Should Big Franchises Cast Unknown or Popular Actors?

Hello, fellow moviegoers!

   Recently there’s been a lack of big films coming out to review. We’re in a bit of a calm before the storm that is preceding the summer movie season, so this whole week will be full of fun little editorials such as this one. Today, I decided to take the opportunity to discuss what has been a major debate in Hollywood for a long time now. That is the question of whether or not major franchises should be casting big names to draw people into the theater, or if they should cast relatively unknown actors to give them a chance to grow their career.
   The first side of the argument here is that studios should cast big name actors in their major films. This will help to ensure box office returns and make the films profitable. The best example of this today is the superhero genre. Marvel and DC have both been bringing in big names to their films to get people in the theaters. A few good examples are Benedict Cumberbatch as Doctor Strange, Ben Affleck as Batman, Paul Rudd as Ant-Man, and most recently Josh Brolin as Cable in Deadpool 2. While these actors have all done great jobs in their roles (save for Brolin who we have yet to see) they were a sort-of safe bet financially for the studios. For the most part, this mentality has actually paid off. Suicide Squad, which had the likes of Will Smith, Margot Robbie, and Viola Davis, out grossed 2013’s Man of Steel and 2012’s The Amazing Spider-Man domestically. As I’m sure you know, Superman and Spider-Man are two of the most popular superheroes in the world, and they were beaten by the Suicide Squad.
   The other side of this argument is that these major franchises, meaning ones that people will see no matter what (Transformers, Star Wars, Marvel films), should cast unknown actors in their leads to help create the next generation of movie stars. The best example of a Studio putting this into idea into action is Lucasfilm with the newest Star Wars films. In The Force Awakens, Disney cast relative unknowns Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, and Oscar Isaac in their leads. Now those three are all beginning great careers. Fox's X-Men franchise has also done this recently in X-Men: Apocalypse (coincidentally also starring Isaac), though DC seems to be really going in this direction. This can be seen in their casting of literally the entire Justice League other than Batman.
   In my opinion, studios should try to have a good mix of both of these ideas. Often, a good strategy is to cast unknowns in the lead roles and surround them with big names in supporting roles. A good example of this is the recent live-action Jungle Book film. They cast Neel Sethi in the lead role of Mowgli and surrounded him with big names such as Bill Murray, Ben Kingsley, and Christopher Walken. It looks like Disney is planning on doing this with their upcoming live-action Mulan and Aladdin films as well. Each of these approaches to casting a film can work but it all depends on the film it’s in.
   So what do you think about casting in these major films? Would you prefer big names or relatively unknown ones? Let me know by commenting on this post! Also, if you enjoyed this article, share it on Facebook and Twitter! It really helps! Don’t forget, I post every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, so check back then for more movie reviews and miscellaneous movie thoughts!

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