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Hollywood is thinking twice about A-list stars and costly productions in a reaction to the poor economy, but also because of the success of recent films with unknown actors according to news agency Reuters.

Much as we love seeing the A-List on the red carpet, there does come a point when even a great dress or a matinee idol style swagger can't pull off a bad movie. An industry developed to entertain us had it appears - forgotten this altogether by placing an ever growing degree of importance on its stars rather than that much overlooked and crucial part of a film - its story-line. Swide takes a closer look at the waning power of the A-lister.

Vanity Fair:  Say “paparazzi.” Photograph by Jonathan Becker.

"This summer’s box office results proved that a great story has the power to trump a star", according to the article. "The Hangover," a movie with a little-known cast, made $459 million at the global box-office "District 9," a low-budget movie in which the biggest stars were space aliens made $200 million and thriller "Paranormal Activity," starring Katie Featherston and Micah Sloat, made $100 million. Summit Entertainment's relatively low-budget ($50 million) franchise movie "The Twilight Saga: New Moon," a sequel to 2008 hit vampire romance "Twilight" is set for a smash opening this week.

LIFE.com: Brad Pitt and Gwyneth Paltrow Step Out, 1996 The hot couple met making "Se7en,". Their relationship would last for three years.

A-listers who have, according to the feature suffered box-office flops recently include Bruce Willis ("Surrogates"), Adam Sandler ("Funny People"), Will Ferrell ("Land of the Lost"), Eddie Murphy ("Imagine That") and Julia Roberts ("Duplicity") – Jim Carrey’s "Disney's A Christmas Carol. Last weekend, "Disney's A Christmas Carol," featuring the voice of comic actor Jim Carrey, became the latest celebrity-driven movie to stumble at boxoffices, opening to a lower-than-expected $30 million for a film which is said to have cost at least $175 million

Life:com Stephen Spielberg and Tom Hanks Party With Elton John, 1994
Hanks, an Oscar winner for his portrayal of an attorney with AIDS in "Philadelphia," attends John's after-party benefiting AIDS research.

Keeping costs down is obviously key to the future of film making - solutions muted in the article highlight Peter Jackson's 'Lord of the Rings' trilogy which shot all three films together at the same - The Twilight Saga has followed the same concept, thus helping to keep location and other costs considerably lower. How we wonder however will the A-list survive being set adrift from L.A for up to a year - only time will tell, but we do predict it will make for some interesting gossip...

To read the Reuters article 'Hollywood Rethinks use of A-list Actors' by Alex Dobuzinskis see www.reuters.com/lBrandChannel.

For more Oscar pictures see Life.com's picture gallery at www.life.com/best-oscar-photos-the-1990s

Source: Reuters

Photo Credit (Main Image) : Vanity Fair What surprised Natalie Portman? Photograph by Hannah Thomson. (2009) www.vanityfair.com/culture/oscars/2009/oscar-party-slideshow

 

TAGS: a-list hollywood peter jackson blockbuster twilight new moon natalie portman district 24 reuters film