9. Anna Faris
Anna has been around for over a decade, and ever since the smash success of Scary Movie, I’ve been waiting for her to be comedy’s go-to goofy girl. However, twelve years later and about twenty goofy girls later, she still hasn’t quite hit the big time. I thought her turn in The House Bunny would be star-making, and it certainly gained her a lot of fans, but it wasn’t enough to bring her to the next level. Her biggest mistake was letting the Scary Movie franchise define her for so long – every time something else didn’t work out, she came back for more. This works for some franchises, but not one that has garnered such a laughable reputation thanks to the slew of other spoof movies (looking at you, Epic Movie). I had hope that What’s Your Number? could hit the spot for moviegoers, but sadly it came and went without much of a second thought.
Is there hope for her yet?: Well… that’s debatable. On one hand, she made the VERY correct decision by declining a role in Scary Movie 5 (poor Ashley Tisdale), and a supporting turn The Dictator was a wise move . On the other hand, a look at her upcoming projects doesn’t exactly inspire confidence in her future. The most promising, Movie 43, is only promising because of who’s around her (Emma Stone and Kate Winslet, not to mention an array of others). The other two just seem like more additions to her C-list rom-com resume.
My suggestion: If Anna takes a brief step out of the spotlight in less respectable movies to let her quirk shine in supporting roles for a while, maybe the world will finally see what she can do.
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2 Comments
You make some good points about Seyfried, but calling Dear John, Letters to Juliet, and In Time clunkers depends on how you are defining clunkers. They didn’t do well with critics, but they all did well at the box office and were profitable. Although Dear John made national headlines by ending Avatar’s reign at the top of the US box office, it might surprise you to know that In Time is her second highest grossing movie, making more worldwide than Mean Girls or Dear John with over $173 million total. The reason In Time might be viewed as a clunker by some is because it only made about $37 million domestically.
Seyfried’s problem is that Gone was a complete bomb, with critics and at the box office, and Red Riding Hood was a critical disaster and a box office disappointment. Two movies like in a 12 month period means trouble for anyone who isn’t on the A+ list. Adding to her problems is the awful looking trailer for The Big Wedding, which looks like the worst possible type of romcom. TBW is being released the Friday before Halloween (Oct 26) and that weekend is typically a graveyard for movies not named Saw or Paranormal Activity, and is certainly not the time most people want to see a movie about a wedding. Having a likely bomb on the immediate horizon isn’t helping her career prospects.
Lovelace may well be praised by critics and should showcase her range as an actress, but it won’t make money. Les Mis is her best chance to return to the lists that she is probably no longer on. It looks like a certain hit with critics and the public, though opening against the Hobbit on Dec 14 will probably hold it’s numbers down somewhat.
It appears that her agent has given up on finding work for her until Lovelace and Les Mis come out (unless you count an animated “movie” called Epic and a tiny indie called Pete and Goat, her only films to be out in 2013) so you’re probably right about a 100% chance that it’s raining for her right now. Nice Mean Girls reference, by the way.
The biggest challenge for Seyfried has to do with career management. She is one of the few successful actors/actresses under the age of 50 who doesn’t have a manager. That would probably not be a problem if she had a competent agent, but she is with a tiny, third tier agency called Innovative Artists that has next to no clout, and absolutely no packing ability since they don’t represent directors or writers. Her agent, Abby Bluestone, is apparently a good friend of Seyfried’s, which will make it difficult for Seyfried to move on to an agent and agency capable of furthering her career.
Lovelace and Les Mis should halt her career skid, but without proper management, the reprieve from straight to DVD hell will likely be a temporary one. She’s one of the better actresses of her generation, so let’s hope she makes better career decisions in the future.
I’d like to see Winona Ryder make a career comeback. An actress of many talents, would be nice to see her get some good film roles again.