There used to be an almost unbridgeable gulf between critically-acclaimed roles in Oscar-worthy dramas and the roles in action movies. A new generation of stars, exemplified by Jennifer Lawrence, Oscar Isaac, and Michael Fassbender, is pursuing both Oscar-level performances and roles in genre films. Jennifer Lawrence won an Oscar for Silver Linings Playbook, but has also starred in X-Men and Hunger Games films. Michael Fassbender has played villains from Magneto to Macbeth, including a slave owner and a creepy android. Yet, beyond big-budget productions like Prometheus and X-Men movies, Fassbender has also starred in indie films like Frank. After critically-acclaimed roles in Inside Llewyn Davis and Ex Machina, Oscar Isaac has joined the cast of Star Wars: The Force Awakens and X-Men: Apocalypse. Why are some of the most talented actors now drawn to major franchise films in addition to more reputable projects?
This might be more of a study in the rising legitimization of action films instead of the actors who are in them. – Cmandra9 years ago