):
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Compare [[Deader Than Disco]], [[Hype Aversion]], [[Hype Backlash]]. Also compare it to the "star system" employed by the studios during the [[Golden Age of Hollywood]], which this is effectively a modernized version of.
{{examples}}
* Silent film actress Clara Bow was [[Trope Maker|the original]] "It Girl" (because she starred in [[Trope Namer|a movie called]] ''It''). Natural charisma and an earthy sexuality uncommon for that era made her a huge star in the latter 1920s. She was able to overcome a thick Brooklyn accent and transition to talkies, but an exceedingly fragile psyche combined with an adversarial relationship with Paramount Pictures led to a nervous breakdown in 1931. Paramount fired her, and after an abortive comeback attempt she retired from movies at the age of 28.
* Matthew McConaughey is a defining example. When ''A Time to Kill'' came out in 1996, he was basically called the "next [[Brad Pitt]]" and given a ''ton'' of new major roles. ''People'' Magazine covers soon followed, and he was expected to become the next A-list star. What ended up happening was a major string of box-office disappointments and minor roles, and he became instead known for appearing shirtless in "Celebrity Beach Body" specials, showing up in [[Direct to Video]] indie films, and being the romantic male lead in [[Chick Flick]]s. Not quite what was expected.
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* Alicia Silverstone wound up getting her career (built on the strength of ''[[Clueless]]'') kicked out from under her by ''[[Batman and Robin (film)|Batman and Robin]]''.
* Gretchen Mol was touted as another "It Girl" when she debuted in ''Rounders''. It didn't pan out, with ''Rounders'' doing middling business, and even she (with newfound indie-cred from playing the lead role in ''[[The Notorious Bettie Page]]'') admits that it was a particularly bad example of the '''Hollywood Hype Machine''' building up an unprepared starlet. She is doing quite well with films and a recurring role on critical favourite ''[[Boardwalk Empire]]''.
* Most of the "New Brat Pack" (a pun on the [[Brat Pack (actors)|Brat Pack]] of [[The Eighties]]) that emerged from the ''[[American Pie]]'' movies ended up like this. Many of them got star pushes of different levels, but in the end, only [[Alyson Hannigan]] went on to [[How I Met Your Mother|bigger fame]]—and this most likely had more to do with her pre-''Pie'' exposure on ''[[Buffy the Vampire Slayer]]'' than anything else. Examples:
** Shannon Elizabeth became [[Ms. Fanservice|a sex sensation]] after ''Pie'' came out. She showed up in countless [[Public Exposure|men's magazines]] (including an all-nude shoot in ''[[Playboy]]'') and got a half-dozen roles in films like ''[[Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back]]'', ''[[13 Ghosts]]'', and ''Tomcats''. Just a couple of years later, she was a bit player and was essentially gone from any mainstream Hollywood attention. This may or may not have to do with her decision to no longer do nudity in film, even though that was [[Everybody Remembers the Stripper|what made her a star]] in the first place. She's since become more famous as a professional poker player and as a ''[[Dancing With the Stars]]'' contestant, and though she does still act, most of her films now go [[Direct to Video]] and it's unlikely she'll do anything noteworthy anytime soon.
** Mena Suvari, between ''Pie'' and ''[[American Beauty]]'', got a decent push, but slowly vanished from the spotlight and is now best known for indie films.
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** Tara Reid had one of the better shots, but problems with drugs and alcohol, botched plastic surgery, and a penchant for carrying the [[Idiot Ball]] (though she claimed that [[Author's Saving Throw|she was only]] [[Obfuscating Stupidity|"acting" dumb]], most people aren't sure of whether that's true or not) derailed her into a mess, though that still hasn't stopped her from doing DTV films.
** Chris Klein was an ill-fated [[Estrogen Brigade Bait]] attempt that went nowhere after his hoped-for star turn, the remake of ''[[Rollerball]]'', turned into a [[Star-Derailing Role]] instead.
** Eddie Kaye Thomas (Finch) went from ''Pie'' to a series of "dorky, lovable loser" roles in films like the infamous flops ''[[Freddy Got Fingered]]'' and ''Dirty Love'', as well as a string of DTV films rebranded under the "National Lampoon" banner. However, he has at least attempted to restore his cred in recent years with appearances in the ''[[Harold
** Ironically, John Cho, who plays a minor character in the film, is the one whose movie career is most on the rise, between ''[[Harold
** Natasha Lyonne is an especially unhappy case. She got even more cred with ''But I'm A Cheerleader'' but a serious problem with drugs and Alcohol (Including a DUI, a bout with an STD and stay in Rehab) as well as health problems and extreme Mental illness have all but destroyed her career. There was even a period where she was living homeless on the streets of NYC after being evicted from her apartment for her behaviour. Nowadays she's more likely to be discussed as the butt of jokes than for her acting talents.
* [[Lindsay Lohan]]. This one wasn't related to any lack of talent -- [[Meryl Streep]], of all people, vouched for her acting ability, as did her ''[[Mean Girls]]'' co-star [[Tina Fey]]. Instead, her problems came from a combination of a disastrous relationship with [[Stage Mom|her parents]], chronic [[Bottle Fairy|partying]] and drug/alcohol abuse (which eventually led to legal troubles), and a reputation for being [[Small Name, Big Ego|a diva]] who often showed up to set late and hung over. An awful case of [[What Could Have Been]]. The full details can be seen on [[Lindsay Lohan|her page]].
* [[Paris Hilton]]. There's really too many to name in this topic... but we're gonna name them anyway. Unlike the other people on this list, this heiress and socialite did not earn her fame through "legitimate" routes (film, TV, music), but through a [[Home Porn Movie]] that was "leaked" online in advance of the debut of her [[Reality Show]] ''The Simple Life''. Not only did [[No Such Thing as Bad Publicity|the video turn her into a mega-star virtually overnight]], it also established the home sex tape as a viable route for would-be celebrities and fading stars to boost their careers. She went on to channel her fame into careers in music and (non-pornographic) film, both of which have been non-starters, and the latter notable only for producing her performance in ''[[Repo! The Genetic Opera|Repo the Genetic Opera]]''. Lately, she seems to have settled back into modeling and reality TV with her new show ''The World According To Paris'' - but unlike ''The Simple Life'' this was cancelled after one season.
* Marion Davies is a famous historical example, since it was William Randolph Hearst who financed her bid for movie stardom. While her looks were as good as people expected from a former Ziegfeld girl, and she was far more talented and off-screen amiable than her [[Roman à Clef]] opera singer counterpart in ''[[Citizen Kane]]'', Hearst kept pushing for her to be cast in heavy-duty "respectable" dramatic roles when [[Comedy Ghetto|she was much better at comedy]].
* [[Jessica Biel]] seems to be headed this way, much to her fans' chagrin. Despite a lot of hype early on from ''[[7th
* Denise Richards started out with mostly mediocre movies, but got breast implants and an all-star nude role in ''[[Wild Things]]'', making her a household name ([[Ms. Fanservice|amongst men]]) overnight. A bit of the Hype Machine got underway, but most of her subsequent films were trashed by critics and weren't too successful at the box-office (with the exception of ''[[The World Is Not Enough]]'', and [[James Bond|that was hardly
* Kate Bosworth had bit parts and a cancelled-after-one-season TV show on [[The WB]] called ''Young Americans'' before her starring role in ''Blue Crush''. Once that hit, she was catapulted to the position of It Girl, hyped as the greatest and most beautiful actress of her generation (sometimes this phrase was used pretty much verbatim), and she became a regular tabloid and fashion mag staple because she was dating the premiere heartthrob of the time. Fast forwarding to 2010, and just about every film since ''Blue Crush,'' with the exception of maybe ''[[Superman Returns]]'', has been a critical and/or commercial failure, though not for lack of trying for that great comeback.
** Rachel Bilson, Bosworth's co-star in the
* [[Rachael Leigh Cook]] first came to fame thanks to her role in a famous anti-heroin [[Public Service Announcement]] ([http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nMwxWHaZUro in which she demolishes a kitchen]) and became a star proper when ''[[She's All That]]'' came out. The flop of 2001's ''[[Josie and the Pussycats (film)|Josie and The Pussycats]]'' (and to a lesser extent ''[[Anti Trust]]'' and ''Texas Rangers'' in which she had supporting roles and which unluckily came out the same year) derailed her career and she spent the following decade playing bit parts on television and various forgettable straight to DVD flicks. In recent years, however, she has had some success as a voiceover artist and plum guest roles in the likes of ''[[Psych]]'' and ''[[Ghost Whisperer]]'', and (like many on this list) is not a junkie, criminal, or laughing stock so unlike some names on this list a comeback isn't an entirely unrealistic prospect.
* [[Pia Zadora]] is a notorious example from [[The Eighties]]. After years of bit parts (including a small role in ''[[Santa Claus Conquers the Martians]]'' as a child), her bid for fame started when she married billionaire Meshulam Riklis in 1977. Her career peaked in 1981, when she won the Golden Globe for Best New Star of the Year for the film ''[[Butterfly]]'', which was largely financed by Riklis. However, it has long been rumored that Riklis had [[Screw the Rules, I Have Money|"bought"]] Pia her Golden Globe by financing lavish trips to [[Viva Las Vegas|Vegas]] for the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, and her performance also wound up winning her two Razzies (for Worst Actress and Worst New Star). She won the Worst Actress Razzie ''again'' the following year for her performance in ''[[The Lonely Lady]]'',<ref>and would go on to be named "Worst New Star of the Decade" in 1990 and being nominated for "Worst Actress of the ''Century''" in 2000</ref> a film that essentially killed her acting career and left her doing small parts and cameos. She wound up having far more success as a singer, even earning a Grammy nomination in 1984.
* Elizabeth Berkley was supposed to be the Next Big Thing with ''[[Showgirls]]''. Too bad that trainwreck of a film completely derailed whatever film career she may have had. The fallout was so bad that when she requested $2,500 to be interviewed for the V.I.P. DVD edition of the film, she was ''turned down''. Ouch.
* The [[Virtual Celebrity|CGI actress]] Aki Ross from ''[[Final Fantasy: The
* [[Chris Tucker]] was actually considered to be "the next [[Eddie Murphy]]" when the first ''[[Rush Hour]]'' movie was a surprise success in 1998. Unfortunately, Tucker never attempted (or was much motivated) to branch out and capitalize immediately. The only movies that Tucker has done since 1998 have been the two sequels to ''Rush Hour'' (Tucker was apparently paid $20 million for ''Rush Hour 2''). Tucker has seemed to be more passionate about his charity work, budding up with the late [[Michael Jackson]], and his stand-up.
* [[Demi Moore]] has had various ups and downs, but has been hyped a lot. She was the most-successful member of the Brat Pack era of Hollywood, and went on to some major success in [[The Eighties]], but a string of ''huge'' box office bombs in [[The Nineties]] completely derailed her star. ''[[The Scarlet Letter]]'' was universally loathed by critics and ''[[Striptease (film)|Striptease]]'', a wannabe star-defining role for which she earned the then-highest paycheque of any female in Hollywood history, was another mega-bomb), and she vanished for literally a decade. She only resurfaced as Ashton Kutcher's [[Mrs. Robinson|new wife]], but a storm of hype from her hot body (despite her age) in ''[[Charlie's
** Until she got dumped by Kutcher and subsequently became even bigger tabloid bait...
* Julia Ormond was an unknown in the US when she landed lead roles three big mid-nineties films (''[[Legends of the Fall]]'', ''[[First Knight]]'', and the remake of ''[[Sabrina]]''), starring opposite such actors as [[Brad Pitt]], [[Anthony Hopkins]], [[Sean Connery]], and Richard Gere, but all were box-office and critical disappointments. She's still working, but she never became the "star" Hollywood expected.
* Jennifer Garner was promoted as the next big [[Action Girl]] after coming to public attention with the TV series ''[[Alias (TV series)|Alias]]''. But she turned out to be remarkably unsuccessful in headlining movies. Her big action film debut in ''[[Elektra (film)|Elektra]]'' flopped, whereupon she turned to romantic comedies and did only marginally better. These days, she seems stuck in small supporting roles, such as in ''[[Juno]]'', ''[[Valentine's
* [[Josh Hartnett]] rocketed to super-stardom in the late 90's and early 00's with roles in teen films like ''[[The Virgin Suicides]]'', ''[[Halloween (film)|Halloween]] H2O'', and ''[[The Faculty]]'', and was voted several times by People Magazine as one of their top teen stars of the year. Gradually, however, his momentum died down - in spite of a starring turn in the critically acclaimed ''[[Black Hawk Down]]'', Hartnett was in a long list of commercial flops including ''Town And Country'', ''[[Pearl Harbor]]'', and the box-office bomb ''Hollywood Homicide''. His last work of note, 2007's ''30 Days Of Night'', barely recouped its production budget, and he's spent the late 00's and early 10's working on small indie projects.
* Shannon Sossamon was another teen actor who was a media darling, having catapulted herself to the A-List in 2001-2002 with starring roles in ''[[A Knight's Tale]]'', ''40 Days And 40 Nights'', and ''[[The Rules of Attraction]]''. Afterwards, she spent the 2000's starring in a long string of DTV and indie films, as well as some TV work (most notably on the short-lived [[CBS]] vampire series ''Moonlight''), but it failed to drum up any major following.
* Nia Vardalos came out of nowhere to star in and write ''[[My Big Fat Greek Wedding]]'', which became the biggest indie film and romantic comedy of all-time. After getting an Academy Award nomination as well for her script, big things were expected from her. However, her star fell as soon as it rose with a series of flops (the TV spinoff ''My Big Fat Greek Life'', ''Connie and Carla'') and she faded back into obscurity. A couple attempts at a comeback (starring in 2009's ''My Life in Ruins'' and writing 2011's ''Larry Crowne'') have resulted in critical drubbing and box office failure (the latter was also a rare misstep for [[Tom Hanks]]).
* Canadian actress Estella Warren got a ''huge'' push in 2001 when she starred as the love interest and femme fatale in two major Hollywood films - the remake of ''[[Planet of the Apes]]'' and the [[Sylvester Stallone]] racing film ''Driven''. That (along with dating her ''Driven'' co-star, Kip Purdue, and landing a spot on Maxim's Hot 100 Babe List before she had a single film out) did a lot to jumpstart her fledgling career (in spite of both film's middling box office). However, ''[[Kangaroo Jack]]'' killed any momentum she had. What followed were a string of unsuccessful direct-to-video flops and indie films, along with an unsuccessful marketing push in 2005 (features in ''FHM'' and a supporting role in ''[[Mr. and Mrs. Smith]]'', which was cut prior to the film's release). These days, she's more well-known for her tabloid antics (including trying to break out of a police station after being arrested) than her film career.
* Elizabeth Shue had a solid career as a child
** She may be on the verge of... something... replacing Marg Helgenberger on ''[[CSI: Crime Scene Investigation|CSI]]'' in 2012.
* Sophie Marceau was expected by many to have a successful crossover in American films having found success in her native France and having played a major role in ''[[Braveheart]]'' and the [[James Bond (film)|James Bond]] film ''[[The World Is Not Enough]]''. However, a number of flops and a bizarre, rambling speech she made at the Cannes Film Festival in 1999 fast derailed her in the US. She still makes films but many of them barely get released outside of France (you would think ''Ne te retourne pas'', a film where she teams up with [[Monica Bellucci]] and which [[Ho Yay|they embraced topless on the cover of ''Paris Match'']] while promoting would have gotten a decent international push).
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* Nikki Blonsky is a rather sad example of this. After being heavily hyped for her role in ''[[Hairspray]]'', a lot was expected of her. Sadly, Hollywood didn't know what to do with her and she's been mostly stuck being typecast as the fat girl in little-seen TV movies and the short-lived ''[[Huge]]''. Her first post-''[[Hairspray]]'' film role wasn't until four years later (a small role in the critically panned ''Waiting For Forever'') and it's since been discovered that she's been working in a salon to pay the bills.
* The younger actors in ''[[American Beauty]]'', [[Thora Birch]], Wes Bentley, and Mena Suvari. The three got huge pushes from the movie but none of them ever really amounted to anything. Suvari was probably the most successful (as she also got major hype from ''[[American Pie]]'') but all in all is not that big of a star.
** As for the other two, Birch had already established herself before the film but had a [[Star-Derailing Role]] in the form of ''[[Dungeons
** Meanwhile, Bentley got some notable roles but an out of control drug habit seemed to have destroyed his career. However, he has no less than six films scheduled for released in 2012, including a role in the highly anticipated film version of ''[[The Hunger Games]]'', so only time will tell if he can [[Career Resurrection|make it work]] or disappear into oblivion.
* Dougray Scott got a lot of hype after his role as Prince Charming in ''[[Ever After (film)|Ever After]]'' and soon became the frontrunner for roles such as [[X-Men (film)|Wolverine]] and [[James Bond]]. But after ''[[Mission: Impossible]] II'' went over schedule, he was forced to give up the Wolverine role to a little-known Australian actor named [[Hugh Jackman]]. While Jackman became a huge star, Scott's career fell into a tailspin as he's spent much of his career toiling away in TV movies, short-lived TV series (plus a single season on ''[[Desperate Housewives]]'', just as the show was beginning its long descent in ratings and buzz) and little-seen movies (his possible low point being the 2011 film ''Love's Kitchen'', which grossed just £121 at the UK box office).
* Emile Hirsch was an rising star who had built up much acclaim from films such as ''[[Into the Wild]]'' and ''[[Alpha Dog]]''. Then the failure of ''[[Speed Racer (film)|Speed Racer]]'' (an attempt to turn him into a big star) more or less led his hype to dry up, as he would not appear in another lead role until the 2011 flop ''The Darkest Hour''. Though he still has the occasional supporting role, Hirsch's time seems to have passed.
* After appearing in a number of well-regarded supporting appearances in various films and TV shows, Brandon Routh got a massive push when he was cast in the role made famous by Christopher Reeve in ''[[Superman Returns]]'' in 2006. His [[Star-Making Role]] ended up being a dead end when the film received mixed reviews, general viewer apathy and (despite making $400 million at the box office) negative profit due to prior production costs. Routh then disappeared for two years before landing a pair of cameo roles in a couple of films (''[[Zack and Miri Make a Porno]]'', ''[[Scott Pilgrim vs. the World]]'') and a guest spot on the third season of ''[[Chuck]]'', all of which failed to make much impact with audiences. His intended comeback in ''Dylan Dog: Dead of Night'', based on a bestselling comic series, also flopped at the box office ($4 million against a $20 million budget). Barring a major hit, it seems like he'll be stuck making small indie projects for quite some time.
* Mike Myers was one of the bigger stars of ''[[Saturday Night Live]]'' at the turn of [[The Nineties]], especially after a movie based on the ''[[Wayne's World]]'' sketches he toplined was a hit. The sequel and ''So I Married an Ax Murderer'' weren't as successful, but a few years after those he struck gold with the first ''[[Austin Powers]]'' film and [[Acting for Two|his two highly quotable characters in it]]. Though not a box-office blockbuster, it proved so successful on the video market that the 1999 sequel ''was''. His star rose even higher after he voiced the title character in ''[[Shrek]]''. But he developed a reputation for being egotistical and tough to work with, walked out of a planned movie adaptation of the ''SNL'' "Sprockets" sketches, and the ''Austin Powers'' sequels were met with frostier critical reactions (primarily due to [[Refuge in Vulgarity]] and [[Sequelitis]]) than the original had. A [[Star-Derailing Role]] came with his critically roasted turn as ''[[The Cat in the Hat]]'' in 2003, which was so terrible that [[Franchise Killer|Dr. Seuss' estate has prohibited any more live-action adaptations of his works]], and it was his last live-action leading role for five years. In the interim he continued with the ''Shrek'' franchise, but ''that'' went into decline with the third installment. 2008's ''[[The Love Guru]]'' was intended as a comeback vehicle but bombed spectacularly. With the ''Shrek'' saga closing out quietly in 2010, and no leading roles in the pipeline, early hopes that he would be the second coming of [[Peter Sellers]] have proven unfounded.
* [[Martin|Martin Lawrence]] was one of the fastest rising comedian stars of [[The Nineties|the '90s]]. His sitcom, ''Martin'', was incredibly popular and then in 1995 he starred along with Will Smith in ''[[Bad Boys]]'', which was the [[Star-Making Role]] for both actors.<ref>For extra irony, Lawrence was actually the top billed actor at that.</ref> Unfortunately, real life drug issues and a sexual harassment suit would cause the ending of the popular sitcom. On the film side, while [[Will Smith]] went on to star in other [[Men in Black|smash]] [[Independence Day|hits]], Lawrence stuck with acting in comedies that only produced lukewarm responses (the first ''Big Mamma's House'' film and ''[[Wild Hogs]]'' arguably being exceptions).
* ''Food Fight'' (the animated movie, not the Trope), was something the director and the CEO of Threshold had ''big'' hopes for. They claimed this movie - which both critics and audiences found a shoddily made, rushed, unfunny, insensitive, inappropriate and offensive piece of garbage, some actually claiming it was the worst animated movie ever made - would make them "the next generation Pixar'. Seriously. Currently, [[Let Us Never Speak of This Again| Threshold doesn't even mention it anywhere on their website.]]
== Examples that ''did'' hold up ==
* [[Angelina Jolie]]. Years of indie-cred roles in ''[[Gia]]'', ''[[Hackers]]'', and other films paid off with a big push from ''[[Girl, Interrupted]]'' in 1999, which won her the Best Supporting Actress Oscar and resulted in a near-endless push that got her big roles in such films as ''[[Lara Croft: Tomb Raider|Lara Croft Tomb Raider]]'' and ''[[Mr. and Mrs. Smith]]''. When the latter got her together with [[Brad Pitt]], the "Brangelina" media juggernaut was born. Clearly a major success story for everyone involved, as her films do generally well (though she stopped making them so quickly and focused on her home life and activist work), and the magazines get to make money off of her image (proof that being tabloid-bait isn't ''always'' a bad thing—only if that's ''all'' you're known for). Ironically, Jolie has stated on several occasions that she wants to give up acting for her growing family.
* [[Tom Cruise]] got a big push in [[The Eighties]], and tons of film roles. Virtually every one proved to be a success. Obviously, he kept on being famous and having huge box office smashes until he royally screwed up and [[Creator Breakdown|went crazy]] in the mid-2000s, with the infamous couch-jumping incident on ''[[The Oprah Winfrey Show]]'' being the telltale sign of his downfall. Twenty years? A pretty good run. Currently, he and the Hype Machine are going into overdrive to re-make him as a successful A-Lister, as he [[Adam Westing|pokes fun at himself]] with humorous roles, and tries to fit back into the "romantic Action Hero" archetype once again. Now that ''[[Mission: Impossible (film)||Mission Impossible]] IV'' is out to rave reviews, a [[Career Resurrection]] may not be far away.
* [[Nicole Kidman]] received a big push after earning critical praise for her role in ''To Die For'', and her career has held up pretty well since then. Though her career didn't really take off until Tom Cruise dumped her and she won an Oscar for her role in ''[[The Hours]]''.
* [[Heath Ledger]] started out as this in a big way, to the point where they even made a joke about it in ''[[Josie and the Pussycats (film)|Josie and The Pussycats]]''. However, the reclusive Ledger went back to having a low profile until ''[[Brokeback Mountain]]'' established him as an actor to truly be taken seriously. Sadly, he then experienced the greatest career surge of all -- [[Dead Artists Are Better|a premature death]]. ''[[The Dark Knight Saga]]'' helped establish his legacy, and the very least, he will be more remembered for his latest work than for being a [[Teen Idol]].
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* [[Reese Witherspoon]] certainly worked out well. After being a fairly run-of-the-mill actress in the early [[The Nineties|'90s]], she all of a sudden got this massive push, first with the critically acclaimed ''[[Election]]'' and then commercial success with the ''[[Legally Blonde]]'' series and various [[Chick Flick]]s. She effectively became the next [[Julia Roberts]], and even got an Oscar for her trouble (for ''[[Walk the Line]]'').
** Though she hasn't seen quite as much success in recent years; ''Rendition'', ''How Do You Know'', and ''[[Water for Elephants]]'' were all box-office flops (especially ''How Do You Know'') that received mixed reviews.
* [[Robert Downey, Jr.]] has been a [[Zig Zagged Trope|Zig Zag]] with the Hype Machine. Starting off as a member of the [[Brat Pack (actors)|Brat Pack]] in the 80's, Downey got his big break in the late '80s - early '90s which culminated with him getting an Oscar Nomination for his role as [[Charlie Chaplin]] in the biopic ''Chaplin.'' Unfortunately he had a real life downward spiral that led to drug abuses and arrests. After gaining sobriety in the mid 2000s, Downey returned to acting in the indy scene, and ended up making his [[Career Resurrection]] in 2008 with his starring role in ''[[Iron Man (film)|Iron Man]]'' and has since then taken off and haven't looked back since.
== Examples on the fence ==
* The entire cast of ''[[Friends]]'' were given countless movie roles the second that show became a sensation. The results have been mixed—Courteney Cox and Matthew Perry have gone back to TV (the former had a flop with ''Dirt'', and while ''[[Cougar Town]]'' was initially a hit, declining ratings led to it being put on hiatus in the middle of S2, held for mid-season in S3, and pushed from ABC to TBS for S4; the latter is 0 for 2 with ''[[Studio 60
* Jude Law spent years as a bit player before receiving his big Hollywood marketing push in 2004, starring in ''[[Sky Captain and The World of Tomorrow]]'', the remake of ''Alfie'', and half a dozen other films. Chris Rock engaged in some [[Lampshade Hanging]] at his expense at the Oscars ceremony, making fun of how this "[[Tom Cruise]] [[Poor Man's Substitute|Lite]]" was receiving so much hype for what seemed to be no reason. Of course, every film either bombed or was a disappointment, and then he got caught cheating on his then-fiance Sienna Miller with his children's nanny. Oops. Even with his career damaged, however, Law has continued plugging away, with major roles in ''[[Sherlock Holmes (film)|Sherlock Holmes]]'', ''[[Repo Men]]'', and other recent Hollywood films. It's a serviceable career, although not nearly the highly bankable, Cruise-style A-lister that the studios were hoping he would be.
* [[Uma Thurman]] was victimized by this. After notable roles in the late '80s with films like ''[[Dangerous Liaisons]]'' and ''[[The Adventures of Baron Munchausen]]'', she became an "It Girl" with ''[[Pulp Fiction]]''. This push ultimately faltered within three years after subsequent films, particularly ''[[Batman and Robin (film)|Batman and Robin]]'' and ''[[The Avengers (1998 film)|The Avengers 1998]]'', did poorly, and she vanished from the limelight (rumour has it she took time off to concentrate on motherhood, which might have killed buzz even further) before ''[[Kill Bill]]'' [[Career Resurrection|reignited her career]] in 2003.
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* Katherine Heigl. After several years of TV appearances in stuff like ''[[Roswell]]'' and ''[[Grey's Anatomy|Greys Anatomy]]'', she gained a lot of fans for her starring role in ''[[Knocked Up]]''... only to throw them all away within weeks. Not long after ''Knocked Up'' came out, she did a very vocal interview where she attacked basically everyone involved in the film, calling director [[Judd Apatow]] a sexist and lead actor [[Seth Rogen]] a slob, among other things. However, in spite of the [[Hatedom]] she brought on with that interview, her recent works, ''27 Dresses'' and ''The Ugly Truth'', have actually done very well at the box office despite not-so-great reviews, and she did later apologize for the way she acted.
** Part of the reason for her continued success may be that some people have given Heigl an [[Alternative Character Interpretation]], feeling that her comments, rather than showing her to be a [[Small Name, Big Ego|primadonna]] [[Jerkass|bitch]], prove that she's the [[Only Sane Man|Only Sane Woman]] in Hollywood. Heigl was [http://nymag.com/daily/entertainment/2007/06/knocked_up_the_nussbaumsternbe.html far from] [http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2007/sep/04/features.juddapatowfilm the only] [http://www.slate.com/id/2179621/ person] saying that ''[[Knocked Up]]'' was sexist (and [http://www.vanityfair.com/services/presscenter/pressrelease/katherine_heigl200801 her comments] were actually pretty mild compared to what some critics were saying). They take the fact that the tabloids paint her as a shrewish [[Straw Feminist]] (while arguably exaggerating her comments) as proof that [[Straw Man Has a Point|she had a point]] about sexism in Hollywood. Now if only she'd branch out beyond generic rom-coms...
* The fictional character [[Batwoman]]. When the character was announced as appearing in the weekly comic series ''[[52]]'' in 2007 there was a massive media response, even branching into non-comic related formats. The character was a [[Continuity Reboot|recreation of the classic character from the 1950's]], but was written as a lesbian involved with one of the primary characters for the series. Most of the media focus was on her sexuality, and she became regarded as the highest profile gay superhero in [[The DCU]]. [[Dan
* [[Justin Bieber]], who has enjoyed ''massive'' success as a pop music sensation, may or may not be the latest in a series of flash-in-the-pan [[Teen Idol]]s. It doesn't help that in the eighteen months or so he's been on the radar, he's released the same album three times.<ref>a two-part album released in halves four months apart, a compilation of the aforementioned two-parter, and an acoustic re-release with mostly identical content, but focused on vocals and instrumentals, rather than synthetic production</ref> Thus far, he's garnered most of his fame with media hype and live appearances; all of which is fine, but an image backed by an hour of recorded music can only last for so long before the hype begins to die down. Let's face it, he'll be on the cover of every teen magazine and on every poster in teenage girls' bedrooms for the next year or so, but his next album will help steer the course of whether his stardom starts to burn down, or whether he has legitimate staying power as an artist and not just as a hype product.
** The biggest threat to Bieber's career as a mature performer is people getting completely sick of him, as he has saturated every form of media out there, even appearing on shows and in magazines that have nothing to do with his target demographic of young children and teens. Whether he can make the transition to mature performer once these kids lose interest or whether [[Hype Backlash|everyone will get so sick of him]] that they'll throw parties to celebrate him finally dropping off the radar for good remains to be seen.
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[[Category:Show Business]]
[[Category:Hollywood Style]]
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