Over the last several months, there has been an astronomical rise in allegations of misconduct (sexual or otherwise) within the mainstream entertainment profession. Recently, Morgan Freeman himself was accused- a man that many view in an extremely favorable light. What are the implications this rise in allegations (founded or not) will have on the entertainment industry? Will they fade away, or spark significant changes? I believe this is a relevant topic that may be of interest.
This is an excellent topic, but a common one as of late on the Artifice. I would encourage that perhaps solely focusing on Morgran Freeman would help to make this argument a little more unqiue. Otherwise please check out our other topics and published articles that are similar to this one to see how you could either diversify the issue or bring in another angle that has yet to be explored. – Pamela Maria7 years ago
The star system was the method of creating, promoting and exploiting stars in Hollywood films. Movie studios would select promising young actors and glamorize and create personas for them. They would go so far as to give them stage names and Cary Grant's real name was Archie Leach. Now, the phenomenon of the movie star is still used to lure audiences to the cinema. It leads to multi-million dollar paychecks, TMZ, and outrageous staking behavior from crazed fans. Is it time for this to end? Should there be caps on actor paychecks? Should we end tabloid news circuits? Should we stop televising award shows? Would it benefit society? Would it bankrupt Hollywood?
Yes. It's about time that this crazy star system should end and more reasonable salaries or fees introduced. When it gets to the point whereby an actor can command a multi-million dollar contract and yet a struggling British nurse cannot even receive a decent pay rise, despite working a 60 hour week, then something has gone seriously wrong with the world (excuse the politics). So, yes to capping actors earnings, yes to ending the tabloid news circus. Awards ceremonies are shams and as to wether it would bankrupt Hollywood - who really cares? – Amyus7 years ago
I have all sorts of questions about fairness and legality:
Who would have the authority to put caps on actor paychecks? Who would have the authority to end tabloid news circuits?
Can we reasonably cap the paychecks in one industry but not in others? What about company CEOs? Or big sports players? What makes the entertainment industry so in need of (selective) regulation? – JamesBKelley7 years ago
In a capitalist system, money is often diverted towards that which society perceives as requiring greatest demand. If a doctor makes one person healthier in a day, but a movie star makes 10,000 people happier in an hour, how else should one expect the remuneration to be allocated? – Psiwrite7 years ago
From Mickey Rooney's portrayal of I.Y Yunoshi in Breakfast at Tiffany's to recent controversy of Scarlett Johansson playing Motoko Kusanagi in the Ghost in the Shell live action adaptation. Many Hollywood films give various roles meant for minorites to Caucasian actors but is it really racism or just Hollywood not quick enough with times to adapt to our rapidly changing world.
I think another issue the article writer might tackle is the justification I've heard that even some global markets prefer white/light-skinned actors and how this affects actors of color worldwide. Concerning just America, I've seen a lot of discussion about the effects on Asian-American actors when whitewashing happens. Gene Yang, a Chinese-America graphic novelist and proponent on diversity, made a comic about The Last Airbender's whitewashing. Constance Wu and Ming-Na Wen have addressed The Ghost in the Shell. Another older film to look at could be The Conquerer with John Wayne as Genghis Khan. – Emily Deibler9 years ago
As an Asian, I really take this issue quite personally. I would recommend the person looking into this article and accompanying video http://www.vox.com/2016/4/21/11477914/hollywood-asian-whitewashing. It speaks about Asians being underrepresented or portray as a fool. I don't think it should be considered revolutionary to cast a Japanese for a Japanese role. It's galling to see that "yellow face" is still acceptable in 2016. – Jill9 years ago
The former, people don't realise it but this is a more subtle form of racism. – sandrazemingui9 years ago
Al Jolson and Robert Downey, Jr. in blackface, separated by about seven decades. Now that's inertia. – Tigey9 years ago
