Are Actors Just 'Clowns for Hire'?
SodaHead Film
2012/03/13 18:41:12
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Leonardo DiCaprio has been nominated for three Oscars, two BAFTAs, and eight Golden Globes (winning the 2005 Globe for "Aviator"). He isn't the greatest actor on earth, but he has earned the respect and admiration of the film industry for his work in movies like "Titanic" and "Inception." But, despite all of that, he doesn't seem to have the highest esteem for his profession.
DiCaprio recently told The Sun, "I realize that I do not change the course of history. I am an actor, I do a movie, that’s the end of it. You have to realize we are just clowns for hire." He went on to explain that he almost turned down "Titanic," saying, "I would love to say I predicted it would be one of the biggest hits in film history. I didn't -- and wondered whether I should do it at all. I resisted it for a long time because I had been offered the film 'Boogie Nights.'" Do you agree with Leonardo DiCaprio? Are actors just "clowns for hire"?
DiCaprio recently told The Sun, "I realize that I do not change the course of history. I am an actor, I do a movie, that’s the end of it. You have to realize we are just clowns for hire." He went on to explain that he almost turned down "Titanic," saying, "I would love to say I predicted it would be one of the biggest hits in film history. I didn't -- and wondered whether I should do it at all. I resisted it for a long time because I had been offered the film 'Boogie Nights.'" Do you agree with Leonardo DiCaprio? Are actors just "clowns for hire"?
Top Opinion
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Sperry23 2012/03/13 20:46:05No
+6Perhaps DiCaprio is, but for the most part, good actors spend years training and working on their craft. The best never stop learning. And for the record, professional clowns also spend years studying and perfecting their craft. DiCaprio probably should have done Boogie Nights instead of Titanic. It's clear he doesn't appreciate what it takes to be a good professional.
Cesar Romero (1960's Batman Movie)
Jack Nicholson (Batman)
Heath Ledger (The Dark Knight)
Don't get me wrong...movies are great...the biggest art form around.
But most actors, like most writers, artists, and any other creative types, are really only clowns for hire when you come down it it...doing things for mass entertainment, usually with little or no voice in the final outcome of the "product."
They do the best they can under the circumstances.
I think the reason why I love Cate so much is that she's not afraid to take risks. She's been Elizabeth and Bob Dylan. She's both searched for her missing daughter and also trying to hunt down and kill a 16 year old girl. And she's done it all with such fierceness and believability. As an actress, I definitely look up to her. I would take a career like hers over being some silly rom-com "it" girl any day.
Read it in context. He was just driving home the point that actors don't change the course of history. They're not experts on any political issue, though they're often treated as such.
I went to high school with a girl who's an actress now. I didn't know her all that well, but I do know that she was acting a lot in school too, and was putting a lot of work and effort into it.
Acting is not as easy as it looks. It's like pro sports -- you watch a pro sporting event, and you think that the pros make the sport look easy.
Well, it's the same with acting. A professional actor makes it look easy. But it isn't.
And I bet he loves 'Pennywise'; that book brought him much revenue...