I was thinking about this the other day.
Who are the biggest names in hollywood these days.
Then consider the power of comeback or possibility.

So i put together a list of hollywood names who can best draw movies at the boxoffice.
( remember , this is not a list of the best actors or actresses but a list of people with great power to hit a number one hit )


10. Tom Hanks

This is an example of a good actor with a large fan base who`s name can cary a movie to numer 1.


9. Johnny Depp

After Pirates of the Caribbean he became a big Hollywood name.
Unfortunatly he seeks the Oscar two much and ends up working on some smaller films.
If Pirates should go under , so would he.


8. Tom Cruise

Just like Tom Hanks , he has a large fanbase ( maybe larger ).
Lately his actions off screen have cost his popularity to fall.
Still , he has the hability to pick good projects and enjoy great boxoffice runs.


7. Jerry Bruckheimer

This is someone who managed to turn his name into a logo.
Aside from King Arthur and Glory Road , his latest movies have been boxoffice hits ( Pirates of the Caribbean , National Treasure , Bad Boys 2 )


6. Eminem

His named pushed 8 Mile to a 50 million opening ( 20,000 pta ).
Even though 8 Mile enjoyed such an opening because the movie was believed to be his byography , i believe that if he should do another film , he`s name would carry the movie to number one.


5. Mel Gibson

He would have been higher on my list but the fact that he hasn`t done any acting lately makes me believe that he will lose the popularity that he got from Passion of the Christ.
That was a religious , historical and controversial movie that if directed by Steven Spielberg or Peter Jackson would still have made it big.
However his also a big Hollywood name for his acting.


4. Will Smith

Yet another big Hollywood name but maybe not such a big Hollywood actor.
More of an action picture actor then anothing else.
However his latest films enjoyed big openings and that shows his hollywood power.


3. James Cameron

Ever since Titanic he hasn`t directed anything.
However i still believe that most of the audience Spiderman enjoyed in it`s opening weekend was because so most was said about Cameron directing it that it became Cameron`s follow up to Titanic.
If he should return to directing a believe that his name all over a project could carry it to a big opening weekend.


2. M. Night Shyamalan

When a movie gets it`s reputation for saying " a Shyamalan picture " then you know you`ve made it big.
Especially when the movie acctualy makes it big.
He can open a movie to 50 million easily ( Signs , The Village ) but i`m not sure how much The Village damaged his carrer.
Will have to wait for Lady in the Water to find out.
However with all the anticipation , dont expect less then a 40 million dolar opening.


1. Peter Jackson

Here`s someone who had everything to be the biggest Hollywood name but blew it with King Kong.
Still a believe people are dying to know what he will do next so i put him at number one.
However i believe he will only get one more chance to prove his value before his popularity starts to fall.




Honorable mentions :


Steven Spielberg

Lately his named hasn`t been of much value to his movies ( War of the Worlds was a popular remake and a summer movie )
I guess he will always be remembered for his past but lets hope he can save his future.


George Lucas

I not sure how well he would do outside Star Wars.
He tryied in the past but didn`t succeed.
Indiana Jones doesn`t really count since it`s more a franchise then a Lucas film.


Jim Carrey , Adam Sandler , Ben Stiller , Will Ferrel , Mike Myers

All actors who can open a movie to number 1 , but if they try something out of comedy , they all fail.

Um, no.

Your #1 has had only one film since hitting it big, hardly a measure of drawing power.

#2 completely tainted his name with The Village, so we have to wait until Lady in the Water to see if he's still good.

#3 hasn't had a movie in 10 years.

Eminem only has 8 Mile. One hit does not a draw make.

Bruckheimer is easily the biggest producer in Hollywood, but I doubt his name changes the gross THAT much. He just happens to produce audience-friendly movies.

The other half of the list is respectable.

ANd don't forget ladies still work in Hollywood.

:negative:

I really don't get the deal with this Lady In The Water rubbish...

Me neither.

The list is a joke.

I wanted to put Jodie Foster on my list but she doesn`t draw a movie like Tom Hanks or Johnny Depp.
Julia Roberts isn`t the star she used to be ( Mona Lisa Smile ).

You know of any other actress who sould be on that list?

I put Eminem on that list because he has a huge fan base from his music career and yes , i believe that he has power to draw a big opening weekend.

If Crash stared Eminem or if he was in Get Rich or die Trying those movies would have had better opening weekends.

As for James Cameron , you have to keep an open mind to the possibility of a return.
Imagine the publicity stunt :

" 10 years after Titanic , James Cameron returns with a new movie ".

Eminem is obviously a draw, but he shouldn't be on the list for the sole reason that he hasn't been in more than one film. Will Smith, Jim Carrey, Denzel Washington, Jodie Foster, Tom Hanks, Adam Sandler - these are consistant draws.

Reese was damaged for a couple months by Just Like Heaven, but Walk the Line saved her. Her, Jodie and Julia are all more worthy of slots then Brickheimer Eminem. 8 Mile was released at the height of his popularity, as The Eminem Show had just sold over 7M copies that summer. Now, I really don't think he could open a film as well as other actors below him on that list.

And the B.O. has changed so much since Titanic its really hard to tell if people are still willing to see "A James Cameron Film."

I wouldn`t use album sales as a point of reference.
A lot of people download songs off the internet.
This ain`t the 60`s anymore.
An artist who can sell 7 million copies these days , is like selling 20 million back in the 60`s.

There aren`t a lot of musicians who make it in hollywood and he did.
But i guess we can only determine that if he does another movie.

As for Reese , the Oscar isn`t gonna help her anymore then it helped Hillary Swank.
The Oscars are "dead".

However , Julia Roberts could draw , she hasn`t worked in a movie since Ocean`s Twelve , and i dont know what the level of anticipation is for her next film.
I basically didn`t put her on the list because of Mona Lisa Smile.

Johnny Depp does not "seek Oscars". He does the same kinda small movies now that he did ten years ago. It's just that now, because of PotC, more people are taking notice of his smaller works. He's *never* been interested in winning awards; heck, he and Vanessa ditched the Oscars in '03 as soon as Johnny lost so that he could go smoke--he hates award shows.

Joy

Out of Reese Witherspoon's last 5 mainstream releases (I'm not including Vanity Fair, which wasn't going to do that well anyway), 4/5 have done $90 m +. Also, Denzel and Foster should be up there. They are consistent draws.

Tom Hanks
Adam Sandler
Jim Carrey
Will Smith
Jodie Foster
Julia Roberts
Nicole Kidman
Tom Cruise
Mel Gibson
Denzel Washington
Reese Witherspoon

I'd consider these people the main draws in Hollywood at the current moment.

I just noticed, Steve Martin has had a really good decade so far, and seems to be close to his commercial peak:

2/10/06 The Pink Panther Sony $81,954,023 3,477 $20,220,412 3,477
12/21/05 Cheaper by the Dozen 2 Fox $82,480,949 3,211 $9,309,387 3,175
12/25/03 Cheaper by the Dozen Fox $138,614,544 3,307 $27,557,647 3,298
3/7/03 Bringing Down the House BV $132,716,677 2,910 $31,101,026 2,801
8/13/99 Bowfinger Uni. $66,384,775 2,732 $18,062,550 2,706

Here are his last 5 wide release films. The past 3 years alone he's had all of his films do $80 m +. But he loses alot of attention to Sandler/Myers/Carrey, but Martin definitely has been doing well for himself lately...

All actors and actresses ??

I think you got the wrong idea about hollywood draw power.

Peter Jackson , M. Night Shyamalan and Jerry Bruckheimer will all see their next movies hit a 40 million opening weekend faster then Denzel Washington and Nicole Kidman.

As for the comedians , it`s like i said , if they stick to comedy they will draw big.

Reese Witherspoon and Jodie Foster are probably the hottest actresses at the moment in hollywood.

Jerry Bruckheimer is not a draw. I'll be surprised if even half the people who watches his films knows who he is. He's always attached to big projects, though, so that's how he does well.

Well, I was referring to actors. Obviously I know people like Steven Spielberg would encourage people to go see a movie based on draw power.

Zingy, I think Bruckheimer is popular enough by now that most people know who he is. I mean, it's not like people see the movies/television shows he produces *because* of him, but they know who he is.

[/quote]

Well, I was referring to actors. Obviously I know people like Steven Spielberg would encourage people to go see a movie based on draw power.

Zingy, I think Bruckheimer is popular enough by now that most people know who he is. I mean, it's not like people see the movies/television shows he produces *because* of him, but they know who he is.[/quote]


Exactly.
At the end of every CSI episode you can always read "executive producer : Jerry Bruckheimer"
At every trailer for one of his movies you can always read "produced by Jerry Bruckheimer"
Probably that`s why The Island failed while Pirates of the Caribbean enjoyed a 13 million opening day.

I guess it`s fair to say people know who he is.

The same thing's true of pretty much every star.

No star today can draw an audience based on their name alone. It's all to do with the projects they attach themselves to. If Jim Carrey does a high concept comedy flick, guaranteed big bucks. Stick him in an arthouse drama... flop-a-roo. Does this mean he's any less of a box office draw? No. He's still one of the biggest draws in Hollywood, you just need to know how to use him.

The same goes for anyone. I can't think of a single actor, director or producer today who could make any film a success. Their drawing power is only as good as the genre they've proven themselves in. If Jerry Bruckheimer produced The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants 2, it probably wouldn't do gangbusters at the box office. James Cameron's name alone wouldn't be enough to drive a drama about a spelling bee to $600 million.

There was a time when I would've said Hanks could've drawn an audience in no matter what he did. But that flew out of the window with The Ladykillers and The Terminal. Apparently people only like watching him in epic dramas or mainstream comedies.

When it comes to stars ( actors or actresses ) a agree with you 100 %.
It`s hard for a star to detetch from the genre that made him or her famous.

But directors and producers...i dont agree.

I bet you 100 bucks that what ever Peter Jackson does next will open to 40 million at least.
Hell , he could do a remake of The Frighteners and it would open to 40 million.

As for James Cameron , he had The Terminator and Titanic.
Two different genres where he succeded.

And as for Jerry Bruckheimer , he produced Flashdance and Coyote Ugly , so there goes your theory.

I'd take your Peter Jackson bet, if I had 100 bucks to spare, as I doubt The Lovely Bones will open anywhere near $40 million. Why? Because it's not blockbuster fare. It's the equivalent of Will Smith taking time out from rom-coms and action flicks to do Ali. It won't make him any less of a draw, it'll just be a project the vast majority of people won't be interested in, regardless of who's directing.

Re: James Cameron - Two different genres, yes. But they had the Cameron hallmarks... big effects, big budget, big action and a love story. Both films were very much Cameron doing what Cameron does best - epic blockbusters. And when you get any actor, director or producer doing what they do best, people will show up.

Coyote Ugly's a bit of a stretch as a blockbuster, but I'll give you that. Flashdance as well. But both were flashy, high concept blockbuster/Bruckheimer material. Again, stick Bruckheimer's name on Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and it won't suddenly become a hit.

Many others are also often attached to big projects, but don't have anywhere near the same success. Plus, his smaller budget films tend to be successful. Bruckheimer knows what will be popular, and he picks the right people in every area of production.

If Peter Jackson were the biggest "draw" he could make a romantic comedy, a sci fi epic, a drama, and still bring alot of people in. I don't see him as a guaranteed draw. Its easy to get to $200 m when you have a $200 m budget behind you. Now Will Smith the past 10 years has shown the most versatility, and is more of a draw than Peter Jackson his.

Please,your not implying that james cameron helped in the SM opening weekend record are you?
You sound like a fan boy.

Spielberg has made all kinds of films,Comedy,sci-fi,drama,horror and has been successful in those genries,name me another director who has been successful in every genry?

I actually think Mel Gibson is definitley one of the biggest out there, quite underrated. Cruise, Smith, Hanks, and him are the top 4 males I'd say. I'd actually have him up with Smith as possibly top 2, he's just that strong. Sandler and Carrey are excellent in comedies, but they have no versatility anywhere else. Denzel is solid in nailing the 20 mil range over and over, but he can't go much farther.

But yeah, Mel is a monster. What Women Want would have been a regular romcom, put him in and bang $180 mil+. Signs, of course the uber blockbuster with $225 mil+. The Patriot, We Were Soldiers, some of the more succesful movies in a dead war genre with $78 mil and $113 mil respectively. And we all know the Passion owes everything to his controversy and ability to bring it to the mainstream, even though it wasn't directly his name that got people to see it. The guy is huge.

IMO, What Woman Want was greatly helped by Gibson, but the holiday season was what really pushed it up. It opened really well, but then fell 53% in its 2nd weekend (granted Dec 24th was the Sunday of that weekend, and Miss Congeniality came out). At a normal time, I would have seen $140 m or so from it, but the holidays were what pushed it to its huge heights (at the time outpacing Pretty Woman for biggest rom com ever I believe).